Wine And Wildlife A Big Success

Yesterday I participated in the Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge's Wine And Wildlife Fund Raiser. It was a gorgeous day and about 200 folks enjoyed wine sampling, great food and lively music. Here is a photo of three of the little oil paintings I donated to their silent auction. I set up and painted another little gosling from the photo in my last post. I'll post that for you next. Be sure to check my summer sketching everyday blog! It starts back up tomorrow. From June 1st to September 1st, I'll be posting a drawing online there everyday!

Baby Animals - Cute Fuzzy Gosling

I've been photographing baby animals at Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge in preparation for their Wine and Wildlife fund raiser this weekend. These shots will be used for painting reference and possible stock photography submissions. I'm also donating their use to the refuge. They can use them in their newsletter, on their web site or as notecards. Here's one of my favorites. Sooo sweet! Now who doesn't love baby animals?

Art For The Animals

"Nature gets into our souls and opens doors to hidden parts of ourselves." ~ Pamela Heyda

This is one of the paintings I will be donating this coming Saturday at Cedar Run's "Wine And Wildlife" event. It is a 5" x 7" oil on canvas board. Find out more about this fund raiser here (post just below this one) on my web log.

"We must preserve the natural world; for without nature, there would be no beauty to inspire us." ~ Hap Hagood

Wine And Wildlife At Cedar Run Refuge

Last week I visited Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge to take some photos of the baby animals. This coming Saturday, May 30th, from 4:30pm to 7:30pm, they will be holding their 8th Annual Wine & Wildlife Festival. I will be participating during the event by painting some of the fur babies that I met last week. They were all sooo adorable! The wonderful folks who care for them really have their hands full this time of year! Even though they were extremely busy, they made my visit very enjoyable. My artwork will be auctioned off at the silent auction. All proceeds will benefit the Woodford Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge operations and educational programs. The event features wine tasting and beer sampling, a gourmet picnic by Tony Lawrence and live music by BLUESBOX DELUX . Sponsers, staff, supporters, artists, artisans, animal lovers and live animals will all be present. An enjoyable afternoon will culminate with the awarding of a wide selection of choice auction items awarded to the highest bidders. For more information email barbara.jones@cedarrun.org or call 856-983-9702. The refuge is located at: 4 Sawmill Road, Medford, NJ 08055. It's a wonderful cause and a bargain at only $45. per person. Make your reservations today! VISA, MC, AMEX & Discover Accepted. Animal lovers, you don't want to miss this event. Please RSVP ASAP! Only a limited amount of walk-in tickets are available!

Farrier Of The Day

My farrier, Jimmy Hall, came out today and gave the horses a trim. He was a good sport and let me take some photos of him working on Rudy. I didn't dare use the flash around Rita. It was even making my laid back buddy, Rudy, flinch a little. Jim signed a model release for me so I could use the pictures for stock, but the photos turned out too dark. I've got to work on the lighting some more. I lightened them up in Photoshop, but the over adjusting resulted in too much noise. Noise is irregular pixelation that can be seen at higher magnification. See Nan, I'm learning! Anyway, I've been plugging away at my photography. With the help of my Photo Guru, Nancy Louie, and some of her borrowed lighting equipment, I now have 50 images on Dreamstime and 28 on IstockPhoto. (Take these links and click on "portfolio" to see my images.) Between framing and photography, I'm not getting much painting done this month, but I do feel happy that I'm making some headway with my new medium!

Hummingbird Update

Hummer season is getting into full swing here in Southern NJ. Don't miss out on the fun. Find out how to attract and care for your own little garden treasures! Hurry, before they all head out to my place! Check out today's post on my Squidoo Lens, 5 Steps To Happy Hummers here.

Perseverance Pays Off

One of my background images, available for commercial licensing online.

The past few months have been exciting and challenging for me, as I have been learning the skills needed to photograph and post process my images for commercial stock licensing. It has not been easy and I have spent countless hours fumbling with software and equipment and making mistakes. Without the help and encouragement of friends, especially my mentor, Nancy Louie, I'm sure I would have trashed the idea months ago. I still have a long way to go, with many techniques and equipment operations to learn. My perseverance has paid off however and you can now see my portfolio on two online image companies, Istock Photo and Dreamstime. Check my portfolios often. Some uploads that have approvals are not posted yet and I'll be adding many more in the near future. I will see how this venture pans out and possibly become exclusive with one or the other, further down the road.

