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My first Plein Air experience this year

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By Pete Batho
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My first Plein Air experience this year

An attempt at Plein Air painting in Truro

Hi everybody. Well, today the power was due to be turned off by Western Power for repairs, lasting for most of the day, so the plan was to spend the day in Truro. I thought it would be an ideal opportunity for painting 'Plein Air' After lugging my gear to the perimiter of the Cathedral, I decided that next time I could dispense with the Kitchen sink! Having found a nice bench to sit on, the first thing I noticed was the way the Cathedral acted like a wind tunnel. Undaunted I started to paint. Halfway through the sketch this little voice said 'do you mind if I be nosey?' After innocently saying that I didn't mind she launched into her wartime experiences with 'spies' painting the Westcountry coast. Now, as interesting as this was, it wasn't getting the job done. After half an hour of trying to paint around her reminiscing she finally bid farewell and I attempted to try again. By this time I was thoroughly chilled from the keen wind doing it's best to claim my watercolour pad. I decided to give it up as a bad job. My Wife, at this point, popped up like the shopkeeper in Mr Benn and said lets go to lunch. A great idea. After lunch we decided to knock it on the head and head for home. Hopefully the power should be restored by the time we get there. En route home I decided it would be a good idea to pop into Boscastle for a couple of hours. So we did. This proved far more successful as a photo reference gathering exercise. I climbed up to the Lookout on top of the hill with my trusty camera and got some breathtaking shots of the coastline. These will appear as paintings in due course. So. All-in-all a not very successful day for out-of-doors but the icing on the cake was some superb photos, an example below. Better luck next time. Happy painting. Pete
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It,s great to paint or sketch from life even if the finished result isn,t!The practice is invaluable.Taking photos is o.k but they never will be as good as the real thing.To proove this just set up a still life in front of you and take a photo then look at the photo compared to the real objects.

Thanks for your comments Sylvia, Paul and Adele. I sympathise with you Adele. The jury is still out on whether it's really for me. I'm quite a slow and deliberate painter so I don't get anywhere near finishing a picture. So this makes me feel less than satisfied. I did have slightly more success today, but still not ideal. But that's a story for another day.

Loved your story Peter. I've only tried painting outside once. Tucked away in the grounds of our holiday cottage, away from "interested" eyes, I struggled with the wind, insects and finally the easel blowing over before heading of indoors, to scrape the dead bodies off the painting. It is not for me I am afraid but I take lots of photos and work from them. Now there are mixed ideas about painting from photos, but it works for me.

Brave man indeed!! Ive not got enough confidence in my work to attempt an outdoor experience for a while yet

At least you brightened up some lonely souls day. You sound much nicer than me. The weather is getting better so lots more fun days outside.

Hi Fiona. Thanks for the comment. No. It hasn't dampened my spirit at all, but I think I'll venture out on my own next time and try and find some secluded desert island.

Oh dear Peter....... never mind better luck next time! That was a great read though, brightened my evening up a treat....lol. I'm looking forward to seeing the evidence of your photography in paint in the near future! Seriously though, I hope it hasn't put you off having another go......you really can't beat it, despite all the irritations

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