Photography - Winter Woods

For digital art I chose to photograph the outdoors. I focused on things like light and texture in our snowy area. I was particularly interested in the view looking into the forest: the shadows and forms among the trees. I also captured some focused shots of things that may be common, but are beautiful. Sometime we forget to notice the details because we have walked the same trails many times, and seen similar woods in many other places. So walking out into the forest with the purpose of trying to see and notice, I may find unexpected things.

Mt. Katahdin in Winter

Since the beginning of this semester I decided I wanted to do the Mt. Katahdin winter hike through  Maine Bound, the outdoor adventure center on campus which offers awesome trips!

 I would have done it no matter what, but fortunately four of my friends joined me, as well as 5 great people from Maine Bound ! It was quite cold and very challenging, but incredible! 

I loved every minute except for about 40 on the way back from the summit because there were some serious winds making the temperatures at least -20. The area is so beautiful!

The group outside the lean-to we spent the night in before the climb

Tyler and Wil hiking up Abol slide - crampons and ice axes were handy! And helmets!

Cold at the top, face frozen so I got windburn

Excited to make it! Didn't hang out long though

Ryan on the hike back down, the summit already looking distant

Skiing before the trip

Swinging with the Old Stars

Over spring break I decided to draw something on my free time that would just be for fun, something I could keep, whatever I felt like. I thought that it would be great to do a series of portraits showing me and some of my closest friends at home and at UMaine! I chose pictures of the online, then drew them out in pencil, inked them with pen, and added some color! I had a lot of fun doing this, and it was cool to show it to all of them once I finished. On the left are my friends Maya and Joe from Maine, then my friend and roommate Robyn, my boyfriend Jackson, me, my sister Megan, and my friends from home, Andrea and Magda! 

Good portraiture practice! A few of these I got the face down on try one, but some - especially my own - took a bit of erasing and re-drawing!

Me n Jackson

Done with inking, fun, but you don't want to over do it

Finished after a week or two!

Me and Jackson after a formal for his fraternity, ATO

Starting out spring break at Jackson's! We had barely had any snow on winter, but as soon as we left, on the drive home, there was a little snow storm! We made this that night in the dark.

At the end of spring break I flew down and stayed with Megan in her dorm at Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia! It was awesome, the weather was really nice, the city is really pretty, and I got to meet all her friends and her boyfriend, Zach.

Salmon Boy

 Above is an illustration I did a few months back. It was originally intended to be part of my AP concentration, but I don't think it will go along with my other pieces after all. There are so many places around the world where the people depend on melt water from glaciers. One of the reasons they do depend on it is because of the salmon that come upstream every year. With this piece I tried to portray that the stream had retreated, leaving a dry bed, and that because of the lower water levels, the salmon were struggling to make their journey, and even get up the small waterfall. The boy is supposed to emphasize that was is happening is sad, as well as the dead salmon on the side that died because they were unable to make it farther upstream.

Art class!

I miss winter already!

My panel, showing part of a flower and plant. Last semester in art class we each created a panel in different medias of a larger picture, then put it together!

This is not the end, this is not the beginning

      Track & Field 2011 has officially started, I'm sore already and looking forward to the season ahead!
      This is my 3rd consecutive year skiing at Sunday River in Maine, and previously I was used to the majority of the runs beings very icy and scrapy. Our first of 3 days this year, it was raining, and we had the mountain just about to ourselves! We got soaked, visibility was tough, and the few inches of new snowfall hardened by rain made conditions tricky, but it was wicked fun! The next two days were somewhat overcast, but we got some great snow!
      For my next art piece, I want to evolve from just painting glaciers, to painting them in a way that shows how majestic and magical they can seem, so I'm thinking about doing one based on our crevasse jumps!

Magda and Me

Welcome to Oz! Awesome, steeper terrain

Panorama

Magda and her Mom skiing down the Tin Woodsman

View from our room: 2 double black diamonds, my favorite run was Shock Wave on the left, because it had huge, soft moguls that were a blast. White Heat is on the right, and is probably the steepest run, it was fun to ski this year with the good snow conditions!

X signifies lift is closed, 0 is open. This was during night skiing when only 2 lifts are open.

Fun lil' section of moguls below the lift that I did a few times!

Ben easily clears the crevasse on Easton glacier the 2009 season, while I observe.. I'm sure I jumped in a less gaping part

Me jumping a small crevasse the 2010 season!

2009 season!

On our way out to base camp below Easton Glacier the 2010 season!

On Columbia with the probe the 2010 season!

Waiting for the end

The work station

I'm pretty sad that all our snow is being melted by sudden warm weather and rain... I'd prefer it slowly melted, and that I could continue skiing! I'm going to Sunday River to ski all weekend, it'll be one of my last times downhill skiing this winter! But I am excited for track season and practicing the hurdles again, and I am getting slowly closer to graduating!

I have so much to do for AP Art and AP Calc that I'm not able to post as often as I'd like! But, here are a few new things

Snow girl.. up close (in progress)

Peltonens through snow

Beginning stages of Violet Baudelaire

Violet Baudelaire complete (secret eye symbol in corner)

Snowbasin's Yeti

Skiing at Snowbasin, in Utah, was definitely one the of best experiences of my life. I had never skied powder before, but by the end of the first day, I was in love with it. I got three days of the best skiing of my life, and I can't wait to ski out west again someday!
I love the Ski Utah yeti, I got a shirt with him, and a sticker of him to put on my portfolio! He's an awesome design!

Ski Utah (The greatest snow on Earth)

Needles Gondola, 9 am arrival

Panorama of surrounding Rockies

Mauri and Maurice (My dad and grandpa)

My dad; I've never met a better skier!

Me skiing section of off-trail powder!

My grammy!

Beautiful contrast

Opposing window

Beautiful snowy trees

Lots of powdery turns

My grandparents!

The sun came out!

In love with powder skiing

Above 9,000 ft : with my dad and Uncle Tom

Coming down through fog at 9,000 ft,
 Men's 2002 Olympic start-house in background!