"There ain't no free lunches in this country. And don't go spending your whole life commiserating that you got the raw deals. You've got to say, 'I think that if I keep working at this and want it bad enough I can have it.' It's called perseverance." ~ Lee Iacocca

A Perfect Ride

This morning Betsy and I put Rudy and Rita into the trailer and went down to the forest to ride. Things just couldn't have been more perfect! There was a breeze that kept the bugs away and the temperature was most comfortable. There wasn't another soul around, so today we had the whole heavily forested area covering 1.1 million acres called the Pinelands National Reserve to ourselves. And that's just the way Rudy, Rita, Betsy and I like it! A great start to a season of rides in the NJ Pine Barrens.


Rita wasn't in the photo shoot mood. You can see she's pretty well shed out, with just a little fuzz still left on her belly.


Rudy and Betsy are the best buddies. I think Rudy sees her and our rides as just a great big treat event. I see he's licking his lips here in this shot.

Blessed By Angels

I'm sitting here on my screened porch sipping my coffee and watching the new arrivals at my hummingbird feeders. Oh my gosh! I just saw my first female! They are usually a week or two behind the males, but there's my first lady, glistening in the sunlight in all her iridescent beauty, only a few days later than the guys. So far, they all look in really good shape too, not thin and travel weary like some years. With the temperatures here being unseasonably warm the next few days, (in the 90's), I'm expecting even more travelers to show up shortly. I get such immense pleasure from my little jewels! I've missed them tremendously and am rejoicing about their return.

"Against All Odds"

16" x 20" ~ Double - Matted and Framed
silver level ~ original watercolor ~ $399.00

Because they can travel more than 3,000 miles two times a year,
hummingbirds are symbolic of accomplishing that which seems impossible.

Learn about how to attract and care for your own little earth angels by going to my Hummingbird Pages and my Squidoo Lens. People don't call me the "hummingbird master" for nothin'!

April 19th Demo At The Seaport Museum

I had a fun time at the Tuckerton Seaport Museum on Sunday. Pat Johnson, photographer and journalist for The Sandpaper of Long Beach Island, NJ, did a story on me which I just read here online. I think it's one of the nicest pieces ever written about me! The photos are very pleasing too. See my demonstration painting here. This is probably partially due to the fact that Pat is a kindred spirit and a fine artist herself. Thank you Pat! You have a wonderful style of writing and a natural way of portraying the essence of my art foundation, methodology, personality and artistic perspective. You can read Pat's lovely article here.

MY SNOWMEN ON ISTOCK

Check out my snowmen on istockphoto here. More coming soon!

Demonstration This Sunday

This Sunday, April 19th, I will be at the Tuckerton Seaport Museum doing a painting demonstration from 1:00 - 4:00 pm. Learn how to go from photo, to drawing, to painting. Admission to the museum is only $8.00. The demo is free and will be loaded with insights and information. (Now is your chance to see me in action!) A small collection of my originals and prints will be available for sale. Also, view the Tuckerton Seaport 2009 Art Show and Sale with over 100 paintings while you're there. The Lovely Lighthouse Gallery is open daily from 10am - 5pm. Hope to see you on Sunday.

Lean On Me Lover Boy

This sweetheart is waiting for a home at the Burlington County Animal Shelter. I call #C25359, Lover Boy. When I met him last week, he just wanted to be held. Lover Boy has been "in Prison" for several months now and needs to find a forever home real soon!! This 8" x 10" oil painting was painted as a 100% donation for the shelter as part of the "Art For Shelter Animals" project.

"I'll lean on you and you lean on me and we'll be okay." ~ Dave Matthews Band

Molly The Mastiff Mix

A few posts back, I featured Molly, the Mastiff Mix ID # D-23899 at the Burlington County Animal Shelter. At that time, I did a sketch of what I thought her three quarter profile might look like. From the photos on petfinder.com, I thought she may be part Labrador Retriever, a popular designer dog called a Mastador. She may be, but boy was my drawing way off! When I visited last Tuesday, I took pictures of this impressive, powerful guard dog mix. Today I finished an oil painting of Molly. She was sweet as can be, but I must admit a bit intimidating. And in this day and age, with crime on the rise, that's certainly not a bad thing! Mastiffs were bred as far back as 3000 BC and have proved themselves through the ages as fearless defenders of personal safety and property. She would be a perfect match for someone strong and physically fit. She's a big dog with a lot of heart in a beautiful, sleek, powerful package. Go to Art For Shelter Animals to see my portrait of Molly.

