Ice Clouds at -36 Celsius

Tossing some boiling water into the air on a cold winter morning.

I was amused.

 

Monday Night Art Class: Something’s Fishy

I love to paint landscapes, but every now and then I get bored and need to do something different.

So today I did something I never did before:  I painted a fish.

This was a 27 inch pike I caught last summer.

I could have painted the entire fish, but I chose to focus on  just on the head, because that’s the most interesting part.

I love pike.   They’re awesome.

They look like gators.   They have razor sharp teeth.  And they don’t give a rats’ ass…they’re not afraid to attack anything.

They put up a great fight when you hook them, and they’re quite tasty (despite what the walleye snobs might tell you).

They’re also beautiful fish and fun subjects to paint.

I was surprised at the pallete I used to capture this image:   red, purple, yellow ochre, sap green, greys, browns, and yellows.

It turned out okay.   I’m not displeased.

I think I’ll do more fish.

Next time, it will be speckled trout.

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Monday Night Art Class: WHAT…are you DOING?

A few months ago, I was babysitting my neighbors’ dog.

One evening, while I was at my computer, I found things were quiet…TOO quiet.

So I went into the next room and found guess who lying on the couch?

I pretended to be mad, and demanded:   “WHAT….are you DOING? ”

Poor dog!  He looked so sheepish and pathetic, I just had to snap this photo.

It cracks me up every time I see it.  Especially the tail, which is out of focus, on account of his wagging it.

Tonight, I decided to do a quick portrait.

Watercolor is so unforgiving when it comes to animals and people.   A few wrong strokes, and you can ruin the whole thing.

A tricky part was the dog’s shape in the photo is was mostly a black blob.   But I couldn’t paint it that way, or it would look two-dimensional.

So I lifted out some of the areas and lightened them with the brown, to hint at the dog’s muscles and shoulders.

I used a knife blade to scrape the shape of the dog chain around his neck, as well as make the white dots of the reflected light in his eyes.  And I opted for a monochrome background (there was no way I was going to paint every stripe on that blanket!)

I”m reasonably please how it turned out.

Though I think I made the dog look happier in the painting than he was in the photo.

PS.  In case you’re worried about the poor critter being traumatized, not to worry.

Uncle Friar is a BIG sucker when it comes to dogs.

So of course I let him stay on the couch.

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My Best Photos Of The Month For 2012

January (Ottawa River, Eastern Ontario)

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February (Silverstar, B.C.)

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March (Revelstoke, B.C.)

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April (Algonquin Park)

 

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May (Happy Duck-Toller)

 

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June (Junior Bear, Lake Winnipeg)

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July (Lake Superior, Neys Provincial Park)

 

August (Sec Lake, Algonquin Park)

 

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September (Eastern Ontario)

 

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October (Eastern Ontario)

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November (near Wakefield, Quebec)

 

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December (Christmas Polar Bear, my front yard)

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