When you paint atmospheric conditions, such as, rain, snow, or fog, you want it to be as realistic as possible.  You have to realize how light affects these conditions and what it does to the various hues in the painting.  They are all influenced by light deflection.

Many artists will simply paint over the area with a light gray wash.  However, a better technique that gives your painting a more realistic appearance is to gray down each and every color using a mixture of white and a complement of the color affected by the fog, cloud, snow, rain, or whatever the  painting is portraying.

Probably some of the greatest artists to paint nature with all the influences of weather conditions came from the Hudson River School back in the nineteenth century.  I’ve always admired their work, and they have been a great influence on me; I especially like the works of Thomas Cole and Albert Bierstadt.

The scene depicted in the painting to the left entitled, Red Truck, shows the atmospheric conditions on a cold day this past winter.  I tried to let the scene disappear into the cold air of the day.  The color of the sky had a great influence on all the hues involved in making this painting.

The medium used in the painting was acrylic and it depicts a scene located about a mile from my home.  I remember I nearly froze taking pictures and drawing sketches.  I still feel like putting on a sweater every time I look at it.