Sketchnotes II

Time for another roundup of sketchnote samples. First, here's an actual live recording of Rodney Jackson's recent lecture on snow leopard conservation at the San Francisco Zoo. (For more info, see the Snow Leopard Conservancy website.)

So that was a good opportunity to test my cartoon note-taking in the wild. Otherwise, I'm still using the TED Talk video library as raw practice material, bringing in some highlight colors as I go along...

I found to my chagrin that the hot pink pen I was using on those last two isn't detectable by my scanner, so I had to take photos of the original pages and merge in the colors using Photoshop. That was an unexpected development!

Panama-Pacific Expo Centennial 02/21/2015

Another outing with Laurie Wigham and the SF Sketchers meetup group. Today was the 100th anniversary of the legendary Panama-Pacific International Exposition at the Palace of Fine Arts!

I was waylaid en route to the opening ceremonies by this rather nicely framed view of the palace rotunda.

The Palace of Fine Arts now hosts an "Innovation Hangar" with all kinds of futuristic exhibits. For the opening, there were also retro displays like this beautiful Model T.

Also, lovingly restored fire engines! This one hails from the Lindsay Fire Museum.

And here's a rogue's gallery of fellow sketchers from our pre-event gathering. A nice mix of veterans and newcomers!

New Year Flower Fair 02/14/2015

恭喜發財, everybody! This past weekend, I joined Laurie Wigham and the SF Sketchers meetup group on an excursion to San Francisco's Chinatown for the opening festivities of the Year of the Ram.

I arrived too late for the opening mini-parade, but I got a good look at the awesome lion dancers.

The lion dancers did a bunch of acrobatic routines on the main stage as well. Apparently this is a traditional job for kung fu students.

More action on the main stage. One of the lion dancers climbed a pole and spewed lucky confetti to welcome the new year.

A panoramic view of the crowd in front of the stage, with an inset of the opera singers who were performing as I was finishing up the drawing.

Odds and ends from the start of the festival. I never really got a good look at the dragon, boo hoo.

San Francisco Zoo 02/10/2015

Back to the San Francisco Zoo to attend a tiger's birthday party! Plus birds, goats, and llama drama.

A helpful docent told us all there is to know about the fabulous Eurasian eagle owl. "If she ever got loose, there wouldn't be a small dog left anywhere on Sloat Boulevard."

Just a few of the chicken varieties puttering around the Family Farm. Also, onomatopoeia around the world!

The year of the sheep/goat/ram is almost upon us, so it's time to Know Your Goats. Next time I'll try to get them all on one page.

I finally got a color picture of the glorious cassowary! Incidentally, this is one of at least four zoo denizens whose scientific name is the same word twice.

After months of bullying, we were delighted to find that the capybara has finally figured out how to run circles around his guanaco neighbors, with a splash in the face for good measure.

And finally, here's the birthday girl! Jillian's birthday enrichments included a bubble bath and lots of decorations in princess colors.

Aquarium of the Bay 01/31/2015

Another change of sketching venue, as Julie and I visit Pier 39's adorable Aquarium of the Bay. You can blame Deb Aoki's sketchnoting evangelism for the infographic elements.

We got there just in time for the pygmy hedgehog show-and-tell.

The river otter exhibit was new to us. It's pretty big - this is just one window - and gives you a great view of the cavorting critters!

And here's everything I learned from the experience.

The skates and rays are still the star attractions, though. They're so friendly and curious, and keep coming up to be petted.

We all have our individual creature favorites. Julie is particularly fond of jellyfish.

As for me, I could watch the prawns all day long. Maybe next time I'll be able to get a good look at the shy octopus, too.

Sketchnoting Practice

And now for something totally different! Deb Aoki, ace cartoonist and manga expert and visual practitioner, has been trying to get me into the strange new world of sketchnoting. By way of practice, I've been going through the TED Talk video library and turning them into real-time doodles. Here are a few to start with...

 
I like the closing image in this one. I think at that point, I decided to specialize in word balloons.

A couple of nice bizarre images to close out that one...

You may detect a note of sketchnoter's skepticism creeping in during these last two.

San Francisco SPCA 01/25/2015

Some drawings from a great field trip with Laurie Wigham and the SF Sketchers meetup group! Our destination was the San Francisco SPCA Adoption Center, where we spent the morning drawing lovely (and adoptable) cats and dogs.

While we were gathering, I noted down some names and faces. Until I've captured you in my sketchbook, folks, you're just ghosts and shadows as far as my feeble brain is concerned!

Cal's play area is right by the SPCA's front door, so he's the first thing you see when you come in. I bet he'll have a home very soon.

The protective cone isn't a flattering look for anyone, but Sassy bears it with good grace.

Working at the SPCA seems like a terrible job. Imagine having to play with the cats and dogs all day long!

A lovely pose by Cherry. Sometimes the universe just wants you to stop and draw, doesn't it?

On to the dogs! I think we all fell in love with soulful Chance.

Shadow is pretty striking, with his elegant long legs.

Once again, this looks like a terrible job. The puppy tugging at the shreds of her gown reminds me of that classic Coppertone ad...