Join Naturalist Artist Educator John Muir Laws on a virtual visit to the Palomarin Field Station in Point Reyes, California, where Point Blue scientists have been banding birds and advancing conservation for more than 55 years. Explore drawing techniques, from fast sketching to vivid detail, to observe and appreciate the natural world around us. Get Read More
Blog
NJC, Episode 21, Birdsong in your Nature Journal
Listen to the birds. The forest’s secrets are yours, if you can listen! (Birdsong Hiku). In this video, we explore how to listen to birdsong and transcribe it into your journal. This is the best way to learn the language of birds. You can use these same techniques to describe all the sounds you hear. Read More
How to draw an Iris
Learn how to construct a drawing of an iris, observing structure, negative shapes, and curling petals. The Nature Journal Workshop with John Muir Laws. Read More
Drawing Curling Petals and Leaves
John Muir Laws describes how to see and draw the structure and geometry of curling leaves and petals. Read More
Drawing Cone-shaped Flowers
Learn the geometry of cone-shaped flowers to help you understand and draw their structure. In this workshop, we look at foreshortening cone-shaped flowers to draw them from any angle! Read More
Foreshortening Disk-shaped Flowers
Learn how the shapes and negative shapes between petals change as flowers are rotated and foreshortened. These are fundamental ideas concepts to help you draw botanical illustrations. Read More
Drawing in Winter, tales of Ice and Snow
Learn how to draw and explore the winter wonderland, landscapes, snow, and ice. This workshop was part of the live Ask Jack workshop series where participants choose the topic. Read More
How to draw birds with open beaks, flying birds, and mixing dull or vibrant colors
This is a grab bag! Learn how to draw birds with open beaks, smaller birds in flight, and how to mix colors with watercolor with John Muir Laws in the live Ask Jack workshop. Read More
Drawing the Spruce Grouse
This video was recorded live during one of our Ask Jack sessions. Participants wanted to learn how to draw a Spruce Grouse. In this video, John Muir Laws explores capturing the basic body shape, postures, and details of the plumage. Read More
NJC, Episode 20: Measured Drawings
Learn how to use relative measurements such as the actual size of an object or its head length to measure other objects or proportions. These methods help us draw pictures and diagrams that are more accurate. Read More