A fen is not a bog, and a bog is not a fen! Fens are marshlands with free-flowing water, such as a creek, which creates the marshland in shallow areas. A bog is created by still standing water, left behind after the rain. Bogs can dry out more readily than a fen, I guess.
autumn is here. This week we will enjoy 90+F – oh, aren’t we lucky?!
I have ongoing frustrations with depth of field . . . a camera makes it for you when you choose the aperture, but you have to make it yourself when you paint.
I’ve been busy. Creative endeavors have been primarily sewing nightgowns for the coming cooler season, but also because I need some. TMI? I don’t know. But, it has kept me from painting for the past week. Sewing and other things have been taking up my time, but my craving for pigment is gnawing at me.
To play and loosen up, I decided to paint with time limits of 10, 20, and 30 minutes. I ate lunch and took a nap in between it all.
October
Above is a 10-minute study. October is here, and the colors of an eastern (anywhere from where I live is east!), hardwood woodland is alive with color before the pale and monochrome winter landscape.
Into the Hills
20 minutes and a bit more complex. The only brush I used was a hake brush, which is about 2 inches wide. A lot of dry brush on top of damp paper.
Edge of the Island
30 minutes here. Again, a lot of work done with the hake brush. I also used a rigger for the trunks and branches and some grasses, but the hake, with dryish paint, makes wonderful grasses.
I’m finding myself neglecting things that need to be done so I can play around. My little Puritan soul is not happy about this!! And really, I do like to get tasks done as their being done makes life a lot less guilt ridden with nagging thoughts. Also, it is important to continue to learn, I think, and there are a number of really good online courses and instructors in video format that are worth watching, and practicing from. I want to schedule my time a bit more wisely . . . and then I can play, guilt free!
Last night we went out and looked at the moon. Just past full, with Mars at 11:00. Josh had tried to take pictures of it with his phone, but to no avail. This was the perfect opportunity to check out the gear head!
The Nikon Df and Nikon 24-120mm f/4 lens were mounted, in both landscape and portrait mode. The tripod and camera were rock solid and the gear head did a fine job. We had to dig out a flashlight to see the camera settings and goof around a lot. It would have been nice to have a more clear image with details of the seas of the moon, but that didn’t happen.
Exposure was a bit of a trick – how long? Initially the camera was on aperture priority, but that wouldn’t have been for the best. Autofocus was really confused, too. In the end, all was set to manual, and exposures were done at 6, 8, and 10 seconds were attempted using the B mode, counting off. The exposure for this image was 6.9 sec per the EXIF data.
I think I need to do a bit of reading about shooting the moon, and try again tonight!
Summer comes and goes; retirement gives you time to fill the days. Each one is cherished, and soon, your time becomes increasing full, so full you wonder when you will find time . . .
I have tried to paint every day – gouache, watercolor, pastels – and overall have managed to meet that challenge. Some days, other parts of life intervene, and that’s okay. Appointments, social engagements, reading a book all can replace the time spent painting. Thus, without further ado, here are some that I produced since my August 2, 2020, post about painting in July.
Lacking in the lovely simplicity of Rick Surowicz’s painting “Flower Pot” from his YouTube video of the same name, this is my attempt to work with negative space in painting. He is a master – I am not.
Flowers are ridiculously difficult to paint because of their bright colors and unique shapes, not to say their varying leaves as well. And, it is truly difficult to convey a bouquet suggestively. I overwork flowers all the time. Follow below to see Rick at work.
Ink, Yarn & Beer 