Building a Prairie Dog family

I was wanting to explore a different subject matter after I had completed my second Buffalo drawing. I was intending to do a drawing of an elk, but every shot I took in Yellowstone had a tourist trying to get trampled by getting a bit too close, and in my way. I did get some great shots of elk sitting on the lawn of the town’s fire station. I will likely get working on that soon. These photos are all commercially printed many years ago, so I will scan them eventually.

In the group of images, I found a number of shots that I took while sitting in the parking lot of a Bank of America in Boulder, Colorado. A family of Prairie Dogs occupied the field next door. I sat in my car shooting photos of just one critter at a time. Making a composite image can be a problem when you have just a single subject in any image. I looked for group images and found a few that suggested a direction to go. I did my original sketches on 14” x 11” bond paper from a sketch pad to make it easy to transfer if I did something I liked. I penciled in a few tries and then settled on a final. I transferred the simple sketch to heavy Bristol board with light pencil.

Using my pics, I did a detailed pencil drawing using a variety of photographs of what I assume was just one, very active Prairie Dog who would pop-up, look around and then disappear again. I concentrated on getting a good study of his/her/their coats, eyes and paws (hands).

I started the ink drawing by doing the eyes and then facial details. Worked on the hands and then progressed to render each animal to complete the drawing. I went with a minimalist background environment.

I used the mixed-line drawing technique that allows me to closely match the texture and flow of my subject’s fur or hair. I typically work on the face first to start working from the focal point out. On this piece, after working on the eyes and hands, I generally worked from top to bottom. Then, I worked front to back.

This is such a fun piece, but I see things I want to improve. 

But, isn’t that always the case…

A peak behind the curtain

I want to discuss my work process and how I start with an idea and the steps to create a finished drawing. The subject matter of my drawings varies quite a bit, but follow a few themes. Currently, I mostly draw wildlife, but mix in a number of local city-scapes or unique architecture. To do this, I use mostly my own photos. (I have purchased stock photo disks and single files). This is easy when I walk around town with my camera on a quiet early Sunday morning or after the sun comes out after a nice rain. I can shoot a house or street until I feel I have enough good shots to make an interesting drawing.

Unfortunately, I don’t get to Africa or Yellowstone National Park very often. So, I go to the local zoo. In Springfield, we have the very nice Dickerson Park Zoo, and St. Louis isn’t so far away. Over the years I have shot images at a number of zoos, and Yellowstone Park, plus reference material in the local wilderness with the idea that someday I would draw them.

If you have seen my photos, you would know I am not a photographer by any measure. My eye is always focused on the details, yet my camera hardly ever is. Volume of images allows me to composite enough detail to create a drawing from what I shoot.

After I select a subject and an image, I start sketching a layout that works for the size drawing that I am developing. The composition isn’t always required to work within the classical standards for a drawing, but balance, contrast, emphasis, movement, pattern should also include some drama. This can be the addition of humor, implied movement or a forced perspective.

Once I have a layout I like I transfer it to my final working surface with a 0.7 mechanical pencil very lightly. I work a lot of detail into the pencil sketch because it is very important to be precise when working in a highly realistic style. This allows me much more freedom when I start to draw in ink. Currently, my preferred drawing surface is Strathmore 100 lb. Bristol Board. It has just enough of a ‘tooth’ to take the pencil, solidly retains the ink from my pens and allows me to erase the pencil from under the ink.

When I start drawing in ink, I start with the areas that would ruin the work if I messed them up. I start with the eyes, nose and mouth (human or animal). Those pieces that define the character of my subject. I do this so if I ruin the drawing, I haven’t spent a week drawing before I messed it up. I am dealing in ink, so there is no going back. The good thing about the pens I use is they are much easier and cleaner than years ago. Technical pens with the tiny refillable cartridges, fountain pens and the brass and steel nibs all could ruin a drawing in a split second. The Sakura Pigma Micron technical pens are very safe from leaks and they are extremely portable, so you can draw anywhere.

As I draw, I work from the center of focus outward. I work on the tone and contrast level as I go. It is very hard to adjust the value of your inked drawing later on, so it is better to keep it in mind as you go. Some, work may be required to darken some areas may be necessary. I do all of my pen-work in one size pen, a .005 Micron, even for solid black areas. In previous years, I would use a brush and ink or a larger sized pen, but it looks out of place now.

When I am finished, I erase all of the pencil work with a white Staedtler Mars plastic eraser. This removes a gray tones and I am left with a clean black drawing on bright white paper. 

#‎drawing ‪#‎penandink ‪#‎art ‪#‎illustration #ericraycreative #wildlifeart #wildlife #Pigma #Micron #PigmaMicron 

Tiger by the Tail

When sketching my drawing called "Tiger Fording the River" I wondered if I may have bitten off more than I could handle. I have been striving to improve the quality and detail of my work. I have also struggled with the size of many of my statement pieces being so large (24" x 18" or larger). They stand out, but take such an incredible amount of time. So, I decided to work with a greater effort in my (current) most common working size of 14" x 11". Much like the "Rhino, Close" work.

Adding to the challenge of this drawing was my intention to use a very dark environment that my subject lives in, using only the .005 Sakura Pigma Micron pens. Even for the solid black.

This was my first attempt to draw a tiger since grade school, mostly because everyone draws tigers and it has been a cliche since forever. The layout was developed to give me good composition, and a definite feel of movement and drama. The reflections and rippling of the water where a challenge in pen and ink, but I think they worked out well for this drawing.

The detail work and adjustment of the tones to match the background while still allowing the subject (a tiger) to stand out. The mature of scanning black and white pen work exaggerates the contrast so something shows up in a low resolution image for the web. The high resolution scans are created for full-sized art prints, smaller art prints, publication/media use, web use and for my online store.

This drawing took well over seventy hours to complete and a number of pens gave their all to bring him to life, but I am very happy with these results knowing they are the next step in advancing the skills used in creating my art.