Really appreciated Liz reminding us a few times over the course of these gesture drawing videos to be kind to ourselves when it comes to the outcomes of our drawings. And that the enjoyment is in the process!

Yes, this is helping. It also helps me break things down into basic shapes and see how they move and overlap.

I watched a heron intimidate another to leave his territory. I noticed the basic shapes of the birds to capture their movement. Their legs and feet seemed to inform the sketches more than their wings, which I thought would be the other way around. Maybe if I'd been more accurate in portraying the wings, they would indicate more.

I had never drawn an animal before, therefore I had to stop the video to capture their gestures. I will try to draw it again like the ducks, fast and not really precise, practicing what I might see outdoors while sitting quietly! ....and just dreaming of seeing such a delightful play as the Arctic Fox.

Found it very difficult to maintain a pace fast enough to capture even some of the duck's movements. Fun, but much more practice needed. Noticed the cyclical behavior.

I need about a million years to practice gesture drawing. I have no experience drawing live animals, and i'm pretty dedicated to pretty lines. sigh.  This one was a real challenge.  Will keep at it, though.

Gesture drawing helps in noticing various behaviors of different animals. It's fun to watch them while drawing.

I noticed the movements of the birds because often it made them easier or harder to draw. For example, the house sparrows would hop from the feeder to the ground (out of view) but the pigeon would slowly strut around. The wing bars on the Goldfinch really popped out to me in  away it hadn't before I drew it. I was surprised to see a squirrel show up!

I think I am noticing more of the mannerisms and interaction with gesture drawing.  I used to always draw from photographs, I would never have tried to draw something moving.  I like having the ability to draw something on the spot, even if the drawings aren't perfect.

Easier to draw birds that are more relaxed than the twitchy birds, as I have more than a fraction of a second to make some sketches. The chickadees are too quick for me at this point, but the woodpeckers are more cooperative.

Gesture drawing is quite difficult — I like the challenge, though! I drew a stink bug climbing on top of my feeder and the foxes from the video. I zoomed in on my favorite sketch from the stink bug drawing here.

Gesture drawing really helps one feel the movement and the spirit of the subject! For that reason, I think gesture drawings are important to do before a prolonged drawing. 

Gesture drawing lets me feel the object without too much mental intervention.

this is very helpful. i can really better pay attention to the behaviors and see details in a  new way.

Yes it is helping. When watching birds I find myself paying more attention to the beak shape and size. Also how the birds feathers move and take shape when the bird lands. I was watching a video on northern cardinals and blue jays. Getting the imagine down is hard but it is allowing me to see details I may not have before. 

 Struggling between drawing what I see and drawing from memory - what I think I should be seeing. Need to learn to trust my eyes and hands more, rely less on memory.

This was hard to draw. Too much movement. Might get better the more I do. I’m not used to my subject moving.  It is different to draw activities.  

The mixture of slow contour and quick gesture is great!

It's hard and I'm not sure what I get out of it. I like the idea of capturing the moment though. Usually I try and remember the moment I want to portray or capture it in a video or photo.   jI'm not s