Fall Colors

I love the fall colors, but have decided to share photos for now. They are very difficult for me to paint the way I want to at my present skill level. However, I wanted you to see what I was seeing through the lens. This one was taken in the upper parking lot at Snoqualmie Falls in Washington.

I love the bright colors in these trees. This photo has not been tweaked at all. I took this one from the pedestrian bridge between Snoqualmie Falls and the upper parking lot.

We have a lovely old Japanese Maple near our front door. I waited and waited for it to change color this fall. About two weeks ago, it started. First, the dark reds appeared here and there. Then the golds and yellows. I took this photo two days ago. It is just about the last to turn in our area, and one of the last to retain most of its leaves. I really like the structure of the trunk and limbs. I can see this tree becoming part of a series.

My next project will be a big one. I am thinking of posting the progress. Today, I will be working on line and value sketches. I still don't know what size I will be working in, but I know it will be larger than usual. I am looking forward to doing another large painting. It has been a long time.

Capturing Fall Colors

Vine Maples
9 x 12 soft pastels on sanded paper
by Miki Willa

These are the trees at the beginning of our driveway. Having lived in Hawaii for six years, I didn't realize just how much I would love having fall colors right at home. Today, I noticed the Japanese maple by the front door is about half turned, and the Dogwood out back is fully turned into its brilliant reds. It seems to me the color has lasted an extra long time this year. I have been enjoying every minute of it.

When I first decided to paint this scene, I wanted to make sure the rock was prominent. It is a very cool rock. No matter what I seemed to do, however, the rock kept getting lost in the glory of reds, yellows, and oranges. After I took the photo of the finished painting, I was zooming in to make sure it was in focus and I figured out the problem was the composition. I really wish I saw these things before I started painting. I am going to have to work on that. I have included a cropped photo of the painting that I like much better.

Rethinking an old painting

Fall on the River

9 x 12 soft pastels on Art Spectrum Colourfix

by Miki Willa

When Tom and I set up the new studio, we put a cork board on one wall to hang newly finished pieces so we could see them to think about them over time before they were put away or framed. For a long time, I have been looking at this painting and liking it less and less. This morning, I awoke thinking about how to change it. This is the result.

Yesterday, I drove into Seattle along the west shore of Lake Washington. The colors of the fall trees were spectacular. I kept thinking about them all evening and this morning. I decided to work them into the trees along the bank of the Green River. If you look at the old painting, there are no fall colors, but plenty of deciduous trees. I also took out the path that simply wasn't working in the old painting. While I like some aspects of this painting much better, I still think I have a long way to go with rivers. I am just happy I got the fall colors in. I want to do many more of these.