I think the (very nice!) regular visitors to the blog here know that I enjoy drawing. I’ve found that it has helped the photography quite a bit, and in unexpected ways. It now feels easier to notice lines, shapes, and negative space in a different way. At some point, words break down when trying to describe how one thing can bleed into another. It’s a lot like trying to describe a unique smell with words – is it even possible without being poetically silly? I don’t know!

I have my other drawings under the “Drawing” category there on the right, in case you want to see more. I don’t think I’m very good yet, and I still find these very hard to do. I am experimenting with various styles and looks, trying not to be afraid of unfamiliar genres. This is my first “cartoony” look… I tried to blend something eastern and western… anyway, I’m blabbing too much.

Speaking of blabbing, I have a very looong review of Nik Software coming up tomorrow. It also will feature a bunch of secret unpublished shots, so you can get a bit of a peak “behind the scenes”, so that sort of thing might appeal to you even if you are not the sort that likes playing around with cool photoshop filters.

Hey I know everyone comes here for photography, and primarily HDR photography at that!  Well, this is “kinda” photography, in that it is, technically, a photo.  The only thing more recursive is if I would have made a drawing of me taking a photo of this drawing, but, of course, I’d have to take a photo of that to so I could get it on the blog.

Normally, I hate to show work-in-progress.  It kind of takes the magic out of it a bit, you know?  Maybe not.  I remember a few days ago at the talk, I forgot to tell the crowd, “Okay look, this all may be a real disappointment to you all when you see how it is done!  Sometimes the best part of magic is not seeing the steps betwixt!”  But, oh well… it was a pretty techy crowd, and they like hangin’ out in Photoshop too…  It’s all good.

As you guys know, I think drawing is a nice way to help out with photography a bit…  I think it certainly helps you to notice things.  I mention a bit about that in an article here on the site (in case you missed it) called “10 Principles of Beautiful Photography“.

I’m writing an article for Smashing Magazine entitled “10 Principles of Beautiful Photography”, and, in so doing, I am making one of the notions therein that it helps if you can learn to draw. Now, last year, I could barely draw a bath and my portraits looked worse than my 7-year-old’s!

But get this… I have a very good friend at work named Gustaf with whom I made a bet. Now, the guy is brilliant and a great designer, but he is absolutely terrible at Photoshop. I thought that was unacceptable, and I also thought my complete lack of drawing skills was unacceptable. Since I am mega-competitive, I made a bet with him that I could teach myself to be passable at drawing before he could teach himself to be passable at photoshop. I won the competition, as it should be, but he still has time to learn (he got a girlfriend and it kind of threw a wrench into the whole competition).

I’ve always admired people that can draw. “Man, I always wanted to do that!” I thought, remorsefully… But after practicing in secret for many months, I feel like I am a little bit better. I’m not great, by any means. Before getting into it, I knew there were natural savants out there that can naturally draw from birth. I knew I could not ever get to that level, but I wanted to get to a point where I felt better about my ability to capture a scene or feeling with just charcoal and paper.

Anyway, here are some of my favorite drawings over the past six months or so. They are in chronological order with the most recent ones on top.