Intoduction to astrosketching including history, examples of current work, examples of techniques and media, and resources lists. Ends with images to use in a hands on workshop.

1. Astro Sketching Workshop Green Bank Star Quest 8 Presented by Michael Rosolina

2. To improve your observing skills To create a visual record To exercise your creativity Why Sketch?

3. Historical Background These are just a few of the many past astronomers who were keen observers and who sketched their observations: Galileo Huygens Maraldi W.C. Bond & G.P. Bond Antoniadi Dawes Barnard

4. Galileo Galileo was one of the first telescopic observers to draw (and publish) what he saw. Source: Galileo Project/Al Van Helden

5. Galileo Galileo published his observations of Jupiter and its moons in SideriusNuncius, The Starry Messenger (1610). This is an excerpt from his journal. Source: Galileo Project/Al Van Helden

6. Galileo Galileo and his protégé Castelli developed solar projection to accurately observe and record sunspots . Through a sequence of solar observations, Galileo demonstrated the rotation of the Sun. Source: Galileo Project/Al Van Helden

7. Huygens Another pioneer in the mid-17th century was Christiaan Huygens , who made these observations of Mars Source: The Exploration of Mars By Werner von Braun & ChesleyBonestell

8. Maraldi From 1672 to 1719, Maraldi made many observations of Mars and made careful measurements of the polar ice cap. Source: The Exploration of Mars By Werner von Braun & ChesleyBonestell

9. Antoniadi By the 19th and early 20th century, improved telescopes were allowing skilled observers to make even more detailed sketches of celestial objects. Source: The Planet Mars by William Sheehan

10. From Galileo’s early drawings… Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech

11. Through the legendary observers of the past, to present day amateur astronomers… Phases of Venus Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech

12. Astro sketching continues to thrive… Courtesy Sol Robbins

13. Sinus Iridum 25July 2007 12” SCT @ 271x Courtesy Rich Handy

14. The Sun in Hydrogen Alpha Courtesy Erika Rix

15. Double Stars Courtesy Eric Graff

16. Star Clusters M44 The Beehive 102mm Refractor Mag: 12.5x & 30x Courtesy Rony De Laet

17. Globular Clusters Courtesy Frank McCabe

18. Galaxies Courtesy Jeff Young

19. Meteor Showers Courtesy of RoelWeijenberg

21. Include information such as instrument used, magnification, and field of view (FOV)

22. Include time and date (UT), cardinal directions, seeing, transparency, altitude of object, and any other relevant information

24. Planets

25. Mars Courtesy Sol Robbins

26. Mars 19 Dec. 2007 0430-0500 UT 10” Reflector Mag: 360x S: Antoniadi II Courtesy Frank McCabe

28. Jupiter Courtesy Sol Robbins

29. Jupiter with Phenomenon

30. Courtesy Jeff Young

32. Venus Courtesy Sol Robbins

33. 2010 Apparition of Jupiter Courtesy of Jef De Wit

34. The Sun

36. Courtesy Erika Rix

37. Courtesy Jeff Young

38. Courtesy of RoelWeijenberg

39. Courtesy Ralph Marantino

40. The Sun in Ha and WL June 17, 2011 8cm refractor @60x 4cm PST @ 40x Courtesy of UwePilz

41. The Moon

42. Gassendi 3 Sept. 2006 12” SCT @ 244x Courtesy Rich Handy

43. Waning Gibbous Moon 28 DEC. 2008 200mm Reflector @ 48x Courtesy Deirdre Kelleghan

44. Petavius 29 May 2009 10” Reflector @ 241x & 362x Courtesy Frank McCabe

45. Lunar Eclipse 21 Feb.2008 108mm Reflector Mag: 21x Courtesy Frank McCabe

46. Deep Sky Objects

47. Courtesy Eric Graff

48. Courtesy Jeff Young

49. M31 28 Sept. 2008 15x70 Binoculars FOV: 4.4 deg. Courtesy Rony De Laet

50. Courtesy Eric Graff

51. IC4665 Summer Beehive 15 Sept. 2007 102mm Refractor Mag: 16x FOV: 150’ Courtesy Rony De Laet

52. Asteroids and Comets

55. C/17P Holmes 03 Nov. 2007 102mm Refractor Mag: 16x & 20x FOV: 150’ Courtesy Rony De Laet

56. Courtesy Jeff Young

57. Occultations Conjunctions And Transits

58. Occultation of Venus 01 Dec. 2008 LX 90 @ 57x Courtesy Deirdre Kelleghan

60. Saturn and Porrima May 28, 2011 8cm refractor @ 120x Courtesy of UwePilz

61. Sketch by M Rosolina

62. What do I use to make my sketch?

64. sketching paper, copy paper, black paper, color paper, textured paper, waterproof paper

