Early Morning light in Fulford Harbor

I was out photographing swans that early spring, chilly morning. The fog was just beginning to lift. The light was so beautiful, I shot tons of pics. the swans were so majestic. A couple with their young son stood on the shore, face to face with a beautiful swan. It just stayed there on the water, about 15 feet away, having a beautiful moment with humans. The scene was backlit, and took my breath away.
I returned home and up-loaded the images onto my computer. That beautiful moment was beautiful in the moment, but photo was meh. However, I zoomed into the background and lo and behold this beautiful scene emerged. I knew then I had to paint this! My eyes darted around the studio looking for a suitable canvas. They were all too small, except for one, a panel my husband Marc made 5 years prior. We cleaned it up, I glued canvas onto the panel, primed it and got to work. It was intimidating to say the least. I had no idea how I was going to tackle all those trees. I was shaking in my boots! I swear it's all in the brush. I had purchased Tisch daggers from Rosemary and Co and glad I did, because they saved the day! It took five months to paint this giant piece. Now hanging in my living room.
The scene is Fulford Harbor on Salt Spring Island, Off the Coast of Vancouver, Canada. Once of the most popular vacation destinations in Canada.