5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful! Excellent tips & skill-building projects. A favorite in my art book collection!
Reviewed in the United States on 3 December 2021
[***Top 3 things I love about this book***]
1. Projects include excellent tips to help you learn skills rather than just ‘copy’ what is depicted. For example, tips explain why shadows are placed in certain spots, what techniques add illusion of dimension and depth, how to build vibrancy, how to avoid muddy results.
2. Each project focuses on helping you build a new skill; observation, drawing using shapes, depicting textures for hair | warts | spikes | feathers | fur, making a bland subject more interesting, blending and softening lines, adding dimension, painting smooth gradients and bright highlights, plus more.
3. Each step is clear and easy to follow, with excellent instructions and accompanying figures.
[***What could be better***]
Just one thing - the reference photo at the start some projects is too small and/or dark so you really can’t see the details. But this isn't a big deal since the project steps don't really rely on the reference pics, so I am still giving this book 5 stars.
[***More details about the book***]
This is great book for beginner & intermediate artists who are nature lovers.
Each project begins with a short paragraph of interesting nature facts about the subject.
There are 12 Ink-and-watercolor projects: daisy, moth, mushroom, ferns, praying mantis, moose antler, frog, owl, snail, caterpillar on milkweed
There are 12 watercolor-only projects: sprig, butterfly, leaf, pine cone, salamander, warbler, rabbit, blueberries, duck, fox
The book starts with nice simple tips for suggested art supplies to do the projects in the book, shows the basic color pallette the projects are focused on, plus includes a few good tips to darken or lighten shades and easily mix a custom black to give added life to paintings. There are a few key tips for layering, contrasts wet-on-wet vs wet-on dry, how to blend unintended outlines, create highlights.
I like how the book keeps the text focused on what is needed for the projects, and doesn't include extra content that isn't essential for the projects. [There are plenty of other books out there covering details on a large variety of art supplies, color-theory, color wheels, color-mixing, all the various painting and drawing techniques, etc.]
The book concludes with additional inspiring ideas to continue your art journey enjoying nature and art.
Highly recommend - get this book! It is awesome!
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