View allAll Photos Tagged adobedraw
Trees Lining a View Across the Merced River. When I captured this image in spring of 2016, I was drawn into this setting with the water reflections of Yosemite Falls and the nearby mountainsides off the Merced River. It was captivating, needless to say! That's what this image was about when I took it with my Nikon D800E here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/28870603086/in/album-7...).
To the painting though, I felt more confident as I practiced using broader painting strokes and working with the contrasts between highlights, midtowns and shadows to bring out details and shapes in a digital painting what I captured with an image and photo. You'll notice that more with the mountainside and portion with the trees going up that mountainside. The other thing I practiced was with the nearby trees along the shores of the Merced River. The idea is not to paint the intricate details like with a photo. No, it's more a broader stroke that hints at the shapes and hues in a trees and let the mind fill in the blanks. The last part is learning more and more how to paint reflections off a water surface or rapids which is still a work in progress...
In the right foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time along the Merced River in Yosemite National Park :-)
An Opening for Trees to Stretch to the Skies Above. I took the original image for this setting while walking the Navajo Loop in Bryce Canyon National Park and is located here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/14986108225/in/album-7...). As I got nearer to Sunset Point, the wall around did indeed get quite tall which is the reason for my angling my camera upward to capture that image of the tall walls and nearby trees.
For the digital painting in Adobe Illustrator Draw, I worked more and more with the techniques of layers for painting. The focus was on binging out details as I sketched and then painting and later adding in base colors and shades for the final image. In the right foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time for another trip in Utah :-)
A Walk in the Wood Along the Skyline Trail. This was a point along the Skyline Trail in Mount Rainier National Park when I turned around to take in this amazing view of Mount Adams and other peaks around the Paradise area. Okay, I'd been doing that most of that morning and hike, but this was one of those spots I really liked with the nearby trees and trail. The views along this hike and down to Reflection Lake were amazing and the temps were that perfect coolness for an Autumn day in Washington! That's the story behind this captured image that I posted here on Flickr back in 2015 (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/29743316664/in/album-7...).
As I started to digitally paint this, I had a few things I wanted to focus. One was figuring out how I wanted to paint the trees. I haven't really worked well with trees other than the typical evergreens I often see while hiking in the mountains. In some future paintings, I plan on working on more deciduous type trees...still a work in progress! On this trail with the image captured that was the case with evergreen type trees except for the nearby one on my left. In order to keep a consistency with the setting, I kept them all the same and used variations in tone with hues of greens and some yellows. That allowed for a feeling of depth with one tree seemingly in front of the other along this trail. I also tried different brushes and strokes to match the effect I wanted: an impressionist brush for rocks and the mountainsides, rake brush for evergreens and other trees, dry media brush for skies with a lowered opacity to add green or violet (at the upper and lower portion, respectively), and finally an oil brush for clouds and then to blend the mixtures of the shades from dark gray to white.
In the center left foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring Mount Rainier once again :-)
Getting Face-to-Face Help from the Friendly Trees of Congaree. I captured this image while walking under tall Loblolly Pine trees while walking the Bluff Trail one Sunday morning in Congaree National Park. I uploaded the image here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/48450291857/in/album-7...). There was something magical about looking up with the tall trees all around and coming together likes spokes on a wheel that day. That’s the story behind this image and forest bathing, if you will.
As for painting this image, I tried to keep it simple using a thicker brush stroke for the trees to use as the basis for where I’d have the leaves. I then blended some other wood-like colors to give it what I get was a more natural look. I then used layers, on tope and below, to paint the leaves with varying shades and hues of yellow and green. The last part was painting the skies and adding a look to vary that blue with greens and darker blues with some clouds.
In the left center foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring the bottomland hardwood forest of Congaree National Park in South Carolina :-)
Mountains, Meadows and a Lake. I captured the original image during my second trip to Glacier National Park while once again staying at heaven in the Many Glacier Hotel area. There's few other places on this planet I really get excited to visit and take in. Glacier National Park and the Rocky Mountains north are definitely the first on my list! Here I was looking to the southwest to Mount Gould and a few other peaks of the Northern Lewis Range along the Continental Divide. The image I posted is here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/5659631155/in/album-72...).
For the digital painting itself, I'd seen a recent painting from a friend and decided to try out a different kind of look with the trees on the nearby lake shoreline. Most of the time, I'd try to follow a general look of what I'd seen and captured with the original image. Not here. For this painting, I decided to include a look with a slight feel of Autumn and a changing of leaf colors. I've never been to Glacier National Park in late September or October, but I have been a little further north and have always loved the look of aspens, larches and other trees. That's what I wanted to paint here. Here and there across the mountainside, I varied the look of trees from a broad stroke paint look to one hinting of trees. With the far off peaks of Mount Gould and Continental Divide, I used tonal variations of colors to show the the relief and textures present across the mountainside from those areas caught in the fading light of sunset and others in shadows. The last area I tried to work on with this painting was the clouds above, once again using only three colors between white and gray. The exception is the slight golden cream color along some edges to capture to the idea of sunlight still present.
In the left foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring Glacier National Park once again. I never will tire of being around that heavenly place :-)
Cathedral Rocks Vista. Now this was a way to start a morning in a national park! A friend and I had driven to Yosemite the day prior, experiencing overcast and even raining weather that day. This morning...let's just say morning and a sunrise have rarely looked as beautiful! By looking through Michael Frye's excellent photography ebook on Yosemite National Park, we'd identified this as a spot to start a day. The sunlight caught on the peaks and reflections off the nearby waters...they all had this magical look in the setting I'm sure John Muir had written about many a time. The original image captured with my Nikon D800E I posted here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/27992654880).
In painting this image with Adobe Sketch, I focused on a few techniques and ideas. My main focus was on using layers, along with variations of color and tone, to show depth and shapes. About midway through painting the upper portion, Kyle Webster released his Photoshop Brushes to use with any CC license. I tried that out, experimenting with different ones to have a more "analog" look as I used my Apple Pencil. The best area I felt this came out was in the skies. Before my attempts had not been quite what I'd wanted. I was able to find in his dry media collection, a brush that brought out a feel as if painted with real brush. I'll be experimenting more, needless to say...
In the right foreground of the digital painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring Yosemite National Park...and what a beautiful spring morning to take in the Sierra Nevada in California!
Morning in Denali. A digital painting of a view I captured a few years back while spending a few days around and in Denali National Park & Preserve. The view is from the Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge looking to the northwest. It was also the last morning in Alaska as I was headed back to Anchorage later that afternoon for my flight back to Austin :-(
The original image I took with my Nikon D90 is located here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/8362818631/in/album-72...).
