Look at this bare tree trunk and its surroundings. What do you see? Gray, black, brown?
Let's try this again, but this time don't allow yourself to call the colors gray, brown or black. Look for hues.
Tip: Labeling neutrals gray, brown or black blocks your perception to the hues your eyes are actually seeing.
Tip: If you close one eye and squint the other so that all the details go away, then stare at the subject through your squint for at least ten seconds, colors will begin to reveal themselves.
What colors are you beginning to see? Purples, oranges, blues? Hold that squint a bit longer and allow the colors to settle in. Narrow your attention to one small area and hold it there until a hue emerges. Don't predict what it will be. Let it tell you the hue you are seeing.
In the next photo, I have placed splotches of a bit more saturated versions of some of the colors I see in the photo. Underneath are the four major colors which would make a good limited palette to use for painting this subject.
Happy painting,
P.S. As a limited palette, we can use mixtures from the saturated version of colors we discover to make interpretations of landscape neutrals. I used the limited palette above to do this little painting.
