Northern Spotted Owl Pencil Drawing

I saw an article on the redwoods in National Geographic and it featured a lovely spotted owl.  She was so cute I had to sketch her out.

Hairy Frog Fish Pencil Drawing

I have a friend in Australia who adores this strange little fish.

Dascyllus Pencil Drawing

These little beauties are dascyllus.  They are very shy and love to duck behind coral when the paparazzi are hounding them.  Ellen contacted me because she managed to capture these three on film and asked if I could illustrate them for her.  I worked in 4h and Hb pencil and then scanned them in. I'm almost through with the color, and will post the finished illustration shortly.

Opossum Mama Illustration

When a girlfriend was interested in a possum illustration that would represent her and her four young daughters, I couldn't wait to start. It would do double duty as a Valentine's present.
My husband, the banjo master, loves possums. It's a little late, but it's finished!  

Poison Dart Frog Pencil Drawing

This is the pencil drawing for a custom illustration.  Used a 7H and an HB pencil on vellum finish paper. I'm looking forward to using all my jewel tones to color these deadly beauties.  They may not be fish, but I am definitely happy to look at them behind glass.

Baby Manatee Pencil Drawing

This rough sketch of a baby manatee was done with a 2B pencil.  Like weightless elephants, manatees have a wonderful sculptural mass, and the sweetest expressions.  

Fur Seal Pup Pencil Drawing

I would swim with this little fur seal, no question.  Not his mom or dad though.  I started this with a 3H pencil and finished up with an HB.  

Sea Otter Drawing- Mama and Pup

I started looking at sea otters for a commission, but they are so cute and clever, that I need to add one to this series.  I am not scared to look at these, I might even swim with one if it were tame.  Maybe.  Let's not test that though, OK?

Wobbegong (Carpet) Shark Pencil Drawing

This is a drawing of the wobbegong or carpet shark.  They lie flat on the bottom of the ocean and wait for prey.  Some have these weedy wiskers.  They are all patterned in greys or golds. I wonder if they inspired some of the mid 70's carpets.  Check back for the color progression on this creepy critter.

Lionfish Pencil Drawing

The lovely lion fish deters predators with beautiful toxic spines.  Intricate patterns and stripes on undulating fins mesmerize divers and aquarium keepers.  The unpleasant the barbs lack a lethal punch, making this a favorite among aquarium fish.  It will eat the other inhabitants though, so take care.

Taking On the Great White Shark Illustration

Maybe I watched Jaws while I was still too impressionable.   Maybe I have fed into the hysteria surrounding this fish.  Maybe great white sharks are just really scary.  Whatever the reasons, this fish terrifies me, even in pictures.  Searching for source photos was not enjoyable.  I admit that I asked my husband to do some of the legwork.  He was gracious enough to find a dozen shots without much gore. Within that group, were three almost cheerful poses.  One was the great cartoon shark from "Nemo".  Did I mention my husband is very funny?  I'm just grateful that he didn't set it for my screen-saver.

So I had two great shots consult for anatomy.  In profile the great white frowns, but head on he smiles.  Is this to lull prey into thinking he's friendly?  If so it doesn't work for long.  Here's my pencil drawing:

I switched to an 8B pencil, to save time adjusting post scan.  I really like the character of the heavier line. 

Balloon Fish Sketch

My glamorous cousin went scuba diving and was kind enough to send me some pictures of the balloon fish.  This friendly little fish puffs up when threatened into a little ball of spikes.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrxmYVY1yo8&feature=related .

 I wonder if the makers of Gremlins had a pictre of this fish on their inspiration board.  Gizmo could definitely be a cousin.  

Cuttlefish Pencil Drawing

This is a just a small cuttlefish, too cute to be scary.  I really like the shape of the pupil.  this was drawn with an HB pencil on recycled sketch paper.  I am afraid that the color stage of this illustration will be very challenging.  All of the Cuttlefish's pigment is made up of tiny dots that the fish can make larger or smaller to camouflage itself.  All in all, this was fun to draw, a mini octopus with a tutu flounce frill.

Here she is folks, the female deep sea angler.  The bait glows to attract prey.  The wide jaws and collapsable stomach help her swallow fish twice her size.  Lucky for me she is a deep sea creature.  It's unlikely I will ever see her in the wild.  As for the male, well you have to read the last post for his information.

Dragon Moray Eel Sketch

He doesn't look like much yet, but check back for the colored version!  This is the dragon or tiger moray.  They are highly patterned with orange, purple and white.  Even their teeth are striped.  They look ready to bite, but in reality they have to open and close their mouths to move water over their gills.

Starfish - 7 Legged and Otherwise.

Illustrating scary creatures has increased my tolerance of them.  However if the goal of this exercise is to actually swim in the ocean, I may have to mix in some pretty with the scary.  If I concentrate only on the terrifying, I doubt the outcome would be favorable.  So here are some starfish to join the crew.

Nautilus Pencil Drawing

To be honest, I was more familiar with the riveted submarine Captain Nemo piloted in Ten Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, than I was with the creature it was named after.  This is it- the nautilus.  Unlike it's cousins the octopus and squid, it is protected by a beautiful shell as is jettisons around the ocean.  I used H6 and B2 pencils for this drawing, and increased the contrast in curves after scanning.  My favorite part of drawing this was hearing my young daughter say "Don't like Naughtyluss, he grabs everybody."

Sea Turtle Drawing

After the hammerheads, I wanted to to take a break from scary for a bit.  I felt guilty shirking the face your fears duty, so I asked some friends over on the Regretsy forums to vote for either the moray eel, starfish or sea turtle. They voted for the sea turtle, so here one swims.

He's quite attractive, and while he might lop off a finger or two in that beak, he's more likely to just swim by. Bemused as only a creature with such a long life span can be.

Let's Not Go Swimming.

Just a bit of polishing up, I didn't want to overdo this one.  He looks almost friendly.  

However, I think I'll watch from here.  Thankyouverymuch.

Hammerhead Pencil Drawing

I did it!  I looked at enough pictures of hammerhead sharks to actually draw some.  In the process, I learned that there are nine species of hammerheads, but only three are dangerous to humans.  This is one of those three, the scalloped hammerhead. They school during the day, and are solitary at night. Females give birth to live pups but don't care for them at all.  I can't say honestly say I'd want to cuddle them, but they are graceful, striking creatures.  Large liquid eyes that can see 360 degrees really set them apart.

Scalloped Hammerhead Sharks drawn with 7H and HB Pencils on Canson Recycled Drawing Paper.