Colored Pencil Painting Portraits: by Alyona Nickelsen

Colored Pencil Painting Portraits: Master a Revolutionary Method for Rendering Depth and Imitating Life

by Alyona Nickelsen

Colored pencil painter Alyona Nickelsen reveals how to use the medium to push the limits of realistic portraiture.

   I am always amazed by how some artists are able to render a realistic portrait. As an amateur artist with many more talented artist family members, I know how hard it is to portray accurate skin tones and details. This book helps amateur as well as artists of more experience master using colored pencils to complete portraits. A very helpful book full of illustrations of the techniques as well as step-by-step guides to portraits already mastered by the author.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion.

Colored Pencil Painting Portraits provides straightforward solutions to the problems that artists face in creating lifelike images, and will prime readers on the intricacies of color, texture, shadow, and light as they interplay with the human form. In this truly comprehensive guide packed with step-by-step demonstrations, Nickelsen considers working from photo references versus live models; provides guidance on posing and lighting, as well as planning and composing a work; discusses tools, materials, and revolutionary layering techniques; and offers lessons on capturing gesture and expression and on rendering facial and body features of people of all age groups and skin tones.

Coloring book review: The Time Chamber: A Magical Story and Coloring Book by Daria Song

The Time Chamber: A Magical Story and Coloring Book

by Daria Song

With the new surge in coloring books for adults, this new one from Korean artist Daria Song is sure to delight! Those who enjoy filling in intricate designs will love all the beautiful and unique patterns on the pages of this coloring book. The Time Chamber also features a fairy who is pictured on every page and who will delight the more fantastical-minded. The only complaint I have about this coloring book would be extremely minor and would be that I didn't find the quality of art in the fairy up to par with the surrounding designs.  However, this coloring book is really well done and will please a variety of users!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion.

Korean artist Daria Song’s sequel to The Time Garden takes readers on a visual journey into a magical nighttime world seen through the eyes of a fairy.

This second book in the bestselling Time coloring series features the voyage of a fairy who, when the cuckoo clock chimes midnight, enters the human world. To the tiny fairy, everything seems enormous and magical, from the curtains to the chandelier to a mystical rowboat that takes her further into an inky adventure. With her she packs her favorite items, which colorers can find throughout the book’s pages: an owl-feathered pen, a star-scented spray, a time tape measure…even the key to the time chamber itself!

Filled with the imaginative, intricately detailed illustrations Song’s readers have come to love, The Time Chamber presents a view of our world made new—and ready for coloring.

The Time Chamber features extra-thick craft paper, ideal for non bleed-through coloring, and the jacketed cover with flaps is removable and colorable. Special gold-foil stamping on the cover and spine and a To/From page make it perfect for gifting to adults and kids alike.

Capture the Moment photographic book review

Capturing the Moment: Inspiration and Techniques for the Modern Photographer

by Sarah Wilkerson

   Sometimes, you can judge a book by its cover!  When I saw the exquisitely beautiful photograph on the front of this book, I knew I had to get my hands on the volume! And I was not disappointed. This quality-bound hardcover book is absolutely filled with beautiful photographs capturing the joys and wonder of childhood as well as other small yet important details of life. Can coffee table books get any better? This book will be sure to delight every person, whether a photographer or not! I am an amateur photographer and I am looking forward to being inspired by the pictures contained within this work of art. All the photographs contained within the pages are all contributed by members of the online community called Clickin Moms. To understand more about the group as well as this new book, read the following; 

The premier online community for female photographers, Clickin Moms presents a photography guide featuring big, bold images coupled with short, focused, prescriptive tips for translating everyday life into stunning works of art.

Clickin Moms is the photography industry's largest social network of female photographers, boasting a booming members-only community of more than 16,000 professional photographers, aspiring professionals, and women passionate about capturing their families' everyday lives. This guide captures the spirit of the community by featuring a compilation of stunning member-contributed images paired with photography tips progressing from elementary to advanced, leaving no skill level unserved. By letting the images dominate and keeping the teaching points short and direct, the book builds on the highly visual appeal that has made the online community so popular. Covering all the bases, including equipment, composition, posing, low light, natural light, black and white, still life, and lifestyle photography, the example shots feature plenty of inspiration for photographing children as well as other beautiful everyday moments. Assignments for experimenting with lighting and shooting locations round out the chapters, providing every photographer with both the inspiration and skills she needs to capture life's beautiful moments as frame-worthy photographic art.

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

Furry Logic, 10th Anniversary Edition: A Guide to Life's Little Challenges by Jane Seabrook

Furry Logic, 10th Anniversary Edition: 

A Guide to Life's Little Challenges

by Jane Seabrook

  I had no idea what to expect of this little book when I requested it. For all I knew, it could be entirely filled with drawings of cats. I am no enemy of cats, but books filled primarily with cats and nice quotes aren't my thing. 

 Imagine my delight then, when I opened this darling little smoothly-bound  book and the sweetest little chipmunk greeted me! I was smitten by the adorable drawings which filled this book. This artist must be a kindred spirit because she chose all of my favourite little critters to grace the pages of this inspirational hardback! From owls to irresistible meerkats, wacky great king cranes to chubby woodchucks, this little book of art is one of the best of its kind I've ever seen! Because my family is populated by talented artists, I can be rather critical in my art tastes. But Jane Seabrook's work totally amazes and pleases me. Her creations have wonderful detail and best of all, unique expression! Every animal depicted in this book is fun to look at. The quotes are humorous and well-chosen. This will make a great gift for anyone, young or old! It's a coffee-table style book, in  a small format! Sure to be a fun conversation starter too. 

My only complaint is that the author-illustrator didn't include my favorite animal, the red panda, in this charming book. May I suggest it for your next book, Jane? 

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for my hones review.

The adorable and high-profile Furry Logic series celebrates its 10th anniversary with a menagerie of illustrated animals and hilarious sayings about life, love, and everything in between. 

No one understands the ups and downs of life's little challenges better than the frisky critters of Furry Logic. The inspirational and tongue-in-cheek advice from series creator Jane Seabrook and her plucky animal characters will tickle the fancy and the funnybone of readers everywhere. Each intricately illustrated spread features a member of the animal kingdom with a unique take on life, from the adorably grumpy owl who advises "Smile first thing in the morning. Get it over with" to the fluffy hawk who admonishes, "If at first you do succeed, try not to look too astonished." So join the original flock of penguins, bears, frogs, and more in celebrating a decade of wit and wisdom with ten new illustrated spreads for fans looking for fresh inspiration