The Cornell Lab Bird Academy Discussion Groups Nature Journaling and Field Sketching Focusing on Your Subject – Blind Contour Drawing

    • Melanie
      Participant
      Chirps: 8
      IMG_8543 fun!  I've been away since February 19, and it feels good to be back!
    • Cheryl
      Participant
      Chirps: 8
      Yes it really helped me to stay focus.  I did the exercise a couple of times and found that as I focused more and slowed down I got better.  My own subject turned out the best, but I did it last.  I was impressed that my huge gaffes were with lines that were supposed to be more or less parallel. Without the visual feedback getting those right was difficult and threw off the rest of the drawing.  I really appreciated doing this as it showed how focus can help direct my hand without the visual.  Thank you.
    • Ruth
      Participant
      Chirps: 18
      contour drawing springbok nature journal
    • Ruth
      Participant
      Chirps: 18
      contour drawing bird of paradise nature journal
    • Ruth
      Participant
      Chirps: 18
      contour drawing sunbird nature journal
    • Ruth
      Participant
      Chirps: 18
      contour drawing newt nature journal Contour drawings make me laugh when I look at them! I do think they will help my observation skills especially if I did more of them or did them before every drawing just for fun.
    • Leonora
      Participant
      Chirps: 29
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    • Kathy
      Participant
      Chirps: 21
      This exercise was very interesting, since even when I can look down at my drawing, I always seem to need to work harder at scale and symmetry. I was more focused on detail with this drawing than I would have otherwise been. I will need to practice more at being patient and not rushing ...
    • Kathy
      Participant
      Chirps: 21
      Nature sketching blind contour drawing 2020Great exercise, I seemed to consistently have a problem connecting the top form of the subject with the last part of my drawing. I start big and end with a smaller drawing - my brain can't seem to conceptualize and make the connection of 'how big' is my actual drawing. Very challenging!
    • Kathy
      Participant
      Chirps: 21
      Great exercise, I seemed to consistently have a problem connecting the top form of the subject with the last part of my drawing. I start big and end with a smaller drawing - my brain can't seem to conceptualize and make the connection of 'how big' is my actual drawing. Very challenging!
    • Colleen
      Participant
      Chirps: 44
      A8F0CB34-2E62-44AA-8437-CDE7CAFAC68B69A42756-E107-4281-B109-455FBFBD84FD Wow! I felt a bit intimidated by doing this exercise but I definitely see the need to focus on the subject & have the eye & hand connection/coordination. After doing the first one, I felt a bit more at ease, but by the time I got to the third one, it was a bit more complicated because I got distracted with the background. The fourth one was hard too, especially with the legs because I was thinking that I needed them fairly close on the page as I was trying to focus where my eye was on the subject. I will be doing this exercise a bit more during my journaling practice. It was kind of fun after seeing my results. Thanks Liz for sharing this exercise.
    • Jane
      Participant
      Chirps: 16
      That was fun! I'll have to see if the grandkids want to try it some time. My problem on the Newt and Springbok was getting back to the starting place. The proportions weren't too bad. Not sharing though!
      • Colleen
        Participant
        Chirps: 44
        Hi Jane. I was thinking about that same thing afterwards, of doing this exercise with the grandkids too.
    • Scott
      Participant
      Chirps: 22
      It was fun with some laughs, I enjoyed the contour drawing. I also agree that it was challenging along with realizing that I have done short segments while drawling before, but not with a long period of time. I did notice that I even probably did some of it to fast; I would speed up then try to slow down and focus. my lines went off the paper on a subject I picked out (daffodils) in a glass of water to draw which forced me to look at the paper to get back on track.
    • Stefania
      Participant
      Chirps: 19
      This was fun and a challenge, I have tried two animals, at the beginning I was having a similar shape, then I struggle to draw the legs of the animals. By drawing them I had lost my focus
    • Mariana
      Participant
      Chirps: 11
      IMG_0283IMG_0284 It helped me stay focused on my subject but it also revealed my hand by itself has no sense of proportion, balance, beauty or function-following form :))
    • Sarah
      Participant
      Chirps: 3
      I probably went too fast--my hand wants to finish lines--but this was instructive and I did find that I was able to catch strong descriptive contours.
    • Andrew
      Participant
      Chirps: 13
      Like Heather, my return lines drawing right to left were short when drawing from the photos. It was different drawing live; there, I ended a couple inches below rather than to the right. My drawings very consistent. Consistently looking nothing like the object, as well, but they had essentially the same good and poor points and finished in the same place relative the the start. Fun!
    • Liz
      Participant
      Chirps: 3
      This was a challenge but overall I learned a lot. I learned mostly that no matter how weird the final outcome turns out, we can always find little successes. I'm going to take this lesson with me in the rest of my sketching. It gives me freedom to just draw and make mistakes but end with always looking for the details that were a success. I surprised myself with the small contours that I got right even if the overall drawing looked strange. A good life lesson too I think.
    • Giuliana
      Participant
      Chirps: 16
      It was almost fun! I discovered if I fail at nature drawing I could at least draw some really abstract pictures! Jokes aside, I think its a great exercise to help focus attentively on a subject, since your eyes need to do a serious job of tracing the edges of the subject
    • Jane
      Participant
      Chirps: 1
      Getting proportion right was really difficult. It was hard to keep my eyes and my pencil in the same place and moving at the same speed. I did each of the examples 3 times (well 4 for the bird) and in 3 out of the 4 I liked my 3rd try the best. With the bird of paradise, I am OK with both my first and third tries. With the sunbird I liked my branch on the third and fourth times. The springbok is just hopeless. I'll be trying that a few more times. I'm looking forward to going outside tomorrow (it's dark now). If the weather doesn't cooperate, I have taken some pictures and I have some houseplants inside. It has been a long time since I drew or painted, but I am enjoying this course.
    • Carol
      Participant
      Chirps: 17
      I remember doing blind contour drawing in a class I took many years ago. I agree with others that it’s so challenging NOT to look! Maybe if I gave myself more space on a single page for each, these might not have been so ‘off’! Interesting and fun observation exercise. 6E31939B-942E-4D60-9B28-8A2336A30743
    • John
      Participant
      Chirps: 16
      It sure was a challenge  with the multiple subjects,  good for going,IMG_0357
    • Charlie
      Participant
      Chirps: 2
      This was difficult and my drawings certainly had a modern art component. I was most successful with the bird and least with the salamander.
    • Isabel
      Participant
      Chirps: 37
      IMG_9822IMG_9823 I think that the most important part is the experience, not the result.  You have to stay focused to move your eyes and hand at the same time, and sometimes its difficult.
    • Jill
      Participant
      Chirps: 2
      Well I tried to focus on the subject so what happened was that my perception of where my hand/pencil was on the paper was so off!! LOL my springbok turned out looking like maybe a buffalo with a trunk!!!  It was also hard not to look at the paper...will do a bit more practice with this one outside.