Nature Journal, WIP, and Figure

I don't usually head a post with my Nature Journal image, but I don't really have anything else today, and I rather like how the top drawing came out. Yesterday I was off for my weekly visit to Daniel Webster Sanctuary. Had a great visit, though I didn't get many good photographs. Oh well, saw a new bird for me yesterday a Green Wing Teal. They were on the man made pond, but spent most of their time swimming and feeding in the middle section. Too far for me to be able to make any good photographs, and really almost too far for me to ID the birds with my binoculars. Still eventually one got close enough to really ID. These are smallish ducks, well smaller than the mallards and the male is quite lovely. I think there were about 3 pairs on the pond yesterday most likely a pit stop on their migration north to Canada.

The other bird I saw was a Great Blue Heron, it flew away from the river area as I was approaching. I did manage a couple of photographs, but there isn't much more than an grey blur to see so I won't subject you to one. I didn't see it, but was informed that the Osprey is back on its nest. Next visit I will have to spend more time out at Fox Hill to see if I can observe it. Unfortunately the nest stand is much too far for me to be able to photograph it so don't expect any photos.

Drawings from yesterday are top: a nuthatch walking down a tree trunk, and bottom: some of the blooms on a weeping willow that I found in the next door cemetery.

Above is the layout sketch for the border I have been working on, so far so good, and I have actually started the first phase of the transfer to good paper (Stonehenge) by tracing the design onto tracing paper. I only needed to draw one corner as I will use it for the other 3, and only need the one side and bottom for the same reason. I intend to make this another stipple work.

Above is a photo of last nights figure drawing. I am trying to work larger and having some issues getting all the proportions correct. So not sure about hands and feet here. I apologize for the poor quality of the image. We are having a typical March day here, sunny but very chilly and windy, too windy for me to be able to get a really good photo outside, and cold enough I don't want to stay out and try for better. Anyway it is good enough to give you an idea of how it went last night.

Above is a photograph I made yesterday at Daniel Webster and is a close up of the blooms on a Red Maple tree. These little red flowers give the maples a reddish haze at this time of year.

That is it for today, per usual comments are welcome, and hopefully I will have something more finished for the next blog post.