Cougar Peak #309

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

I decided to trade in my gouache today for a bit of digital paint. I started the image working on a medium value blue and proceeded to sketch out and then block in my main shapes. After this was done I added in the sky and concentrated on bringing out the different forms and fall colors.

Cougar Peak #296

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

For this painting I decided to again switch over to a bit of painting in Photoshop. I wanted again to try and capture that feeling of fall, so for this painting I purposefully left the painting covered in a very sepia like mixture of oranges and browns.

Cougar Peak #290

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

Decided to push around a few pixels today in Photoshop. I was wanting to capture a bit of those fall colors, and really accentuate them. So I decide to keep my palette limited to the ochres, grays, warmer greens and browns.

Cougar Peak #274

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

Now we enter the month of October, which should hopefully prove to be one of the more exciting months. October can really have a little bit of everything from sunny hot days, to rain, snow, and of course all of those beautiful fall colors. The mountain as I was painting today was overshadowed by rain clouds, except for a tiny patch that was being lit up by the sun....very cool.

Cougar Peak #270

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

I decided to jump back over to the computer tonight and do a bit of digital painting. I started out the painting with Painter X, and then switched over toward the end to Photoshop to do a bit of color correction. I found a previous painting that had a color palette similar to what I was wanting, so I used it as a foundation to sample bits of color to build my image up with.

Cougar Peak #264

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

I decided to have a bit of digital fun tonight while I tried to capture some of those last fading rays of sunlight as they fell upon the the mountain tall. For this image I started out working over a nice chocolaty brown. I then worked on establishing most of my darker values, finally coming back in and laying in my highlights and detail work.

Cougar Peak #260

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

Today I decided to take a break from the traditional and switch on over to the digital, or that is Photoshop. For this image I worked up a nice sienna colored bg using a large brush, much like I would prepare a traditional painting. After that was done I blocked in some of my main values, the shadow in the valley, sunlit side of the mountain, sky, field etc. Once that is completed all that is really left is tying together the image, adding details, subtle values, highlights, etc.

Cougar Peak #231

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

A change in the weather happened today and a rain shower moved in briefly covering the mountainside in lovely chaos. Everything got dark and dreary, the color palette changed, and for a brief spell it no longer felt like summer. I decide to work in Photoshop today, and I grabbed an oil painting I completed this weekend not related to Cougar Peak and used it as a base layer, sampling bits of color and texture. This can be a good way of starting sometimes when you have this big white canvas looking at you.

Cougar Peak #225

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

My computer was beckoning me for this painting, so I had no other choice but to listen to the call. I started the image out on a medium value blue and then worked my values up and down from there, first doing a quick sketch and then concentrating on the large shapes, working down smaller and tighter.

Cougar Peak #208

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

A really beautiful evening tonight, everything was lit up in oranges and reds, falling into shadow hues of purple and blue. I decided to work digital tonight in Photoshop. To begin with I filled my canvas with a sienna type fill, then over the top of that (working on a new layer) quickly laid in a sketch. For the next part I laid in the shadows of the canyon, and a blocked in the open hillsides that were catching the light. Finally I went in and worked in all the details, pushing and pulling values, and of course adding in the barn and the tree.

Cougar Peak #199

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

Finally we were able to get a bit of rain, and this morning there was a nice bit of fog and mist rolling up around the base of the mountain. This image again was painted on Photoshop, which is a blast to paint with.....because you can paint really quickly not having to worry about the paint drying, and you can go back and make major changes to a painting without having to go back and redo entire sections, and it allows you to experiment a bit more. Though it will never replace traditional mediums, which have their own benefits and downfalls, digital is definitely a medium that can stand on it's own, having both pros and cons as well.

Cougar Peak #197

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

This evening there was a lot of smoke again that had rolled in, so everything was sort of a hazy yellow. For this image I decided to do another painting in Photoshop. I worked up a big soft flat brush, and started laying in my shapes and values, trying to keep things subtle and softer on the mountain and then darken and sharpen up my shapes and textures just a bit as things came closer towards the foreground.

Cougar Peak #194

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

For today's image I decided to jump back onto Photoshop, it really allows you to play with a lot of colors and textures really quickly and do a lot of quick experimenting. To start out with I scanned in some candy wrappers and then started painting and sampling right on the top of them, trying to capture that early morning light and still bring in bits and colors from the wrappers.

Cougar Peak #192

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

I had fun working on Photoshop last night, so I decided to jump on it again this morning. The sky was just slightly hazy this morning, so it helped to push back the mountain a bit, and I wanted to try and capture that. Also I liked having the round bails still in the field and the early morning sun laying across them.

Cougar Peak #191

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

For today's painting I tried to capture more of that late evening light when the setting sun bathes the mountain in shades of orange and all of the shadows turn to hues of deep violet. I decided to jump back onto the computer for this one, using Photoshop I did a quick sketch and then started working on my main masses. Finally I came back in and laid in all of the details and the tree, barn, and hay bales.

Cougar Peak #189

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

Another day of blazing heat to great the mountain. Everyone got up at 5:30 this morning to start picking bales before the sun blasted us away. I could not help but just stare at the mountain while the sun rose up and bathed the canyon and the peak in that warm fresh early morning light.

Cougar Peak #167

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

For this image I decided to do another Photoshop painting. Again I put down my main shapes first and then came in pushing and pulling values, as well as experimenting with different color combinations, until I can arrive with something pleasing.

Cougar Peak #166

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

For this image I wanted to capture that depth and atmosphere that you can get at times with rain and fog. I started out in Photoshop laying in my main shapes, building up my values, once that was done I painted in the finishing details and highlights.

Cougar Peak #152

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

This morning I decided to jump back onto Photoshop and do a bit of digital artistry. The sun was popping up over the hill and lighting up the canyon, while the rest of the peak was being hid in shadow. I started laying down my big masses as always, playing with texture and shapes, not being too picky about colors at this point, but just working on my values. I then came in with a smaller brush and started putting in details, and deciding on colors and highlights.

Cougar Peak #150

4.75" x 6.75" Digital

This morning was beautiful as the mountain was bathed in that early morning light. For this painting I decided to get my fingers dirty with lots of ones and zeros. I blocked out my main shapes first and then came back in and did all of the detail work.