For the digital painting in Adobe Illustrator Draw, I worked some more with the techniques with layers for painting. Clouds were my focus this time and still feel there's work to be learned getting that right amount of detail with the clouds but not overdoing it where it doesn't quite feel like a cloud. For the rest of the image, I would sketch out an area and then use other layers to fill in details, colors and shades. In the left foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my times in Alaska :-)
Barn with Wildflowers and Tall Evergreens. On the original image I posted here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/36382390583/in/album-7...) I mentioned one image in particular where I got the idea for this setting with the wildflowers and barn. While it was an overcast day on that drive through the Stanislaus National Forest on my way to the Hetch Hetchy part of Yosemite National Park. I definitely had to stop to see this...and yes, capture a few images!
As for the digital painting, I had a chance to practice on a few techniques i've been working on the past few weeks since watching some Bob Ross videos on YouTube. A few things I'd note here was the use of a rake brush for both the grass portion as well as with the trees. And even in that area, I had to change some settings like to use a Blend Mode with the grasses as I changed the hues with greens and yellows. With the trees, I didn't like the look that produced, so I continued with a Normal Blend. I also made adjustments to the brush tip and angle, using a Kyleâs Rakes - Zen Grind brush. Another things was to change the hues and shades from one group of trees to another to make the trees not look the same as well as hopefully adding a sense of depth. While the original image I captured didn't have as many wildflowers, I kind of got on a roll with one patch and liked that look. It was then just a matter of making a pattern that might look natural with patches here and there. I also added a differing set of colors with the wildflowers throughout the grassy field. The last area was my continuing work in painting clouds with a acrylic brush. I found with a Blend Mode it brought out a better look as I worked one color to another. Still some work needed but I felt a more natural look. The skies were definitely not blue that day so I practiced my use of adding a watercolor brush for a added feel to the skies: more purple hue to indicate a darkening look while the upper portion had more greens and yellows to show the sunlight still present.
In the left foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring California and the beautiful forest in the Stanislaus National Forest and Yosemite area :-)
The digital painting is really about two ideas, or rather books I'm going through, to help with my artistic hobbies. One is a book I found at Michael's while looking for some art supplies. I found myself drawn to the sketching section and was looking and mulling over thoughts on using that to complement the digital painting I'd been doing the past few years on my iPad. That book is Complete Book of Drawing: Essential Skills for Every Artist by Barrington Barber. Going through a few early lessons along with a holding of a pencil, I found myself wanting to practice sketching. That's the sketching part of the story for this image. The digital painting part is in this eBook I'm also going through (The Photoshop and Painter Artist Tablet Book by Cher Threinen-Pendarvis). One of the latest lessons was using a sketch to then digitally paint. One idea was using watercolors to paint out small sections to complement the sketch. Another was using an oil brush to paint on top of the sketch. So I started sketching out this image I found on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/101420795@N03/33682008828/in/pool-1...). I used the Adobe Capture app on my iPhone to help sketch out proportions for the landscape setting. Mostly that was the general layout of the hillside, trees and road. I could then add hatching to bring out a sense of relief in the terrain. I could then start the digital painting. I mulled over using a watercolor but then decided to use what I'd done on my last digital painting with one of Kyle's oil brushes. I could then adjust the opacity, hues and "scatter size" in different areas. Eventually what started out as a little bit here and there became the whole image. Then came the skies and clouds...an area I really knew I had to work on. I tried many attempts at painting the blues in the image and eventually settled on an idea I'd seen with this article (www.creativebloq.com/advice/5-simple-tips-for-painting-be...). Next up...the clouds! I'd used this video to practice painting clouds and found reviewing it helpful as I digitally painted them here. The image really seemed to come together then. Definitely not a copy but not fully abstract either. And all done in about 45 minutes...when it was time to head off to nappy-nap land.
In the center foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, imagining a new adventure to head out and explore!
File: M01-01
Limited Edition: Screenshot of my wallpaper of the 1914 Christmas Truce and an inlet photo showing it on my monitors.
Season’s greetings and Happy Holidays to many Flickr Users, and also to the Flickr staff.
What is this?
I have three monitors, as you can see in the square format image, which is a photo of my desktop setup.
The middle monitor is left in the normal landscape format, while the two others on either sides are turned into the portrait (tall) format. This is my preferred choice as it allows me to have open folders on either sides while an active application window is in the middle, so I could drag and drop some files from the side monitors into the middle monitor.
For example, I would have a folder full of photos open on the left side monitor, drag and drop them into either Photoshop or InDesign which would be in the middle monitor.
Most of the times I would have different wallpapers displayed, usually images in portrait format on the side monitors, and images in the landscape format on the middle one.
Last year, before Xmas of 2020, three different wallpapers somehow gave me an idea.
So I created this. My own drawing of the 1914 Christmas Truce, during the First World War. I drew two soldiers climbing up their ladders in their own trenches, trying to communicate with each other, offering a short truce for Christmas, and in the middle is the No Man’s Land.
How was it done?
I drew the soldiers first, one at a time, on the Adobe illustration Draw app, on my Apple iPad with the Apple Pencil.
First, I created the image size matching the monitor size, then I work out the approximate halfway position that would be in line with the bottom edge of the middle monitor. Then I started sketching the outlines on a layer, and work my way layer-by-layer to create the British soldier. When it was complete, I would do the same with the German soldier.
After that, I drew the landscape, using the same app.
When those were completed, I then sent them to Photoshop on my desktop via Adobe Creative Cloud. I would then do some finishing touches on those files.
Then I set it up as wallpaper on my Windows 7 Professional Edition by using a third party application software.
As you can see, the soldiers on the side monitors would look like they’re climbing up their trenches, peeking over the bottom edge of the middle monitor, giving the illustration that they’re looking at each other over the middle monitor.
About the subject.
The 1914 Christmas Truce was a series of unofficial short truces along the Western Front, in France during the First World War, around Christmas of 1914.
British and German soldiers, as well as the French, had temporary stopped firing at each other during the few days around Christmas, and crossed the so-called No Man’s Land to meet up with each other, to exchange seasonal greetings, talks, food and drinks, souvenirs, and possibility for some, letters because of the possibilities that they may have relatives living in other countries.
And they even played a football match.
It was only done in some sections of the lines, not everywhere. Most officers disapproved of this and attempted to order their sides to get back, and start firing at each other. It didn’t work much, but higher command of either sides did later issue orders that there would be no more unofficial truces in later years.
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Sunset in the Chisos Mountains. What an amazing view to take in! This was right around sunset on my first evening back in Big Bend National Park. While the sun was further to the south then a view of it setting between the peaks of The Window, it was still a view to take in! This was taken on the porch area of the main lodge area where many gather in the late afternoons and evenings.
