Choosing the Sky Color in a Landscape Painting

'Autumn Warm Up'             8x10            pastel             ©Karen Margulis
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 Which comes first, the sky or the land?  Do I choose the sky color and key the land to fit? Do I paint the land and then choose a sky color to work with the land?  When working from photos I have the freedom to interpret the  landscape however I see fit.  I could make it sunny or perhaps I want a moody feeling. This is why I like bad reference photos.

Bad reference photos give me permission to make changes.

A bad reference photo often has problem with the exposure. Often the lights are too light or the darks are too dark. Especially when there is a big contrast. Cameras don't always do a good job exposing both the lights and the darks in the same scene.  I don't mind overly light overexposed (blown out) skies.

my bad reference photo with an overexposed sky

When the sky is overexposed I can choose the sky color to suit the mood I would like to portray. If I want to be true to the photo I can recall what the sky might have looked like. There are always visual clues in the photo to help. Take the photo for today's painting. The brightly lit distant marsh suggests late afternoon. The sky would not be cloudy or even overcast. It would have warmth and perhaps be a soft gentle blue.

I decided to use a pale blue with some light warm peach and yellow at the horizon since the sunlit grasses were going to be a warm orange-yellow. This ensures a relationship between the sky and land.

• Whether you choose the sky color first or develop the land first make sure there is a relationship between sky and land. I usually make sure to relate color in land and sky. I want to be sure I don't look like they would be two separate paintings.