Nature Journaling and Field Sketching

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I tend to forget to check on the negative space as I am drawing.  It will be a habit to develop, because it does help in accuracy when I use it.

This is a great method which I have been using for subjects but haven't for landscapes.  I will have to tackle that next because it's my proportions that make my landscapes look like a 3 yr old sketched it! It will be a challenge to use on a moving animal.

I think measuring proportion is a great tool for making things more accurate. I almost always draw something, and only use negative space to make it look right, but I think my drawings will become even more accurate using proportions! Animals are easier for me to use proportions on than landscapes so I guess I should practice that more.

Measuring proportions certainly shows up the errors in my accuracy.  Particularly with masses of tall vegetation I found I overestimate the proportion significantly.  My mind's eye must say "they are big tall trees"  so I make them too big proportionally!  It was hard to get things in the landscape looking real.  The boat is still not right.  Much more practice needed but at least I know I have a  tendency to do that now which is better than not being aware.

I I still found it a bit challenging to get the proportion just right. It is better but definitely a work in progress. I do think the measuring technique is beneficial and will improve the more I practice using it.

For this exercise I chose to practice measuring proportions on my houseplants. I measured the height of each pot using a ruler and divided the length by 5 to get their height for my illustrations. Then the hight of the flower pots served as a reference for everything else. I used eyeballed or used the finger trick to get the width of each pot and the hight and width of each plant. For a change I drew these on toned paper with a Blick Terracotta color pencil and used a Prismacolor white color pencil for the highlights.

I am lucky I could practice with my sleeping cat! Although I applied the pencil technique right, I find that the back leg looks too small in proportion to the body… I wonder if perspective has something to do with it.

The measuring of proportions helped me more accurately depict animals. If I were to use this in the field I feel that it would work perfectly for natural formations and plants, but for animals it has a downside. Unless the animal is very still or sleeping, it'd be a bit of a nuisance to try to use this on a moving animal. To answer the last question, yes it is easier to measure still objects more than moving ones.

I recognize I didn´t use exactly measury proportions technique´ to do this exercise, this morning walking down the street I took this photo, and I thought can be a good example to appreciate several proportions in the same image, and how amazing nature sometimes opposes resistance against any human architectural barrier, bringing us a beautiful and decorative vision while demonstrate it´s possible to weaving both, so to solve the draw, I took the straight lines as reference to calculate approximatelyhedera´ leaves different proportions.

The technique helped a lot to capture my subject more accurately. I practiced on some flowers in the house

It helped a lot to measure the proportions with a simple tool like a pencil. I draw my orchid I have at home. I will use it next time for outside.

This is a really valuable tool to use in the field or anywhere.  I have always struggled with getting the proportions right.  This could work well with a still subject, but not so much, for a moving one.  I feel like it is easier to do with plants in general and more difficult with any type of animals (especially humans) since we are so tuned in to how they should be portrayed accurately.  Feels like there is more room with plants and more abstract subjects like landscapes.  

Using negative space for the colored centers of these leaves was easy. The technique was more difficult to apply, and probably not as successful, when I tried to use it from the "outside in" to create the shape of the bird in the other picture. It was a real challenge to create the fringe of tail feathers by drawing in the background vegetation, for example. But I enjoyed seeing how far I could take it.

Using the technique of pencil and ruler to measure was so helpful. While drawing the praying mantis,I don't think I Would have come close to getting all the parts of the mantis in proportion to each other.  I used the head to base my measurements on for the thorax, abdomen and legs. The praying mantis was very slow moving and climbed right up onto my journaling sketchbook. I was then able to snap a few pictures that helped me use my pencil and ruler for sizing. When doing the sketch of the praying mantis I referred to the picture I took and that helped immensely with negative space.So all in all I think the proportion is fairly close to being accurate but it will certainly take much more practice to become more proficient. so all in all I think the proportion is fairly close to being accurate but it will certainly take much more practice to become more proficient

I actually really enjoyed this assignment, I’ve always had problems with proportions and this helped me build confidence with such a simple method. With fast moving birds or critters I had a much more difficult time but I’m certain that with practice I will be fine. With plants on the other hand a wondrous tool to have available.

