Paddling Portrait of Bill Mason
©2007, 17" by 21", Watercolour

I based this painting on Ken Buck's photograph of Bill Mason paddling his classic red canoe in Old Woman's Bay on Lake Superior.

The image was classic Bill: red cedar canoe, checkered shirt, red bandana, canvas packs and big white beard.

The original photo was slightly out of focus because it was a wide-angle shot taken from a fair distance away, so I sharpened it up a little. Also, I removed some large rocks that jutted up out of the water so that the canoe, and the ripples that it carves in the water are the focus. Lastly, I added the only thing that was, in my mind, missing: his beat-up old hat.