I think we can agree that plein air painting is challenging?

[E.J.H.]

I think you showed that one before, or another one in the same style, not sure.
I really like them, but maybe the fact I am born and raised in the Netherlands might have something to do with that...

 

[P. Barrie]

Number 1 - if you don't use one already get a "view catcher." At $10. it's $9. overpriced but once you start using one you'd pay $20 to replace it. The first thing I discovered is that you have to set up much, much (much) further from the scene than you'd imagine. Whenever possible do sight-size painting. That's where the objects in the scene (that you composed with the viewfinder) appear to your eye, the same size that they will be on the canvas. You can use your brush handle to take measurements, find placement. Etc. Image copying from a photo that was the same size as your painting. -- same concept.

Number 2 - practice setting up and painting in your backyard, around your house until you get some of the kinks worked out.

Yes, I find the view finder to be very helpful in choosing the scene/comp and for the initial drawing/block in. Another important item is an umbrella or shade/light diffuser to make the glare manageable where you are unable to set up in a shaded spot. Without it it is difficult to see and capture the color on your pallete and image surface. Toned palette and canvas or panel is also helpful.

I made this rig.
The sun shade works good, so long as there’s only very light breeze.

 

[Bongo]

Nice looking rig. You made your own umbrella - that's hardcore!.
Is that a grid panel? How does that work - seems like if you move your head it would throw everything off.

 

[P. Barrie]

The sunshade was made from nylon fabric I got for a few bucks at Johann Fabrics, wood dowels i already had and a camera type gooseneck with the included fittings. The gooseneck was about $20. A modification of James Gurney design. It disassembles eaisily for transport, as the dowels slip out of diagonal holes drilled in the center hub wood block and the goosenecks unscrews by hand.
The view finder is simply a wooden frame I made. It attaches with a dowel into a hole. It swivels for the view you want. It’s the same size as the panels I use for plein air. Trouble is I don’t go out to paint much.

 

[Bartc]

I've bought and DIYed viewfinders and for me they aren't useful. Just framing with my hands seems to work fine, a carryover from my photography days. Yes, some sort of sun shade is a real bonus due to the color issue in direct sunlight. For me it only works some of the time; wind is the major culprit in its demise.
This is a creative rig and I'm always enthused and amused by the rigs folks create. A credit to creativity in service of creativity!
I've made quite a few of my own. Each one surpassing the utility of the prior version (or so I tell myself.) There's some joy in just making your own stuff, even if it turns out wonky. It's a pastime in and of itself.
Plein air lends itself to tinkering.

 

[MurrayG]

It seems like 80% of the time it's a complete disaster. For me anyhow. I just tried doing it again and it was like bashing my head against a wall. Other than that it was great. It was a beautiful place to be humiliated.

What were the impressionists thinking? Hey let's make painting even harder and drag all this stuff outside into the cold. Yeah they did that because they had no heating or AC. So why do we do it? Changing light? I can't even get non-changing light right.

Hi Hohn. Well, yup I have to agree, it can be an exercise in "patient frustration". It took a couple of goes for me. It was a bit easier as I often "try" to draw/sketch pleinair so I go a taste for it. My watercolour handling was too old and I was not at all confident with oils outdoors.´, but I did try with mixed success. Pastels work for me cos its fairly immediate and I can fix stuff.
I often paint onsite then refine or redo at home.
Many old impressionist masters painted small 9x5" or a little bigger etc
I have learnt, to keep the kit and palette simple and not too big, largest 30x40cm.
I spend time looking to watch the scene and get a light setup that is interesting but doable (for me)
Be prepared to discard paper or boards if it isnt working, you can always reuse later.
I often( not always) block sketch in the scene and values (but Im a learnatic with values as well)
Dont try to get it right, let the painting talk to you.
Take photos so you can study afterwards
Dont beat yourself up if its not what you were "after", study and learn from the experience, all mistakes are valuable.
Light changes quickly (about a 15-30 minute window if semi consistent values).
While time of day can offer beautiful opportunities, morning and evening changes soooo quickly (< 5 minutes)
Bart has a wealth of additional experience with Pleinair.
Look at the work of Ann Sanders (pastel, Oil)
Look at Peter Barker Plein air
Jullian Merrow Smith and soooo many others. Have look at their demos online.
Study each effort with a friendly critical eye and see what worked.... and enjoy the "fresh air.
But if you are like me, and the snow is over the top and freezing - I do an inside pleinair, even from a window, you can be challenged by form and colour in 30 minutes.
Best of luck, and show us so of your works !

