Clachtoll Beach

What a delightful place Fiona. figures could be a bit small..! . Little children ? It has. Lovely sense of place I think the grass and rocksteady just right.

My silly I pad writes what it thinks I want to write Grrrrrrrr grass and rocks are just right. Sorry.

Beautiful beach scene Fiona, great composition ans very well painted

This is quite different to your usual watercolours Fiona but also works well. Normally figures are obviously in scale or not, here I dont think it matters, as the rocks etc. could be any size. I agree that the top area does not work as well, I moved the image up a bit on the screen, so the image cuts off at the top of the cliffs and I think that looksmuch better (just my opinion of course!).

I really like this Fiona. The rocks and rough slope at the top look fine to me - I'm used to seeing this sort of landscape where we live and your interpretation looks just right. I think what makes the children (?) seem out of proportion a bit is when you look at them in relation to the fence posts - without the fence posts the children would be fine, as Stephen says, because the landscape could be any size, and without the children the fence posts would be fine too... well, that's just my suggestion and believe me, I'm no expert! Overall I really like your treatment of the rocks compared to the beach with its outcrops and the water. Do some more like this!

This is great Fiona, I love your loose treatment of the rocks on the beach it works so well, and the background rocks and grass are just right IMHO. Any more detail and it would bring them forward too much. I agree with Jane about the fence posts and the children (love the little dog), maybe just shorten the fence posts?? Got back on tuesday from 6 nights in Oban, don't know what it was like with you but sunday it was 29, far too hot for me so very little painting done LOL

I love your figures in this Fiona, someday ill try to attempt to incoprate figures in mine, but for now i really enjoy to see how other people do it.Whats also captures me in this piece is how the water meets the shore its a lovely smooth merging into one another. Your oils are as beautiful as your watercolours, i think you should sell, sell, sell!

I know what you mean ref key boards Sylvia, mine says what it feels like.....I've got a couple of paint brushes that paint what they like too!! Thank you very much for your comment, I may, if I'm brave enough, put a couple more figures in, but a bit larger for the parents....perhaps?

How lucky you are to have this on your doorstep Fiona. A wonderful painting, the beach is beautiful, and the cliffs are fine. Figures look great to me!

Thank you Petra, thank you Stephen for your advise, I see what you mean about cropping the top part off. I think it's the first picture I've done without sky....looks odd somehow.

Jane, thank you for giving me your opinion re scale, I'm going to have a look at either putting a couple of larger figures in and may be try and take a wee bit off the posts.......without spoiling the whole thing! Hi Val, thanks for your comment, we only managed 25 here but that was enough!! Hope you took lots of photo's.

Hayley, thank you very much. I have always steered away from adding figures but I think in some paintings they do add that extra something. It's a case of practising I think....I don't do enough! Have a go at some figures yourself Hayley. Thanks again.

Many thanks Carole, I appreciate your comment.

I think it is lovely, the figures look Ok to me, the fence posts well I tend to agree with the above. Well done a great painting

I do love your oil paintings - they have such a special quality about them - super light and such wonderfully subtle colours. Well done indeed!

Many thanks Glennis and Thea. I'm going to go back to it today and see if I can resolve the fence post/figure problem. I live a few minutes walk from two beaches, and I can't believe it's taken me this long to have a go at painting them. Inspiration on the doorstep! Mind you it does make a difference when the sun is shining :)

Fiona, don't you dare "resolve" anything! You've captured the rocky outcrop very well and the whole thing is a delight. Incidentally, we were in Gairloch only two weeks ago and we had fresh snow on the mountains each day with a maximum temperature on one day of 4 degrees! Best wishes , Terry

Many thanks Terry for taking the trouble to comment, and thank you for your advise. I can believe the fresh snow coverings, the night time temp for Altnahara two nights ago was -1c. Oly 50 miles or so inland from me.

A gorgeous piece, Fiona! You're good in just about every medium!

I really, really did not want to do this, but have succumbed ! This is a really fine painting, Fiona, and I like it very much...except for a couple of things. Well what did you expect?? First problem are the sail boats along the top of the cliff. Yes, I know they are supposed to be fence posts, but the trouble is, they are not. They are the wrong size and have no depth. The figures and the little dog are perfect, but they make the posts too tall. So, using the background colour, shorten each of the posts slightly. Next, looking at the figures, I think the light source is off to the left. Therefore, put a little shadow down the right hand edge of each post. On the outer posts, you may wish to suggest a wire strand just crossing each post, then getting lost in the background before the eye picks it up again at the next post. Not too much detail though; they are too far away. Under the 7th and 8th posts counting from the left is a horizontal line of colour which is repeated elsewhere. I take it/them to be geo strata in the cliff face. if so, then I think it is a too solid and stand alone line. They need to follow the lovely craggy undulations of the cliff. So, there you have it for what is worth. No offence meant, Fiona, as you well know.

Thank you very much Seok, you are very kind. No offence taken Lionel, as I've said to you before I won't learn if I'm not told about these things. I do agree with all you have said and I will have another go at it....promise!! :) I could always tell you that it's 'deer fencing', there is quite a lot of that round here, as there are quite a lot of deer!! Thank you again for your advise, I altered the 'stone Byre' sketch, it does look much better.

Thanks, Fiona. If you try any alterations, do please be careful - this is such a lovely painting. Forget about the wire between posts for the moment. It might be too much detail. If you must try it, try using the edge of a palette knife, but do practice first !! Deer fencing !! Of course !! Silly of me. lol