Penny

I wanted to try doing some shading last night while watching a movie. I was too lazy to get up to find an object and get a light, so I did this little bowl that sits on the end table next to my side of the sofa. Usually it has paper clips, some note cards, scissors, and other odds and ends in it, but my cat prefers it empty, so she had tossed everything out of it. The light source was the table lamp above it and I was looking down into the bowl. The highlights were mainly on the rim of the bowl which I didn't even come close to getting right and some on the right top side. It was fun though and after I finished I went looking for something more natural and found a seashell that I'm working on. The actual drawing is lighter, but I had to darken the copy up to scan it. Some of the image from the opposite page is showing through around the bowl making it look a bit messy.        

I'm in my late 60's and just beginning to learn to draw, so drawing this little bird was a fun challenge. If I hadn't had a photo to work from, I probably would just have a drawing of an empty branch and maybe a big oval for the bird. I don't think I could have captured much detail other than size and color on a live bird. I certainly would not have seen all the shading on the feathers or have been able to get any of the details correct. It was difficult to do even from a photograph.