Terry Isaac: Painting Wildlife in Acrylic

Join nationally acclaimed wildlife painter, print artist and author Terry Isaac for an in depth look at the preparation, thought & painting process he uses to create his magical wildlife paintings.

Isaac completes a painting of a hummingbird and larkspur. He discusses a larger panoramic painting in progress, of two moose. Isaac's precise attention to detail and patient rendering of the wonders of nature have made him one of the country's most popular and successful wildlife print artists.

Acrylic painter Terry Isaac captures complex wildlife scenes using a simple technique: breaking his painting into manageable bits. He divides his canvas and concentrates on painting what he sees. In this workshop, Terry teaches you to tackle nature one square at a time.

Terry guides you through the process of wildlife painting, from source photography to design to your final painting. Terry shares photos, collages, sketches, and finished works from his portfolio to illustrate his methods. He provides several options for selecting and combining source materials and implements them in his workshop painting.

After a whirlwind tour of his favorite painting surface, pigments, and brushes, Terry prepares his palette for the workshop. In the first half of the workshop, Terry shares his efficient and innovative process for blocking in shapes and colors. He teaches you to divide your canvas and reference materials, allowing you to paint what you see instead of worrying about the entire composition.

With his basic shapes in place, Terry explains how to critique your first draft, make revisions, and add a first layer of delicate details. Terry then shifts his attention to the Rufus hummingbird at the top of his canvas. He transfers the bird from photo to sketch to canvas before your eyes then gives tips on realistic lighting, perspective, and anatomy. He adjusts values and hues to make the hummingbird appear to be in the actual environmental setting of the flower. Finally, Terry adds highlights to the entire painting surface and makes final revisions to his design, resulting in a bold, colorful wildlife scene.

As a bonus to the workshop painting, Terry explains composition and teaches techniques for filling in grasses and shoreline on a painting already in progress. To expand your artist's toolset and take the fear out of painting complicated scenes, join Terry Isaac for Wildlife Painting in Acrylic.

Isaac's workshop includes:

• materials
• preparing the painting surface
• collecting accurate data for a precise rendering of a natural setting uniquely your own
• tips on how to locate & photograph wild animals
• technical reference materials
• how to construct a convincing setting using an assortment of resources
• powerful design
• how to illustrate complicated subjects successfully without ever "drawing" on the board

BONUS CLIP: Transferring a Drawing for an Acrylic Wildlife Painting

In this clip from his video workshop, Painting Wildlife in Acrylic, Terry Isaac shows you how to transfer an accurate scale drawing of an animal to an in-progress painting. Terry shares his strategies for collecting and combining reference material then moves his drawing from a sketchbook to his painting using graphite paper.