With a large canvas strapped to her back, Sophie Baker cuts an unusual figure as she cycles through the Canberra bush.
Two years ago she left behind a career in science to paint full-time in the open air.
"I pack my painting things onto my bike, and I cycle out into the bush and I paint what I see," Baker said.
"I don't have a studio — this is my studio."
Instead of an easel, she props up her canvas against sticks and rocks.
Baker is a disciple of plein-air — or open air — painting, an artistic tradition that spans centuries.
"I paint in pouring rain, I paint in light misty rain — but I'm also not afraid of painting in heatwave,"
she said.
"Engaging with nature and putting it onto the canvas is deeply relaxing."
Escaping the 'rat race'
Baker admits she was "mad" to quit her full-time job, but said taking the plunge into art had been a circuit breaker for her life.
"The rat race has a huge toll on your mind, your body, and also your identity," she said.
"I was starting to question, 'Was this me? An office worker?'"
She had always dreamed of having a solo exhibition, and has now achieved that — twice.
With a background in biology, Baker finds "endless inspiration" in Australia's unique flora and fauna.
"As a scientist, I know so much about what's at risk," she said.
"I see the pressures of the climate on the plants, and I work that into my paintings."
New festival takes artists outdoors
Baker is not the only artist embracing creativity in the elements.
More than 100 artists have descended on Canberra for a new outdoor painting festival — Capital Plein Air.
Participants have spent the week painting in some of the ACT's most picturesque locations.
Festival director Natasha Ruschka said she had been overwhelmed by the response to the event, which had attracted visitors from across the country.
"It's not just about the painting, it's about the experience,"
Ms Ruschka said.
"You have to work really fast with the elements, the light's changing — but you're so present in that moment.
"I can pick up any painting that I have painted in the last year and I can still remember what I smelt, who I spoke to [and] the temperature."
Capital Plein Air takes inspiration from Plein Air Down Under, a Western Australian festival co-founded by artist Leon Holmes.
"I used to be a studio painter, and you'd be stuck in there telling yourself how good you were," Holmes said.
"But when you get outside, you're actually amongst people and amongst nature and it's forever changing."
Unlike invitation-only outdoor painting events oversees, both Australian festivals have open registration.
"It's really nice to get the community involved," Holmes said.
"Whether you're a beginner or an accomplished painter."
Art fit for a king
Blue Mountains-based artist Warwick Fuller has forged a 45-year career as an open-air landscape painter.
He has travelled with King Charles III as his official tour artist four times.
"Because I'm an outdoor painter and I know how to paint when the opportunity arises — and suffer the consequences of things you can't predict," Fuller said.
"It's worked well for me, [and the King] must've thought it worked well too.
"Over the four tours [King Charles III] collected 21 of my paintings, so that's been an amazing thing," Fuller said.
Even if the art is not destined for royal walls, Fuller urged people to get outdoors and put brush to canvas.
"Paint, paint, paint — you could paint all your life and never improve, or you could improve with every painting,"
he said.
"You've got nothing to lose except a bit of canvas and a bit of paint."
