1. What inspired you to begin nature journaling? I want to acquire the sense of wonder and respect that the journalers in the video radiate. 2. Now that you’ve heard from several other journalers about their processes, and had a peek at their journals, which ideas or approaches do you want to try? From Shayna, the use of boxes to isolate / highlight the drawing, as well as her use of a magnification lens to highlight details.  Also, doing some research to better inform my entries. From Jewel, adding color swaths to represent the colors present, and to be proud of my work like she is. Understanding that my entries will get better with time and consistent effort. I thought her cactus tree was awesome! From William, being amazed like he was with the Blue Footed Booby; learning to portray depth like he did in the drawing of rock formation. From Margaret, how her sketches evolved to depict wing structure in the hummingbird. From D.J., how basic shapes are at the heart of the drawing.  And if I can draw basic shapes, I'm already doing good! From Holly, Wow! Use of water color adds a whole different dimension to the journal and brings her drawings to life.  I'm sold on water colors! And, sticking to a journaling schedule - daily or monthly, is an inspiration. From Liz, how the beauty of self is reflected in her sketches and words. To all, a debt of gratitude for sharing. Thank you, Rey Estrada

My Dad did nature journals. The one from high school is mostly birds. His grandkids have had tatoos done of some of the sketches in his honor (He died in 1994.) His books from the South Pacific in WWII ended up being used for toilet paper. I've been watching birds for 70 years and want to capture the memories of some of them. I'm definitely my father's daughter, but he was an incredible artist. I've only been trying for 30 years. I loved the variety of skills and viewpoints. Barb Garnier 01/05/2023

My inspiration to work on nature journaling started with bird-watching sessions and walking trails in nature. While exploring nature with school children, I wanted to do something interesting for them, and as a record to maintain their observations, found Nature journaling is the best way of recording.  I am very much passionate about this and wanted to learn it in a professional way to train myself and help students. Most of the Journalers in the video are good in their way. I would like to take up the concept of adding more content like the other journalers. But preferably wanted to express my thoughts through sketching by adding visual appeal to the trail/nature walk. It's similar to those ideas, except would like to add my trails, other details like the importance of the location, if bird watching, and the list of species observed, want to record all the details. My first attempt at Nature Journaling. Happy to receive the feedback from Liz and other friends Regards, Geetha Suresh

Being able to sketch and paint outdoors has been something I have wanted to learn for the last year. Especially as a skill for when we travel. Amazingly, my wife gave me the Cornell course as a Christmas 2022 gift. What a wonderful surprise! I share two things that I did once I started to get familiar with the online course material: first, since these are watercolors that I am seeing for the first time, I painted a color chart, pictured in the lower right corner of the image below. How different some of the paints appear on paper as opposed to being in the pans in the travel kit. Secondly, I personalized the Canson sketchbook by doing my first-ever water brush composition of a scene drawn from memory, also pictured below. I separated the page and pasted it on the front cover of the book. As a beginning watercolorist, these paints on the course supply list and the water brushes are new to me. The piece below is the "loosest" that I have ever done! All those conservation and taxonomy classes in Fernow Hall prepared me to start out with a very representational approach! Thanks for a great set of beginning exercises!--Bill, January 4, 2023

1.  I've been journaling for travel for many years, and have incorporated sketches of nature into this practice. I love the impressionistic aspect of sketching to spark memory and feeling, which is different from photography. I have family who are birders/naturalists, and in the last 2 years introduced me to bird identification, helping me to be more attentive to nature everyday -- not just when I travel. I just retired, so saw this course and immediately felt the time spent on it would enhance my enjoyment and appreciation of nature and art. I've not yet used watercolor for the journal sketches, so this practice will help me enhance them.  2.  I like Shayna Miller's style, which is akin to mine incorporating text and sketches. I also like the variety of subject matter. I'd also like to learn to use D.J. McNeill's use of geometric shapes for (especially) birds. 3. One of the discussion participants mentioned collecting samples to add to their journal. I've done some of this, and want to continue to add pressed flowers, leaves, bird feathers, etc. to the journal. It makes it more 3-D and tactile!

I love the combination of drawing and writing....and sometimes adding color! This will become my diary of 2023.

I have family who are artists and talented--that talent seems to have passed me by. I want to journal to help imbed in my memory the details of the species but also the moments and feelings when I enjoyed seeing birds and nature. I intended to journal only about birds, but I have become more keenly aware and appreciative of plants (which I also greatly enjoy). I now intend to journal not just about the birds but also the environment and plants as well.

