For Drawing Hawks and Eagles

Just a quick note: In a recent post I wrote on a raptor sketching workshop I gave, I mentioned the two booklets I prepared for the course. One was Raptor Anatomy for the Artistic Bird Watcher, the other was Sketching Raptors.

I've now put these together into a short book I have named How to Draw Raptors, a Sketching Workbook, and rather than take the time to describe it, I'll just copy the info from its web page for you here:

Written and illustrated for artists of all capabilities, this manual covers the anatomy of raptors from eyes, ears and beak to feet, talons, wings, tails, and feather construction, showing how and why they are unique and the part they play in making raptors the incredibly beautiful and functional predators they are.

Learn sketching techniques and how to get the best results when drawing a moving, living animal; how to indicate feathers with simple strokes; how to use feather markings to indicate the entire feather; the effective use of pencil strokes when shading, and many other details.

Created originally as a workshop manual for birders wanting to sketch live birds at a wildlife rehabilitation center, this 20 page manual is packed with essential information. Its comb binding allows it to lie flat for easy reference and the workbook format allows the user to draw right in the book if desired.

A section on right-brain techniques,with exercises on contour drawing and negative spaces, is included to warm up the intermediate or advanced artist and get the less experienced artist quickly up to speed.

For realistic results, a section on ways to achieve 3-dimensional effects is included. It covers shadows and how they can add shape to a flat drawing, shading with pencil and tortillon or soft stump, erasers and interesting techniques for their effective use.

Templates for drawing raptor heads and raptor talons will give you guidance on how to draw convincing eyes, beaks that would open properly, and translate important information from the shape and size of the skull to a feathered, living bird with fierce, lifelike eyes and glossy beak.

Advanced drawing methods are also addressed, featuring tips and techniques on other subjects as well as birds: hair direction for mammals, symmetry on such things as seashells (this applies to other symmetrical subjects as well, such as bird wings and tails), applying veins to leaves, and shading a furry animal.

If you enjoy drawing animals, birds in general, and raptors in particular, this would be a useful book to own.

The reason I'm putting this on my blog is that I've gotten emails from post readers asking if it's available. It is.

And now I'm back to working on The Green Anole illustration for The Southern Swamp Explorer. The book is supposed to be done by the end of the year and I'm wa-a-a-y behind schedule!

p.s. I'm hoping to get my first newsletter out this coming week. If you'd like to receive it, be sure to sign up for it in the column at right. It will list upcoming workshops and will have a section on sketching tips.

As I promised, I'll now be working on my Journaling/Sketching Workshop "out loud."

It seemed to me that I should probably take a journaling workshop before I finished preparing to teach one, just to see what other people felt should be included in such a workshop, so I was delighted to find an "Outdoor Sketching and Personal Journaling" class being offered through Ashland Parks for June 22.

Gathering up my journal, pen, pencil, kneaded eraser, watercolor pencils & brush and a new sitting pad (one of those seat & back connected with straps, you sit in it and it supports your back), I paid my $45 at the office in Lithia Park (this is a gorgeous, "organic" park designed by John McLaren, who designed Golden Gate Park in SF), then hiked down the trail along the creek to the Madrone Picnic Area.

It was chilly when I got there, but the instructor, Elaine Frenett, was ready to go, with examples of her journals and the supplies she uses to create them displayed on one of the picnic tables. One of her journals, which she had set upright and fanned out so that many pages were visible (possible with a spiral binding), was stunning. (That's a student in the photo.)

Each page was a work of art, with "illuminated" caps, at least one to a page, and brilliant, loose watercolor paintings. The text was also a graphic design element, flowing and meandering across the pages. They were written in an attractive style, somewhere between calligraphy and, well, I can't describe it -- but it really adds to the beauty of the page. She's a real artist! Here's a sample -- click on it for a larger view.

Iwas immediately welcomed and made to feel at home, and the sun started to warm the park as class commenced with Elaine introducing herself and having us do the same. I hesitantly shared the fact that I was putting together a Sketching/Journaling Workshop and wanted to see how someone else presented their material.

Fortunately, she wasn't taken aback by this. After introductions, she passed out her beautifully designed brochures which included a short discussion of why we might want to keep a journal, a list of basic materials useful for journaling, and a checklist of ideas on how we might want to present ourselves in our journals.

