editing what you see

When painting en plein air, artists often edit what they see, choosing not to paint photographically. A photograph is an instant captured moment in time just as the scene appears. But while painting en plein air, the artist has time to become acquainted with the subject. There are choices to be made, items to be left out, things to be rearranged, colors to be shifted. Plein air artists can choose to capture the scene before them precisely as it appears. However, the artistic inclination is to render the scene as it appears in the mind's eye. Filtered through the artist's creativity, the finished painting is unique in all ways.