It has really helped to adjust my quick sketches and to focus more closely on details.

• Measuring proportions makes it easier to get the height or length or width of some object when drawing exactly.
• Though it is hard measuring the proportion in some objects in the field, comparatively it's easy with most.
• It gives you an idea of how you should draw the subject.

I am think am OK with proportions, especially with birds, since I have drawn more birds than anything else. 

Seems to be close to accurate.  However, some objects  and fields are easier to measure using this technique than other.

for some reason I am unable to upload my sketches. I love the negative painting, I also went on a hike the day before this lesson and saw this ladyslipper orchid. they are protected here in the State of Oregon and Washington.

I have wanted to sketch this tree ever since I started this course. It was a perfect candidate for the exercise and the "pencil" trick worked beautifully. I should have used a whole sheet of paper so I could have put more of the tree (charred pieces laying about) onto the page as well. I also sketched a ladyslipper from a photo as well.

I made the mistake of starting by trying to draw a clump of multi petalled tulips, which were complex flowers as well as having lots  of leaves.  This was challenging as there was so much detail (maybe I should try not to do everything) but focusing on the negative space and proportions, made it easier.    I also did a simpler clump of narcissi as well.  The pencil technique was useful - I have seen people do this, but never quite understood what they were doing.

I find it challenging to get the proportions right both horizontally and vertically. It's certainly more easy when it is from a photo or a subject that holds still, like a landscape. I do feel that it helps to use this technique. I saw that Liz used an actual ruler when she drew the plant in the last video and it seems like a helpful tool to try out in the field.

Drawing in the field is challenging. I'm looking at subjects that I like at the same time I'm trying to capture what I see on 2D sheet. Measuring proportion and thinking about negative space are amazing to depict what I see and manage my drawings. Measuring proportions made my drawing more realistic. Before, I used to produce drawings that looks a bit similar to the object I'm drawing but size varies. Now I can see the relation within the object itself and measure its components. It is making looking and drawing more easy. thinking about negative shapes is amazing when I draw in the field. Measuring proportions is easy when looking at subjects that are not moving. When the subject is moving its challenging. I did not give it a try yet. I'm working on subjects that are not moving for now. I will give it a try when I grasp the concept and becomes easy to draw the exact proportions of subject. Below are two drawings of subject on my porch. It was a beautify day to draw and enjoy both techniques.  

Nothing is growing in the greenhouse yet but it's a nice place to sit and draw and an easy place to practice proportion.

I drew my cat and some grackles that were on my porch. The grackle drawings are from photos I took, because it was too wet to draw outside today. I also did a drawing where I zoomed in on my cat's fluffy ear - it has a little tuft on the end!

Since it is still winter, I used the animal cams on explore.org to find animals to sketch. In the second sketch, I used the top of the head to the shoulders as my reference. I used that reference for the length of the beak and the vertical proportions of the body. With the cat sketch, I used the negative space to define the white fur.

I started with a quick sketch for the drawing of my dog. Then, I filled in the negative space and after that, I checked myself for proportions. I decided to just scribble to suggest the curly fur of my poodle and that was fun.

I took awhile to "see" the negative space and draw that

useful exercise!

I've been having trouble with proportion and I think this will be really helpful in drawing things proportionally.  It is 17 degrees - too cold for me to go out and sketch so I tried sketching this strangely shaped cactus that is here in the house.

the proportion and negative space tools are really helpful! they seem obvious once you use them in practice but they would never have dawned on me unless I learned them here. I think proportions are easier to measure on things with more solid structure - I was drawing a jade plant and I kept either drawing the leaves too big or little, even though proportionally the main stalk was accurate. I had to go back and check a few times for each area.

  I think my negative space drawing came out better than a straight sketch would have.  Useful tool for sure.

Drew this from a picture not in the field. Considering negative space and proportions was very useful while drawing, hoping to get to a point where this happens while drawing without thinking consciously about it.

