I Just landed in Oz

Drawing a Sea Turtle In Colored Pencil

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

are available for purchase in my Etys shop at: 

 www.etsy.com/shop/TimJeffsArt

Green Sea Turtle. 11x17"  Colored Pencil on paper

No doubt that black in white is cool looking. I love its raw graphic quality. I really enjoy working in black ink, and it will always have a very special spot in my creative thinking. But after over 40 black and white Ink drawings of animals, I feel like my house just crash landed, and I opened the door to tecnocolor in the wonderful Land of OZ! I always loved in the movie "The Wizard of Oz" how the first half was filmed in black and white and appeared so gritty against the ultra colorized second half in Oz. That's how this drawing experience felt to me. Like being unleashed in a world of vivid colors! 

Now, this isn't the first time I've created art in color. I've painted in oils, acrylics, and watercolors. I've done pastel drawing, marker drawings, and worked in oil sticks. But for the last year I've solely worked in black ink. So, I thought why not change things up, why not depart from the safety of the norm, why not give color a whirl again. So, I went out and picked up a 72 colored pencil set and took the plunge. I have to say, I enjoyed using them. I haven't really ever done a piece of art in colored pencil before. Though I have a lot of learning and experimenting to do, my first impression was positive. Blending in colored pencil was similar to painting. The soft color lead mixed well, and it felt comfortable to work in. Finding the best paper will be my next challenge. I just worked with what I had around, and I know I can find better paper. 

And just for the record, I'm not leaving my black ink behind. I still love black and white and will alternate between them for awhile. But color has definitely got my attention!

I bought a set of 72 Colored Pencils to work with

The subject matter for this piece was inspired by a beautiful photograph of a Green Sea Turtle by a friend of mine Terence Zahner. Terence and his wife Doris are avid scuba divers. Terence is an advanced underwater photographer who's work is absolutely stunning! You can see more of it and even purchase prints in his Etsy shop Zahner Photo. He's always been so gracious to me by offering his photos for reference for my drawings. Thanks Terence for your willingness to lend your amazing photographs to me. I truly appreciate it.

Terence and Doris Zahner doing what they both do best

And a rare shot of them above water!

The inspiration for my drawing. Terence's beautiful picture

Here are some photos taken during my drawing process

Here are a few details

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

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

Sea Turtle Pen & Ink Wash

11x17" on paper

Here's the latest pen & ink drawing in my "sea creatures" series. While scuba diving I've had the amazing experience of being able to swim with sea turtles in their natural environment. Something I will never forget. Such beautiful peaceful creatures. It's 11x17", mixed ink on paper.

Detail