Some lovely chilled wine. Trying out my new camera while taking a course to learn how to do it better. Exploration of depth of field...top photo is subject isolated from background...bottom photo both subject and background are in focus. I wrote a bette blog but it disappeared off into the ether. Now I'm too bugged to bother. But....I am enjoying the photography part...at the expense of my drawing time. Oh well.

I've had two more excursions with my photography blind. First I sat out at dawn for 2 hours to see if any deer might be by the salt lick and hay. There had been some tracks up to it a few days ago and the hay had been munched on a bit. Well, the photo here is of the side trail from whence said deer would have come if indeed they had come. I sat eagerly poised, camera in hand but alas no deer.

The next attempt at clandestine photography involved a bag full of fish heads and guts as a lure for whatever carnivore might happen by. Alas, not even crows came by to pick at these goodies. I have replaced my broken tripod so it was an easier sit and wait.So again I simply took a photo of where the intended subject would have been (see bait just to the left of the tree) if it had showed up. I suspect it was the wrong time of day...I waited for daylight this time. It could also be that the beasties are too wary of the blind which I so cleverly thought was a good idea. There are lots of foxes around and they are not that shy so maybe it's just a matter of time. Mike has come home from ice-fishing with 5 more fish sooooo tomorrow I'll try again but this time just before dawn.

These are the fruits of my lurking in the woods in my photograhy blind. It went quite well for my first outing with the blind. Inspite of my teetering precariously on the hillside, my tripod snapping in two and my rustling around noisily inside the blind trying to get myself set up in the right spot before I settled into a quiet waiting mode...the little squirrel scolded me quite terribly at first and then finally came back to the feeder. I took many many shots...mostly in pet mode so as to catch the quick moving little guy. I even caught a little nuthatch while I waited for the squirrel to come back. I had planned to experiment more with other modes but being suddenly without a tripod I had to rely on 'shake reduction' as I hand held the camera. More than half of the shots were not good at all but I am pleased with how it went. It was soooo much fun...and I was quite cozy in the blind even though it was -10C and snowing. There were other noises going on too...sounded like a deer or moose or something making snorty grunty noises. Interesting very interesting.

I have a few things on the go just now. The wolves in the woods project is still at a standstill though. I did another quick sketch of a forest scene hoping to find inspiration or at least some enjoyment of the process. Blah on either count. I've set that aside in favour of some bookmarks for my grandson for Xmas. This is more pressing so as to get them in the mail in time for Xmas. And, more enjoyable from a creative standpoint as I can return to the subjects I prefer to draw.

My adventures with the new camera are somewhat mixed as I sort out how to most effectively use its many features. Mostly I have taken photos of dogs from my grooming table. It is almost too cold outside (-16C. right now) to fiddle around getting to know the camera. Although....I did buy a handy dandy hunting blind in which to lurk for squirrels, birds, and deer or whatever I can lure to my feeders. Just waiting for the portable stool and a couple of bales of hay to arrive before I set that little scheme into motion. What fun...to think about for now...it remains to be seen if it will work for me.

I've been plugging away at this one for a week now. I have a long way to go with the forest floor especially. I'm not truly happy with the look of either wolf...one is rather foxish. It is very much a work in progress to get some practice with composition. I find myself feeling impatient with the picture as a whole but it is a learning experience...outside of my comfort zone. I do long to return to portrait of animal heads dangling in limbo in the center of a blank page. It is progress just to keep at it though. And, so I shall.

Moonlit Wolf completed! I darkened the plants in the foreground, deepened some of the shadow and enhance the appearance of water around the reeds. I am pleased with the results and feel quite content to call this project complete. The paper has suffered somewhat in the editing process so I will redo this at a later date. Compositionwise I think it has improved immensely with the help of those who responded to my critique request on wc. What a great experience to go through. Living in a relatively isolated area and being quite apprehensive about getting into formal art classes I found the input of others who live way, way elsewhere very encouraging and will remember and use the info I received over and over to help myself grow artistically.

I made some changes on the Moonlit Wolf based on the advice I received on wc. I removed the upper part of the tree and left the remainder to become a stump. I extended the mountain range to the right edge of the drawing instead. It is my hope that the viewer's eye will now not be led out of the drawing but rather toward the wolf. I added more trees at the base of the mountains and gave them reflections in the lake. I have begun to improve the foreground with the addition of reeds and rocks suggesting the shore. I can now feel the eye being moved about the picture to rest on the wolf. I'm not sure if I will do much more to this. It's composition feels good but ofcourse the paper has suffered somewhat. I may at some point redo the entire thing on another piece of Bristol once I have satisfied myself with the composition completely.

