Plein Air, July

Traveled to the Foothills of Southern Alberta with a group to do some plein air painting. We went in the morning to Castle Falls. The sun was very hot as we started at 11am and went through until 2pm. I found a nice spot to paint but knew I had to move because I could not stand the direct heat. I found a place in some shade of a tree but the view wasn't ideal. I had to stand in a overflow of trickling glacier water which proved to be quite uncomfortable on the feet. In the afternoon we moved to a meadow with a small meandering creek through it. The wild flowers were beautiful. There were some cows resting under a grove of trees which proved very promising. I wandered over for some shade but the deer flies and mosquitoes proved too much. So I went down to the stream to find a good vantage point. I still had to sit in the hot sun, which proved uncomfortable for a long stretch. I took pictures of those lovely cows under the tree and have to prepare a few studies. I could not resist painting the cows as they wandered over to check out what this strange thing was sitting in the middle of their territory. This will become a full painting some day. There needs to be a few more trips to get used to plein air and the trials of weather, insects, and color changes when painting outdoors. It is difficult, yet rewarding as you learn to "see" so much more when surrounded by life itself. What a learning experience. Another afterthought was, when traveling to the mountains to paint, maybe I should paint mountains!!!