Early Bird.

               Dawn over Boontown   Oils on canvas board   5 x 7 inches   


Getting up at 3.30 am is not something I would want to do every day.  However, on this particular morning there was the promise of a spectacular sunrise so after a pot of tea and some toast I set off down the lane with my camera to observe the light effects in the sky and on the fields.   

It felt cool and dewy and quite ethereal with a golden glow cast low across the ground. Parts of the fields had a blueish tinge too.  The sky was a mix of blue, bronze, peach and yellow with a bright slash of bright white where the sun was appearing behind the trees.  

I walked until there was a gap in the hedge where the path went over the field to the cottage.  From there I could see the sky at its best and it was a perfect backdrop for my painting. I took a photograph and came back to my studio.   Fifteen minutes later the low coppery glow had gone but my photo was enough for me to start a sketch painting of the scene.   

This little study of the sun behind Boontown Cottage will remind me of this beautiful morning when no-one was around except for the birds.