I was pleased to see that they closely paralleled the list I had made during my long drive to Idaho a couple of weeks ago (998 miles round trip providing 21 hours of contemplation and note-making for my journaling workshop). Exhausting but productive (more on this later).

Next came a brief introduction of drawing techniques. Students in this particular class, which is held every second Friday through the summer, already had some experience drawing, so Elaine kept this brief.

Then we voted to continue by watching Elaine demonstrate how she creates a journal page, so we gathered around as she roughed in a scene containing a rough stone bench, the creek, and the cool green foliage and trees in the background.

After awhile, still watching, I got out my journal and made a sketch of Elaine sketching, and colored it with my watercolor pencils. Her style is very free and loose, while mine is fairly tight (although when I use the watercolor pencils I tend to loosen up considerably). While we sketched, she continued to point out techniques she was using and tell us how and why she did it that way.

The class lasted from 9-1, so, shortly before one o'clock, Elaine critiqued our efforts helpfully but gently, and we exchanged emails and said goodbye, leaving with a better grasp of this particular style of journal sketching. That was a very enjoyable class and I am delighted to have made the acquaintance of such an excellent new colleague.

I would highly recommend Elaine's class to anyone who journals -- it would really open up lots of possibilities (if you enroll, tell Elaine I sent you -- she'd probably like to know if blog exposure like this helps bring in new students!).

BTW, I asked Elaine for a scan of the finished drawing, and when she sends it I'll stick in here. Be sure to come back and see how it looked!

Wildflower Sketching on Table Rock

This mini-workshop was an experiment, sponsored by the BLM (Bureau of Land Management) and The Nature Conservancy, to see if it would turn out to be popular and well-attended. They'd never sponsored a sketching workshop before on Upper Table Rock. As it turned out, it was popular enough to fill up (12 attendees) but the day turned out to be off-and-on springtime-sprinkley, and not a perfect day for pulling out a sketchbook and exposing it to stray raindrops -- so only seven people turned up for the hike. Alas, the only sunshine we saw that day was the lovely yellow sunflower called Oregon Sunshine.

Table Rock is a local landmark, a mesa composed of volcanic materials rising 800' above the Rogue River in Southern Oregon. It can be seen for miles, and supports a great array of spring wildflowers, a Federally listed fairy shrimp which lives in the vernal pools on its flat top, and gives a spectacular view of the valley all around.

To make sure I could guide it properly, the week before it was scheduled I tagged along with an entomology hike (led by Pete Schroeder from Southern Oregon University, and coincidentally a former scientific illustration student of mine) along the route we'd take. I selected good wildflower patches and places to settle down in to sketch, and learned a lot about insects and Upper Table Rock's natural history along the way.

Then on May 27, under ominous gray clouds, my little group bravely started up the trail at 10am. Right away I realized that within the short space of a week the flower show was completely different. Showy purple camas blooms from the week before had nearly disappeared, but Henderson's stars were now blooming. Big yellow mule's ears were almost finished, but lavender brodiaea had taken their place. I realized it would be pretty much "potluck." My plans were relatively useless with the changed flowers and rain threatening.

But we started out in good humor, stopping to admire and identify interesting wildflowers along the way -- lovely pink and white morning glories, indian paintbrush......

About a quarter mile up the trail we stopped at a meadow dotted with purple, white and pink flowers and got out sketchpads, drawing lovely purple lupines, blue dicks (common brodiaea- pronounced bro-DEE-uh) and other small flowers, some of which we couldn't identify.

One artist working on a lupine drawing had just started to apply watercolors when it started to sprinkle. Sketchbooks turned damp and splotched. Darn! We regretfully packed up our art supplies and started up the hill again, stopping to admire and identify flowers as we went -- there wasn't much alternative, if we couldn't get out the sketchbooks at least we could admire the flowers and look them up in the flower book, Wildflowers of Southern Oregon by John Kemper, which I had brought along.

Some of us had brought cameras as well sketchbooks, which I had suggested in the hike write-up. It's wise to take a snapshot of a sketch subject in case you want to add details or color later on. So we stopped for photos fairly often, and I was able to pass along interesting natural history tidbits about the things we saw, but my knowledge is eclectic and spotty. The fascinating Barestem Lomatium has a swollen node at the top of the stem -- we wondered why....

We found false camas, Zigadenus venenosus, growing in the "real" camas patches. Native Americans had to watch out for this plant when digging for camas bulbs to eat, because the Zigadenus bulb looks very similar to edible camas bulbs but is extremely toxic.


