Friday, December 25, 2009

Holly

I remembered sage advice while working on this Holly leaf:
  • Keep the pencil very sharp. I fell back to single edge blades; the utility knife blades are too coarse, made for heavier work.
  • Know when to stop. This was a tough one. I had to get up and run it through the scanner to put the stamp of finality on it. Approximately 3 hours.
  • Work comfortably. I started it in my chair and wrapped it up in bed.




I occasionally dimmed the lights to increase the contrast on shadow and highlight, blocked out the major areas, and then kicked the lights back up for detailed work. I felt a bit daring, almost giddy, using such a wide range of tonal values. It was really exciting feeling this leaf develop.


~~~ Merry Christmas! ~~~

4 comments:

  1. Look at those great highlights! The light is coming, the dark days of winter grow shorter. Have a holly jolly! - J

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  2. Aren't they so cool?! :-) I'd love to do a whole branch of them!

    Around this time of year is when I start saying, "Spring is coming!"

    Merry Christmas, Joyce.

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  3. I would echo that!! fabulous drawing .. good luck with a whole branch! Very Happy Christmas John....

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  4. Thanks a bunch, Val. I just went out and harvested a few specimen branches so it's time to get started. That is, if I can get this cat to stop licking my nose... :-)

    Merry Christmas!

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