Leah

I have tried doing wet on dry mostly. I like that technique because it is easy to do fine lines and it gives a clear color unlike some of the other techniques. Wet on wet has been a bit difficult for me though because it is a bit messy. Dry on dry is okay, but it doesn't give a clear color for me, so I prefer wet on dry overall. I think for my journaling projects, I think that I would use wet on wet for big spaces, dry on dry for items that have lots of texture, but I would typically use wet on dry.

It was hard for me because I couldn't find the exact scene that I was drawing, but I tried my best to refine my gesture drawing. I think that it helped that I had a different reference picture instead of none. The technique that has been most helpful for me was the ways that you can shade the drawings because it was useful because the bird that I was drawing had lots of shadows and different colors.

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.

It was really difficult to not look down. For the whole entire time that I was blind contour drawing, I had the urge to look down and see what I was drawing looked like, but I ended up stopping myself from doing so, which I'm really glad about. I really liked this challenge, and like others, the end result was quite... interesting. I was very satisfied with the green-tailed sunbird, because I actually got the lines to meet, but I ended up making the head look like a square, which looked really funny, since the actual bird has more of a rounded and not a rectangular head. Overall, I thought this helped me focus on what I was drawing, but it was pretty difficult, and I hope to improve!

I think that I'm starting to recognize some of the "themes" in nature more often, but I would like to improve on seeing them more easily. I think if you can recognize themes easily, you can see unique things about different plants and animals to make them more distinguishable.

It was great doing my sit spot experience in my back yard (I couldn't go anywhere else because I'm an 11 year old kid that a. doesn't know how to drive, and b. my parents probably won't let me go anywhere else outside alone, and they're pretty busy). At first there wasn't that much to see, but as time passed by, I could see much more birds, including a juvenile Bald Eagle which I didn't know that I would see, and a steller's jay that flew into our bird feeder, which was really unexpected because they are usually shy in my area. It was hard to see differences in the landscape for me because I look at the birds, but I will try to improve and notice more changes in the landscape and plants. I was surprised at how many birds that I got to see in that time period, though.

I was inspired to begin nature journaling because of my passion for both art and wildlife. Though I love taking photos, making my own is a fun experience, and a new learning opportunity. I think all of the approaches for great, depending on what you are doing, and how you want to personalize that moment yet cherishing it at the same time. Yet I don't have a different journaling idea, I will likely come up with some along the way. I cannot wait to start my path as a nature journalist!