Here is a photo I took on St. George Island on the Florida Panhandle. I liked the figure of the surf fisherman, and thought it would make a good painting. My first attempt was more or less a copy of the photo, and was a miserable failure. The figure was large, and the surf was confusing. I decided to de-emphasize the figure and concentrate on the surf in the second painting.
I placed the figure on the thirds and simplified the surf. I used some other source material for the surf. I also decided that the sky was too flat and formed an uninteresting rectangle, so I added some tension with the storm clouds approaching.
Lesson? Don't be tied to the composition or details in a photo. Move things, combine things, change colors, anything to aid the painting.
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