I love getting outdoors and painting the landscape from life. There’s really nothing quite like it for seeing colours as they truly are – a photo won’t do that for you. And all your senses are involved; the sounds of the birds, or the passing cars, or people chatting as they walk by, the smell of wet earth or flowers, the touch of the breeze, or the blast of cold wind, or the warmth of the sun. All of these play a part in the whole sensation of being outside and being alive and painting!

Today I got the chance to do just that. The sun was shining, the weather was warm and perfect, and there was no wind to knock the easel over. I took my chance to paint an orange grove that is nearby and at the moment has the ground smothered in a tiny bright yellow flower. It’s a weed, but it’s beautiful. And at this time of year there a plenty of oranges still on the trees, and today the sky was a glassy blue.

Take a look at the video I made of this experience, and perhaps go and paint outdoors as soon as you can. There are extreme plein air painters who paint in the rain and the snow, so you’ve no excuse (only joking!).