Experts agree that art has a positive impact and toddlers. Children who are exposed to arts such as music and painting develop pattern processing, analysis skills, and creativity much quicker than those who are not exposed to arts. An easy way for your child to be familiar with art in a fun and active way is to introduce your child to painting with a childrens easels. Painting is a fun activity you and your child can can both enjoy. Besides a paint brush, paint, and a piece of paper or canvas, a children’s easel will have your child wanting to paint.

An easel is a wooden stand used to support canvases or other mediums upright and sturdy. When painting on an easel, your child can easily paint to their heart’s content. You and your child can sit side by side, with easels in front of you and you can help guide your child’s creativity and bond with your child simultaneously. Children’s easels are much like full sized artist easel except they are on a much smaller scale. Many children’s easels do not use canvases. Instead they may often times use chalk boards or magnetic dry erase surfaces. Children can express and grow their creativity using paint, markers, or chalk.

The Line Drawing

In this article I will discuss the importance of a line drawing in producing pencil portraits. I will also discuss the details of rendering such a drawing. We start with a gridded reference image that has the same dimensions as the drawing we will produce. A gridded image which has the size of your actual drawing, will usually be too large for most printers to handle in one piece. So, print out the image piece-wise on regular 8.5 by 11 inch paper.

The first step is to draw the same grid on your drawing paper that you drew on your reference image. Use an HB or F pencil with a sharp point and draw very lightly. This grid eventually will have to be erased.

Once we have drawn the grid we are ready to start putting in the contours of the subject.

The advantages of using a grid are many. You can draw the content of one square at a time. All proportions and placements are easily discerned. Negative spaces become more evident. Rendering the correct perspective is greatly simplified.

Use these tips for drawing the outlines (line drawing) of the subject in the photograph:

For now, only draw lines, i.e., do not do any shading yet.

Draw lightly and loosely. Use maybe a 2B or 3B sharp pencil. Sharpen your pencils frequently.

Focus on one square, you should not loose sight of the overall structure of the drawing. For example, make sure that the subject matter smoothly transitions from one square to the next. Stand back once and awhile and inspect your progressing drawing from an overall perspective. While concentrating on a particular square, also use your peripheral vision to keep an eye on the neighborhood.

At this stage, accuracy is of the essence. All drawing at this point is judging lengths and angles within a single square. Use short soft lines which, if needed, you can easily erase.

Put a sheet of bond paper under your drawing hand so you avoid smudging of the already finished portion.

Also draw in the contours of the shadows and other worthy details you notice on your subject. At this stage your task is to produce a detailed map of your subject. We are actually in the process of readying the drawing for the next phase, i.e., shading.

Try to see in terms of shapes or masses and draw the contours of these shapes and masses. Drawing is doing two things simultaneously (actually, more than two). You need to concentrate on that one current line you are drawing (its length and angle) but simultaneously you should always be aware that this line is part of a shape.

Make use of the concept of negative space. From time to time turn your reference image as well as your drawing upside down or sideways. This often gives you a better perspective on lengths and angles.

In fact, at this stage, try not to be aware that you are drawing a definite subject. Look at each shape as just a blob without meaning but with definite dimensions and a definite orientation. This will help you with seeing and reducing the involuntary introduction of preconceived notions about noses and such.

Look at your reference image frequently and carefully. Don’t forget that this might be a real portrait drawing.

Make some choices. What is important? What can you leave out? Drawing is often an exercise in elimination of unnecessary detail.

In this fashion, continue working out one square after another until you have a line drawing of your entire subject. By now, you should already see a fairly good likeness of your subject. Review in detail the entire drawing and make corrections wherever necessary. This is also the time to erase most of the grid. When you are satisfied, you can lightly spray the drawing with workable fixative, just enough so it does not smudge but you can still erase things if you have to. Congrats, you are close to to join the famous landscape artist group

As soon as you have finished a line drawing of your subject you can switch to the shading process. The purpose of shading is to give your subject three-dimensionality. When you are done with shading, your subject should look like it is anchored in space and is not just an object in a plane.

