Eye, Speed, and Breakfast!

Here are a few recent sketches...haven't done as much lately with "other things" getting in the way. The first is a horse eye study. The second is a very *quick* zebra foal sketch, working on speed and getting form down as quickly as possible. The third I did this morning...when I don't know what to draw, zebras are always a good choice!

More Zoo Sketches!

I managed some more sketching this week at the zoo...already I can see some improvement in myself, so I'm pretty happy. This is the same little filly from last week and then the Przewalski horses again.

Zoo sketches

This week I did the first actual sketching at the zoo that I've managed to do in a very, very long time. It felt great! Hopefully I will be doing a lot this summer. :) This first picture I did right before my trip to the zoo, to warm up. It's from a photo I took of a little zebra filly I just fell in love with...This is that same filly, only sketched on location. Not real perfect, but...not all that bad, either, considering my long hiatus from practicing (and the inherent difficulty of sketching animals on location, period).
Two of her comrades...
Here's a Przewalski horse, again done at the zoo...fairly rough, but I could tell that my drawing work the last few months has really made a difference for me, so I'm pleased. I just need to get quicker at capturing the general form. And no zoo visit is complete without little Eisbaer Flocke...and now her new boyfriend, Rasputin! (Apparently the language barrier between Eisbär and белый медведь is not so difficult to surmount.) --Incidentally, unless you know me really well, you have no idea how surprised I was to discover Flocke's new friend a few weeks ago, especially since he's named Rasputin! Oh, too funny...

Horse Breed: Norwegian Fjord

This is one of the oldest breeds of horse...like the Icelandic, they are very strong and even if they technically fall short of being a "horse" (ie, in other breeds they would be ponies), they are always considered a horse. One of the neat aspects of this breed is their mane and tail hair, which is white or cream on the outside and dark in the middle. Their manes are usually cut to accentuate this feature. They are always a dun color, though there are five types of dun in the breed.

Horse Breed: Canadian Horse

Who knew that Canada had horses? Well I guess it *does* go to figure, since they have the Mounties. Unfortunately, I couldn't actually find a picture of a Mountie on a Canadian horse, as they are a fairly rare breed these days. (The horse I mean, lol...maybe the Mounties, too.) :)

Horse Breed: Marwari

This rather unusual breed hails from India. Back in the day, they could only be owned by royalty and top military officers, and were also used for religious ceremonies, etc. I don't think they are the only horse breed with such curled ears, but it's certainly a fairly unique feature!

Zebra Reference

This is a reference I am posting for a challenge on WetCanvas...though I retain the copyright, this image may be used in any way for the production of artwork. Click on the picture below to see a high-res version. (Right click and save to download it.) ***Note: I'd deeply appreciate a note (such as a comment here) and possibly a link to any work you do with this, as I'd love to see it!