 

[Bartc]

For those of you in country too cold to stay outside for long, consider spending the time you can tolerate the weather with a camera or cell phone camera. Compose your shots, then take them inside to practice. OK, so it's not truly "en plein air" for the painting part, but it will give you more confidence.
If weather permits, go for a quick sketch, even just a notan.
Job one in outdoor painting is choosing your points of interest and choosing how to depict them. While practice allows you to adapt to and even relish changing light, most of the time you have to choose one depiction of light and stick with it, which is where a quick sketch and/or photo helps a lot.
Having a photo and/or a sketch to work from in composing your picture is terrific practice.
Murray is right you know: If you have a window to any form of decent scene (not necessarily a full panoramic view) of outdoors, you could consider working inside and practicing that way until the weather improves.
Just some thoughts to get you over the hump and over the winter.

 

[MurrayG]

I have just arrived back in Croatia from snowy Stockholm. It may be blowing a 50km/hr Bura wind but its sunny and "warmer".
So odd jobs permitting, its a walk along the sea path (in my Fleece windbreaker & beany) for a PA fix in the next day or so
The sea is a bewitching sight of huge patches of wind swept wind spray about 100-200 feet high and sea devils twisting across the chanel - wish I could draw that not even a photo captures it .......

 

[Artyczar]

For those of you in country too cold to stay outside for long, consider spending the time you can tolerate the weather with a camera or cell phone camera. Compose your shots, then take them inside to practice. OK, so it's not truly "en plein air" for the painting part, but it will give you more confidence.
If weather permits, go for a quick sketch, even just a notan.
Job one in outdoor painting is choosing your points of interest and choosing how to depict them. While practice allows you to adapt to and even relish changing light, most of the time you have to choose one depiction of light and stick with it, which is where a quick sketch and/or photo helps a lot.
Having a photo and/or a sketch to work from in composing your picture is terrific practice.
Murray is right you know: If you have a window to any form of decent scene (not necessarily a full panoramic view) of outdoors, you could consider working inside and practicing that way until the weather improves.
Just some thoughts to get you over the hump and over the winter.

This is kinda as close as I've come--taking some very quick/rough sketches and photos and rendering it all back in the studio because of heat or cold, or just not having any kind of outside set-up, or time, or patience, or fear of predators. You name the excuse, I have it. But I really enjoy looking at everyone's work and process.

 

[Bartc]

I downloaded the free simple version of a phone app called "Artist's Grid" for Android users. They don't seem to have an IOS version, but I'm sure there are plenty of similar apps for you Apple fans out there.

Usually when I arrive at a site, I pull out my phone and snap a few viewpoints as I walk around the area. I can then look at them as a flat 2D picture to pick what viewpoint I might want to paint. I don't paint from the phone, however, but there would be nothing wrong with that!

The AG app in simple form (I never checked out the paid form) allows you to grab that photo and manipulate it a bit, plus add a grid of your choosing. The grid would help artists who struggle with drawing; I find I don't need to use it, but it's there. (It would have been smart if I had used that with my last painting, because it was architectural at an odd angle and I screwed that up!)

Phone camera apps usually have editing programs that allow you to manipulate cropping, all the light, dark and color features and add some effects. Those can help with visualizing.