I enjoyed seeing each and every one of these journals. Each person showed and explained their reasons for the picture they had drawn…. It meant something to them,.. it stirred a memory in time. I believe that is what  your nature journaling is supposed to do, or that is what it does for me…. What a wonderful presentation. Thank you all for sharing.

Hello! I like elements from both the first and the last journals (and journals). I love the idea of boxes and zooms from the first journal and the follow-up research that the journaler did post-nature encounter. From the last journal, I love the idea of daily journaling; however, I am also realistic about time constraints. Luckily, I walk through a wonderful park nearly every day to get to work, so I can still see and experience nature daily. My thinking is to take a smaller journal for notes and then work on the larger pages when I have more time. So, like the last journaler, I'll probably do monthly pages from these smaller notes. From both journals, my intentions for my journaling is 1) learn more about nature (especially birds!) and 2) build a lasting document of these experiences to share with others. Very excited to get started!

What appeals to you about this journaler’s style? I really liked the last journal. I can't draw at all and have an incredibly busy life at the moment. My word for this year is "notice" what if I just drew a petal, a rapid sketch of the crow sitting outside my office window? Something I could do in 5 minutes. What would you think are the goals of this journal? The goal seems to be regularly noticing and capturing what the journaler noticed. The daily discipline of painting something is appealing to me, though maybe 3 - 4 days a week might be more realistic. A page a week? What surprised you about the content? the amazing detail she captured with watercolor.  She made it sound like these pieces didn't take her long, but they look very time consuming. What elements has this journaler included that you might want to include in your journal? having many images on a page, regular documentation - daily, weekly or monthly.  I'd want to add brief descriptions as she did in the monthly pages.

I love that the artists’ journals reminded them of their experiences in way that photographs simply could not. There is a sweetness in each artist’s image/entry, perhaps because their personality is embedded in the images.

1. I have always wanted to learn to draw and paint. As an avid naturalist and informal science educator, nature journaling seems like a good place for me to start! 2. It was very helpful to see a wide variety of journals. As a beginner artist, the polished journals filled with perfect watercolors are beautiful, but a bit intimidating. It was nice to see that simpler approaches also look great! My favorite approach is a mix of images and text, focusing on close studies of individual organisms. I would love to do a full record of an animal over an hour or so, documenting all of it's behaviors. 3. I would love to try incorporating actual specimens into the drawings. For example, if I painted a bird on a branch; I could mount a sample of that branch on the page and incorporate it into the painting.

I have always had a dream to draw and paint, and am very drawn to nature. I don't travel much but have a lovely sanctuary in my backyard. It is filled with birds, squirrels, chipmunks, the occasional raccoon, fox, deer, skunk - all attracted by various feeders. I learned something from each of the journals presented, but think I will do best with a simple approach. Since the idea of drawing is so daunting to me, perhaps only one or 2 sketches on a page to start will be possible. I also will share my thoughts and discoveries on each page. I also am drawn to the meditative aspects of this process. I look forward to this experience and learning from all of you.

I love all these journals!  What an inspiration to get out and document the earth!  I have so many pictures of wildlife on my phone and would love to have a documentation of the description but never thought of journaling at that moment!  It is going to be a great year to try and document my outer world.  I really am interested in finding out the scientific names and information on flora and fauna I see to remember so the scientific journaling appealed to me most.  I may print some pictures I already have and try incorporating them into the journal so I can document what they are and where I experienced them so I can have that to reflect on.

I was inspired to start nature journaling for several reasons. First, I am going to  expand my freelance work in science writing and I think that nature drawing skills would be a good adjacent skill to be able to include with my writing. Second, and probably more importantly, I like the idea of spending more time in nature as an observer rather than just passing through. I am a regular walker, hiker and outdoors persons. However  I feel that many times I miss interesting thing on my hikes because there is an expected pace that one keeps that prevents rest and observation. I like the idea of sitting and observing for an hour or two that several of the journalers discussed. And, taking notes to help me remember how I was feeling, what the day was like and also make connections (i.e. frog camouflage and dappled tree light) that spark futures ideas to research and understand.

May's favorite style was Shayna Muller's style. She liked the boxes around the writing and drawings. May also thought her sketches were beautiful. She also liked that Shayna took her time and added were she zoomed in to paint the details, May also liked the style of the date, and weather conditions. My favorite design was Liz's design. She put so much detail in the sketches and added specific colors in each place. I also liked the style of the writing, small and cursive. It made the book look professional sketch books you find in art stores. And my favorite part was the watercolors, all the colors had their specific place in the painting, and there was always a new color to see. Margot & May

I am an avid hiker and when I was younger considered myself an artist. I want a way to try to connect my dormant artistic talent with the nature I enjoy everyday. i like the idea of boxing things out and including questions and info you find later.