I enjoyed using negative space and proportional measuring as techniques for nature drawing.  I began my drawing by lightly pencilling the spxe tha I expected not to be used by my cactus plant.  I had used this method in the past doing pastel drawings so it felt very familiar.  The idea of proportional measuring with my thumb was a new technique for me and it worked very well in marking out the height and width of the expected size of the plants; putting the Madagascar lines in first and then marking out the flower pot and the other plants, the Tiger Aloe and the Mistletoe cactus. I was pleased with my resulting drawing but not sure how transferable the skills will be with moving targets.  I was very challenged by the moving target videos.  Had fun but not much success. Here are attached 2 photos:  a photo of the planting and a  pencil drawing. Suzanne

I actually forgot about the negative space when drawing this orchid plant.  I was concentrating on the the proportions.  And I didn’t shade either. Looked better.  More practice.  Too miserable to go,outside.  Raining and several days more to come.  

Drawing using negative space.  I found this interesting. After drawing for a while I got the hang of it. Actually started making sense and looked like a flamingo. And was fun.

I found this very helpful. I will use it all the time now. And, yes, it's easier to measure some subjects compared to others.

Thank you, Liz. Always had trouble with Proportion but this technique helps a lot. I have even sketched my GS which I've been wanting to do.

I went outside, at first, to practice measuring proportions using my pencil. It worked, helping me to balance the pond size and configuration, as well as the bench. Then I practiced indoor, using a still from the video provided here. While outdoor, I think didn't notice negative space as much as drawing the second time, indoors. I realize these are techniques I must keep on practicing. The negative space helped me a lot, while drawing the "Pink Lady's Slipper" flower.

Drawing the negative space to show the flamingo

Measuring proportions helps at looking at far away object to depict the proportions of each element on a 2D surface. Below are two drawings, the first measuring inside of space. The second measuring an outside scene. Both drawings where measured using the pencil.

This technique has definitely brought my sketches to the next level. Living, moving animals are definitely harder than landscapes. Using photos and video that you can loop I find is very helpful. Below is a drawing I did do a toad I found in the garden when digging the last of the potatoes. It was certainly an exercise in proportion but also negative space as the garden soil made such a contrast to the toad. I worked off a photo that I took. I am pleased and surprised how well it turned out using all the techniques I have learned so far in this class. Thank you!

I think my flamingo was better using the negative space than if I had tried to draw it as "the bird"

I practiced a gesture drawing of horses in the neighbouring field, and realized that after they moved on, and some of horses looked liked elongated sausages, that this would have been the perfect application for measuring a head, and then using that measurement as a tool to refine my gesture drawings. Not having done that, all I know is that my ‘sausage horses’ aren’t in proportion, but I don’t have the info to correct them. Great tip for using the tools at hand!

Measuring felt overwhelming at first but it removed complexity once completed as I could focus on the details and not worry about missing a part of feeder because of a measuring mistake. This took me close to an hour and not one bird showed up! Measuring feels easier with scenes that aren't as cluttered. I realized after watching the video that the bench example was straight forward, symmetrical, easy to understand to get the point across. Finding something in nature that works the same way isn't that easy. I walked around for a good 10 minutes before finding the proper sit spot+view combo. I'm learning so much. This is awesome.

This was really helpful. I found that I underestimated the relative sizing each time. It was helpful to move away from what I thought the subject should look like to paying more attention to what I was actually observing.

It was hard, really hard! But after a while, the drawing began to look like I wanted it to. I was drawing my dog, Lumi, the Leonburger, of whom I am obsessed with, (I’m using her name for this) and found she was harder to capture realistically. (I’m more of a cartoon artist) However, she is from a bit of a lazy breed, so that made her easier to sketch because she moved so slow. I don’t always use basic shapes to correct form, but I feel I should more, it is definitely rewarding. Lumi’s head is so large it’s almost disproportionate, which was hard to draw, but after I tweaked my drawing a lot, I found myself with a drawing I want to hang up.

I find that objects that dont move like plants, landscapes, seashells are much easier to measure proportions than moving object like animals and insects which can be much more challenging !

I was surprised to see how accurate the flamingo came out.  I liked using negative space.

