More Fun in the Desert with Infrared

As usual, I continue to be fascinated by the look of infrared (IR) photography. As I mentioned in a previous post, most digital cameras are sensitive to IR and even have a filter in them that removes IR before the light reaches the sensor; otherwise, pictures could end up looking unexpectedly strange.

This is a photo taken earlier this year from Keys View in Joshua Tree National Park, CA. Toward the right is Mt. San Jacinto, the mountain that is largely responsible for creating the desert to the left. The city of Palm Springs lies on the flat area immediately to the left of the mountain. IR actually helps the town blend into the surrounding desert, since foliage of the non-native trees and shrubs is rendered white by IR. The white foliage, in turn, melts into the light-colored sands of the Coachella Valley.

IR also removes atmospheric haze. Mt. San Jacinto thus looks clearer and less distant than it actually is.

I'm not sure when I'll be able to do more traveling around the Southwest. But whenever that time comes, IR photography, as well as color, is on the agenda!

Jumbo Rocks

This is a new painting of an area in Joshua Tree National Park called Jumbo Rocks. I'd say it's a good name for the place!

The size of the painting is 8" x 10" / 20cm x 25cm.

More Desert Reptiles

Well, good grief! I'm falling behind in blog entries, aren't I?

That's partly because I started a second blog. It appears on a Website for The Desert Sun, a Palm Springs-based newspaper.

I'm limiting the subject matter and images to "the beauty and mystery of the deserts." I've posted a combination of photos I've taken and paintings I've made. Most of the other blogs at the newspaper are political in nature, and I wanted something that might, hopefully, make the residents of the desert glad they live there.

In the meantime, today the weather in the desert was a little cooler, so I thought I'd go hiking and try to get more pictures of lizards that I can use in paintings. As it turned out, I saw numerous examples of only one species. Oh, well. Maybe another time.

I'm not 100% positive, but I believe this is one of a number of whiptail lizards that live in the desert. This good-lookin' fella (or gal) is partly obscured by vegetation, but the pic shows how long the tail is -- that'll be good to know for the paintings!

Lizards x 2

I've now done two paintings of this lizard. The first one (on the left) has all of the attention to detail, transparent glazes and all of those things that makes a painting really neat (IMO, anyway).

The painting on the right I produced with a particular customer in mind. She likes the first painting but can't afford what I need to ask for it. So I painted the second piece as what I call an "eBay painting": no glazes -- direct painting only; not as much stuff; and not a straight copy of any other piece I've done. It took about 1/3 as long to create as the first painting, and the varnishing process will also be greatly simplified: a total of two layers of varnish as opposed to seven for painting #1.

If it turns out the customer doesn't buy it, I'll offer it on eBay. And if it doesn't sell there, I'll have it available for an open-studio tour I'll be participating in this coming October.

Good thing I like lizards, huh? (But don't ask me to paint spiders. I can't stand those!)

Getting Behind!

OK, OK, I know. I'm not posting as often as I should. S'up with me, anyway?

Well, the point of my blog is talk about art (especially MY art!) and, in some cases, to discuss painting issues that most folks may not know about. But I've been making a major push in making small inexpensive paintings and art cards. I've been too busy making art to spend time writing about it!

So -- below I'm showing the latest three ACEOs which I posted on eBay just a few minutes ago. If I can do this right, I'll try to post links directly to their respective pages on eBay.

"Smoke Tree"

"Ocotillos"


"Desert View"

A Sale and a No-Sale

Funny -- the ACEO on the left sold this week on eBay. But not the ACEO on the right.

I wonder why. True -- they're not identical, but they are similar.

I think I need a marketing research firm to help me figure out collectors' buying patterns!

Ain't It Cute?

Even lizard babies are cute!

This one has been hanging out around our front door and runs away from the house whenever we step outside. S/he (don't know the sex or the species at this time) is only about 3.5"/8.9cm nose-to-tip-of-tail. The head is disproportionally large, but I'm sure the body will grow bigger and will catch up in time.

As you may have caught on before -- I really like lizards!