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Mikes sketch the Messiers project.


Mike73

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Messiers sketched so far -

3/13/65/66/81/82

I've decided that no matter how good my notes are they will never be as good as seeing a sketch (and my sketches are pretty rough :headbang:) so this is the start of a project to sketch all 110 Messiers.

I'II add a link to Wikipedia for each sketch because I don't just want to spend more time observing each object I also want to learn more about what I'm seeing and maybe this will help others.

Wish me luck!! :)

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Mike, I'll wish you luck and by the looks of things, your drawing ability will certainly help you complete this project in no time. I enjoy looking at sketches because of course their appearance is very similar to what I normally see in the eyepiece, as opposed to the normal CCD image. Look forward to 'viewing' more of your observations in due course - weather permitting!

James

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Thanks James/Mark

Its something which I'm really looking forward to doing, not going to rush it just enjoy the time spent at the EP and really get familiar with Messiers objects.

I found my first two grey hairs the other day and I have a feeling that by the time I've sketched all 110 I'II have a lot more! :)

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Great idea for a project Mike and you have made a good start already. I find that because of the extra eyepiece time needed when doing a sketch, you end up seeing much more detail than when just viewing. It teaches you how to be a better observer.

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Thanks for the encouragement guys!

Rik - I think my biggest stumbling block will be doing nebula's but I may have a go at practicing in the daylight sometime. BTW was that a pic of you in AN? :)

Steve - Its sketched on white paper, scanned and then inverted in Photoshop to give it the white on black look.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Great sketch, Mike. Don't worry about the time, I think its great that you're getting these observations down on paper. It'll strengthen your own skills and talents and hopefully will be of use to folk asking 'what can I see' type of questions.

Just a question, would you recommend this technique of soft pastels and gentle brush strokes directly on black paper over that of pencil shadings on white paper? I ask because after reading your blog, I might give it a shot. I also wanted to try my hand at getting the colour I see of the stars which may also persuade the use of chalks or soft pastels.

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This was the first time I used pastels at the EP and although its more time consuming I found it to be more precise when it came to the dusty centre of the glob.

I found I could layer the pastel to make it brighter and also take it off with another brush if needed. With graphite I would have just added a centre spot and smudged it with my finger!

As much as its good to put it on the web for others to see I actually prefer having a positive image to look at myself at home which is another plus point for black paper.

I think you should try it, cost me about £20 in total for sketchpad,brushes pastel/charcoal so it will be no big loss if you don't get on with it. :(

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exactly, and those objects have been there a while and will be there for a fair while yet. so theres no rush.

i honestly think that the latest sketch is your best yet.

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