In plein air the light changes pretty constantly. It helps to start with one idea in mind, so a photo gives you that to refer back to, even as the real world lighting keeps moving. Once the bones of your composition are in place, you can keep playing to match the changing light if you really want to. Often my starting point may offer an even better light/value composition and I'm not afraid to move with it.
The things I see people struggle with in plein air are: choosing a composition, drawing (if they are hung on some form of realism), changing light. All the rest is about how wieldy/unwieldy your kit is, weather and humidity conditions.

I'm just trying to suggest some ways to make the transition easier. Believe me, you're likely to really like plein air once you get the hang of it.

One other thing about photos is that it can show others how the real scene looked. Someone dubbed my style as "chaotic realism", when it's really just Impressionism or post- Impressionism. (I enjoy the moniker!) When a viewer or painting colleague says that it looks unreal, I can just show them the original view and how much less I manipulated it than they think. Here's an example. The pastel on the left was done 30 minutes later from a slightly different angle than the enlarged portion of the photo on the right.

 

[john]

A big reason given for doing plein air is that cameras show the lights too light and the shadows lose detail. "Oh but you can't really get the light just right". No kidding. I never do. That's photorealism. But now many phone cameras can shoot in HDR mode (high dynamic range). So one photo is over exposed and one under and one in the middle. Combined into one they give the full range. I have it on my phone cam.

So there is even less reason now to schlep everything out in the heat and cold and bugs and damn nosy people and go without a bathroom and a cold beverage.

Want the experience at home? Run a fan full blast on you. Open the windows and turn off the heat and AC. Put all your stuff in a bag and then take it out. Set up a wobbly tripod with a tiny painting surface and pallet. Blast the TV with some annoying talk show on. Hold it in even though the bathroom is right over there. Maybe get a 2000 watt halogen lamp and put it over your head. And just put the scene you want to paint on the monitor and randomly change the brightness and contrast.

Oh, and don't forget to rush through it in less time than it takes to actually make a good painting.

 

[E.J.H.]

Got a new cell phone a couple of months ago, and noticed hit offered to take pics in HDR mode. Now I know what it is I will sure experiment with it, thanks for the tip!

 

[Bongo]

For those of you in country too cold to stay outside for long, consider spending the time you can tolerate the weather with a camera or cell phone camera. Compose your shots, then take them inside to practice. OK, so it's not truly "en plein air" for the painting part, but it will give you more confidence.
I

SO -- expanding on your idea - if the goal is to "simulate" plein air so you'll be better when conditions permit. Then let's make the simulation as close to the experience as possible.

Pack up your gear, your plein air kit, exactly like you would if you were heading out to do plein air.
Carry your gear with you to the location you intend to paint.

1. Use a camera/phone with a lens/or lens setting so that the field of view matches what your eyes see. A simple way to do this is to look thru the viewfinder with one eye, and compare it with what you see with the other eye (blink back and forth). Adjust till things look the same size to both eyes.
2. Set aspect ratio or use grid overlay so the frame lines in the camera/phone are the same aspect as the panel you intend to paint.
3. Compose the scene under these conditions.
- use only the fixed setting outlined above.
- take the photo standing at a place you could also set up your easel and paint for 2 hours.
- and at a time when you'd have 2 hours or more of daylight left.

In other words - to the degree possible operate exactly as you would if you were going to paint - but it started to rain just as you were about to set up.

Back home, set up your easel etc. just as you would on location. Use ONLY what you previously packed. Forgot something - improvise. No paper towels - use your shirt. No sap green - mix it - use another color etc. No going to the fridge to get a beer, etc. No zooming in on the monitor or changing settings.... Give yourself about 2 hours . Done. No not done. Put the painting in your wet panel carrier, pack up your gear - now you're done.

I've never done this, but I've prepared for missions, and that's how it's done-- make the simulation as arduous/boring/painful/detailed as the real thing.

