Humming Bird Moth

An amazing insect that can easily be mistaken for a bird, have a look at this video my friend Francis took in upstate NewYork a few weeks ago. For more info on this insect click HERE
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A change of pace...

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....sometimes change is good, in this case I have been playing around with some different mediums, Pencil, and oil paint, and different subjects. Both of these are quick studies of Bob Marley. I have been listening to a lot of Bob lately and felt the urge to create a few images of him. If anyone is interested in a copy of the sketch I will send you one for the cost of shipping. Just send me your address through my CONTACT page on my website.

"Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery
None but ourselves can free our minds…"

Friday Freak Take 8

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8 Weeks in a row and still growing, Looks like there is a bit of a slowdown in growth, the tips seem to be getting sharper. A true Connecticut Giant!

Sleeping Buck, New painting

Hello and welcome back,
On Sunday I went for a short hike up the ridge near my house, it was very hot and humid, a day where you just want to lay down and sleep, but there I was out sweating. As I descended back down the valley to head home I caught out of the corner of my eye, a 8 point buck laying in the leaves with his head on the ground and eyes closed. Not only is it one of the first time I have ever seen a mature buck laying down, but he was actually sleeping! Mid afternoon sunbeams pierced through the dense canopy and made him look spotted. An amazing scene that made me so excited. Now the problem, no camera!!! After a quick thought I had only one choice.. I decided to b-line it straight back to my house ( about 10 minutes away) to get my camera and then come back circling down wind in the slight chance that the buck might still be sleeping. After a manic hike/run, with stinging sweat pouring into my eyes, I arrived at the spot where he was..well his eyes were not closed anymore but I managed to squeeze off a bunch of shots. The majority of the photos were blurry because I was shaking so bad from the intense hike and adrenaline, luckily a few came out really nice. Now after all this I feel strong that this will be the subject of a new painting, in fact the blank canvas is already on the easel. I hope to start this weekend and to document it. Cheers, Look for a Freak update tomorrow, possibly some videos too!


BONUS COYOTE VIDEO! Its a short clip but a first for me! Click Below


/coyotemovie.mov

VIDEOS!

This is a test to see how Video works on here. Let me know if you have any problems. This first video is a 4 point buck feeding and then a big six point comes over to kick him out and show off his dominance.

click this link below

/SUNP0011.AVI

7 WEEKS!

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Happy Friday, once again. Another successful week. Here is the updates, Looks like there is a start of another point on the right antler which would make for 14 potential points. I would guess we have about 3 more weeks left until this deer will disappear into the night. I have some motion activated video cameras out in the forest right now as well. I hope to check on them in a few days and see what was captured. Enjoy.
Bill

Friday Freak!

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Hello and happy Friday. For those who have not seen this series, what I am attempting to do is capture images of the same buck (Affectionately called The Freak) every week or so. By capturing the same head angle you can see how fast his antlers are growing. This is the sixth photo in the series of this wild deer. I hope to continue to capture images of this deer until his velvet sheds off and this antlers calcify to the sharp points we see in fall and winter. Enjoy!

Old Painting Animation

I painted this a few years ago and wanted to see if animations worked on this blog. Let me know if anyone has trouble seeing it. It will take a few seconds to load.

Oil paint

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After much thought, (and a going out of business sale at a local art store) I purchased a full set of oil paint and mediums. I took a day off last week and went down to a spot that is near and dear to me, Mt Pond. I set up on the earthen dam facing the rocks that I have swam out to a hundred times in the past. After about 3 hours of peaceful and some what messy painting here is the result. I have a lot to learn about how to transport a wet painting and a few other techniques but over all I was very happy with the result. I don't think I am ready to drop all acrylic painting but oil sure has a place in my future art. Check back soon for a painting to be created at New Pond Farm in Redding Connecticut.

Prints

Framed Prints hanging proudly! click to elarge

Hello and happy Friday, I wanted to share some images from people who have purchased prints and had them framed up. Wayne and Ann were kind enough to send me photos of the prints proudly displayed in their homes. I feel honored to have my art in their lives!

