"North Side of Church Road, South of Atwood Road" -- plein air field study -- oil on masonite -- 12x16" -- Margie Guyot

This is another scene I've been wanting to paint all summer. Some lucky person has a house right on this small lake, with a glassed-in porch hanging right out over the water. I hope to meet these people some day.

It was an unusually warm day here, but the clouds were pretty thick by the time I got to this spot to paint. Most of what you're seeing is dead, dry cattails and gray sky reflected in the water. Even the distant ridge of maple trees is muted. Their fiery reds and oranges have simmered down quickly.

As I painted, I heard various croakings, including a mating call of a leopard frog, Rana Pipiens! I didn't expect to hear mating calls this time of the year.

It was a pretty tough scene to lay in. I'd like to do another version, maybe a bit larger. I'll probably redesign the bits of open water slightly. When the snow's flying and it's freezing out, I'll pull out some of this summer's studies and see what I can do with them.