I noticed it was difficult to measure a large subject and fit is on a smaller page in my journaling book.  It is important to measure correctly because it will throw off the balance of the sketch although you can adjust. Some of my subjects were more difficult I think, because of the size & depth.   A flat subject was easier.

It Was Difficult! Too hot to find any animals out so got gestures and proportions from soccer field — using human dimensions. Fortunately for me, a killdeer and some urban birds showed up on sign fixtures so I captured some wildlife too. I used videos for gesture inspiration of funny owls & also negative space around the theee.

I have been pleased with the measuring technique and have selected two places for my sit spots. I have a water fountain and the birds like to visit but are not sure about me.  So over a period of time I have been sketching them or the fountain when I was lacking birds.  I also starting taking photos when I can catch them so I could get the various angles and markings on the birds.  One afternoon I sat at the beach and was open to any and all subjects.  I think birds are a challenge because they move so much and in so many directions, children are tricky too.  I have found that proportion is relative to other subjects, so mostly I am just working on getting familiar so I can see and capture the different perspectives.  This is actually leading me into an idea for a composition with the fountain.  I just need to have more birds bathing and splashing.  I might get a journal page yet. Pat

I took a prior class that covered drawing proportions, and I hated that one too. I find it very difficult and don't really know what I am doing. But, of course, proportion is important, or drawings look lopsided and odd. I guess I will have to keep at it. I also was introduced to negative space not too long ago. It didn't make sense then, but this time, it made much more sense and is quite interesting. I tried a drawing in the field as Liz did in this lesson. Using the measuring technique, or at least trying to, I think that I got the proportion of the leaves more accurate. They became larger and larger the closer that they got to the ground. My first attempts were too small. Thank goodness for erasers. I was interested to observe the negative space between the leaves. But I didn't have much time to develop the drawing.

Did a sketch had time and finished it. Notes were added after to the photo. I need the practice

i i went to the Cornell Botanical Gardens after dinner, I had a long day at work so I decided I should have a relaxing night of sketching and took my camera with me also so I could sketch more thoroughly in the near future from a photograph. I have noticed a few things about the Globe Amaranth when I was sketching it that in my mind it was very delicate flower with so much detail , the flower looked like it was alone by it's self which drew me to sketch it and being a soft color of purple. The Iris was in a different part of the gardens and love them it was a beautiful purple with yellow; some are probably thinking my favorite color is Purple, not so but it's beautiful you can guess if you want on my favorite color......

I started drawing one and it was way off and I decided instead of getting frustrated I decided to draw a second one which came out better. I find that I am better at actually drawing positive space shapes than negative, but I am getting used to drawing negative space with practice

Away from the birds, I measured the proportion of my camera and its tele-lens. I used a pencil (I prefer ink though). The technique as a technique is very useful. It is very helpful for still-life and a subject that isn't moving much - not for fast birds. With time and practice the sight is being trained to measure without this technique; I rarely use it because I'm not that patient :/ - I'm here to train myself , I'll give it a try with future drawing. -

• I think that this technique was very useful to get better proportions.

I started with something that I thought I would succeed at.   In my backyard, on a hot day, I worked on drawing a pot on the end of a bench.   The bench is very weathered, with many subtle colors and two patches of lichen.   I tried.  I am not happy with the way the shadow cast by the pot came out.  I have not finished with this.  This is not an ambitious attempt.  The lines are simple.  I thought beginning with a subject with easy-to-measure proportions would be best.

I definitely like using my writing utensil as a measuring tool while drawing to help with proportion & accuracy. I had forgotten about using that & negative space in finding the correct proportion & accuracy in my drawings. Also I have a 6 inch ruler too. Yes, I have found that proportion is easier on landscapes, animals that aren’t moving quickly, and a single animal (than a group of animals), & some simple plants. I have noticed that my proportion was badly off which was leading to not be accurate with my drawings. Big improvement.

Enjoyed this exercise, proportions for me is something I will need to keep practicing and reminding myself to check-

It is easier to draw a stable animals and to the measurements. This technique has enabled me to make a better capture of the subject and manage my inconsistency about drawing a body. I like what Lis has done with the pencil and I have tried to repeat the same  with the animals. I found interesting to draw both the penguin and the owl. By watching Lisa's video, i have recalled the importance of negative space and I am planning to draw more flowers to get the habit of proportions.

