"ROCKin!" Lobster

Drawing a Tropical Rock Lobster In Colored Pencil and Ink

Prints, posters, stationery cards, and signed fine art reproductions  

are available for purchase in my Etys shop at: 

 www.etsy.com/shop/TimJeffsArt

Tropical Rock Lobster. 11x17"  Colored Pencil and ink on paper

When I first laid eyes one on one these crazy looking lobsters, I though someone painted on it. The colors and patterns that adore it's shell are almost un-natural looking. They are so ornate that they are sometimes called "Ornate Rock Lobsters", which fits them perfectly. Even it's scientific name "Panulirus ornatus" has ornate in it. It is also known by a number of other common names, including tropical rock lobster, ornate rock lobster, ornate spiny lobster and ornate tropical rock lobster. They live in the indo-Pacific from the Red Sea to Japan. There are around 60 different species of spiny lobster throughout the world, and fossils have been found of them dating back to 110 million years ago. One amazing fact that has been recently discovered is that spiny lobsters can navigate by detecting the Earth's magnetic field. Pretty cool!

I grew up seeing the much plainer looking Spiny lobster that I encountered while scuba diving throughout Florida and the Caribbean Islands. They are much more monochromatic and lack the vibrate colors of this species.

56 pound Tropical Rock Lobster which was caught by a Chinese Fisherman

Recently a gigantic Rock Lobster was caught by a very lucky fisherman off the coast of China that weighted in at an astonishing 56 pounds! It ended up being sold at auction for $95,000 and was nick-named "The God of Lobsters". 

Before starting in on this drawing I decided to do some research and ask other artists what supplies they prefer to drawing with when it comes to working in colored pencils. I haven't been happy with the pencils or paper I've been using. And what I found out really changed my colored pencil experience. I've been using soft colored pencils to draw my details, which wasn't working out very well. They were hard to sharpen into a fine point, and they would break under the pressure of my hand. 

 Prismacolor's Verithin hard lead colored pencils

So someone suggested trying the hard lead Prismacolor Verithin line of colored pencils which are amazing. You can sharpen the tips to almost needle points for extreme detail work and they can take a lot of pressure without breaking. The colors are vibrant and blend very easily. 

 They come in a variety of sets

They are thiner and harder than standard soft colored pencils

Also when it came to the paper I was working on I wasn't satisfied with how it was excepting the colored pencils. The moleskin paper worked nicely with black ink, but it didn't except the wax of the pencils very well. I was told to give Bristol Vellum a try and was astonished of how nice it is. It's very thick and smooth and the color comes out extremely bright on it. Give it a try if you haven't.

Strathmore Bristol Vellum 

Here are some photos taken during my drawing process

Here's the finished drawing

Prints, posters and signed fine art reproductions are available 

for purchase in my Etys shop at: 

 www.etsy.com/shop/TimJeffsArt

Horse of a Different Color

Drawing a Lined Seahorse

Prints, posters and signed fine art reproductions are available 

for purchase in my Etys shop at: 

 www.etsy.com/shop/TimJeffsArt

Lined Seahorse. 11x17" Ballpoint Pen and Ink wash

Hippocampus erectus. The scientific name of the lined seahorse translates into "horse or sea monster" in ancient Greek. This tiny fish ranges in size from only 12-19cm. They are listed as vulnerable due to loss of harm to their habitat by pollution and coastal development. I've always been fascinated by these tiny creatures. From studying their presence in Greek  Mythology and art, to actually seeing them while scuba diving in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of North Carolina. They really do take on the appearance of tiny little swimming horses.

Drawing this creature was particularly challenging to me. The unique shape and patterning were difficult to construct in a 2 dimensional drawing. But after my second try, my first was quite a learning lesson and a complete failure in my mind, I feel I achieve the level of quality this amazing little creature deserves. And from doing these drawings I learned a lot about shape, light and patterns. Below are pictures I took throughout the drawings progression. Thanks for stopping by and looking!

Here are some photos taken during my drawing process

Prints, posters and signed fine art reproductions are available 

for purchase in my Etys shop at: 

 www.etsy.com/shop/TimJeffsArt

A True Miracle of Survival

Drawing a Green Sea Turtle

Prints, posters and signed fine art reproductions are available 

for purchase in my Etys shop at: 

 www.etsy.com/shop/TimJeffsArt

Green Sea Turtle. 11x17" Ballpoint Pen and Ink wash

Green sea turtles are reptiles whose ancestors evolved on land and took to the sea to live about 150 million years ago. They are one of the few species so ancient that they watched the dinosaurs evolve and become extinct. Now threaten and endangered, sea turtles are a true miracle of evolutionary survival. If they do survive to adulthood they can live up to 80 years and grow up to 5 feet in length. But here's what a sea turtle is up against to make it from birth to Adulthood:

of a 1000 eggs that are laid
800 hatch
400 make it to the sea
200 make it to become juveniles
20 make it to breeding age without human interference
2 make it to breeding age with human interference

NOW THAT IS A TRUE MIRACLE!! If you get a chance watch this amazing TED video about the Miracle of Sea Turtles Survival. http://laughingsquid.com/the-survival-of-the-sea-turtle-an-educational-animation-by-ted-ed/ Weighing up to 700 pounds green sea turtles are among the largest in the world. Green sea turtles are listed as endangered throughout the world, but despite this they are still killed for their meat and eggs.

This drawing was inspired from a photograph taken by an incredible underwater photographer and friend of mine Terence Zahner. He and his wife Doris are avid scuba divers who travel the world diving and photographing underwater sea life. Terence was nice enough to let me study his photos and use one as reference for this drawing. You can see and purchase his majestic photographs on his easy site, Terence Zahner Photography: https://www.etsy.com/shop/ZahnerPhoto Thanks so much Terence for allowing me to share your work.

Here are some photos taken during my drawing process

Prints, posters and signed fine art reproductions are available 

for purchase in my Etys shop at: 

 www.etsy.com/shop/TimJeffsArt