A little spring lamb in my journal

This sweet little lamb will no doubt have grown a lot since I took its photo earlier this spring (I posted the photo in my last Photo Sunday May post). And I've been wanting to paint it ever since. This week I finally got down to it. I chose to paint in my art journal again. I just wanted to play a little, without thinking too much, using only three colours (Ultramarine Blue, Raw Umber and Titanium White). The art journal is just perfect for this. I might try and paint it on canvas too, so having this little exercise in my journal will be helpful for that. 

I drew the little bell because of a remark that N. made when he saw the sheep photos. Here in Switzerland, it is usual for cows to wear bells ("Treichle"), wether they're up in the alps roaming their summer pastures (and preferably standing in the middle of the hiking paths), or in a small field next to the farm. A cow and a bell belong together like strawberries and cream. When he saw the sheep photos, he said "What, even your sheep wear bells!". Maybe it's not quite as common as with cows, but yes, sheep (and goats) wearing bells is certainly not an uncommon sight here. His remark just made me smile. For me, it's just so normal.

Happy Paint Party Friday!

A reunion in the city, a walk in the countryside and Summer of Colour

Last Sunday, I met up with some old friends here in Zürich. 14 years ago, we all studied together in Stockholm, and since we all live in different parts of Switzerland and Germany, we rarely see each other much. But when we do, it's all the more fun. We did a lot of walking that day, and lots of chatting too.

This past weekend, summer has arrived in these parts, it seems. The temperatures are rising, and it's already getting a bit too hot for me. So I'm even more grateful to have a forest not too far away to go for a walk in its cooling shade. I LOVE forests.

And the cows in the fields always make me happy, especially these here, that still have their proper horns.

I took the Image Pro and the SX-70 on my walk, and I find it fascinating, how differently the images turn out. Each camera has it's own character and personality, making the photos unique to that particular camera.

And I finally got to try out the double exposure function on the Image Pro. I'll definitely have to explore that option more.

This week now is the first week of Summer of Colour, a six week blog party with weekly colour prompts, hosted by Kristin from Twinkle, Twinkle. I did it two years ago, and enjoyed it immensly. Last year, I didn't finish it, but I hope to do so and play along each week. It isn't a painting challenge, you can use whatever medium and technique you like. Click on the button below for full details. For me it'll definitely be paints, most likely watercolour.

Photo Sunday May

Happy Sunday!

Art journaling

I got my art journal out again this week, after quite a while. An A4 Moleskine watercolour journal with nice thick paper, which takes acrylics and mixed media very well. I like art journals, they are perfect places to just play, experiment, slap some paint on the page and see what happens. It doesn't have to be perfect, you don't even have to finish it. There is no pressure to create something 'presentable'. You don't have to show it to anyone, but can keep it all to yourself, if you want to.

I like to use the pages to let my imagination run free. To paint more intuitively, with just a vague idea to start with, and then see what happens. One such idea is 'home'. Where is my 'true' home? Where will I live one day? Will I ever find that place? Does it exist at all? For this page, I glued some pieces of a map on the paper first and then painted over it. It's not finished yet, and maybe I'll never finish it, but just leave it as it is and move on to the next figment of my imagination. We'll see.

Happy Paint Party Friday!

On my wish list: a SLR 680

I had the opportunity to try out a Polaroid SLR 680 camera for a few days. The SLR 680 is sort of the successor of the SX-70, a foldable single reflex camera with sonar autofocus. I always think that that sonar autofocus system, some sort of soundwaves, sounds (and looks) a bit weird. Like something from a science fiction novel or a submarine. My two Image cameras also have sonar autofocus, and I must say, that it works very well. But as to SLR cameras, the SX-70 seemed the one to go for. The real thing. Now I love my SX-70, and when you get the focus right, the photos are brilliant. But depending on the subject, the focusing with that small viewfinder can be rather tricky, and since I'm shortsighted, I don't really trust that what looks in focus to me, really is so in reality. And then I tried out a SLR 680, and wow, how cool's that! Unlike my Image cameras, where you just know that the focus is in the centre of the viewfinder, and you focus and compose your image accordingly, with the SLR 680, since it is a single reflex camera, when you push the shutter button halfway down to focus, you see the actual image in the viewfinder, which allows you to have much more control over your focus and composition.

There are some issues with this particular camera that I don't like. For one thing, it doesn't close properly on one side when folded, which results in the lens making a whirring noise almost every time you move the camera. It is not only a rather annoying sound, but I also guess that it means that the batteries get drained quicker. Also, there are some undevelopped patches appearing at the top of each image, and the overall exposure seems uneven, with the bottom being much too light. But at the top, where it is right, the contrast and exposure are wonderful, and the detail and sharpness are just brilliant. I'm afraid I'm sending this baby back, however.

But a SLR 680 camera is definitely on my wish list.

Photo Sunday May

There are those special places. Places where you feel at peace, relaxed, free to breathe, and just generally happy and content. One of those places isn't too far from where I live, just on the other side of the small mountain. In 1953, Robert Seleger, a master gardener, discovered, among the rich green fields and pastures, a patch of hill more and planted a first rhododendron there. In the following years, he travelled the world to find rhodondrons, crossing them to grow plants of different colours hardy enough to survive the cold winters. The place grew into a beautiful garden, beautiful azaleas, rhododendrons, ferns, peonies and many more plants and trees as well as rivers, ponds, a little lake, bridges, and lots of soft pathes. The water lily ponds are home to hundreds of frogs a well as dragon flies and water snakes. The air is filled with the scent of flowers and the song of birds. A truly magical place. I went there with my Mum at the beginning of the week, and we picked just the perfect day. Not only the last warm and sunny day before another series of cold and rainy days, but also when the rhododendrons, azaleas and peonies were in full bloom. Of course I took loads of photos, and so for today, it's a bit of a photo overload. (You can find more information about this beautiful garden on their website).

Happy Sunday!

What's in your fridge?

I put aside the portrait I've been working on for the past three weeks, and instead got my sketchbook and watercolours out. I somehow didn't get any time for painting during the weekend, and if I want to do something in the evenings, after work, getting out the acrylic paints always seems a bit too much. Watercolours, on the other hand, are the perfect medium for that. And if you don't know what to draw or paint, well, there's always the fridge. I've been keeping those tomatoes all week in order to finish the painting. I'm looking forward to having them for dinner tonight.

I meant to add some words too, but it was getting too late last night. I might add them later though. Most of all, I'm just happy about the fact that I sat down for an hour or so on two evening this week to paint. It doesn't take much time to do something, even when you're working (almost) full time. You can always manage to fit in a little bit of time, even if it's just 15 minutes or half an hour. I have to remember that more often.

Happy Paint Party Friday!