3 of 30 - Cars and Dogs - A Close Bond

A Close Bond

8x8"

Oil on Linen on Panel
DPW

A few months ago I was up in Carpinteria to take some photos for a commission and met this dog and his owner at the mechanic's shop across the street from my subject.  In talking to this hardworking gentleman he found out I was an artist and wanted to see if I could paint his dog.  I took a few shots focusing on getting some interesting back-lighting and and shadows and I ended up painting two pictures of him. 
My focus in this one was to establishing some clear values, and to describe the strong afternoon-light.   I didn't quite stick to having dark be dominant, then less medium and a sliver of light as I decided to add some cooler color in the ground area to add some variety to all that orange and that made there be more than a sliver of the lightest value...It's interesting to see how little changes make a big difference.   It's ultimately all a matter of personal artistic preference and I might still want to change it back to what I had (see below) before I bring it back to Carp to try to find this sweet pitt's owner:-) That is if I want the highlights on the dog's head to be the central focus...