Alas, it was very difficult to sit and sketch in the changeable weather, and the watercolor artist decided to call it a day and hiked back down the hill. Two energetic members preferred to hike quickly to the top to wait for us there. The rest of us hiked at medium speed to the top where we had lunch while gazing out over the valley (I can't believe I didn't take a picture of the panorama!).

The top of Table Rock was a gorgeous pastel scene. Where the vernal pools had dried up there were rings of pink, white and blue flowers. Most of the blooms on top were what some people call "belly flowers," best seen while lying on one's stomach peering at their tiny forms, and very difficult to draw. [by the way, fellow artists, remember that white papery flower we saw on the hike - the one we tried repeatedly to look up? I finally found it: it's called Blow Wives, Achyrachaena mollis, and is in the sunflower family.]

We turned around after eating our bag lunches and made it down to our parked cars by about 3pm, after admiring false solomon's seal, discovering a shy naked broomrape, and taking more photos and giving sketching advice on the way.

I always pass around evaluation sheets at the end of a workshop, and got some useful feedback from my remaining participants on this only-semi-successful sketching trip.

I asked for feedback, on a scale of 1 to ten, and here are the averages:

• How would you rate the education or recreational value of this outing? 9.5
• How would you rate the overall effectiveness of the group leader? 9.75
• Did you feel the time allowed and the locale of the hike were suited to the activity? 9
• Would you be likely to participate in this activity again or recommend it to a friend? 9.75
• What did you enjoy most about this outing?
• "hearing tips on sketching flowers, etc."
• "Ms. Brady makes everyone feel welcome, despite their level of ability."
• "Irene is an incredible instructor [I'm blushing here] -- I enjoyed all aspects -- looking at and identifying wildflowers, sketching, thinking, a great combo!"
• "Learning about nature on the trail -- flowers, insects, interspecies relationships. Enjoying the beauty"

• Can you suggest improvements or make recommendations for future outings?
• "No, it was totally enjoyable"
• "No -- well, rename the workshop to attract more people" [we discussed calling it a nature hike with optional sketching and photography]
  
• All parts were great!
• Perhaps focusing on 2 or 3 different locations for the sketching portion [instead of hiking all the way to the top].

So anyway, that was the workshop/hike. Nature Conservancy sent me a thank you note and wanted to know how it went and to send them any thoughts or comments about it. I think I'll just give them a link to this blog -- that oughta do it [Hi, Lyndia from Nature Conservancy, let me know if you need to know more].

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I spent last week on the road, driving my car a total of 22 hours to and from my nephew's wedding in Idaho. In my next blog I'll report on the sketchbook/journal workshop I'm putting together. I had LOTS of time to think it out, and had a chance to discuss details of it with my brother, who is very wise. I accept wise anywhere I can get it ;^}

The Raptor Workshop

Last month I did a rather unusual workshop on sketching raptors (birds of prey) in conjunction with an ornithologist, Dr. Frank Lang, from Southern Oregon University, with whom I used to teach Biological Illustration. The workshop was sponsored by the Siskiyou Field Institute.

It was unique because it was mainly a drawing class for birders, who had spent the previous two days in the field with binoculars and Frank, watching and admiring hawks, falcons, eagles, owls and ospreys. Normally my workshops attract artists, and I focus on the right-brain processes involved in improving drawing skills in a studio setting. For this workshop of birders I was asked to start out with raptor anatomy, then move on to drawing actual birds.

As a naturalist, I know quite a lot about birds, but ANATOMY???? After a week of cramming, I was ready for the anatomy part. With my new knowledge, I made a heavily illustrated 8-page book I titled "Raptor Anatomy for the Artistic Bird Watcher," which covered bird parts, construction, and function. I added a page of sketching techniques for raptors. I have a little comb binder in my studio, so I ran these off on my laser printer and bound them with covers. They look nice, if I do say so myself {grin}.

Using that book, plus skulls and feathers, and an actual foot from an owl, I taught my nine students about raptor parts, then I handed out a workbook book I had made, "Sketching Raptors," and each person tackled some basic drawing techniques right on the workbook's pages. I love this technique, since students can take the workbook home with their drawings next to instructions for later reference (as in, "how the heck did I do THAT?"). [Later: Due to several requests, I have bound the Raptor Anatomy and the Sketching Raptors workbooks together under the Raptor Anatomy cover and I'm offering these for sale for $7.95 on my Nature Works Press website (you can get there from the links bar at right).

