Fish sketches

[john8]

I have been doing some artwork with colored pencils which is a change of pace for me. Takes a little getting use to but they are nice in terms of convenience as you can use them wherever. Do not have to worry about getting them on things or making a mess like paints. Anyway I have completed an Atlantic Salmon ( which I posted on another thread) and now I’m just about done with a brown trout. Still need to do some minor work on the trout, but I thought they turned out well.

[gt05254]

John, those are awesome. You've got pencils nailed. Trout is great, but the salmon is over the top. If you ever feel like it, we could raise some good bucks with another collaboration. Fine, fine work.
Gary

[sodbank]

Beautiful work !!

[Hellmtflies]

[bob2935]

very very nice

[Kenneth]

Absolutely gorgeous, thanks much for sharing!

Kenneth

[oddsnrods]

Coloured pencils are not the easiest medium, so well done.

Something to consider- It may be an idea to add some shadow, below and/ or a negative space 'cloud' above, which tends to help with the contrast and tonal values (light on light etc.), unless the fish is swimming in water - where some values around the drawing will still be useful, to knock off the 'edge' of the white paper. Also light source direction, along with it's associated shadows and dark/ light values are always useful to enhance the depth and form of a drawing.

This (humbly) from an illustrator, of some 'fishy' experience, plus college drawing instructor..

Malcolm

I include a somewhat 'crude' drawing (of mine) of a hand, by way of an example of shadow and 'cloud'.

[dborjas]

So cool! Just curious, how long do your pencils last? I seem to eat them up fairly fast. dborjas

[mlarocco]

Beautiful work !!

+1

[john8]

I use Polychromos from Faber Castell and they hold up well. I Have done a number of sketches so far and have not needed to replace any yet.

[cutthroatkid]

These are very well done indeed! Colored pencil works pretty well on toned paper also if you want to try something without a white background. I will try attaching a study I did of a male merlin on toned paper to give you an idea how well the pencil covers the paper, if I can get the image to post.

But the white background certainly does not distract from the images.

[oddsnrods]

Coloured pencils come in varying degrees of hardness/ softness, I would not worry if they wear or not, as they transform from a stick of pigment into your drawing.. don't try to preserve your tin of pencils, buy a few replacements that are often used, and (again) don't worry about it.

Consider instead which type serve your drawing style best, try various types and makers. So called 'water colour' pencils have a softness and feel all their own - even if you never wet them... and forget those hard scratchy ones.

As has been mentioned, the quality of the paper is as important as the pencil- for example, a soft paper and hard pencil do not compliment each other well.

I notice in the original photo here a manual pencil sharpener. These tend to 'eat' pencils, often twisting the tips off, but in any case providing a very short tip which wears quickly .

Much better, sharpen with a sharp knife, pulling the pencil from the blade to sharpen, using thumb, rather than pushing the blade. Start with the wood and finish with the tip - at that point pushing the blade to fashion the very finetip, fewer tips will break off, prolonging its life. That long tip is key, as the pencil can be held low or high for the various stages of the drawing. A loose grip of the 'tripod' style, of course, compliments the endeavour.

An interesting sharpener is the 'Little Shaver',see photo, which (after a little practice) does a fine job of sharpening pencils. Based on a US sharpener of the early 1900's , this cast iron replica is made by Lee Valley, here in Canada.

The pencils in the photo were hand sharpened however.

Malcolm

[john8]

I have not used toned paper but have seen other artists use it for their work and it looks good. I have gone to a smoother and heavier paper for my sketches. There are some professional artists on You tube and they provide some experience on what works best for them concerning pencils, paper, erasers, sharpeners, etc. So this has provided some direction on what to get. I have had good success with a manual sharpener takes off minimal amount to get a sharp point. This works the best for me, but others may prefer a different method or device. So nice to get input and ideas especially from people who have learned from trying different things and their experience.

[oddsnrods]

Archers HP 140lb is an easily obtained French made drawing paper, very suitable for all pencil work due to its relatively robust surface and amenable 'tooth'.

Malcolm

[wineslob]

Wow

[flyfishingpastor]

These are great pics. Thanks to all you talented people who shared them. Wow!

Pat

[McHull]

Looking good John! I really the like the brown.

[john8]

Finishing up another one, this time a steelhead

[gt05254]

Awesome.
Gary

[ted patlen]

Yes, excellent work!