Fain Park with Niece and Nephews

Golden Cottonwoods

Krista

Thane

Derek



the three hikers

11.11.11 at 11:11

Lucky for me, I have a Friday off! Where were you at 11:11 on 11.11.11? Denise and I were hiking to Fireplace Springs! Here's what we found:

An unusual view of Thumb Butte

I also spent time in my studio, winterizing... plastic over the window and a/c unit and a thick rug at the door to keep cold drafts out. Set the space heater going, good to go!

New Oil - "Autumn's Poem"

"Autumn's Poem" 11x14 oil, palette knife. The place of reference for this painting is West Fork!

A Couple of New Oil Paintings

Now that the weather is so chilly, my oil paintings are taking quite a bit longer to dry. These two paintings were completed about a month ago. The first one was painted on site at West Fork, also known as Plein Aire painting. I used a palette knife for the entire painting. The second one is a forest scene off of Senator Highway, "Oak and Aspen" will be it's title. I am not entirely thrilled by it for some reason although the colors are pleasant and pretty. I will stare at it for a while longer or just move on to painting other subjects. With this freezing weather, going into my studio is not so exciting. I use space heaters to warm up the studio, but I need to wait at least a half hour for it to reach a comfy temp. Not too worry, I will get back in my studio next week.

9x12 oil with palette knife, "West Fork Meditation"

8x10 oil, "Oak and Aspen"

A Cold Sunday Afternoon Hike

This weather certainly changed quick, warm fall weather to cold freezing temps. Cold doesn't mean staying home all day, my wife and I took a couple hour hike north of Thumb Butte. A few fall colors remain plus patches of snow linger in the shade.

Going Black & White

I miss working in the darkroom, hand developing negatives and enlarging them. I decided to try a few of my recent digital photos as black and whites. Photoshop is like a darkroom, allowing me to dodge and burn, adjust contrast and brightness. The only problem I have is my printer. My first print looked purple. I played with color balance and got them looking like a warm tone paper, but they still have a touch of green to it. If I want to do this more seriously, I will invest in special software to print great black and whites. For now, I mostly use my photos as references for paintings... I still own all of my old film cameras, 35mm, 2x2, and a 4x5. Some day, I will set up a darkroom and do "old-fashioned" photos. Digital is the way to go but the act of making prints by hand is slowly becoming a lost art and I think will be more of a rare thing, thus, giving hand developed photos more value.

Mini Show at the Frame & I Art Gallery

Stop by my work during November and December to view our "Miniature Masterpieces Show." I have 8 pieces in it, including this Aspen Tree colored pencil drawing! The Frame & I is downtown Prescott at 229 W. Gurley St.