If you are interested in purchasing prints please feel free to contact me with any questoions, about pricing, framing, sizes.
Cheers and have a great weekend
Bill

Back at it!

Hello and welcome back. Summer seems to be speeding by, I can already notice shorter days and earlier sunsets. Last week I was away in West Virginia and was unable to get a photo of The Freak to continue the documentation of his Antler Growth. Luckily, I have a great friend who captured a shot of this deer on July 9th. He even got the angle to match the others! Thanks Frank!! Tonight I was lucky enough to get yet ANOTHER photo of The Freak exactly a week later, same head angle, different body position, I am actually happy to have a slightly different angle to mix it up a bit. The growth the past 3 weeks is amazing. I also added a few shots of deer/cat interaction, and one I call "The Freak and his Bride" Enjoy!!! Updates on the art show to come later this week.

Click Images to enlarge

Directions To Art Show

When: Today July 8th 3-5pm

Here is a map where the show is located. Look for the Red Barn . Hope to see you there.
Bill

3 for 3

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Now entering the third week of tracking antler growth and the last week was staggering how much growth can be seen. Amazing.

AND don't forget the ArtShow July 8th!!!

Friday Updates

Happy Friday. I wanted to mention that some updates have been done on the site. If you go into Photography check out the BIRDS and ANIMALS categories. I have removed some images and added some new ones. Check back early next week for more pictures of the Freak and his fast growing antlers! I will leave you with a photo of a fawn that was following me around. I was literally less than 2 feet away from it.

Watch Them Grow: Part 2

Its been one week, here are some more shots. I decided to name them so I can keep track of deer that are the same. This first image is of the freak exactly 7 days after the first shot. You can clearly see the growth on the ends of the antlers in only 7 days.

The following are assorted other bucks from various locations. I am excited to see the experiment to document antler growth is working so far, and better than I can Imagine. I will try to get more shots in another 7 days.

Watch Them Grow

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Getting good shots of mature whitetail bucks is never easy. Factors such as wind, scent, and most importantly light can make or break a good photo session. With lots of patience and willingness to learn the habits of these amazing animals some times you get lucky.

What I want to attempt to document over the next few months is the growth of antlers on specific deer to see how they grow. The following images were taken at a few locations in the past week, my hopes are that I will be able to pattern the same animal (hopefully the big guy) and get shots every week or so what show this rapid growing process that take place this time of year until October when antlers will mineralize and become hard, dead bone.

June, food is very plentiful right now. I have seen numerous fawns over the last month from new born to what appeared to be several weeks old. Bucks antlers are growing rapidly and require foods with high protein levels.

This time of year deer will eat almost exclusively new growth leaves on trees. Also found on the menu are mushrooms, these are a steady food right through until fall.

In July many of the new growth leaves and stem tips will begin to mature and the fiber content will rise, particularly tree leaves. This make for a less palatable meal. Next month proves to be a difficult month for deer even though it seems food is everywhere. The high temperature and possible drought conditions can be very stressful to the deer and the plants they eat.

Come back next week to see what growing on.

I also wanted to mention that you will notice changes in the site. I am currently in the process of doing updates in all catagories.

AND dont forget the ArtShow July 8th!!!

Watch Them Grow.

Fox Update!

Still working on on this one, but wanted to share the progress..I will have this done for the art show opening! Hope to have some prints as well, I will also have a new painting of a Blue Heron that I have not shown yet.

Barn painting update

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Its been a while, but I finally picked up this painting again and gave it some love. I also will include the Live painting of Bulls Bridge.

Art Show July 8th 2007

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Hello every one, happy Friday. If you have a spare afternoon on Sunday July 8th I would love it if you could come check out the show, I plan to have several new paintings, prints for sale as well as photos. The show is at Hopkins Vineyard in the beautiful Lake Waramaug area. Try some local wine and cheese while you visit ! Any questions please email me through my contact page.