I was in Andy's cafe yesterday and got talking to a lady about drawing with ink. She told me about this tree, she was pleased when I told her that I knew about the tree which she was talking about. The tree in question is situated above the Silent Pool, near to Newlands Corner. So I am using it to illustrate a point.

Remember that it is all pure black line and that lighter strokes are produced by holding the pen lightly or at an angle to the paper; a little easier said than done, but with lots of practice it does work.The aim of this image is to show the dappled light moving across the picture, slightly problematic, as light areas in the image are produced by not placing any ink, or applying very controlled small amounts of ink there. Its all about very strictly controlled contrast in a disciplined manner, One way of keeping control over this contrast is to always work with light strokes and building contrast up slowly, with much crosshatching and plenty of constant thinking thrown in.

It all takes time and lots of practice, but when you can make it work, it is such fun; slightly challenging as well. It all keeps the mind working and keeping us young at heart. Incidentally with regards to the aging process, I live in a constant state of happy denial.

See you all soon Duncan