It took a lot of fiddling to get the proportions right.  I lost it at the bottom where the legs meet the perch.  I find I need to pause quite often as I am working to remind myself to use the proportion tools.

This drawing is of a pool in a stream, and there was a log laying in the stream close the near side. I was tempted to draw the log very close, with about a third of the visible river between me and the log. However using the proportion techniques, it was clear that in my frame, only about of a third of what I could see of the stream lay beyond the log, and two thirds on my side of the log. I think this observation helped me to capture the depth of the landscape a little more accurately.

It was quite challenging to draw the negative space, because I kept wanting to draw the shape of the flamingo and had to check myself to return to the negative space. But on and all was an interesting exercise

I was not sure how this would go but sometimes forcing yourself to draw moving animals can result in a favorite sketch. I tried to capture the different poses of the vultures. I sat on a convient log and drew for 45 min. I also took photos.  Later, I fixed hastily drawn sections. I tried to use measuring to get the proportions right. I looked at negative spaces. After a while, my hand/eye coordination improved. I colored my flamingo negative shape drawing to jazz it up.

Great tip! I knew my proportions was something I had to work on. I used it in this activity and feel like it really helped. I used a photograph so it was easy not to have a moving object. I tried it later on a squirrel and that guy moved way to fast!!

I think with more practice I will definitely be able to have better proportion in the field. It's a good guideline to make sure everything is more accurate and looks like a more professional drawing. Also, when the drawing is better I find it to be less distracting with reviewing the notes and information written down in the observation.

I challenged (and tortured!) myself with making a drawing of a picture of a Broad bellied darter  I made last year. The complexity of its body with  its very specific wing shapes and delicate maze pattern was overwhelming.  In addition to getting the right proportions, finding the right mutual angles between  the wings, the body and the reed  was a particular challenge. Concentrating on negative spaces between those parts fortunately guided me through this minefield…

I think that this technique is really helping me get the right proportions depending on what I'm drawing. This technique is helping me capture my subjects more accurately. I think it is always good to have this trick in your sleeve because it can really help make your drawing much better. For me, it is easier to measure proportion on objects that are tall and thin because my wrist feels weird being sideways and it is a bit awkward trying to measure things from side to side with you pencil. Measuring slanted angles on the other hand is much more difficult for me, and I hope to improve.

I was not able to go outside but I have this orchard in bloom.  Negative space was really helpful.

Unable to go outside mainly because weather conditions, I looked up to old pictures and did the task sugested. Proportions with this technique is quite accurate, and even if is not by the milimeter, gives realism to the drawing. I tried with different objects and for me all objects are good for it, although choosing where one takes the measure can help a lot. My flower is a "starish" shape but not in a frontal view and before all I took the proportions of the petals, stem and leaves. All the drawing went from there.   

I redid my marsh wren using proportion techniques and also did the snail shell drawing.  then I drew a towhee based on a photo a friend took.  I worked on proportion and had to draw it several times.  Then i decided to add the rust color of the towhee and it looks a little strange when i scanned it.  Anyway using my pencil or fingers for measuring proportion is great.  I tried it when i walked in the park just to get an idea of size,  and I'll try it an outside drawing next.  

The negative space and proportional measurement practices are more difficult.  I've used the arms length measurements before but wasn't sure what I was looking for when I did it.  I used that process on drawing the barn owl from a photo I took last month at a Sportsman's Show we went to in the area.  One of the locals is a birds of prey rehabilitator and she comes to many events near where I live and I was able to get some good shots of a barn owl as she walked with it near me. He was absolutely beautiful.  The negative space practice was pretty easy for me, I enjoyed this lesson a lot, it was lots of fun.

Is very useful because help you to have another perspective of things. Yes. Yes because all is perspective.

I had forgotten that proportion trick. I know I used it a long time ago. Thanks for refreshing my memory.

I found using the measuring proportion technique very effective and gives me a great tool to make sure my illustration are more accurate and proportionally correct.  

