Freedom to Paint

This past weekend, I attended an amazing two-day Beginner Painter Workshop in Asheville, NC with Marilyn Sholin (http://www.marilynsholin.com/). Not only was I introduced to an entirely new and creative way of sharing my love of photography but I also had the opportunity to met some wonderful new friends, all who are talented artists and photographers. The workshop was so much fun. Marilyn is a Corel Master Painter and an extremely patient instructor. Before moving to the mountains of North Carolina, Marilyn was a hugely successful photographer in the Miami, FL area; she's still a hugely successful photographer but with a twist...she's mastered combining her love of photography with digital painting using computer software. Her work is extraordinary.

Our workshop started each morning at 9am but everyone began gathering around 8am to enjoy hot coffee, mini quiches, fruit, bagels, juice, etc. Not only did Marilyn prepare breakfast for us, she also provided us with lunch! Our workshop sessions ended around 5pm just in time to head off to check out some of the wonderful local restaurants. We covered so much information during the workshop, my head is still spinning...fortunately a bottle of Tylenol was available...of course the vino at dinner was helpful too. On our final day of the workshop, we had to complete a painting in about an hour so we could come home with a print. It was an awesome workshop!

Here's my first printed Painter image from the workshop...the orginal photograph was taken during a train trip to Philadelphia to attend the opening for the Project Basho exhibit "Onward '08".

Now I'm home from the workshop and trying to remember everything I learned. I'm glad I have Marilyn's book "The Art of Digital Photo Painting" as a resource. Just so I wouldn't forget what I learned during the workshop, I've been practicing each day ... I know it will take me a while, but I'm totally enjoying the freedom to paint.