We spent the Fourth up at the ranch, and awoke on the fifth to a rare foggy morning.


Later, that evening, a five cranes glided elegantly onto the pond, and poked lazily around for things to eat.

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Today, I finally got around to finishing the piece I have been working on for a couple of months. There are probably a few details I'll add or change after looking at it for a while, but essentially it is complete. Here's a photo...



If you compare to the last photo update you'll see that most of the work this final day was to put in the tablecloth, and a few details. I had to struggle some more with the road as well...it is a real challenge, and I had doubts from the beginning about such a large area in the foreground and on the left, but I guess it worked out OK. I added a little smoke of the grill, which seems to work OK. Overall, I'm not disappointed. It was risky to undertake such a complex scene for a first effort, but it really came together about as well as I hoped it might.

So the easel and canvases and brushes and tubes of paint are not yet stacked in a corner of the garage...

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