The workshop met at Wildlife Images, a wildlife rehab center with a terrific outreach program. A handler stayed with us all day to make sure the birds stayed happy and calm and to answer our questions. After an introductory drawing session, a red-tailed hawk was brought in, which they all sketched as I moved about the room advising and suggesting ways to capture its shape. Over the course of the day we sketched a red-tailed hawk, a great horned owl, a Swainson's hawk, and finally, a spotted owl. I did some quickie demo drawings of the great horned owl to show techniques and how to get the general shape.

I kept the workshop really loose and casual since I figured the people were mostly there for love of the birds, not to learn how to draw perfectly. Only one person had signed up specifically because of the drawing session, and he apparently was satisfied, according to his evaluation. I always hand out evaluations at the end of class, to help me meet expectations and improve future workshops.

Our critiques, one after every bird, were fun -- this very supportive group gave kudos for every speck of improvement anyone showed over the course of the day. I always ask groups to keep their comments positive, and this was a MOST positive bunch.

In addition to discovering their sketching talents, these dedicated birders got the bonus of being close to the raptors for a long, quiet time. One older student was weary by mid-afternoon and spent the last hour or so simply gazing raptly at the spotted owl we were drawing. It WAS magnificent....

In my next entry, I'll write about last Sunday's Wildflower Sketching trip to the top of Upper Table Rock, a local landmark visible from all over the Rogue Valley. Talk about gorgeous....!

And For My Next Workshop.......

4/29

We left Costa Rica today, flying out of Puerto Jimenez after an early morning hike on which I discovered a beautiful passiflora vine in flower, and sketching a red-capped manakin. Dan and I said goodbye to El Remanso with great regret. We have so enjoyed this tropical paradise, and being looked after so wonderfully. We want to come again soon, and I want to lead another workshop of eager students as they discover the wonders to be found here and become aware of their increasing ability to draw and add color to it. I can’t think of a more rewarding way to spend my time.

I’m developing another workshop right now on nature journaling for those people who enjoy keeping a journal and would like to add life and breath to it with drawings in pencil, pen, watercolor pencil, watercolors, whatever. It will be a chance for participants to develop their writing skills as well. I think this would make a particularly fascinating workshop here.

When I go on trips, I always take photos for my journals, and I usually sketch. I’ve found it’s the journals with sketches that I take the most pleasure in, by far. I visit them again and again, while the photo albums languish.

A journal is not only a record of what you see and do, but a narrative to return to again and again later. My journal of this workshop and all the sketches I did will provide pleasure frequently in the coming years – and it will be great fun to share with family and friends.

Colorful descriptive writing can make a simple journal a work of art. A walk in a wild Costa Rican jungle or beach, your local woods, the city park (or even a willful back yard) can provide lots of opportunities for a great journal page, but there are other sources for a wonderful sketch/journal, too.

For instance, a gardener is in contact with nature on a daily basis, and many gardeners keep journals of what they plant and when, the date the veggies ripen or the flowers bloom, etc. But how much richer their lives would be with an additional focus on journaling and sketching about these miracles. Here’s an example of a simple garden entry:

“5/27 planted 2 ponypacks of snap peas today.”

Now consider how much more enjoyment you could get from this entry – not only as you write it on 5/27 but as you read it on 11/30 when it’s cold outside and the peas are long-ago consumed – if you had journaled:

“5/8 10:30am Sunny with a slight breeze, and the blossoms on the madrone trees fill the air with a sweet honey scent. We’re having an unseasonably cool spring, but that makes it perfect for planting since I haven’t been able to turn on the irrigation drippers yet. I just planted two ponypacks of snap peas in a big pot on the deck, and looped the tiny tendrils through the chickenwire so they could begin their climb to the sun. The chickenwire keeps Jesse [the cat] out of the pot – he thinks those pots are there for his personal enjoyment.

The lettuce and bok choy I planted 2 weeks ago aren’t quite big enough to provide a full salad bowl every day, but by adding a few pea leaves (yum!) I can give a small, delicious taste of spring to my daily lunch menu. The peas are so robust and lively they’ll never notice.”