When I started painting this image, I first liked the idea of the just after sunset view with the dimming lights and colors across the Big Bend National Park landscape. This was the image I first worked with and uploaded here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/32599670275/in/album-7...). But then I realized that I wanted something brighter with more vibrant colors to highlight the Chisos Mountains all around and the view beyond The Window. I found this image that I'd uploaded on Flickr here to add details and colors to digitally paint (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/41853325812/in/album-7...). It was then a matter of blending the two images as I digitally painted this.
In the center foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring Big Bend National Park once again :-)
Cascade Volcanoes. An image capture I took a few years back on a trip to Crater Lake National Park. It was on an October afternoon while driving along Rim Drive after enjoying a few hikes and scenic views. This location was at a pulloff where a sign exhibit noted that one could see for miles and miles, even to Mount Shasta about 130 miles distant (according to Google Maps, at least). That peak is barely visible in the image I captured that day, but I could still zoom in to see it! So that's the story of this image with the view across Oregon and then into California. I posted the image here on Flickr: (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/9071547681/in/album-72...).
And now some information on the digital painting I did with my iPad Pro using an Apple Pencil with Adobe Sketch...my focus was using broader stokes with one of my two favorite of Kyle's brushes: Rakes - Zen Grind and Paintbox - French Sharp Block. The latter for an impressionist style that allowed me to include a mixture of colors with each stroke. That was something I'd seen watching and learning from a friend and painter. The rack brush I used with trees, which gave me a lot of practice given the hillside after hillside I had at that overlook in Crater Lake National Park. My process was to break down the hillsides into sections and change the hue and tones and give the appearance of distance and terrain relief. Then it was a methodical process of slowly painting that out. When it came to the skies, I wanted to try out something I'd read (www.creativebloq.com/advice/5-simple-tips-for-painting-be...). Sometimes easier said (or typed) then done. So I went back to a master (Bob Ross) and watched his video where he discussed painting skies by using crossing over of brush strokes (www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7K7h6iyPw8) and then mixing tones and even hues to create a look. This is what a favorite painter and friend has mentioned to me a few years ago. Clouds are still a learning point for me. This painter (www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQt9r9uDe6I) helped me better process mentally what I needed to do; it’s a work in progress, but I like what I created a lot better now than in past paintings. I went about looking at some images I'd captured and others I'd just randomly seen on the Internet with clouds. I found one that I'd captured after finishing a workout at a local Austin Gold's Gym and then painted that out more free style with a Kyle acrylic type brush and let my arm and hand work as a single unit to brush it out what I wanted, alternating tones from a more pure white to darker ones.
In the left center foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring the Oregon Cascades :-)
Colors of Leaves (and Those Fallen) in Ozark National Forest. Capturing this image and seeing colors in trees was not something I'd thought or even considering while planning a trip to Arkansas and the Ozark National Forest and Mountains. I've mentioned in the original image description my story in wanting to visit this area again from my time as an Army officer. But seeing the leaf colors that morning was truly special and what my focus on metering and composition was with this image, which I posted is here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/33619102570).
To the digital painting, this was my second one done using Adobe illustrator Draw on my iPad Pro with an Apple Pencil...but it was my first attempt to do something that I wanted to try out as a watercolor and later evolved into more of oil brush style. I came across some brushes that worked with Adobe Draw from Kyle Webster. Another technique I used was something I'd seen a friend and painter use which was to have an appropriate stain effect on the digital "canvas" to better bring out a mood or feeling. I went with a medium color of brown and yellow to better bring out warmer tones and hues. The rest of the digital painting is using techniques with changes in hue and tones to bring out contrasts in the terrain and add depth. I also used layers with Adobe Draw to also help in that perspective.
In the left foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time hiking and exploring the Boston Mountains and Ozark National Forest...and definitely loving the color of Autumn even in Winter :-)
Imagining Views Seen in Yosemite National Park.
No, I haven't been to see Yosemite National Park yet, but this is how I want to imagine my first time there. Beautiful vista views of mountains and valley with blue skies and white puffy clouds all above me...a magical place that I've read in books by John Muir and heard described by many a friend. I digitally painted this image using Adobe Illustrator Draw on my iPad from a CC image I found on a Google search at Glacier Point. It's hard to say if the roads will be open but...one can always hope :-)
As for my stick figure, that would once again be me, SLR camera in hand, while wearing my Cubbies hat :-)
Greens, Purples, Browns and Whites. I captured the original image for this on my NikonD800E while taking in views of rapids along the Merced River not far from the El Portal Rd park entrance. What I loved about this view was the greens of the trees all around and going up nearby mountainsides. The purples in the lupine plants scattered across this river valley. The many variations in the colors of the milky waters with the Merced River roaring by. Definitely a beautiful setting in Yosemite National Park! The original image is location here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/29220702330/in/photost...).
Now to the painting...I felt more confident as I practiced using broader painting strokes and working with the contrasts between highlights, midtowns and shadows to bring out details and shapes in a digital painting what I captured with an image and photo. You'll notice that more with the trees and outlining their shapes as well as the field of wildflowers. One can see that along the riverbanks of the Merced River and going up the mountainside. The next area I had to focus on painting was the rapids and waters of the Merced River. That was most assuredly something I'd not done before! So I first painted the highlights and general flow of waters. Underneath that, I'd paint midtones with some of the different colors and then added in darker colors to show shadows where needed. The last part was more work on painting the blue skies and clouds that weren't present that overcast day...so it was part imagination for that portion of the image.
In the left foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time along the Merced River in Yosemite National Park :-)
Hurricane Gulch. I'd captured this image while enjoying a ride on the Denali Star a few years back. Yeah, it was an amazing view, needless to say! I was fortunate to be out on the viewing deck when the train did stop and took my time composing this image that I posted here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/8223320482/in/album-72...).
When I started digitally painting this, I found a lot of frustrations at getting the right look, even wiping away what I'd painted and starting again...about three, maybe five times! A lot of it was the trees and getting the right feel across the different parts of the mountain landscape. Another area was the clouds! Very frustrating! And then the skies! Another frustration! So here's what I did: with the trees I varied the brush type and stroke. In some areas, I used a technique I'd seen in Bob Ross videos with a stroke that goes up and down and just varied the tip angle of my Apple Pencil. In other areas, I used a pencil and increased the scattering to bring out more of a "rounder" tree look. I then just varied the colors and hues across different areas to give a sense of relief across the terrain and landscape. With the clouds, I used a Graphite pencil and then on its side to brush out the wisps of clouds seen. With the more typical clouds, I went with more of a rough chalk look and then blended the shades and tones, adding a light "extra" touch across the clouds to bring out some details. With the skies, I had to practice on using the right flow of the digital watercolor paint to blend in with the skies and add some texture. I recently came across an Impressionist style of digital brushes and will try that out on skies too.