I posted this Moonlit Wolf on wc for critique specific to the composition. It was pointed out that the tree draws the eye up and out of the drawing somewhat. I agree and I think I'll turn it into a stump instead to solve that problem. The tree also needs more substance at the base like roots to take away the hovering feeling. So some dark gnarly roots are in order too. The critique was much appreciated and helped me to SEE what I need to improve. I must get to it today.

My new camera has arrived...so much to read and learn about how to use it. It is similiar ofcourse to the 35mm camera in some aspects like the functions of apertures etc. But still....so much to read just read to begin with!

I am having what I perceive to be success with the wolf in forest project. I researched and reviewed any and all the info I could find regarding composition. And, I think I have come up with something that works. I did not post on wc as a work in progress though. I am debating on which forum to post for critique. There are several forums to chose from. I don't want to be brutally blown out of the water nor do I want to miss out on the constructive criticism that will help me grow as an artist. What to do...what to do??? I have a few days to decide until I finish things up on it. Right now I'm working on the wolf's eyes. I have a reference photo for that at least. The background came out of my brain...painful very painful. I plucked several aspects that I liked from about 5 photos and basically stuck em in together. Some of it even just developed as the graphite worked into the grain of the paper. It is too close to finished to post as a wip so I'll complete it and then take it to task with those who know waaaaaay more than me.

Hey, hey, hey! My new toy...I mean very serious artistic tool in the form of a DSLR camera should be here in a few days!!!! So excited about that.

The Chihuahua is complete. I'm very pleased with the way it turned out. Now I am to begin something new. I am starting on a drawing that will have a natural sort of forest background behind a wolf. Now the wolf part is not the challenge...it is the background that will vex and annoy me. It is something that I have never had the patience to do. I've tried before but without success as I quit before I get too far in. I have the outline of the wolf and the main tree trunk in place. I also have some vague lines going on to suggest the lay of the land which will appear to rise behind the wolf...I hope. I may get brave enough to do this as a wip on wc...maybe. Not too sure about that.

ooh,oooh,oooh I'm so excited. I've ordered a new camera! It's a Pentax K-X model so I can use my existing Pentax K mount lenses and accessories with it. It is apparently the latest Pentax 'user friendly' digital SLR camera. I really do need the user friendly kind of thing...automatic stuff...but it also has a manual setting to use for more creativity once I get the hang of it. I am looking forward to better shots and something new to learn and play with. We went to an Arts and Crafts Show and Sale today. Their are some extremely talented folks around here. This sort of thing always inspires me to improve and learn more about how to create believable art work. My latest drawing work in progress is a Chihuahua portrait. Such cute little critters. After this little guy is completed it is time for me to expand what I do by exploring effective and interesting backgrounds. I never have bothered with that but it is time to get at it. Natural themes but not vast landscapes seems to be a logical place for me to start. Research!

These are my two latest completed projects. The horse is Music with Chris...the drawing is a gift for Trudi. It was their 10 anniversary a while back. Congrats ofcourse. Trudi took the photo I used for reference and I felt so inspired by it. Now the kittenses were just too cute to pass up taking a stab at drawing. It was fun to work out their little faces and assign imaginary personalities to each one as I worked on them.

My dragon project seems to have gone into hibernation for the time being. I am beginning to rethink the largeness of it. I am seriously considering scaling it down ...quite a lot. It is very and I really do mean VERY boring to work on something big, big, big and disjointed. Perhaps 11" by14" total is more sensible and will keep me interested and focussed on the task. I need to think and decide...I hate incomplete projects.

Here kitty kitty kitty. Drew this tiger while watching that brain sapping TV that I can't seem to avoid. At least it only gets part of my attention at any time. I have a new project on the go ....well actually 2 new projects. One is a colour pencil of a little girl which I only struggle along with at my desk 'cause colour is HARD to do. The other is one I can do in front of the TV again. It's a photo a friend took of her husband and her horse...I want to do it to give to her. She is a gifted artist herself in pastels. Anyway that's that.

This arabian horse is drawn from a photo stock library on wc. It is so striking in color (a brilliant chestnut) so I may give it a go in color pencil as well as this graphite rendering of it. I'll do a few unrelated projects first though to get a fresh perspective 'in color'. Graphite is my pet medium while all others are unpracticed and require waaaay more effort and thought while I work.

Well today I have added a corrected version of this horse. It was pointed out to me that the nose was twisted. Soooo, I fixed that and enlarged the nostrils to look better as well. I attempted to fix the harsh dark shadow under the head but had limited success lifting the graphite. So it goes.

Life is good. Camping is good. Fishing is good. Dog grooming is good. Art,in all forms and for all reasons, is good. Here are the latest of my art efforts...kitten and dog 1 and 2. Sigh!

