I was not sure I would be able to fit this in (and am still not) but I came across this photo taken by my mother in 1964, or thereabouts, in our back yard, and am motivated to paint it. This is my little sister Karen. Her only daughter, my niece, will marry this fall and I think it will be a nice commemorative gift for them both.

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Were there other things that concerned you @paulb? I had a 16x20 canvas all set to go and just wanted to make it fit. I actually like the composition
* Caveat - I really don't know what I'm talking about. Just an opinion.
So true!!! I'm terrified of detail and just want to paint color and light yet somehow make it look like something, lol
These two take my breath away! Coming from a large family of scientists and engineers and married to a software architect though, I have never needed to have an eye for detail since I'm submerged in it.
It's kind of like my philosophy about housework. Some people get so focused on perfection that they use a toothbrush to scrub crevices. My idea of housework is to sweep the room with a glance.
I am an amateur and paint only for fun and stress relief. I have no other goals and no illusions about becoming a great artist. But there is no reason I should not try and there is nothing preventing me from attempting the most extraordinary thing I can think of.
Summer, the large grid is just to lay in the trees, and i have lost it now anyway. I will have to wing it from here on.
This is the second painting in the last year that I just botched. I don't know where my head was at but nothing I did with the background worked. The face eventually came around a little but it wasn't a good enough likeness to satisfy me. The only consolation is that it was a mediocre photo. It was cute, but it was not a good painting reference.
I hope I do a better job with the ballerina. That face is even smaller.
Slow and methodical, process-oriented seems to work reliably. Any confidence, and blam! Flat on face.
i do paint large. I can hardly stand to do little stuff any more. It’s so hard to miniturize with the level of precision that satisfies me. Also, I have not copied a picture exactly since Miss Rice a year ago. I take a lot of liberties and sometimes they fail. I face a constant struggle to avoid cheese, corny, preciousness or convention, because, you know, I like that stuff too. I just don’t want it in my art. I am determined to never paint a moody pensive sulky girl. There are thousands of them being done these days.