But:
If nothing else - do the photo part - take photos only standing where you could set up an easel and paint from, using the same fixed field of view as your eyes. That will train you to see/compose within the limitations of plein air . You may very well have to forfeit some great shots, or the ideal angle, and for me at least I discovered I had to stand way, way further away from the scene than if I was just taking a snapshot of it.

 

[Bongo]

A big reason given for doing plein air is that cameras show the lights too light and the shadows lose detail. "Oh but you can't really get the light just right". No kidding. I never do. That's photorealism. But now many phone cameras can shoot in HDR mode (high dynamic range). So one photo is over exposed and one under and one in the middle. Combined into one they give the full range. I have it on my phone cam.

So there is even less reason now to schlep everything out in the heat and cold and bugs and damn nosy people and go without a bathroom and a cold beverage.

Want the experience at home? Run a fan full blast on you. Open the windows and turn off the heat and AC. Put all your stuff in a bag and then take it out. Set up a wobbly tripod with a tiny painting surface and pallet. Blast the TV with some annoying talk show on. Hold it in even though the bathroom is right over there. Maybe get a 2000 watt halogen lamp and put it over your head. And just put the scene you want to paint on the monitor and randomly change the brightness and contrast.

Oh, and don't forget to rush through it in less time than it takes to actually make a good painting.

John, you made me laugh.

I'm a nubie, only been doing plein air since summer- 16 paintings so far. But the thing I did not expect was my level of focus and concentration when out there. Really. I go three hours without a bathroom break, a sip of water, a word of conversation - I'm just totally in the zone. So for me it's not a relaxing, awe-inspiring commune with nature - it's more like game on - fourth and goal, game tied two outs in the ninth. Very Bizzare, out of character for me. Not sure where that's coming from or where it's going.

You gave some (arguably) good reasons not to do Plein air, but what is it then with so many established, god-level painters swearing by the value of it?

 

[Bartc]

SO -- expanding on your idea - if the goal is to "simulate" plein air so you'll be better when conditions permit. Then let's make the simulation as close to the experience as possible.

Pack up your gear, your plein air kit, exactly like you would if you were heading out to do plein air.
Carry your gear with you to the location you intend to paint.

1. Use a camera/phone with a lens/or lens setting so that the field of view matches what your eyes see. A simple way to do this is to look thru the viewfinder with one eye, and compare it with what you see with the other eye (blink back and forth). Adjust till things look the same size to both eyes.
2. Set aspect ratio or use grid overlay so the frame lines in the camera/phone are the same aspect as the panel you intend to paint.
3. Compose the scene under these conditions.
- use only the fixed setting outlined above.
- take the photo standing at a place you could also set up your easel and paint for 2 hours.
- and at a time when you'd have 2 hours or more of daylight left.

In other words - to the degree possible operate exactly as you would if you were going to paint - but it started to rain just as you were about to set up.

Back home, set up your easel etc. just as you would on location. Use ONLY what you previously packed. Forgot something - improvise. No paper towels - use your shirt. No sap green - mix it - use another color etc. No going to the fridge to get a beer, etc. No zooming in on the monitor or changing settings.... Give yourself about 2 hours . Done. No not done. Put the painting in your wet panel carrier, pack up your gear - now you're done.

I've never done this, but I've prepared for missions, and that's how it's done-- make the simulation as arduous/boring/painful/detailed as the real thing.

But:
If nothing else - do the photo part - take photos only standing where you could set up an easel and paint from, using the same fixed field of view as your eyes. That will train you to see/compose within the limitations of plein air . You may very well have to forfeit some great shots, or the ideal angle, and for me at least I discovered I had to stand way, way further away from the scene than if I was just taking a snapshot of it.