In the center foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring Alaska once again :-)
A Panoramic View to the Waterpocket Fold in Capitol Reef National Park. The original image I captured with my D800E Nikon SLR camera was at a roadside pull off along the main scenic drive that had this panoramic style view looking across the Waterpocket Fold that Capitol Reef National Park is known for. It was captivating the way its stretched for miles and miles. One could see the layers of earth, one upon the other, each with its different color. That's the story behind the image captured. That image can be found online here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/markcstevens/37689447644/in/album-7...).
When it came to digitally painting this image, I broke it down into two parts. One was to practice sketching, or rather a light sketch, that I could use as a "scaffolding" to help me later paint the image. The idea was that it would give me a good outline and sketch out relief and shadows across this Utah landscape. Once I had that completed, I decided to practice a watercolor style live brush in Adobe Fresco app on my iPad Pro. A few years back, a friend had helped me appreciate painting with the strokes and styles one had to use. I found that the Adobe Fresca app allowed me to approximate what she had taught me. I could have a primary color but also blend it in with other nearby colors to create a mixture that would be more realistic. The watercolors also allowed me to blend in with the pencil sketching and use that to add more to the relief and shadows present. That really came out a lot easier with the layers in the cliffs off in the distance. I could keep separation but in other areas allow the live brush water colors to blend. I then digitally painted the skies and more freely mixed the colors so that it would have this dynamic look between blues with green hues in the bottom and more purple or darker ones in the upper portion.
In the left foreground of the digital painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring another national park in Utah!
Heading off to the La Sal Mountains. I’ve seen images and stood at overlooks in the nearby national parks with views of the La Sal Mountains as a distant point. But it was here along Castleton Rd in Grand County that I truly had a chance to see the majesty of these mountains and peaks. I’d chosen to visit this area because I’d read and heard about movies and tv shows being filmed and using this locale as a backdrop for the old American west. Both are beautiful and a sight to take in. So I made a point as I was driving along this road to stop at this one point where the road seem to just head straight into the mountains. I loved how the clouds added an extra dimension to the mountains with the sunlight coming through. I posted this image on Flickr here (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/27845674739/in/album-7...).
For painting it, I once agin focused on techniques I'd seen from a recent Bob Ross painting video where I used a Kyle rake brush to replicate a look of trees. I adjusted the size and blends for different looks across the mountainside and nearby foreground areas. I also continued to use one of Kyle's acrylic brushes as I found it gave a better sense of texture by adding on top of another. For the clouds, I used one of Kyle's dry media brushes and then adjusted the blend and opacity. I like the look it produces but have to work on the artistry style for a look I like better. I continued with the skies in blending another set of colors on top of the original blue color so that I could give that effect most see with earth tones near a horizon and a slight brighter hue above that.
In the center foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring Utah and the Moab once again :-)
Probably the most recognized spot in Arches National Park. A definite a crown jewel to visit…maybe a crown jewel to visit a whole bunch of times over a lifetime smile emoticon Anywho, I took this image years ago on a trip to the and digitally painted this with Adobe Draw, during a trip to see several spots in Utah and Colorado. — at Delicate Arch, Arches National Park.
The original image I captured at this location is here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/6314663371/in/album-72...).
Sand Dunes and Far Off Mountains. Before I'd headed out to Death Valley National Park, I'd had a chance to see many an image of the amazing places seen by others. I captured this image on my Nikon DSLR while looking across Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes to the peaks and mountains of the Amaragosa Range. It's a view to the northeast. The idea was from near to far, capturing a view leading up to one and then to another. The original image I took with my Nikon D800E is located here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/23246169775/in/album-7...).
With the painting, I gave me a chance to more and more practice on a blending of styles I learned one evening while painting in the Canadian Rockies. The idea was to was to find that point where I would focus less on trying to trace out the details from the original image and rather use paint strokes to bring out the details and contrasts with highlights, midtones and shadows. There's more use of broader strokes in the painting.
In the right foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time in the deserts of the American West :-)
Mountain at the End of the Road. When I captured this image with my Nikon D800E, it was an amazingly beautiful winter day. Snow was all around, and I had mountain views in almost any direction I looked. I was definitely blessed to have had a chance to visit there after flying out to visit a friend! Anywho, we'd been driving around trying to find that famous point with Oxbow Bend on the Snake River (and going the wrong direction at first), and we came across this amazing view with Mount Moran off in the distance. The cleared off road was my leading line for a view to a magnificent sight off into the distance. That's the story behind the image. The original image location is here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/21064364550/in/album-7...).
Now to the painting...even though I was feeling more confident with brush strokes and painting styles, I figured it would be a challenge for a number of reasons. To break down what I wanted to do, I'll start with the trees. While most of the trees that day weren't evergreens, I decided to use that, practicing outline techniques I'd been doing on other paintings. The idea is to not paint a tree exactly, but rather to paint an outline of that tree, letting the brain fill in the details. One paints a highlight and then adds in midtowns and shadows to complete it. For the snow and mountainside, I was able to try out another idea: I'd trace out general shapes like bushes or folds in the terrain to start off. I could then add whites (with different shades and tones) to create the feel of a landscape or mountainside. For the road, I still smile at the lesson I learned on painting a stripe or line: I just hold the canvas (or iPad) sideway and let the arm and hand guide across or downward. It was easy to then add shades and tones to complete the look of a road recently cleared of snow. For the clouds, I practiced more on tracing an outline of the clouds with a highlight and then using shades and tones of whites to add texture, if you will, to them.
In the left foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time with the Tetons Peaks all around in Grand Teton National Park :-)
Old Barn in a Field. This was a roadside stop that a friend and I came across on our way north in Oregon to enjoy some Willamette Pinot Noir. This farmland setting with blue skies and clouds above was one of those sights you just want to take in...and then take in some more! I captured the original image with an older Nikon D90 a few years back in 2011 and uploaded the image on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/5879140257/in/album-72...).
When I started digitally painting this, I found a lot of frustrations at getting the right look for the grasses, even wiping away what I'd painted and starting again. Finally I found a stroke and brush that allowed me to blend both colors and the grasses and give them a more of a natural look. The first part was just painting out the main portion of the tall grasses, changing the hue in a patch-work look like most wild grasses tend to have. I could then add a tip portion with a slightly different color to give an illusion of layers. The rest was filling in other colors across the field. For the trees, I went with something I'd only recently come across with an impressionist type brush that Kyle had on his site (now available for all Adobe CC users). I felt I could use that to best paint out the look and colors I've seen other painters put on canvas. For the barn, I used a rake style brush and blended in different colors to give that look of faded, weathered wood one often sees. The clouds were a better practice with an oil type brush and learning how to blend shades of white and gray to give a more realistic look to a sky filled with clouds. The blue skies were also a blend with a dry media brush and then adding either a yellow (for the upper portions) or a purple (for the lower portions) hue with a slight opacity to complement the main look in the blue skies.
