Plein air, or as we say in Tennessee, pantin' outside!  I finally mustered enough courage to venture out into the weather with painting gear in tow.  I set up the easel, decided on my composition, started to paint, and then one drop...10 drops... deluge!  Ahhhhh, April showers bring May flowers, and oil and water do not mix.  But I'm proud to say that I stayed with it.
Perhaps that would be a valid excuse for making the dogwood look more like a Bradford pear tree.  I did not take the time to do the lacy detail that was needed to have the painting read as a dogwood.
So what was my excuse today on the azalea bush?  Wind, of course! Plus Paul made me move my easel so he could get the lawn mower out of the storage area that I was blocking. 
Some artists make painting on location look so easy.  Roger Dale Brown, a marvelous artist and excellent instructor, told us in the workshop this past weekend, that if we wanted to improve our work that we needed to paint, paint, paint.
I will get better at this style of painting!  Yes, I will.