I took this photo when my husband and I traveled to Irland in Aug 2022. The area was outside Dublin and I think people called the area “Saint Patrict’s county”. The picture itself may not be so inspring as a painting subject, but I loved the atmosphere and felt the sense of calmness after the hay was cut. I also liked the contrast between the light and the dark, but I didn’t particularly like the way houses situated or their colors. Also didn’t care too much for tall bushes in front of the houses.
When I saw Olly’s last Youtube video, I thought this might be a perfect subject for me to challenge making this photo to a painting. I made a few changes from the photo to the painting. The preliminary drawing helped me decide on the final painting. As always, your comments are most welcome and appreciated.
Refernce photo.

Sketch.

Painting.

Nicely done. It looks fresh and clean. Some nice light in the painting, top of the hedge, the bales of hay and shadows on the buildings. The buildings look lovely and nicely rendered. If I was to make a change I would aim to reduce the detail in the tallest tress behind the buildings. Particularly in the strength of pigment in the tree trunks and branches and the foliage to a lesser extent. It would increase the depth and allow the focus/foreground take pride of place. A lovely painting overall.
That's a lovely painting, the gate and the bales leading the eye into the house and buildings, the shadows bringing the whole thing to life.