In the left foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me setting up my Nikon SLR camera with my Cubbies hat on, loving my time exploring Oregon and the Pacific NW :-)
Peaks, Spires and a Ridgeline Covered with Snow. On the original image I posted here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/38672370244/in/album-7...), I commented on standing at Washington Pass Overlook while in the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest and savoring the views and cool temperatures...and loving it! But it was an uncertain stop that I have to thank the friend I was with for wanting to go further on Washington State Route 20 in the North Cascades mountains. To think I might have missed taking in views of these rugged mountains...lucky me!
As for the digital painting, I continued to practice more in using broader paint brush strokes like I'd seen in a Bob Ross video and watching another painter friend of mine. General highlights I worked on was with a Kyle acrylic brush. I like the digital effect it created as it seemingly had texture to it and not the smoothed over look other brushes have. I could then decrease the brush size for more precision in other area. I used more of Kyle’s Rakes - Zen Grind brush for the trees going up the mountainside. Work that I wouldn't call my favorite one but good enough to convey some changes in color and hue to create a sense of relief across the mountain. Could I have spent more time and added more detailed view of trees? Yes, but I was attempting to paint a quicker style and not spend weeks like I had in the past. What I did like was using a blend in colors as it produced a much better look than the typical Normal blend. The last area that really took a while to get the right look was with the clouds. In my mind, I knew the brush stroke I wanted but couldn't get that look on the digital canvas. I decided on using a Kyle's Dry Media -Compressed Charcoal and then adjusting the blend mode produced the closest result. What I found worked best was to brush out the brighter white area. I could then darken the hue, adding a shade feel to a portion of the clouds next to that brighter white area. I would blend at the edges. I would repeat that with an even darker area next to that. I would repeat all that again in another portion of the clouds. There's still some work to do, but I like the result more with feel of clouds. The last area was my continuing work with blue skies and adding a watercolor brush on top to break up and not have that smooth sky look.
In the left foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring the North Cascade mountains of Washington :-)
Looking to Mount Gould and the Continental Divide. This location walking around Swiftcurrent Lake is my favoritest place on the planet! It's in Glacier National Park, and mountain peaks with eye captivating, inspiring views are all around. It's a place to soak in the beauty of nature, and I never tire of those views. So that's the story of this image and photo and what I wanted to digitally paint. The original image I took with my Nikon D800E is located here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/14218458384/in/album-7...). The view is to the southwest while walking around Swiftcurrent Lake one morning in Glacier National Park.
With the painting, I wanted to practice more of the blending of styles I learned one evening while painting in the Canadian Rockies. While I still wanted to bring out the details of the image I'd capture years ago, I worked to use more contrast of highlights, midtowns and shadows as a way to show details. Another things was to use broader strokes for the painting. Some of the areas I really worked on for this image was clouds (always a seeming struggle to get "right"), the shimmering reflections on the lake and the tall evergreen trees on the shoreline.
In the right foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time for another trip in Glacier National Park :-)
An image capture I took a few years back after seeing Crater Lake for the first time. I'd been there about a year and a half earlier but it was during a snow storm...and therefore not much of a view to take in. This day when I pulled up in a rental car...was amazing! I could feel a joy in my soul that I've come to appreciate visiting many other national parks. This is what I saw that October afternoon. So now I'm doing a digital painting of the image I captured with the blue waters and rim view of the caldera.
As for the stick figure, I combined what I had in my hands that day: my Nikon SLR camera and a flask of Jameson!
This is the original image I took posted on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/8897559043/in/album-72...).
Fairview Mountain and Snowcapped Peaks of the Bow Range. I captured the original image a few years ago while on a hike one day in May to Lake Agnes Tea House. It was a view overlooking this glacial mountain valley around the Lake Louise area with peaks of the Continental Divide and Bow Range that seemed to stretch on and on to the southeast. It was truly a sight to see with those peaks seemingly rising from the evergreen forest with blue skies and clouds to complete the setting for this part of Banff National Park! That's the story behind a similar black & white image I posted here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/23740183284/in/album-7...).
Now to the digital painting I finished up here...this was a continuation of a few techniques I practiced from my last painting with the use of a rake style brush to paint trees and add what I'd call texture, especially across the landscape. Some of this was also re-watching and more practice of a tree painting technique I observed with a Bob Ross painting video here (www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlucWfTUo1A). I used more of that brush rake to add trees going up the mountainside, feeling it gave a more realistic look then a simple brushstroke. For the clouds, I practiced more with an oil type brush to build up different shades to add texture and depth. That started with a darker tone on certain edges and then a whiter shade on other portions. I could then use a blend to mix the brushstrokes with areas in between. With the sky, I continued the practice of adding a watercolor brush with a slight hue to match the placement in the sky: near the mountains would have more of an earth tone while higher up would have more sunnier tones.
In the right foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring the Canadian Rockies and Banff National Park :-)
There is a Rapture on the Lonely Shore. This was captured while riding a bike one afternoon along the Stehekin Valley Rd in the Lake Chelan National Recreation Area and North Cascades National Park Service Complex...and damn was this a beautiful view! It's a look to the south and across a nearby grassy meadow and Lake Chelan with mountains and ridges on both sides of the lake. Blue skies and clouds above only complemented and completed this idyllic view in Washington. The original image I posted here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/36389479486/in/album-7...).
For the digital painting, I continued my use of some pastel and ink type brushes I'd read and seen in videos from Kyle Webster. He offered many for use with Adobe Draw on iPad...and with my Apple Pencil, they really shined with ease of use. One thing I was not aware until rewatching a video of his was the option for scatter on a brush stroke which I felt brought out much more of a analog feel in the stroke for painting with a "real" brush. I really found that helpful with the lake waters and clouds. Another thing I focused on was using layers to work and bring out contrasts with hues and tones. Use of layers also helped in giving perspective to this mountain valley setting.
In the left foreground of the digital painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring the Lake Chelan National Recreation Area and North Cascades National Park Service Complex...a beautiful spring day in the North Cascade mountains of Washington!
I Think of Alpine Loop. I’ve had a chance to visit the Alpine Loop Scenic Backway in the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest many times since I spent an afternoon soaking in views with a friend. This is truly a mountain and forest paradise and is only a short drive from the Sundance and Park City areas of Utah. This was my fourth time visiting the area, I believe! Anywho, I’d just finished exploring several national parks and monuments in southern Utah and was heading back to Salt Lake City for my flight back to Austin. I had the whole day to soak in views...and I most definitely did :-) The original image I captured with my Nikon D800E I uploaded here on Flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/41176334392/in/album-7...
