Girl2 and I are in love with frogs. Most days we’ll share at least a dozen or so frog posts on Instagram with each other. So much so that we have started corresponding with them getting permission to use their photos as references and learning their photography secrets. Some of my favorites are Jeffrey Gonzalez Espinoza, Aiden, and Freddie the Evil Frog

While perusing them the other day at work, I broke out my watercolor sketch kit and knocked out a quick study. I think I may redo this one large in acrylic…

In my continuing efforts to grow as an artist, I am learning to capture a likeness quicker and looser. And in fountain pen no less!

There were a total of 630 faces (give or take) in this sketchbook. I admit, however, that it took longer than a couple of months. I started in March and finished in September. It was more like “daily in spurts.”

I posted a flip through video of it on the youtubes here:

I used a slide show app that would randomize them and present me a new one every two minutes. I don’t know if it is available in the I-store, but in Google Play it is here: Slideshow. It has been a pretty handy little program for faces, gesture drawing, and now I’m using it for hands. If you know of a similar app for apple, I would love for you to share it with the rest of us.

I am infatuated with clouds. One of the things that attracted me to Houston, aside from the lack of ice, was the huge blue skies and white puffy clouds. My phone has DOZENS of pics of the sky at various times of the day and weather conditions. But the puffy white ones on the sapphire sky just blow me away.

In my watercolor Practice, when I’m not inspired by anything else, I know I can whip out a few cloud pics for practice.

If you know any tips on how to make them more “cloud-like”, I’d love for you to share them with the rest of us.

You may remember that we have a pet crawfish named Bob. This is our sixth (sith) Bob, so I call him Darth Bob. In an effort to provide enrichment and fresh food I asked the pet store to let me have some pest snails. Normally people do everything to get rid of these things because they are born pregnant and will infest a tank pretty quickly.

So I started with about 15 and now have somewhere around 2000. I also added plants in tea lights. Darth Bob can eat whatever grows outside the lantern.

I really enjoy watching the snails and it inspired me to draw a few and I did a mini painting.

There’s a timelapse of me painting the snail over at the youtubes: https://youtu.be/CrY8Khg3Frk

Recently, the whole family took a trip with some friends to the Saint Francis Wolf Sanctuary. I took a lot of pics, but mostly of mushrooms I wanted to paint later.

In the gift shop on the way out I bought a patch for my motorcycle vest. When it came time to sew it on, however, I realized I hadn’t ridden the bike and it wouldn’t be right sewing on a patch I hadn’t earned. So I decided to load up and ride out for the day. About that time, Girl2 texted me to let me know she was home with me. I had no idea. I told her my plan and she said, “Say less! I’ll be right back down in jeans!” And that is how I ended up riding with my little girl for the day.

Since she suffered the ride out there, I got her a patch too. Now she needs a leather vest.

Also, here are the mushrooms…

If you paint them, please tag me in IG @theartisticbiker