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Dear traveler,
One thing for sure.  Now that I’ve viewed the links below, I feel my paintbrush is going to want to figure out how to pry itself away from realistically/literally depicting the colors we will see on the Provençal trip (except perhaps in Roussillon) and, instead, my brush will want to channel some Matisse, van Gogh, Chagall.  It is worth thinking about ahead of time—what artist we’d love to try our hand at.  As you check out the links below, I suggest you look at the Provençal artists and compare what their reference source actually looked like with what their paintings look like! Many of them emphasized form, color, line, joy. These artists painted like they were filled with exuberance. Let your camera depict the actual scene.  Let your brush have the fun!  And if you have time, why not copy one or two of the paintings of your favorite artist(s) in your sketchbook—not fretting about every inch being exact—so you can see how much fun it is to try impressionism/post impressionism.  Your paint brush will have fun! DIG IN to those colors like a 5 year old!

 Here are some links that pertain to our October trip:

Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild:
http://villa-ephrussi.com/en/home

 Matisse Museum, Nice:
http://www.musee-matisse-nice.org/

 A photo sequence of the colorful Roussillon:
http://www.beyond.fr/villages/roussillon.html

 A lovely slide show of Lex Baux de Provence:
http://www.lesbauxdeprovence.com/en

 A YouTube slideshow of St. Paul de Mausole Asylum where Van Gogh stayed:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzQ8HbMS0zI

 A 3 ½ minute video of the lovely Isle sur le Sorgue:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=boJyuJF2wQw

 A site about Aix en Provence that will put you in the Cezanne state of mind:
http://www.aixenprovencetourism.com/en/things-to-do/explore/paul-cezanne/

A video of the beautiful Eze:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8h9SaFsT__0

 Slideshow of St Paul de Vence:
http://www.saint-pauldevence.com/en

 An enjoyable, light book to read:  A Year in Provence (Peter Mayle)

In fact, here’s a book list if you’re interested.  I always like the DK Eyewitness Guide books because, like you perhaps, I am visual and it their guide books are packed with beautiful photos.

http://www.butterfield.com/blog/2013/08/23/books-about-provence/