For the digital painting, there were many aspects I worked on and practiced. The first was the trees. I’ve struggled with trees and painting them for a while. Well, other than some typical evergreens I’ve come across in my travels in the northern US and Canada. Here I had Autumn and its full colors on display. This section of the national forest covered mountainside after mountainside with the yellow hues of aspens (my favorite tree to stand under while watching the leaves shimmer with each passing breeze). I didn’t want to “cheat” on that and wanted to have a more accurate depiction. I found my answer watching Bob Ross paint trees with Autumn colors (www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAdMkf-AAPM). After watching it several times, I determined this setting seemed to best capture that brush stroke: Rich Oil Brush by Kyle, Blend, Scatter 186%, Tip Angle 0º. I used a Kyle’s Paintbox - French Sharp Block impressionist style brush for the ground under the aspen trees and mountainside. For the distant trees I used a Kyle’s Rakes - Zen Grind, a favorite of mine lately. I continued to get better (my impression at least) on making the blue skies seem more natural with streaks and other looks (www.creativebloq.com/advice/5-simple-tips-for-painting-be...). The last area I’ll discuss is clouds, a definite struggle these past few months. Then I discovered this video with cloud painting (www.youtube.com/watch?v=tN1J47FcNH8), and it all came together. There’s more I can practice on (and have been with other practice paintings).
In the center right foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me setting up my Nikon SLR camera with my Cubbies hat on, loving my time exploring the mountains and forests of Utah :-)
Mistaya River and a Mountain Backdrop with Mount Sarbach and the Canadian Rockies. I've had a chance to visit Mistaya Canyon many a time over the decades during my travels to Alberta and the Icefields Parkway, but it wasn't until a few years ago that I really paid attention to the mountain peaks and forest all around providing an amazing backdrop for this portion along the Icefields Parkway in Banff National Park. That's what this image was about when I took it with my Nikon D800E here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/20687534016/in/album-7...)...
To the painting though, it was more of a chance to practice using broader painting type strokes and using the contrasts between highlights, midtowns and shadows to capture in digital painting what I captured with an image and photo. You'll notice that more with the mountainside and portion with the trees going up that mountainside. The other thing I practiced was with the nearby tall evergreen. In the past, I'd tried to paint individual trees, finding that I really didn't capture that look of trees. So looking at other paintings of friends and even in comics, I came across another technique to paint the highlights and shadows but not as defined in the original l image. The idea was to capture those variations anyone can see but to the eye from a short distance away, it might "appear" detailed in a way that the mind often fills in the blanks. The last part was the clouds and the rapids in the river which is still a work in progress...
In the left foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time in the mountains of the Canadian Rockies :-)
A Hillside of Trees to Take in the Snake River. I captured the original image for this setting a few years ago while enjoying a ride back to Salt Lake City from the Tetons area. This was a stop along US Hwy 89 with a few to the east as the Snake River flowed on by the nearby Bridger-Teton National Forest still peppered with snow. As I mentioned that original image, I love the colors present that day with green of the forest and trees, whites of the snowy landscape and blues of the skies above. That's the story behind this image I posted here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/29630000406/in/album-7...).
Now to the digital painting I finished up here...this was a continuation of a few techniques I practiced from my last painting with the use of a brush rake to paint trees and add what I'd call texture, especially with the landscape. Some of this was also practicing a tree painting technique I observed with a Bob Ross painting video here (www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlucWfTUo1A). I then added the more background snow using layers to fill in those area "missed" to add depth to this setting. For the clouds, I worked more on using an oil type brush to build up different shades to add texture and depth. With the sky, I continued the practice of adding a watercolor brush with a slight hue to match the placement in the sky: near the mountains would have more of an earth tone while higher up would have more sunnier tones.
In the right foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring the Wyoming and this wintry landscape :-)
Towering Mountains all around in Glacier National Park. When I captured this image with my camera a few years back, I was captivated by the towering mountains all around that day. That's what I wanted to paint for this image: big mountains of the Lewis Range all around. The original image I took with my Nikon D800E is located here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/13636027143/in/album-7...). The view is from a roadside pulloff along Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park and looking to the southwest.
Back to the painting though...this is the first painting I've tried since being educated on techniques of real world painting. What I wanted to do with this image was find elements of both styles I could use that complimented having a stylus for the digital input (with its precision) and the broad brush strokes one can paint with pigments and such. I also relied less on the sketching part I'd been doing previous and focused more on using contrasts present with highlights, midtones and shadows to bring out a final painting. Previously I'd spent far too much time with details; here I used those contrasts to more quickly move through the image while combining with layers. I'm still working on clouds though...
In the right foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time for another trip in Glacier National Park :-)
A Revisit to the Meeting of the Waters. When I had a chance to visit Canada for the first time back in the late 1990s with a friend and family, it was truly magical with the mountains and grand views all around. One of the stops that I really loved was this spot in Yoho National Park at the Meeting-of-the-Waters viewpoint with the Kicking Horse and Yoho Rivers. Then I had a chance to visit it again in during the summer of 2009 and finally a last time in Autumn of 2016...always a sight to take in! So that's the story behind this image and a viewpoint seen many times over the years. The image I used for this digital painting was taken with my Nikon D800E and posted here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/32337765036).
In painting this image, I focused on a few techniques. The first was working with the brush strokes for pastels or ink/oils...once again very different than that with watercolors or pencil type brushes! I also found focusing on a simple technique of contrasts with highlights, midtones and shadows brought out a best result for a first try with this style of digital paintings (and probably the one I'll work with for a majority of my future ones). I continued the idea of adding some birds in flight and changing the skies above what seemed to best fit the setting. And lastly, I continued using a toning, or stain effect, that a friend and painter uses for my digital "canvas." From a YouTube video I found, I decided on an Burnt umber look to tone this painting as it better brought out warmer tones and hues.
In the left foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring British Columbia and the Canadian Rockies once again :-)
Grinnell Point (Day 2, Wide Angle). I was blessed to spend seven days at the Many Glacier Hotel on a trip back in September 2013...and what a set of days those were! Every day, I'd spend some time before heading out to capture an image (or several) with a look across Swiftcurrent Lake and a view to Grinnell Point and other mountain peaks of the continental divide running through the national park. That's what this image and others captured were about...a heavenly way to wake into every day with an amazing view of Glacier National Park. I posted the original here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/13595265354/in/album-7...).
Digitally painting this image was more with practicing broad strokes or details. With the mountain peaks, I wanted more details but attempted to avoid the look of a pencil sketch at the same time. In other areas along the mountainside and with trees, I could use a broader stroke to give an illusion of varying relief and changes in landscape. The two areas I continued to work more on getting a style I wanted was with the clouds and reflections on water. With the clouds, I limited myself to three varying shades of white to gray. Doing so seemed to bring out a much better look and realism that I'd been trying to paint for some time. I also used a shading by holding my Apple Pencil on its side as if sketching lightly across the digital canvas. The other area was with the reflections of the mountains and clouds off the lake water. At first I'd attempted to bring out almost a reverse look with the mountains, but then I realized a better look would be a slightly diffused one. So I first painted the water color I wanted and then lightly added colors across to hint at mountains. The same idea with clouds, but here I used a cross-hatch style which seemed to work best. Another area for future work is with the skies. I'd recently come across an article that explained how to give skies a better look by avoiding pure colors and also adding some ones to match or complement the ground.
