Distant Fire, Rutland Water

Oil on board, 10 x 14 inches

I was out painting en plein air the other evening, starting at around 6.30pm. I was looking more or less straight into the sun, which was shining brightly, but, inevitably, as sunset was approaching, the sky changed beyond recognition...and I ended up chasing the light! Painting the way I do, it's never easy to get things down really quickly, so a changing scene is a real challenge. I took a photo just before I packed up, and opted to paint the sky as the sun was descending - painting to be completed in the studio. But, this got me thinking - perhaps I should adopt a very different approach outside, and paint very much more loosely. I love the work of painters who paint big paintings with ease, in a short amount of time, with broad brushstrokes, like the New Zealander, John Crump, so I attempted this one above in a similar fashion. When you love putting in detail, it's extremely difficult to loosen-up. Anyway, here's one - any comments as to what you think would be welcome, good or bad!

Update - I repainted the foreground and the sky a little, so have added the newer version at the top for comparison...