I couldn't find a way to add text to the photos below - maybe all the space in the window was used up.  The gourd and the shell were done before the lesson on Chairoscuro, and the apple was done after.  I've always found creating a 3-D  image with value very difficult.

 

I drew a lemon. The lighting wasn't great, however squinting helped. knowing when/where/how to smoothly transition from the different tones is hard. I did some stippling to show the texture of the lemon, tried some smudging in the darkest area. Mark making will require more practice for me!

I drew a lemon, a blueberry and a potato. It was great! I had great fun.

• Lemon and blueberry: I had 2 light sources, a lamp to my left and a window behind me, and I drew them in the morning, so it was bright outside (not too bright). With the lemon the hardest part was to identify and draw the outline of the cast shadow on the table, while the blueberry was probably the least complex of all three in that its opaque surface made it almost impossible to highlight the highlight and the core shadow. So it was easier but it was also tricky because I had to think about it more.
• Potato: I drew it in the evening, with my table lamp as my only source of light, right above the potato. The lamp made it very easy to recognise and distinguish all shades of chiaroscuro and the highlight, too, was right there for me to see. The hard part was to be able to replicate all those different levels of shadow in pencil while giving volume to the object.

Yes, I’ll want to try again and I’ll try and pay attention to the chiaroscuro of the objects I’ll be drawing next.

This is fun, but I don’t see as much dimensionality as I would like. Long way to go…

• This is supposed to be a pear on its side (not a potatoe). I am missing some tricks to render 3D. Next one is a little better.
• 

Definitely need more practice drawing and spelling chiaroscuro. LOL. Anyone else left-handed? I find it a bit challenging as my hand covers part of the work. Any hints for drawing from the left side?

Adding dimension and depth is so tricky.  I understand the basic concepts, but seeing the lights and darks and applying it are a continued challenge.  Good practice exercises to work on!

I think what I still need to work on is understanding light and shadow and then applying it to my art. However, I enjoyed learning about the different kinds of marks you can make in art. Many of the marks are ones I do in my art already, but didn't have a name for! I look forward to continuing with the marks and practice blending which I don't do often.

In the past I've had a hard time with direction of light & shadows & such. Hopefully this lesson will help my brain pay attention. Here are some sketches from recent lessons.

This has been fun! Blanc paper is no longer scary, it's quite easy to start drawing. Chiaroscuro is quite challenging to get right if light comes from two directions. Also, when there is lots and lots of small details, I find it difficult to choose the ones that are essential for the big picture.

Trying to capture the light on an object. For this I tried to take a picture and work from that. 

I am feeling better but still not very satisfied with my sketching. I think the key maybe practice, practice, practice.

I'm definitely feeling more comfortable putting marks--I was especially happy to learn of stippling and scribbling--on the page during these "indoor" exercises.  I am able to take my time (read "erase") and as the subjects have not been alive so far, I am relaxed and not pressured.  But I am already wondering how I will be able to apply the techniques and put them all together in the field!  I imagine reverting back to unrecognizable, out of proportion, single line drawings with no depth in my haste to capture my subject!  Maybe I'll stick with leaves and trees!  That said, I appreciate the pacing of the course so far and the manageable, bite-size lessons that facilitate student successes.  The instruction is clear, the goals achievable, and Liz's enthusiasm and encouragement comes through.   Many thanks!  

It was really fun to experiment with the various techniques, though some are more efficient yet some are more time-consuming. I also had to be patient with the process observing the structure of each object. It was also quite rewarding after trying the techniques for different kinds of objects, and learn more about they are formed ! (For my exercise, some are physical objects, some are photos I found online.) One thing I found not always easy was to select the "right" technique to represent a texture realistically — especially hard for the peaches with the tiny fuzz. Also, sometimes I got lost in the drawing process, and overlooked the general light and shade! This happened for the cloud...After all, scribbling was so indulging...

I enjoyed using all the various sketching techniques.  I don't really care for the o5 mechanical pencil that goes with this course.  I find I resort to a 6B frequently because it just takes too long to get the darker values I am trying to achieve.  I like the concept of the mechanical pencil, but am going to order some with softer leads.  Overall I am really enjoying this course and am getting out and sketching as much as possible.

My attempt with an apple from two different angles—one from the top and one from the side—was much more difficult than I thought it would be.