And along with that entry you sketch the pea plants and their spring-like tendrils, or the pot and chickenwire, or Jesse peering wistfully into the forbidden pot, or even the whole deck with its array of pots and salad greens. And just imagine drawing (and maybe painting) your roses or clematis blooms! As you gain experience and confidence, you can get really detailed about the drawing, and add color or shading as you wish. And no matter how skilled you are at drawing now, you will get better with practice – and your enjoyment in the journaling, the sketching, and even the gardening will grow exponentially. Reading back in your journal is like a time-machine visit. It fully evokes the day, the time, the scent and quality of air (if you write about it) and the very event you chronicle. What a lovely gift to make to your future self!

So THAT’s the workshop I’m putting together, to help people get started on a fascinating-to-read journal decorated with pleasing drawings. Having done it for decades myself, I’m really going to enjoy sharing the pleasures of it. I hope you can join me here at El Remanso for the adventure. Be sure to click on the link to get on my newsletter list so you won't miss it -- plus the art tips and techniques you'll also find in the newsletter. By subscribing to my free newsletter, you'll also let me know how much interest there is in such a workshop. Keep in touch!

Beach and Waterfall Massage

4/28

10:30am This morning Dan and I started down to the beach at seven, reveling in the pounding surf, skeins of brown pelicans patrolling the waves, and the fringe of palms, kapok, and beach almond trees fringing the beach. Crumpled papery eggshells littered the soft gray sand where a turtle nest had been raided overnight by a pizote.

We meandered south to the tidepools to bask in warm pools shadowed yet awhile by the cliffs. I lay in the pool floating weightlessly as the occasional incoming wave washed almost-hot water from more distant pools into mine, then surged across the pool to meet a similar frothy wave coming around the rocks at the other end, gently, gently. Sheer bliss.

We visited Dan's favorite wave-catching spot and let the rising tide froth around us. One largish wave broadsided us and swept me, giggling, ten feet up the sloping beach. We played and talked for hours in the shade of the cliff, hoping to avoid a tropical burn although since this is nearly on the Equator it’s possible to get quite a burn even on overcast days. Reflections off the sea can burn, too.

I’m off down the beach to the waterfall lagoon up a narrow canyon. Dan’s following at his own pace. He wanted to nap and I want to sketch, so away I go. We’ve seen twenty pelicans and a frigate bird, we watched a pod of humpbacked whales swimming south, and Dan saw flying fish rising and splashing back into the sea. (Later: Irené says the flying fish were probably mating manta rays!)

I’m sketching sprouting coconuts in the lagoon, and flowers with a most incredible gardenia scent. Gerardo just descended out of the narrow canyon, escorting an athletic group who just finished rappelling the waterfall. He says this is a flower from the guayaba plant. (Later: a tea made from the leaves of this plant is sometimes offered to guests who are suffering from upset stomachs.)

12:22pm Daniel came up from the beach and we went up to the waterfall a short distance up from the lagoon. This is a magical place, and even though five people had just rappelled it, it looked primeval, as though we were the first ones to ever see it. A wide stream of silvery water pours of a stone lip 30’ above us into a pool in a deep grotto. We stepped into the grotto and stood under the falling water, getting a breathtaking shoulder massage for as long as we could stand it.

Coming back out, we discovered a tiny poison-arrow frog, shiny black with bluish legs and a red band around its froggy outline. We found another one further downstream near a meter-long string of brilliant red flowers hanging from a sturdy heliconia plant. Termite nests like nubby black footballs perch in trees. A pizote forages on the bank above us and macaws flash in the trees above.

2.23pm Up the trail..... I have left Daniel back down on the beach again – he loves to sit and watch the waves, but Gerardo told us there was a sloth alongside the trail and I don’t want to miss it. I mean, it COULD move away. So I’ve been sitting at the edge of the trail for some time now watching through binoculars and I have spent a somnolent session sketching a sloth sleeping (say that fast three times!). Ah, movement! It has turned it’s head to look over its shoulder! And it moved its foot! Now its chin has drooped and it is sleeping whilst looking backward. The sloth is slightly below eye level, about 200’ away. It’s sort of tannish gray, and I’d never have found it on my own.

5:14pm I sat on my little sitting pad watching and sketching for about forty minutes.

The sloth began the session in one position (see the drawing with leaves) and ended in the other position (looking over its shoulder) which it held for fifteen minutes with occasional head movements. I finally left with a numb bum, tired but elated with my good fortune. Dan came along an hour later and admired it too, apparently in the same position.