Baby Emma

Our friends were kind enough to let me take some pictures of their beautiful 2 month old baby. Photography is something that I do not profess to be professional at, but that I really enjoy. The make-do setup in my kitchen was good fun. My favorites turned out to be with her parents, which we hadn't even planned on taking.

Search and Rescue color session 3

After another long session, which was actually over the course of 2 days, but I failed to take a picture in between. It's nearly done!

Search and Rescue color session 2

This was a longer session. The hairline and beard are purposely off a little bit so that I could lay it in when the paint was dry on the next session. I put the background in very last and instantly hated it, but didn't have time to fix at that moment. It gave me a week to mull it over, which isn't always a bad thing.

Search and Rescue color session 1

This was a quick session. About 3 hours.

Search and Rescue round 1-3

The funny thing about this goal I made for myself is that it's not difficult for me to create once a week; but it is to haul my camera in to take pictures, upload them, and then post.

It's silly, I know. So I'm late again.

I have never had a harder time laying out my initial "drawing" for a painting as I did with this one. This part usually comes pretty easy for me, there is no color to mess with, I have a decent eye and I've learned how to measure. I'm not sure if I was being overconfident or if I was just off my game, and it doesn't help that I'm not working from the greatest photo, but this sure humbled me.

The first try I didn't get a picture of. It's biggest issue was that I had made the overall face too small, and I had measured one eye wrong, and so then all other measurements made from that eye were also off. It was fixable, but I decided it wasn't worth it since I wasn't pleased with it overall.

I took the thinner and paper towels to it. Heartbreaking after 2.5 hours, I won't lie.

Try #2 seemed to be going better initially. Then I started feeling like something was off and when I stepped back to evaluate I realized the composition was a disaster. As such it was not worth saving again. Here is try #2, before the second thinner attack and a minor breakdown on my part.

Finally, after some meditation to calm myself down and sacrificing Sunday dinner, I got to here:

When I'm feeling like things are pretty good with my drawing, I like to take a photo and look at it that way,  that's what the above was for. Being disconnected from the piece for a minute helps me see my errors better.

Then I went back and finished up my under-painting/drawing. I had to put lights back in because at this point there were none left in the leather, and I also went ahead with some black on the shirt and some cool colors behind the face. Having cool colors on the canvas helps me fight my natural tendencies, and keep the warm tones on the skin under control when I start the color.

Floral and duct tape

My sister in law helps with the local Republican Party, so she asked me to make this red, white, and blue arrangement for the podium at a breakfast they were having. I made it at my Mom's house. Thus my Mom's kitchen.

The flowers and supplies for the arrangement pretty much cost exactly what they paid me, so I kept a few flowers for myself as my payment. (I waited a few days to take these pictures, the flowers are kind of dying and had been munched on by my cat a bit.)

Lastly, in the name of exhibiting all things that I create: at my nephews' birthday party, we made duct tape bags. I started making one that was a bit more girly, then I finished it at home. It was strangely fun and soothing making this thing.

2011 Search and Rescue Portrait Charcoal Study