Yosemite Backcountry Painting part 2

There is nothing like backpacking in the Sierra Nevada. The Yosemite backcountry is especially exquisite. As we arrived to our second destination lake, we were in awe of the pristine beauty. The most difficult part of being there was deciding which spectacular view to paint! This is what I finally settle on.

I found a shady spot to set up the pochade and  painted all day. I didn't notice at first that I was near a red ant hill, which made for a much longer day suffering through the occasional stinging bite. I began with my usual sketch with pen and paper and then a small oil study on kraft paper to get a feel for the scene. 

I was eager to dive into the 11 x 14 in panel I had carried all this way. In hindsight, there was some things that I didn't quite grasp yet that made the painting process more frustrating than it needed to be. I knew the perspective didn't feel quite right, but I thought I could figure it out along the way...I didn't.

This was about the end of the first day. The foreground is definitely not working for me and the water is getting in head and I feel extremely confused and wonder what I'm even doing with this!

The next day, I found a new spot with fewer ants to deal with. I took a step back and just studied the water for a while, making this little sketch on kraft paper. I felt slightly better afterwards and started on the second modeling layer.

After day 2 of painting, this is what I ended with. I really liked the rocks on the left at the time, but later realized I had lost the shadow effect I was hoping to achieve. I was a little happier with the water at this point, but he foreground is not what I envisioned.

I wish I had had one more day to work on this, but sadly, it was time to pack up and go home. Thankfully, I can continue working on this at home. Stay tuned to see how the final painting turns out!