En Plein Aire sketchwork

Hi there, finally got to get outside for a while. This was done late in the afternoon as a thunderstorm (really the outskirts/remnants of a tropical storm) was building up. Typical Florida weather behind and to the left of this the sky was clear blue and on the right of this view was a deep, dark, ominous sky. This is an image of one of the marinas near my home. In the background is the Green Bridge which I travel across on a semi-regular basis. I used my 0.4 Pentel Hi-Tec C pen and applied watercolor with a Niji Waterbrush right over the line work. My plan is to use and develop this method by doing more sketches like this in nearby areas. I just got a new sketchbook that I'm pumped about using. It's almost made for studies like these, a heavier weight paper and landscape format! Hooray! Still trying to figure out my essential travel supplies.


On the right, is a study I did a while ago that I found while going through an older sketchbook. This is a cathedral seen from the courtyard of the South Florida Museum. A really cool place, maybe I'll actually go through it one day!
Done with a ball point pen.

Thanks for looking and keep checking back for more.

And now for something completely different

Here is one of my more recent sketchbook pages. Quite a change from previous entries but it's got some interesting things going on. I'm in this weird transitionary phase and working on sketching my way through it. Stay tuned and see how it turns out! This was done with a 0.4 Pentel Hi-Tech C (one of my most favorite pens ever), an ink brush tip pen, and some watercolor washed over that. It's called "3 Stars - H2IK."


The right image is a quick character/creature study created from random sketch lines.

So, here it is. Another week. I'm going to try (don't hold me to this) and post here about once a week. This way I won't try and let a month go by with a single post in it (yikes!). Hopefully, you've enjoyed what you've seen here so far and are eager to see more (you can let me know by leaving a comment and I'll do my best to respond).

This is a sketch done of the Manatee River. Lightly sketched in pencil and direct watercolor painting over that. Once dry it was scanned, copied, and finished with colored inks and colored pencil.

New Sketches

Here are some quick color sketches from my pocket sketchbook. Good excuse for breaking out the colored pencils. It's been a while since I've used them for anything.

The first sketch is some Koi fish. I've always loved these fish for their bright colors and eagerness for attention (and food).

The second is a doodle entitled "Follow Your Heart."