And so back to art...here is the lioness now complete. Alas, the new kitten is at an artistic stand still....something does not look quite right with it. I did refresh my brain with a lovely picnic on an island across the lake...rubadubdub 3 dogs in a tub...what fun!! And, at last I have returned to the dragon. I've gotten a start on one of the wings. I am determined to keep on track...maybe.

Zero effort on dragon....100% effort on enjoying life and all the natural beauty that surrounds me daily. The lake was like glass today! Otherwise, artistically, I have a lioness completed but not scanned as yet and have moved on to another kitten.

I haven't been doing anything on the dragon for sooo long. I have done a couple of projects while on camping trips though .... kitten and lion. Not enough hours in a day it seems. The weather has been excellant for the duration so we have to enjoy it while it's good. Our grandson visited for a week and much fun was had instead of art work.

I got the next frame done. The photo of it is a bit wonky but shows it in perspective more or less. As I mentioned before it was a relatively boring piece to work on...yawn...but it's done. I've moved to the frame coming down and across the nape. This will require a little more care and creativity to blend in with the previous work as well as to create the beginnings of his wings. Now these wings, I hope, will be of a rather gossamer quality. My dragon sheds and regrows his wings yearly during which time (albeit a short period) he finds himself somewhat vulnerable to predation. My aim with this depicition is to show the wings in their most robust state but at the same time to somehow reveal their delicacy and fineness.

What fun!

I am finally back to the dragon. This is the first frame after the original head frame. I'm feeling quite encouraged now that I can see some progress on him. Now that I've photographed these 2 frames together I see the arm connection is off. I have corrected the gaff and it will show up in the next grouping photo as a better match. Today I am working on the next frame down to complete the other hand/claw. It's kind of a dull frame to work on as there is so much to background fill with charcoal. And yet, I am enjoying being back in the loft.

Home at last! My travel companions and I are soooooo glad to be back in beautiful BC. Saskatchewan was a nice visit with Mike's family but I sure can't take hours and hours of driving. I'm more of a drive for 4 hours only and camp kind of person. There was not a minute to spare for art....I think I went through withdrawal! Now that I'm caught up with my grooming clients, garden and yardwork I hope to get back to it. All of the frames are prepped with line drawings. I did a change to the hind legs. I'm quite excited to get on with it!

The dragon body has begun to take shape. This is a rough draft of the general look he will take on. However I have already changed the front legs since the scan. I am seriously concerned about the hind legs. They need to change but I will wait on that for a bit. They will stil need to be in a tucked position because he is in flight. I just don't like the look... I am finding that as I transpose the idea onto the each frame in relation to the previous frame I can make adjustments to improve the look. There has been much too much going on here lately that has kept me from my art. Two more weeks of interruption and I'll be at it more consistantly...I hope.

What happened to the last 2 days? I'm not really sure....except that I have a horse drawing done to show for it and a half done portrait challenge from wet canvas. So, I guess I was busy drawing. I had a ShihTsu to groom...the very grumbly Buddy...very good but "don't touch my front legs or else". Not entirely all bluff to that threat either. We had some visitors from the "big city" drop by for a few hours too. The hummingbird pictures are for them as they were quite thrilled by them but could not catch them with their camera. Those hummers are very wary of changes around the feeder. I had to set my camera up on a tripod in one of the flower boxes by the feeder and hide behind the post to get this. Hmmm, I guess that's what happened to the last 2 days. The dragon is at rest for the time being while I work out his body stance...over and over... until I see what I like.

I have completed the Dragon in Moonlight, frame #1. I see him as at half-halt in full flight...in contemplation of his next move...fight or flight or perhaps in casual observation of his domain. He is afterall not a violent fellow...just hungry most of the time. This stance will come into perspective as I continue into the next series of frames. I should be able to photograph the entire series in full from my loft while they are laid out on the kitchen floor. But first I shall have to create them...in essence I must grow him a body. It may take quite some time. There are so many other things to do at this time of year. Kayaking the creek this morning made me quite giddy with the size of life. Towering trees, vast expanses of land, looming mountains, lakes that seem to stretch out forever...and that was just in eye view at that moment. We are so small to reek such great havoc on the planet. Shame on us!

I can't beleive I spent almost the entire day rearranging my loft. Just because of three boxes of books that I hadn't unpacked from the move last year. First I had to create a gigantic mess but now it looks great. This is where I go to seek the creative muse...it's cozy. I have not got any further on the dragon...just a little shading on the front which I thought too light. But, I changed the pupil of the eye on the WC guide advice. It improves it for sure.