Tag: flowers

art, Photography6 Comments

Photographing lines and the last begonia

mrerikdavis

This weeks photography challenge was lines.  It seemed easy enough, but I was trying to resist the easy lines and really look at this from a more abstract view.  I’m also finding I am seeing things in a more abstract view.  I love a great wide landscape, but for my shooting I am really steering towards shapes and forms.  I’m not sure if this is just temporary, or if this will be my niche, but I am really enjoying it.  A lot. I am trying something new with my posts.  In the past I would explain the image with text … Continue reading Photographing lines and the last begonia

art, Photography2 Comments

Looking for green and a little sketching

mrerikdavis

This weeks photography theme was green.  There wasn’t a specific subject, just green.  I didn’t want to just shoot images of leaves or grass, so I really left myself open. After breakfast  noticed the way the light was coming in the dining room window and falling across the chair.  The lines and deep contrast instantly caught my eye.  I knew this had to be one of the shots. While I was at work I noticed the wheelbarrow we have behind the building.  I started focusing on the tub of the wheelbarrow, it’s parked upside down and has a beautiful pitted … Continue reading Looking for green and a little sketching

art, Loose Watercolors6 Comments

Staying loose and finding the joy again

mrerikdavis

I’ve been keeping things loose with the watercolors, and I haven’t been this excited about art in a very long time! As I was rummaging in the paper cabinet this weekend, I found a partial block of Kilimanjaro watercolor paper from Cheap Joe’s. You can find the paper here The paper is fantastic. It’s a cold press paper and it’s loaded with wonderful nooks and crannies that let the pigments flow and blend in wonderful patterns. The above detail is just one example of the wonderful blending on the Kilimanjaro paper. The following two pieces are both on the Kilimanjaro … Continue reading Staying loose and finding the joy again

art, Daily Sketching, Loose Watercolors4 Comments

Lunch bag and flowers

mrerikdavis

Urban sketching, loose watercolors, flowers…this has been my week so far. While eating my lunch at work yesterday my lunch bag and hat caught my eye. They both hang on a hook next to my desk. It’s something I use everyday at work, but for some reason this was the first time I actually looked at them. I used my new Cognitive Surplus notebook for this bag and hat sketch. The fine nib LAMY Safari fountain pen and a Zebra brush pen provided the line work while I used a handful of Faber-Castell Polychromos colored pencils for some color. The … Continue reading Lunch bag and flowers

art, Fountain Pen Sketches, Loose Watercolors4 Comments

Spring has arrived in NW Ohio

mrerikdavis

Spring has finally arrived to NW Ohio, the temperature was in the mid 60s this weekend and the flowers loved it! We did too. I found one of our hardworking garden toads hopping in the grass as I was mowing. I quickly scooped him up and moved him to a safe spot in one of your flowerbeds. Gotta save the toads! This also seemed like a good time to challenge myself with a little mower art. I am using a new notebook from Cognitive Surplus, great notebooks! I’ll do a more thorough review soon. I used my trusty Lamy fountain … Continue reading Spring has arrived in NW Ohio

art, Loose Watercolors, Pencil Drawings6 Comments

Value studies and loose watercolors

mrerikdavis

I’ve committed myself to really focus on the watercolors. I’ve always enjoyed watercolors, both painting them and looking at them. For years I have worked with watercolors, not really giving them a whole lot of thought, I’ve always just used them as an accent to the pen drawings. I think I just became comfortable, and maybe lazy, with that combination. But going forward the pens will be used for quick sketches and writing. To gain better control of the watercolors I am going back to basics. Lots of value studies and quick sketches. The value studies may never develop into … Continue reading Value studies and loose watercolors

art, Loose Watercolors4 Comments

A quick catch-up

mrerikdavis

It’s been a crazy year at home, but things are starting to get back to normal. Unfortunately this site is the first thing that gets neglected when things get bumpy. I have been making time everyday to draw or watercolor. The watercolors are taking a higher priority in my life right now. Getting back to the paints has really been nice. I started making some value studies to get back into the habit of seeing shapes. I’d like to get back to the loose watercolors, but using the pen as long as I have I tend to overwork the details. … Continue reading A quick catch-up

art, Garden Journal6 Comments

Daffodils and robins

mrerikdavis

The weather is slowly warming up in the garden. Today and tomorrow are pushing 60°F and 70ºF. We did have a thick mat of snow for Sunday, but once the sun came out that quickly disappeared. As I walked around the yard on Saturday, everywhere I looked I could see daffodils pushing up through the garden debris. We grow a lot of daffodils. Once they start to show color in their buds I cut them by the handful to bring inside. I will leave a few flowers from each clump to enjoy in the yard, but having fresh cut flowers … Continue reading Daffodils and robins

Daily Sketching, Garden Journal4 Comments

Spring is slowly coming to the garden

mrerikdavis

This has been a wild week for weather in our garden. Tuesday morning the temperature was 16°F, by Thursday morning it was 49°F. This morning it’s a more seasonal 37°F. I’ve started using AD Markers again with my sketching. I love these markers, best out there in my opinion. They do bleed through the Landland paper, but markers bleed through everything. It just means I’ll be buying more of these little sketchbooks. Everyday that I get to go outside I feel better. Just smelling the dirt and hearing the sounds is so nice. This morning I could hear several song … Continue reading Spring is slowly coming to the garden

Garden Journal8 Comments

The garden journal and a new project

mrerikdavis

The daily garden journal continues. To be honest I really picked a challenging time of year to start a garden journal. It’s cold, snowy, and not a lot is happening in the garden. But I also enjoy the challenge that adds. I’ve been using a variety of fiber tip pens and fountain pens for my drawings. The fountain pens are great when I’m using colored ink, but the fiber tip pens are my first choice for black lines. The Faber-Castell PITT pens have always been my favorite. Over the years I have tried several different brands and styles of fountain … Continue reading The garden journal and a new project