Draw A Hummingbird in Pencil and Watercolor Wash

See Sandy's Six Steps to Sensational Sketches!

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 I produced this video several years ago, showing the basic approach
to my pencil and watercolor sketching technique.

Refine your skills with this simple step-by-step "Six Steps to Sensational Sketches" Technique. Why not give this easy method a try!? Here you'll find helpful information on the process, lots of inspiration and suggestions on the basic supplies you'll need.  Watch the video through the first time or two without drawing, then follow along, pausing the video to catch up if you need to. Start sketching today and I believe after watching this video and following along, you'll be amazed at the results as you see improvement with each effort. *Note: I show this wash technique using two colors, but if you want to simplify things, you can just use black.

Happy Creating My Friends!

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How to Draw a Woodchuck

Susan Bronsak has been a loyal friend, follower and contributer to this Summer Sketching Series for several years now. Her watercolor, sketching and journaling work is inspiring. Once again, thank you so much Susan!

Check out Susan's work and her great woodchuck post here! 

How Much Wood Could a Woodchuck Chuck?

This week, I have been obsessed with woodchucks! Our little resident Chuckie, turned out to be a Chuckita and she now has six roly-poly little ones! I got some photos this past weekend and I am in the process of learning how to do video with my new Nikon D7000 camera! I hope to video them in the next day or two, because after reading about them in my nature books, it seems they don't stick around long after they are a couple of months old. Which of course, is a good thing, seeing as how having seven groundhogs living here in SandyLand may be a bit overwhelming!

Hey, what's up Woodchuck?

This one's a mommy's boy (or girl) and sticks to her like glue.

They are curious

and endearing!

I went online and searched for lessons on drawing groundhogs and found a wonderful site; Exploring Nature Educational Resource. These drawings were done using Sheri Amsel's step by step woodchuck drawing as reference.

I contacted Sheri and she was gracious enough to give me permission to use her material here on this blog. She wrote; "Your animals are beautiful and full of motion – something with which I struggle. I was trained as a biomedical illustrator, so draw animals in much more static poses."

Sheri has quite an extensive list of how to draw mammals and birds on her site. She also has a section on keeping a journal and lots of other educational materials! 

I'd be interested to know if any of you decide to draw a woodchuck from Sheri's and / or my step by step approach. I'd like to see your results and / or just hear your comments! Which approach seemed easier to follow? Which one worked better for you?

As always, your feedback is very important to me.

"If nobody ever offers an opinion or takes the slightest interest in one's production, one loses not only all pleasure in them, but all power of judging their value." ~ Fanny Mendelssohn Hense

Show Me The Money

This watercolor doodle looks like the kid is asking the grandpa to show her the  money.

Drawing Doodles With A Brush

Tony van Hasselt has inspired me to do some sketching with a brush this week. 

This is a fun exercise to just get your brushes wet.

Put a mark down and see what it suggests.

It's nothing to get nervous about. It doesn't even have to turn out.

Just stay loose and doodle!

You can use photos or real life for inspiration

Or just draw mindlessly, completely out of your head, like I do! :-D

Drawing Exercises for Improving Your Painting Skills

The second part of Tony van Hasselt's DVD, "Fun With Figures", deals with drawing U.W.O. people with a brush. Tony stresses that this is an exercise. By following along and seeing the process, you'll be better equipped to put incidental figures in your paintings. "Some of these are going to come out, and some of these are not", he says. I really like his playful approach and attitude.

U W O (You-Whoa) Folks - The Proper way to Spell It

Today Tony van Hasselt commented on my doodling post here on SketchingEveryday. Tony writes; "Interesting to see what you did with my UWO folks. You can remember the correct spelling since it is the same as the way they need to be drawn. First the upside down U, then the W and finally the head. OK? Got that?" Gosh, sorry Tony. I do see your point now. Drawing them in order of the letters does help with the concept. It's important to place the head after the legs because the bend and direction of the torso and the legs suggests or determines where the head could or should be placed. Thanks for clarifying that and correcting me. You are a great instructor, Tony and will always be among my favorites. Today's sketches are UWO doodles done with the brush while watching Tony's DVD, Fun With Figures.

More Figure Doodles

Come on people, have some fun! Someone send me some doodles, please!!

Doodling People

Doodle - (noun) A rough drawing made absentmindedly. See, you don't even have to think while doodling. That's all today's U.O.W. (You-Oh) people are, just doodles. I bet you can't come up with a couple of your own! ( a little reverse psychology  ;-D )

Draw People with a Simple Formula by Tony van Hasselt

In August 2000, I attended a plein air workshop with Tony Van Hasselt in Maine.  I love his fresh and direct wet-in-wet approach to landscape painting in watercolor.

Tony has a playful uncomplicated method for drawing and painting the human form. These are not meant to be figure studies, but secondary or incidental to the scene. Once perfected, they add impact and a clear center of interest to any landscape. 

Five years ago, I featured his technique for drawing and painting figures back in 2006. Click on my worksheets.  I got a good response from people who tried this approach. Some even went on to buy the video.Tony calls them U.W.O.  (You-WOh) people because that's the order in which the letters are drawn. The head is put on last. Why not give Tony's (You-WOh's) a try?  I think you'll agree that they are enjoyable to create and may even add more pizazz and interest to your work!

Drawing Horses

My Horse Head Demo with Simple Shapes was featured in The Art Instruction Blog's July issue. That and finding a big box of old snapshots, got me fired up again to do some horses. I did this drawing of my mare's sire, San Diego, on tracing paper, refining it with several overlays. I learned this technique in college when majoring in illustration and still find it a useful drawing tool. Tomorrow I'll show you how the simple shapes supported the head and neck framework of this drawing.