Here is photo which a very nice student let me have to paint from.
I like the stream snaking through and the wonderful contrast between the snow and the dark browny grey water.
There is a sense of distance with a wooded area in the background. I try to emphasise this sense of depth in my painting and I also simplify the foreground trees. (Sometimes when you attempt to simplify a photo, you can’t see the woods for the trees, literally!)
If you want to know more about how I achieved the effects in the painting, get in touch!