Bongo, you're making it harder than it needs to be. Folks needn't be training for an Everest expedition. Keep it fun!
But I do not identify with your statement about composing "within the limitations of plein air." Plein air only refers to painting outdoors in front of some subject, not necessarily to faithful realism at all. Plein air is not limited. You can paint some small object or a full panorama or a vignette of the scene. You can paint it in any colors you want in any style you want. Plein air should be inspiring not limiting.
We all have different experiences. I too lose myself for long periods in the painting, but at the same time I'm more acutely aware of all around me. The seeming contradiction is what one experiences in many forms of meditation. And I do take time out to pee!

 

[Bongo]

Good points, I kinda went off.

 

[john]

John, you made me laugh.

I'm a nubie, only been doing plein air since summer- 16 paintings so far. But the thing I did not expect was my level of focus and concentration when out there. Really. I go three hours without a bathroom break, a sip of water, a word of conversation - I'm just totally in the zone. So for me it's not a relaxing, awe-inspiring commune with nature - it's more like game on - fourth and goal, game tied two outs in the ninth. Very Bizzare, out of character for me. Not sure where that's coming from or where it's going.

You gave some (arguably) good reasons not to do Plein air, but what is it then with so many established, god-level painters swearing by the value of it?

Of course I'm kidding. I think. You mentioned a big one " level of focus and concentration when out there." and that "game on" thing, is huge.

Truth be told, yes my last attempt was a failure, but the two before that were exciting successes. Like you said, it was game on. There is nothing like being there. It feels like there is an energy there that can be tapped into. You don't get that in the studio.

And it's just nice getting outside in nature. It's a landscape painter's source. And as nature lovers the act of painting it brings it closer. We internalize it. We tap the energy and absorb the feeling. Sounds corny but it's true. A photo has no energy. It's not real.

While I've been painting now for about 20 years I've only recently done plein air. I'm going to keep doing it. The painting below is one reason why. It encouraged me. It was fun. While the houses were put in the next day in the studio with a brush, the rest of the painting was done on the spot way more quickly than I expected, with a pallet knife. And it's a 16 x 20 canvas. I happily surprised myself and there's no way I would have done anything like that in the studio. For one thing I would have fussed and tried to make everything "real". Plein air almost guarantees impressionism.

So don't listen to me, plein air is cool. Sometimes.

Wading River Marsh Winter Solstice 2020

 

[P. Barrie]

John, That’s a real fine work! So good and inspiring when you get this kind of success.
Check out Joseph Paquet. He has a high level dedication to plein air, doesn’t reference photos. For one 30”x40” painting he did, he made nine early morning sessions at the site of a brewery to capture the fleeting light.

Joseph Paquet | Recent Paintings

Recently completed paintings by traditional Plein Aire landscape painter Joe Paquet

www.joepaquet.com

 

[Artyczar]

John, that is a beautiful piece! I really love it.

 

[Artyczar]

I don't know about this "purist" view to Plein air, but I do understand it. Though I don't think I'd be able to stick with never being able to finish it up in the studio, or not bring my camera with me to take a bunch of reference shots of what I was painting.

Hell, like I said before, I don't even think I can paint outside for a length of time. I didn't even mention before that I have Lupus and can't be in the sun for too long, if at all. I suppose I can wear sun screen, long sleeves, and a hat, but there are a lot of predators where I live, and beyond driving distance. But I live in the most beautiful area. I would be scared of them. I'm kinda scared of them even when walking and carry my cane with me where ever I go. It has a heavy brass handle on it (just in case). I've pounded it on the ground a few times at larger bobcats. That was enough to make them walk in the other direction. A coyote (on its own) will run in the other direction, but not when there are five. Sideswipers and rattlers will give you a warning first, but not always.

I've gone around and taken gorgeous photographs and attempted to paint them at home. I turn them into my own fantasy scenes though. I'm not a great photographer either. But I still have so many I would like to paint. Almost all, or maybe all, of my landscapes come from real location photos. Some were photos plus sketches. I can do quick sketches, and then run for my life.