65. templates, blending stumps, erasers, eraser shield, sharpener

67. Graphite pencil on smooth white copy paper Courtesy Sol Robbins

68. Graphite pencil on white sketch paper Last Quarter Moon 18 March 2009 15x70 Binoculars Courtesy Deirdre Kelleghan

69. Graphite pencil on white paper inverted digitally Courtesy Jeff Young

70. Graphite pencil and color pencil on white sketch paper

71. Color Chalk on textured white paper The Sun in Ha 10 DEC. 2005 40mm PST @ 33x Courtesy Erika Rix

72. Color pen on white paper Courtesy Ralph Marantino

73. Remember… record what you see! Courtesy Ralph Marantino

74. White Conte’ crayon, Conte’ pencil, and watercolor pencil on black paper Courtesy Erika Rix

75. White Conte’ crayon on textured color paper

76. Pastels on Black paper Total Lunar Eclipse The Netherlands June 15, 2011 Courtesy RoelWeijenberg

77. Computer processing is a relatively new tool that can be used very effectively to enhance and even create astro sketches. Digitizing your work allows you to present and share it with the global community of amateur astronomers.

78. You can add text… Courtesy Eric Graff

79. You can add color…

80. You can invert… Comet C/17P Holmes 04 Nov. 2007 Courtesy Sol Robbins

81. You can add text to field sketches and make a collage of sequences… Courtesy Erika Rix

82. You can even make an animation… Solar Prominence Courtesy Erika Rix

83. … or draw the sketch with the computer… Alpha Persei Assoc. (Mel 20) ETX 70 @ 9x FOV: 4.8 deg. Digital drawing based on a raw pencil field sketch Courtesy Rony De Laet

84. M51 & SN2011dh 16” reflector @ 75x-225x Digital drawing Courtesy of IVM

85. What does making a sketch look like? Here is a step-by-step tutorial. Let’s start with a lunar target.

86. First, anchor the sketch by outlining distinguishing features… Courtesy Erika Rix

87. Then add shadows… Courtesy Erika Rix

88. Blend to smooth… Courtesy Erika Rix

89. Add more shadows. Try to make light and dark areas instead of drawing objects… Courtesy Erika Rix

90. Add and blend more shadows. Use your finger and a stump to blend… Courtesy Erika Rix

91. Apply background in layers—use a loaded finger or a loaded stump… Courtesy Erika Rix

92. Add material in layers… Courtesy Erika Rix

93. Keep adding those layers… Courtesy Erika Rix

94. Soften by blending… Courtesy Erika Rix

95. Add finishing touches and you’re done… Copernicus Courtesy Erika Rix

96. We’ve looked at some of the long, rich history of astro sketching. We’ve seen some prime examples of sketching at its best. We’ve discussed sketching tools and techniques. And we’ve learned that sketching not only leaves you with a visual record of your observation… But most importantly, it trains your eye and improves your observing skills. Now it’s time for a little hands-on practice.

97. Remember, everyone starts somewhere… Observing log M Rosolina

98. Keep Looking Up! Orion Sketch Courtesy Frank McCabe

99. Choose one of the following objects to practice your sketching technique…

100. M6 Courtesy Rony De Laet

101. Courtesy Jeff Young

102. Jupiter Courtesy Sol Robbins

103. Saturn Saturn

104. Courtesy Jeff Young

105. Graphite drawing pencils, pens, color pencils, Conte’ crayons, charcoal, pastels, chalk Sketch paper, copy paper, black paper, color paper,textured paper, waterproof paper Template, blending stump, eraser, eraser shield, sharpener Clipboard, red light, white light, table, chair Sketch Materials and Tools

106. These are some of the many online resources available for tutorials, templares, materials, advice, and companionship: Cloudy Nights Sketching Forum http://www.cloudynights.com/ubbthreads/postlist.php/Cat/0/Board/Sketching/page/0/view/collapsed/sb/5/o/all Astronomy Sketch of the Day http://www.asod.info/ Jeremy Perez’s Belt of Venus http://www.perezmedia.net/beltofvenus/ The Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers (ALPO) templates http://alpo-astronomy.org/ Dick Blick Art Materials http://www.dickblick.com Astrosketching Resources

107. Copyright 2011 Michael Rosolina All contributor images are the property of their respective owners and are used here with permission