Learn how to draw deciduous trees with or without their leaves. How do you suggest those tiny little branches after the leaves fall? How do you connect branches to trunks? How do you suggest masses of leaves and convey leaf texture with a few quick strokes? Read More
Category: Drawing Plants and Flowers
Tips, tricks, and techniques to help you draw plants and flowers.
Drawing Pumpkins
The pumpkin is a simple little shape and many of us have drawn them each year as a Halloween icon. But beneath the smile shape are valuable lessons to help you draw and paint any rounded form. Let’s explore pumpkins and gourds and how to draw them. Learn to draw the contours and form, shadows, Read More
Out of the Mud- Drawing the Sacred Lotus (video)
The curving petals of a lotus flower present an interesting challenge to the artist. Each petal has a slightly different curve, some smooth, some with a keel or ridge. You see each petal from a different angle, here a view into the interior, there the outside of the petal. The color pattern is a mixture Read More
Let’s draw Oak Trees!
Let’s draw oak trees from the close, middle distance, and far! When we are close to the tree we sculpt a few branches and leaves, showing bark texture and some of the smaller twigs. From the middle distance, the objective is to show the masses of the leaves with a hint of leaf detail. On Read More
Plant Drawing Tricks (video)
Learn techniques to visualize plants to help you draw them plus a grab bag of stratagies to help you draw and paint leaf veins and other details. This live workshop is part of International Nature Journaling Week. You will learn tips and tricks to help you draw plants. I have a bunch of fun strategies Read More
How to Draw White Things (video)
White things are surprisingly hard to draw. With a few strokes, a white flower can turn gray. In this tutorial, we explore techniques for drawing white cottony seed pods, clusters of white flowers, and clouds. Read More
How to Draw Compound Leaves (video)
Live workshop on drawing compound leaves. We explore plant structure and how to sketch pinnate and palmate leaves. Read More
The Iris Project (video)
Join me as I record observations of a Douglas Iris using colored pencil, gouache, watercolor, and pen. In addition to seeing how to draw an iris, learn about starting an observation project in nature near you! Read More
How to draw a Forest (video)
Learn how to draw distant evergreen forests and the view from within the woods. Here we explore layering values (from light to dark) and intentionally controlling the values and detail of each layer. Read More
Watercolor Trees with a Flatbrush (video)
Learn how to paint trees in watercolor with a Kuretake Fude Water Brush Pen, Flat Type, 2 Heads (KG205-70). The brush is great for field sketching. It gives a range of effects that suggest foliage. Also learn how to draw tree trunks so that they appear to advance, recede, or bend. Read More