Things have been scattered here – but looking through old photos is always fun. This is a picture I took on a hike with a friend last August – a wild morning glory alongside a local creek. This year the wildflowers are even more amazing than last year’s because of all the rain. I hope to see more!
More going back through the photographic archives!
This morning I came across some images from 4/2011 when I was using a friend’s Nikon D70. I think this may be a Pope John Paul II white rose in my front garden. I took a number of images with an exposure long enough to let me blur the image, but short enough not to make a mess. There are about 10 that I did, some which are rather nice, I think. I like this one because of its softness, but also as I was looking at them, I was also thinking they could make for some rather interesting paintings.
After a lot of watercoloring, picking up a pen and using ink to draw feels really relaxing. Adding watercolor to a pen drawing doesn’t need a lot of color, but it does require a bit of thought about light and shadow.
I thought about a daisy study of Peter Sheeler’s on YouTube – I remembered how very little color he added to his ink drawing of the daisy. With this in mind, I put in some greys and grey-blues. I tried to apply the same concept to the blue flowers (which I want to call cornflowers, but don’t think they are), and to the grasses and leaves. Below is my ink drawing, done freehand without a pencil sketch beforehand. I am rather pleased with both – my inking skills are improving, as, perhaps, are my watercoloring skills. Less is more has become more of motto than before!
Hopefully, hopefully, hopefully, the house will be back to usable today! Toilets and sinks installed and operational. I’ll find out when I get home from my watercolor class. Meanwhile, I looked through some of my photos and chanced upon one of a small flower, tiny, and thought it might be a good way to warm up for my class – before lunch – before coffee!
Ink, Yarn & Beer 