In the left foreground of the digital painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring Glacier National Park one more time..and many more times too!
Oxbow Bend of the Snake River. I'd first been to this famous location in Grand Teton National Park many a year ago and captured the image here that I uploaded to Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/6695171713/in/album-72...). Definitely a beautiful sight to take in, but I'd experienced overcast days during much of my time in that national park. This location had been on my mind as something to digitally paint since I'd starting working in Adobe Draw and Sketch, but I wanted something different...sunnier, you might even say! So while commenting on other images, as I do most evenings on Flickr, I came across this image (www.flickr.com/photos/lizhaslam/15613890728/in/datetaken/) which gave me the idea for a more sunset with clouds kind of setting to paint. And that's where the magic of imagination started...
For the digital painting, I tried out a few techniques. Obviously the first was using the basis of what I'd captured and going from there to imagine different weather and light. With the clouds, I kept the practice of keeping colors simple and just varying the hues in different areas to make their shapes. With the skies, I'd read a recent article I'd come across on Flipboard about painting skies (www.creativebloq.com/advice/5-simple-tips-for-painting-be...). One important idea to practice was blending colors. With an actual paintbrush, I could see that being easily done. Not so much with a digital one, even with Kyle's many brush styles. I practiced around with opacity and such and came across using a watercolor effect to "glaze" over an area with colors like that article mentioned while having a base color that I could vary based on the perceived sunlight. That worked very well and will practice that much more often now. Another area I focused on was the reflections off the water. I tried different strokes to capture and bring out the look of a reflection, but nothing really worked like I wanted. Then I tried watercolors again to "glaze" over, bringing out a fuzzy look like a reflection and then varied the colors of the water and river. I found I could then give the appearance of reflections with some shapes. As for the trees, I used varying shades and hues of greens and yellows to give an appearance of early Autumn, a time I'd very much like to see there one year soon.
In the center foreground of the digital painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time seeing the Teton Mountains and loving my time in Grand Teton National Park!
This painting started out as an exercise from a book I'm starting to read on digital painting (The Photoshop and Painter Artist Tablet book by Cher Threinen-Pendarvis) and then finding an example to practice in Bob Ross video [Bob Ross - Mystic Mountain (Season 20 Episode 1), www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlucWfTUo1A&t=878s]. What I was trying to focus on with this painting was a combination of two things. One was to try to figure out how to paint clouds. It's been a struggle of mine, and I've gone over and over and over again trying various brush strokes with different levels of blending to get that right feel for clouds. This exercise gave me a few ideas using an acrylic brush to experiment and practice. The other thing I was focusing on was using a rake style brush to paint out the mountainside and ideas on how to add details with that style of brush. As I learned from another painter, it's not so much trying to paint details, but rather giving the illusion that the mind can fill-in for details. That was what I tried to accomplish with this painting.
If you know me, you might guess the mountainside I was trying to paint here :-)
Anywho, if the bottom right corner, you'll find that stick figure of me hiking with my Nikon SLR camera while loving my time around mountains!
A View of Anderson Peak. When I captured this image, I was on a trip for about two weeks that allowed me to really explore much of Waterton Lakes and Glacier National Parks...and it wasn't enough. Haha! That trip was the first time I'd had to really look into more of the Canadian part of this international peace park other than view from Waterton Village or the Prince of Wales Hotel. So there I was at Red Rock Canyon having just driven up the parkway. It was time to take in those tall mountains all around and soak in the views! That's the story behind this image as I looked west to Anderson Peak. I posted the original image that I captured with my Nikon D800E here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/11723697245/in/album-7...).
Now for the digital painting...I spent more time working on use of a crosshatch brush in adding texture to mountainside and rock surfaces. I found at the right level, it can add that feel of grit that is often not present with digital paintings. Some other areas, I used a pencil and chalk paint look for the clouds and then adjusted the shades with gray for shadows. I then added a golden hue as a midtone and finally used more white for areas in sunlight. I continued to use a technique I'd previously discussed with the blue skies in using a chalk brush and then bringing down opacity for greens in upper skies and a red-brown (or earth tones) in the lower portion near the mountains. With the trees, I initially started with a simple upside down V but then looked at other paintings and realized I needed more to show for shading and such. I went back adding patterns to create that illusion. I also added a more distinguishing color between mountainside of trees and trees nearby me. I decided on adding larches with their yellow colors. As it was September when I captured that image, it was possible but probably more likely in another month.
In the right center foreground of the digital painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring Waterton Lakes National Park...and wanting to explore so much more during my next visit one year soon!
Snake River Overlook and a View to the Tetons. This is without a doubt a magical place to stand to take in a view of mountains, especially knowing the history of photography from past images captured over the decades. I've stood at this point twice so far, letting my senses overwhelm me with my eyes and the wondrous view to the Tetons, the feel the wind blowing across my face and skin (even on a cold winter day), and the sounds of the occasional tree rustling with the passing breeze or croaking sounds of a raven flying overhead. Eventually, I get around to my camera and capture an image, which I posted is here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/26394397060/in/album-7...).
To the digital painting, this was my second one done on my iPad Pro with an Apple Pencil but the first using Adobe illustrator Draw. I will say that there are differences with this program and Adobe Sketch! The way the app functions brings out those differences. With the latter app the pencil can be used sideway on the edge to seemingly brush out a lighter detail which I found handy with clouds. Adobe Draw being a vector based app doesn't allow for that. Other than those differences, I found this similar enough and continued to work on using the contrasts of hues and tones to bring out details as a painting might. I also used layers to work with those subtle color differences to bring out terrain and mountainside.
In the right foreground of the digital painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring Grand Teton National Park...a beautiful wintry wonderland!
Imagine Waking Up to This Every Morning! This was a day to wake up in the Canadian Rockies! What an amazing view to the Three Sisters with the light of the morning sun coming across the upper portion of the mountains...loved it! So while I was loading my stuff up to enjoy some time hiking in Yoho National Park, I had a chance to enjoy...no savor this view while capturing a few images on my Nikon SLR camera. The original image is located here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/33070043391/in/photoli...).
