I thought it might be interesting to follow me as I  work on my next watercolor painting.  This is a behind the scenes look at the creative process- for me, anyway.

First I take a ton of photographs of a subject, honestly, usually over 1,000 images.  Yes, I have a “continuous shot” option on my camera and I use it.  Animals can make a movement quickly and give no warning.  So, if you have to try and anticipate what they are going to do and if it will be a good shot – it’s hopeless.  So, after I take 1000+ shots, then I download them on my computer, and quickly scan through them to decide which might have potential.  I go through several “culling” processes until I end up with 8-10 photos that I think have potential.  Then, I enlarge, crop, adjust the brightness ( to see more of the animals color), darken the shadows, etc all on my computer.  Then, once I have a picture that I think would make a good painting, I usually print a black and white image of it.  I like to print black and white – it kinda frees my mind to explore colors and not be restricted to trying to match what is actually on the animal.  Then, I decide how big of a painting I want to make.

I try to make all my art so that it will fit in pre-made frames – kinda standard sizes, to keep the costs down.  Once I have decided on the size, then I draw the image onto my paper. This one that I am working on is two black Angus calves.  I took the photographs at Linda Treibs, Fredericksburg.  They had gathered up the cattle into a pen and so I was able to get some group shots.

Now,  the fun begins…Stay tuned for further developments