Katie The KindHeart

When I went to the Burlington County Animal Shelter on Tuesday, I met all kinds of cats and dogs. None of them stood out like Katie, #d-26335. She is a nine year old Golden Retriever. Although her situation is grim, Katie "looks on the bright side of life". :-D She was a perfect model and lady. When I took her picture she wagged her tail and smiled with cooperation. She was clean and fluffy as she had just been groomed by the kids at a nearby school. What a wonderful spirit and ambassador for homeless pets! I thought to myself; "Now, here is the perfect NO HASSLE pet! What a sweetheart!" I can imagine Katie in her new home with little children pouring their affections over her. If I was a dog, I'd like to be a Golden Retriever, at least that's what the quiz I took said I'd be. What breed would you be? Go to "Art For Shelter Animals" and see my first post as a team member and the pencil portrait I just did of Katie.

I'm Officially on the AFSA Team!

I am proud to announce that Carrie and Sheila have added me to their blog, "Art For Shelter Animals" as a team member. I am honored ladies! Thank you so much. See more about this on today's Spirit Art Blog.

Saleena Got Adopted!

I visited my County Animal Shelter today. What a wonderful facility, amazingly lovable pets and great folks. I just know I'm going to enjoy working with them on the "Art For Shelter Animals" project! GREAT NEWS...Ms. Saleena got adopted yesterday! HORRAY!! I took over a hundred photos of some of the beautiful fur babies, so I'll be posting more portraits soon! Here's a photo of Lisa, the shelter manager, with Pretty Boy. What sweethearts they both are! Pretty Boy's ID#25332. A PURR-FECT lap kitty for sure! See Lisa's most recent comment about the project here.

Stunning Saleena - Shelter Pet # 5

The Director of the Burlington County Animal Shelter, Lisa Cliver, sent me a couple of animals she would like to have me paint for our "Art For Shelter Animals" project. I call this beautiful young short hair calico ID# C-25478, Ms. Saleena. I don't know why, the name just came to me while I was working on her portrait. You can be assured that she is very special indeed, if Lisa picked her out of all the others to feature! I am looking forward to meeting both her and Lisa soon!


I am showing you the first step of this painting where I wet both the front and back of my 140 lb. Arches cold press paper, leaving only the cat's silhouette dry. After painting in the background (very wet-in-wet), I paint in the eyes, because if the eyes aren't right, there's no sense in continuing. The eyes are the windows of the spirit and soul and can make or break a portrait. Better to just start over if they are not right when you are working in watercolor!

Personal Achievement

I am happy to announce that I have just been accepted as a contributor for iStockphoto. WAHOO! Excuse me for tooting my own horn here, but this was a real technical challenge for me. I am fortunate however, because "I get by with a little help from my friends". Thanks for all your help and pep talks in getting me this far Nan! This is one of the photos I used in my application. See more about iStockphoto on my Spirit Art Blog post for today!

"Any great achievement is preceded by many difficulties and many lessons; great achievements are not possible without them." ~ Brian Tracy

Give yourself room to fail and fight like hell to achieve." ~ Irwin Greenberg

Designer Dogs

I asked Lisa form the Burlington County Animal Shelter, to pick out a couple of animals that she would like to see me paint. One of the photos she sent me is this striking female Mastiff -Mix, ID #D-23899. Hybrid dogs, or designer dogs as some call them, like this sleek animal are becoming quite popular. I have a feeling from seeing the photo, that she is part Lab. They even have a name for this hybrid called a Mastador. Look at the beautiful golden eyes on this young sweetie. What a wonderful companion she would make! I will take better photos of her when I visit so I can do a portrait of her that does her justice for the Art For Shelter Animals project. Here is a sketch I did, trying to guess at what her three- quarter profile looks like.