Tu

Drawing the photo was not easy for me. I worried about getting the proportions and shapes right and it was challenging to get the positioning of the feet right. Good thing I could use an eraser! I had difficulty getting the bird’s tail to arch up. My second attempt was slightly better in capturing the bird’s stance. Because I was drawing the bird I paid more attention to reddish brown streaks on the warbler’s breast and the contrasting colors of its feathers. I think learning to be more aware of the details and variations in coloration will make a difference when nature journaling. Also I am learning to have a greater appreciation of how birds stand and move.

These are expressive foxes! They seem very alive and alert.

Nature journaling combines my predilection to keep journals at various times of my life with my growing appreciation of the natural world. During my teenage years I had enjoyed sketching trees in Central Park, so when this course appeared on my radar screen, so to speak, I thought it would be fun to revisit an old pastime while also improving my observation skills.  What prompted me to sign up for this course was spending a whole month this summer observing the constantly changing hues and textures of a small bay at the foot of Maine's Blue Hill peninsula. I took over a hundred photos of this bay -- all quite distinct from one another -- as high tide changed to low tide, allowing birds and humans to forage for bloodworms, and clear skies turned to fog (see photos below). I knew then that I wanted to do more than just take photographs. I wanted to learn to record through drawing and painting what I was seeing. I found Shayna's approach very appealing but the other journalers also had interesting nuggets to offer. I liked hearing them talk about what they observed and what they did to capture aspects that intrigued them. I think my own journaling ideas will emerge over time as I learn from this course and through doing actual nature journaling.