I'm a travel writer and would like to incorporate nature journaling into my practice. I think it will give me a unique perspective on my travels and the natural world within them. I would prefer to keep my journals somewhat open, with just one or two main sketches, as well as notes, per page. That said, I also really liked the journaler who practiced once per month and had several sketches per page. I'm eager to try sketching both animals and landscape formations, such as rocks and beaches.

I've looked at this course several times and have taken online classes with Liz and enjoyed them very much.  What tipped me over (besides the sale) is reading through the discussions.  Everyone seems to enjoy the course and take part of discussions.  Journaling is an excuse for me to go out by myself and slowly take in nature instead of a hiking pace with friends.  It gives me quiet time and I can concentrate on what is around me.  I've recently retired and am getting into birding so it all fits in together. Not sure what my journal will look like, probably mostly sketches.  Just whatever my hand is inspired to do!

1.  Wildlife photography is a hobby that I love.  I've wanted to start a personal journal and have started and stopped many time because I would loose interest.  I love the idea of combining art and writing.  I had just completed a bird photography course with Melissa Groos and came across this course and it seemed like a great way to incorporate my two interests. 2.  I really want to try the monthly journal.  I'm not sure if I could stick to a daily journal but was thinking I could definitely commit to putting together a monthly journal.  I take ALOT of pictures and thought I could use many of my pictures a reference for my nature journal.  I love the idea of having a reference at the end of the year to look back and remember different sightings thoughout the year.  I'm excited to try. 3.  I like the idea of using some of my photographs as a reference.  For example I took this picture of a female and male red belly woodpecker at my feeder.  Maybe using the image as a reference to draw them but doing research afterwards to learn more about these beautiful birds. 3.  I 

I have always been drawn toward nature, spending my life on a farm and in the mountain wilds or the ocean with my grandparents. I feel calmer, healthier, in nature. For a long time, I've abandoned nature drawing because of self-criticism. I use a lot of zentangle doodling for relaxation, but I felt like I was missing out on something by never going outside and trying to draw in nature. I sincerely hope this class will help me reconnect in nature and release some of that criticism. I love the idea that there can be little blurbs all over a page- and that some of them may not be finished- but that by blending writing and illustration, a memory can be made (as someone with a TBI and difficulty forming memories, this is particularly alluring to me.) I think I'll try to include some lunar details on my page- what moon phase we're in, for example- because I love seeing if nature changes with the moon (tides, seasons, etc)

Professionally I was an engineer but on retirement I went back to college to do fashion and textiles. I have never been good at drawing but I particularly enjoyed fashion illustration and it's ability to quickly catch shape, texture and movement with great economy. I have always taken photographs but am inspired by the idea of hand worked journals, both for personal memories of visits to local woods and also as a means of better seeing. The guidance of this course looks perfect.

I recently retired and moved to the Pacific Northwest.  This new environment is uniquely different from the my California  origins.  I am learning how to sketch.  I am an avid hiker and would love to sit and draw something to remind me of what I saw, heard and felt.  I love the idea of formally keeping track of time, date, location and weather.  I also like the idea of writing questions that come up as I observe.  I have never journaled before, so I am not certain how it all works.  How do you sketch a bird who flies away as soon as you get close enough to sketch it?  I think I will start with plants that don't move very fast.

1.  A friend said he had started drawing and he believes anyone can do it.  I am retiring in 1 week and will have more time.  I love nature, especially birds.  Journaling may provide an opportunity for me to go deeper. 2.  I may want to enter the date and place, but do not want to get to data-oriented.  I spent most of my career deep into data.  I want to explore the feeling side. 3.  Maybe record how I am feeling when I start and how I am feeling when I finish an entry?

I nature journal with my children as it is part of our homeschool curriculum.  I am still exploring and refining my style as well as developing the technical artistic skills.  This introduction has been helpful in showing the various possibilities to incorporate in my journal.  I was drawn to the journals that balanced the drawings and word descriptions.  It's often difficult to do both at any given time.  I feel like I need to keep two separate journals.  One a quick /daily entry that gives me drawing practice and a less frequent but more detailed entry once a month that gives me time to delve into deeper observation and description.