I call this, “Ok, you can look now”  learning the proportions trick helped me a lot to get close to the shape I was drawing  

I used the proportion technique to draw two marsupials that were outside my tent at a recent campsite in Northern Tasmania.  I used the length of the head as my initial measurement.  It made me realize that the Tasmanian Pademelon is a very round animal!  It also has a proportionally larger head to body size, which might be because this was a very young animal, but the Bennett's Wallaby was an adult.  The negative shapes helped to draw the legs more accurately than I ever have before!  I live in Tasmania, so have tried to draw these species a few times before but have greatly improved with these techniques.

Houseplant, old x-mas tree. free-style sketches.

The tools of negative space and proportion (measuring), I believe are going to make my drawings much better.

The proportion trick made a difference to my sketches by eye. It helps rough the image in a bit more accurately so that it looked more like the subject. I loved that simply using a pencil and marking along the way is the only tool you need. Proportion is easier to measure when there are distinct parts of the subject.

Before this study I thought I was seeing correctly but the measuring technique proved I wasn't!  This was a great exercise that really helped me. 

Using a hand to close around your better eye [or have a small, packable telescope] instead of simply squinting for a your first, immediate view of your field object; or use one piece of paper you stash in the back of your journal with its center cut for you previously with a square or small round you can squint through.

Measuring proportion and using negative space were very helpful in making the drawing more accurate. Because it is still very wet and cold here, I drew from a photograph of a flower I had seen in a Maine forest. Measuring proportion seems to be very useful for drawing parts of plants and animals and for getting their positions more accurate in their settings. I’m still pretty inexperienced in sketching and drawing, so I’m not really sure yet where these techniques would be more or less helpful, but I’m excited to keep practicing and learning.

Using the negative space and measuring is very helpful.  I know this is a good way to help gather information for identifying birds etc. so it was great to see how to apply this to sketching.  Appreciating the surrounding area really helped keep my sketch in proportion.  Thank goodness for erasers!

This proportion thing is irritating - BECAUSE IT WORKS - and I'm usually too lazy to do it. But when I do it makes my drawings render more accurately. I did a freeze frame of those Red Foxes from the last lesson's video and tried the "number of heads" method and stuff looked better. It helped me realize the slender length of the parent fox versus the shorter, tighter form of the  youth fox. I'm buying into measuring proportion!  I also used some negative space to capture some of the interaction between the two animals. I like the way the instructor asks me to "be gentle" with myself and also to just go for it. Helpful. I've destroyed a few pages of my book but also have some that I'm proud of! I got this course as a birthday gift and it's one of the best I've ever received!

Measuring proportion is a real help.  I always try to visually use the head of a bird as the guide, but the additional use of the pencil as the ruler really helps.  Thinking about negative space was very helpful with drawing the feathers.

The lessons on negative space and proportion helped me a lot in these last two.  I did not find any difference between taking a measurement of the proportions of the mushrooms or the mountains.  In both situations, it helped get more faithful representations of reality.

Pretty amazing how easy it is to use this method. Helped me get the proportions right on this planter.

It took me a good hour and lots of erasing and re-drawing to get the proportions right on this, which I made from my own photo. Even though the photo was a square format, I ended up making the tiger too large and therefore losing my negative space. I did find the measuring useful, though trickier to use with a photo. And I still managed to get the right eye (our left) in too close initially and having to correct it. Same thing with the chin, which was initially too small and needed correcting. So a modicum of perfectionism (not my strongest point) is a good idea here! Interesting observation: I always think of tigers as being orange and black, even though I spent almost 2 weeks photographing them in the wild last year. Now, when I started adding color, I realized how much white they have.

This is more challenging than I thought it would be. Using my eraser a lot!

The use of proportions really helped in that I tend to get so interested in one aspect of the subject and make that aspect too big!. This forced me to keep that tendency under control. I focused first on relative proportions and then started using negative space, too. It was rewarding that they worked together. I was able to use the proportion techniques on a still plant, but it takes me a long time. It will take a lot of practice before I can do this with a moving subject.