Now to the the image and what I did to paint it on my iPad using Adobe Draw...I decided to break this apart for painting strokes and styles. The upper portion with the mountain peaks I focused more on a sharper and more precise brush stroke but still using the contrasts of highlights, midtowns and shadows to bring out details that the mind could fill in. That also includes the snow that had recently fallen on the mountainside in the middle portion of the image. With the lower portion of the mountainside, I had a chance to practice more of a wider brush stroke using different hues greens and yellows to paint out those hillsides of trees. With the clouds above, I tried a different style to paint with the highlights to show a general outline of the clouds in brighter whites. The midtones I used had warmer colors to reflect the sunlight coming from the east to warm up the overall image. I used the shadows with some darker hues and shades to fill in the gaps remaining in the clouds.
In the right foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring the Canadian Rockies once again :-)
One of my favorite place to draw got a new coat of red paint prior to the winter and I just now had time to redraw this convenience store since. I don't know the history of the building, but it's large second story windows and the very fancy chimney tells a story of a grand past (fur store ? furniture store ? who knows!)
Dépanneur Laura (a fall view)
Lone Tree in Death Valley National Park. I captured this image in the morning hours while waling around the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes. With this one mesquite type tree, it seemed the perfect focus for this area in Death Valley National Park. But it was after converting to black & white that this image really came out. The nearby whites of the tree and sand dunes where a great tonal contrast to the dark blacks of the skies above. This conversion to black & white also brought out a starkness that wasn't quite as apparently when seen with the eyes and color present. The original image I posted here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/28880726740/in/album-7...).
For the digital painting, I continued my use of some pastel and ink type brushes I'd read and seen in videos from Kyle Webster. He offered many for use with Adobe Draw on iPad...and with my Apple Pencil, they really shined with ease of use. I felt this was even more the case with the sketching or pencil look I wanted. My first focus was on the details in the nearby tree. As this was the first sketching I'd done in black & white in some time, I went back and forth, erasing what I'd started to better get that feel of a pencil and brush stroke look. After the detail portion of the sketch, I could then use tonal contrasts to complement and fill in details for the rest of that portion, whether in shadow or light. Using ideas from a friend painter, I added more to the sketch and painted image with more clouds. My thinking was to add "something" to the skies rather than being a dark negative space. .
In the left foreground of the digital painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring the Death Valley and that part of California...a beautiful way to start a day in this national park!
A Close-up Profile of a Brown Bear. A digital painting of a view I captured a few years back while spending a few days at Katmai National Park & Preserve. This was taken from the Brooks Falls Platform my first afternoon. The story of this image is watching this one brown bear as it sat on the edge of the waters after trying to catch a few salmon which were starting to come up the stream and falls. For the image captured, I zoomed in to about 300mm with my Nikon D90; it is located here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/8107695614/in/album-72...). This is my digital painting of that image. Being around those big brown bears was amazing...and something I will do again on another trip to wonderful Alaska!
For the digital painting in Adobe Illustrator Draw, I worked some more on the techniques with layers for painting. I stretched out the outlines of the brown bear and some details with the fur. I would then work on another layer for certain colors of the fur and another layer to add more colors as kind of a contrast. I would sketch out an area and then use other layers. Eventually, I was able to to fill in details, colors and shades. In the left foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my times at Brooks Camp :-)
Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. This is an image I captured back in June 2010 that I later used with Adobe Illustrator Draw to digitally paint on my iPad. I remember seeing the PBS series on America's national parks...and oh, this view was captivating to see in person!
The original image can be found here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/4738370657/in/album-72...). As for my stick figure, that would once again be me, SLR camera in hand, while wearing my Cubbies hat :-)
Lush and Vibrant Green. Since a few years ago on a vacation and trip to Oregon and Washington, I've pretty much fallen in love with the Pacific NW with chances to hike and explore the many national parks, forests and mountains...heavenly you might even say! This image that I captured at this location was in the Eagle Creek area of the Columbia River Gorge with the Upper Punchbowl Falls off in the distance. Needless to say, this has always been an amazing hike that I've done a few times with some beautiful views! The image I captured I originally posted here on Flickr at this location (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/30912813874).
For the digital painting, I tried a few techniques by focusing on broad strokes and changes of hues and shades to depict contrasts and details in the image. Some notes that were different from some other images really focused on the water areas. With the waterfall, I decided to use only two colors or hues with white. I detailed with a thinner brush strokes some details or highlights with that waterfall. I then used a color of white with more blue to fill in the main color. The idea was the whiter hue would provide the detail and the blue-white color would fill in the "rest." With the nearby stream, I struggled to get that shimmering look one often sees with light coming across a water or reflection. I once again used a thinner brush, but this time it was trying to almost glide my stylus over my iPad screen. In a sense, it was to create that gentle touch with a brush, going back and forth to create an illusion of a shimmer. I then used a darker shade of blue for the main body of the water and stream.
In the right foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon :-)
Denali or "The High One." I'd captured this image many years ago with my Nikon D90 while at an early pulloff point on a bus ride into the national park. Because of the clouds that day, it would be one of the few times I'd have to actually see the "high one" mountain. The original image I'd posted here on Flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/14723335@N05/8237097160). Seeing this mountain that day as well as on a flight several days later with K2 Aviation was definitely a thrill!
In painting this image with Adobe Sketch, I focused on a few techniques and ideas. The original image I'd capture had a rather bland look across a tundra in this part of Denali National Park. I'd wanted something more to be in this painting, attempting at first to add colors to the foreground but nothing seemed to quite work. So I did a search on Google for alpine tundra...and wow! There were quite a few idea from paintings that came to mind. I tried out a few seeing how I might combine that to the original image for a final painting. My thinking was to add rocks and colorful plant-life as a foreground with the Denali mountain backdrop. I then used another image I had of Denali and...made it bigger. As I've learned from wide angle views, it tends to flatten out distance mountains and peaks. A friend and painter had also explained to me a little while back that you can paint whatever you want. Paintings aren't a xerox copy of life, after all! So I painted what I imagined as a setting for Denali...and hope to see it again with my eyes one year soon!
In the left foreground of the digital painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring the Denali area and national park up in Alaska...and definitely worth another trip one year soon!
Peaks of the North Cascades and Diablo Lake. This is an image I found while looking around for places that might be of interest to explore this coming June with a friend in and around North Cascade National Park and the nearby national recreation areas. Looking at peakbagger.com and then doing some orienting with Diablo Lake, this looks to be around the Diablo Lake Vista Point in Ross Lake National Recreation Area. Needless to say, I would love to take in this view and explore the mountains and trails!
To the painting now...I used this as a chance to try out different techniques for painting mountains and hillsides with trees. You can look at the lower portion and see where I used a contrast of highlights, midtones and shadows to depict trees present along the shoreline. Above and going up the hillsides and mountains, I used a different style with a wider brushstroke and varying hues and shades to paint trees. I continued that style at the upper peaks of the mountains with the snow and exposed rock present.
In the right foreground of the painting, you'll find that stick figure image of me "hiking" with my Cubbies hat, loving my time exploring the Cascade Mountains in Washington this coming June :-)