All levels of experience welcome. Join us for a week of art and nature exploration that will help you for fast field sketches or detailed studio drawings. Learn techniques to quickly and accurately draw birds and illustrate the plants and wildflowers that make their habitat. Learn to deconstruct and simplify complex patterns and shapes. We will emphasize techniques using graphite, watercolor, and colored pencil.
Birds: learn the basic anatomy and tricks to quickly draw birds in the field and avoid anatomical pitfalls that creep into many bird drawings. Learn which critical details to check and master the one minute gesture sketch as well as sketching birds in flight. Learn tricks for detailed drawings of heads, wings, and feet even after the bird has flown.
Also master botanical illustrations to provide backgrounds for your bird illustrations or stand on their own. Master the basics for foreshortened and curling petals and leaves, rendering glossy and matt surfaces, and details such as delicate veins, subtle blends of color, and backlit leaves. Field trips to Sierra Valley and other birding hotspots will allow us to practice in the field.
Plan to arrive at the Sierra Nevada Field Campus on Sunday, June 29. We will get acquainted that evening, but the class will begin at 7:30a.m. on Monday, June 30. The week's activities will be flexible to take advantage of some of the best viewing opportunities but in general each day will be spent in the field, with time to relax at lunch, and returning to the field campus by dinner. Throughout the week we will learn tricks and techniques to help sketch birds, flowers and more both in the field and in evening workshops. Walks will be generally short but could range up to 3 miles over moderately rough terrain. The class will end in the afternoon of 4 July.
To see a list of equipment go to Jack's web site by clicking suggested equipment.
Binoculars, spotting scope (optional), hand lens, bug boxes or small jars (optional), butterfly net and pond dip net (optional), field guides, headlamp..
Warm sleeping bag, foam pad, flashlight, etc. Bring your own tent or use tents with beds provided at the field campus (see brochure).
Days are warm, even hot, while evenings are quite cold (close to freezing). Clothing that can be layered for variable weather conditions is best. T-shirts and shorts are often perfect during the day, with a wind jacket or raincoat as backup. Long pants, warmer shirts and sweaters with a coat are necessary in the evening. Comfortable shoes, sun hat, wool hat and gloves are important. Old sneakers or rubber boots and a swimsuit may come in handy while visiting marshes. Miscellaneous: Day pack, sunscreen, insect repellent, raingear, alarm clock, water bottles, hat etc.
Miscellaneous: Day pack, sunscreen, insect repellant, alarm clock, water bottles.
Contact Jim Steele, before 1 June -- School of Science and Engineering, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Ave., San Francisco, CA 94132-9987, (415)-338-1571 or (650)-738-1814; after 1 June -- c/o Sierra Nevada Field Campus, Star Route, Sattley, CA 96124, (530)-862-1230.