I've been working on proportion with landscapes, too, but I've continued to work with leaves a little. This upside down maple leaf was on the library walkway across the street from me. The iconic maple leaf shape is not so obvious because the points of the leaf are largely curled under.

I think this class is working! I looked at this eggplant and thought how pretty it is, but expected the drawing to be mush. The actual eggplant is prettier and the shadows need something, but I was pleased with how it came out. It turns out that my middle-aged eyes can see either the pencil point or the distant object but not both, so I’ll need to experiment with checking proportions. Negative space helped for getting the leaf shapes right. Gesture drawing frequently also helps: it makes me decide what’s essential.

I liked the lesson/reminder about “negative space.”  I say reminder because I’ve heard of the concept before and even “studied” it a bit while reading and doing exercises from “Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain” about 35 years ago.  I found the concept very helpful applied to this science journal focus.  Recently I was in California (from Wisconsin) and my granddaughter came rushing in from outside and said excitedly, “I found a bug!,” and I “humored her" and went outside to see...HOLEY MOLEY, she was right!  This beautiful praying mantis was just hanging around on their patio and I took a pic, then let it crawl on my hand (I remembered from somewhere they don’t really “bite”--other than maybe decapitating their mates) and it became my subject when back in (now cold and snowy) Wisconsin.  I drew a frame around it for rendering purposes so I could use the concept of negative space to help me with the complex shape.  That also allowed for the insect to "break out of the frame" which I wasn't planning, but really liked the effect. I like using colored watercolor pencils, and this was the first time that I scribbled a bit of pencil pigment on the page and then dipped my water-filled brush into it.  This allowed me to mix dry color a bit. An interesting experience.  I finished the drawing with a few extra strokes of the pencils directly on the drawing to give a stronger accent of color.

Was anybody in the class a drafts person B-4 he or she became a interested in field sketching and journalism? I was taught about measuring proportions most simply using a pencil at arm's length or holding my thumb on my paintbrush at arm's length to make measurements and count. Another thing my first teacher suggested re: measure, focus & proportion was use two sheets of printer paper folded into perfect rectangles;  from the folded tip , cut a 1"square from the center of one sheet & from the tip of the other cut a perfect 1"circle. This paper tool worked like the 'squint test ' Fuller asks us to use.

The measuring technique helped me with this indoor plant. Being even more aware of the negative space helped with proportions and determining measurements.

I have always liked small landscapes.  For this lesson I picked a spot I created in the backyard.  Since I made this spot it attracts a lot of the neighborhood wildlife.  I was able to use the tools taught in the lessons to set up the proportions for this quick sketch.

I don't remember Prof.Fuller talking about the use of a hand lens B-4 and I'm curious [as I've not had the chance to look it up yet myself], but I can imagine what such a device might be. I think the 'pik glass' [a handheld tool, almost like what a jeweler uses] my dad gave me would serve the purpose. Holly

A comparison study that I tried to keep to the right proportions, I did use a ruler because the piece of plant was in my hand inside by the time I finished.  Using a hand lens helped for some of the tiny details proportion at the tiny scale is a challenge too.  

I found that measuring proportions in the field has helped me a lot.  Not so much on moving objects though.  But I now can get a pretty good idea on moving objects since I think about it now.

i wasn't able to get outside, but my cat proved to be a great source for getting proportions right. For the most part she sat still long enough to get good measurements. Proportion has been a struggle so I'm glad to have had this practice!

This measuring technique worked better for me when drawing landscape, not to the smaller subjects. For smaller works better the other technique taught on the video. This measuring techniques are great, they really help to get a good proportion.

It really did help to have a reference point to start. I'd noticed in my turkey drawings that I didn't have the proportions correct for each area of the bird. They have very small heads leading to a very large intricate body so I will draw them again and get closer to the actual dimensions. What I've drawn is a hibiscus plant while it's blooming. They normally only last 2 days at most so was glad to capture it and will redo in color as we get to that area.

Some samples from our walk today. Working on observing and recording when I don’t have my notebook.  Fall tree nuts are interesting and we found some branches of oaks too.  Brought them home with us to draw and some from memory too.  Using some texture and shading new skills and trying to get the proportions better represented.  I like the challenging exercises.