What Colour Is It?

Today we painted in a moody overcast day with a lot of sky activity.  While setting up we noted two things.  The sky, the source of light, was not the lightest shape.  The snow was a lighter.  But what colour was it?

Blue Red Violet Sky

It was easy to see the value difference.  So we looked through a colour isolator and asked "is the snow blue, yellow, or red?"  That at least established the coulour family.  Mix some up and try it out.  Get the right value.....  This is easier with a limited palette.  Fewer decisions, simpler.

No Shadows

Too white, too red, a tad dark.

Overcast

Too warm, a tad light.

So this is an iterative process.  Establish the colour family - blue violet.  Check against what you see.  Get the value right.  Check the relative value.  Against the sky - darker, against the birches - darker and warmer.  Then your decision is whether to exaggerate the values and colours or not.  Depends on your concept.  What you are trying to say?

On Site Photo Comparison

In reality the sky showed quite a bit darker than the snow.  Two or three steps.  The cedars cool greyed green isn't too bad in the reference.  Compare, compare, compare.