Christmas is Coming part 5

 

Today was a sunny cold day, but I didn't feel like going to the Studio again.  Partly because I didn't need to.  What was needed I could do at home.  My plan for printing is to do that next week, during the days that the office will be open.  But Christmas is coming this weekend, and that means I've got to get some cards ready.  Rain is expected the next few days, so today was a good day to color and photograph what I have done.  I can't take the photo for the blog until it is colored, and I hadn't done that yet, so after my parents went out (I unveil it on my blog on Christmas day), I got out the card proofs, and my watercolors.  On one computer I put on some music, in this case Jimmy Smith's Christmas Cookin' album.  It's one of the discs I had, burned from a tape I had acquired years before.  The tape includes several songs of him with a big band, and several songs of him with his trio. (He played B3 organ, and the trio included a guitar and drums.)  On the tape the two types of backing were mixed up, but on my disc I grouped the band and trio stuff together.  Meanwhile, on the other computer I brought up a copy of the image I was working from, so I could see the original colors.  

I started with the least of my proofs, one I would never send out as a card, just to practice the colors and make a few decisions.  Not too bad.  Made a few changes and started #2.  A better proof, and some better color choices based on what I saw with the first one, and I found that one satisfactory.  So while I still had light, I colored the second one, mounted it to a piece of foam core, and took it outside.  Not much light in the house, not even with the electric lights, so I wanted to shoot it in daylight.  (Normally I do this in my Studio, where the large bank of fluorescents provides enough light to take photographs.)

As for the above photo, I took that indoors, earlier while we had a bit more sunlight coming in, showing all the palettes and pans of watercolors that went into this one.  I have a lot more, but didn't need them today.  Got my photos, will post this one today, and the one of the completed card you will be able to see on Sunday.