Values (or tones) are, by definition, degrees of darkness and lightness. It is good practice to develop a visual sense of at least five values or tones. This can be done with the help of making a five-value scale. Draw five boxes next to each other and make the first one on the left totally black while leaving the last one on the right completely white. Then, fill up the middle one with a value that is just in between black and white. This value is called the “halftone” or “medium gray”. Next, fill in the second box from the left with a value that lies between black and medium gray. This value is called “dark gray”. Finally, fill in the second box from the right with a value that lies just in between white and medium gray. This value is called “light gray”.

These five values are enough to start and can already do wonders for your pencil portraits. Practice these five values until you can recognize them instantly when you see them. Now, armed with the knowledge of these five values we can now approach our line drawing which has already mapped out various shapes with different values. We now can start the shading process (i.e., applying of values).

One thing that you should always keep in mind as you shade is the location of the light source or light sources. In the beginning it is best to work with only one light source. Every value you observe should be seen as a function of where the light source is located. Each value you apply should make sense in relation to the light source. Assign each of the areas on your line drawing one of the five values you have internalized. You do that through careful observation. Later, the boundaries between the differently valued areas will be blended together yielding a so-called transition area which has a value in between the two values of the adjacent areas.

To help you further, it is good to think of the different value areas in terms of the five elements of shading:

1. The Halftone - This is the value in the middle of your value scale. It represents the true value of your subject without the effects of direct light or shadow. It is neither light nor dark.

2. Full Light - This is the value of areas where the light hits the subject straight on. It is the white of the paper. This sort of value is also called a highlight.

3. Cast Shadow - This is the darkest value which is the black in the first box on the left of your value scale. This value occurs in places that are completely shielded from the light source or any reflections. These areas are usually to be found among the shadows the subject casts on other surfaces.

4. Shadow Edge - This is the dark gray located in the second box from the left on your value scale. This is for the parts that are not quite in the cast shadow areas but are beyond the halftone. These areas are often between a halftone area and a reflected light area or between a halftone zone and a cast shadow zone.

5. Reflected Light - This is a value corresponding to light gray, the second box from the right on your value scale. Reflected light can often be found as a small band between a cast shadow and a shadow edge. It is the light that bounces back onto your subject from surrounding surfaces. The bottom of the jaw often shows reflected light. Be sure not to make this sort of value totally white because it never is. These reflected light areas are important to notice and to render because they contribute significantly to the appearance of roundness and three-dimensionality of your subject.

In conclusion, a satisfactory line drawing together with your knowledge of a five-value scale and the five elements of shading should give you a good start at developing your shading skills. Work with short strokes and blend the adjacent areas into a value that lies in between the two areas. A ball on a table lighted by one light source is a good setup for practicing the five elements of shading. This will help you to understand the real beauty of the paintings done by a famous landscape artist or the portrait artist.

These tips will help you to reach real mastery in portrait drawing.

There are many ways to enjoy the Grand Canyon, but a hike into the depths of this natural wonder is far and away the most adventurous and most exciting way to get the maximum out of a visit. This is the case for several reasons.

grand canyon guided tours

First is that the Canyon is more than 1200 meters deep in most places, and so the geologic time that is represented by the layers of rock you descend through is literally mind blowing. As you descend, you will think to yourself “a river cut this!!!” Sandstone, limestone, fossils, and native american artifacts build the geologic foundation of the Canyon.

Second is the fact that remaining on the rim you get a bird’s eye view of everything but no real connection with the much of anything. Staying on the rim is only one step better than simply flying over the Canyon in an airplane. On the contrary, when you’re hiking through it, you will have an intimate experience with the flora, fauna, the streams, the rivers, and the waterfalls of this truly phenomenal abyss. The best of the Canyon is beneath the rim: Phantom Ranch, Havasu Falls, Thunder Falls, Paradise Falls, Kaibab Creek, Horseshoe Mesa, Hermit Rapids…it goes on and on.

grand canyon backpacking tours

Third is that you will experience solitude and peace and quiet in one of the most popular national parks in the United States. While millions of people visit the Grand Canyon every summer, only thousands of visitors trek to the bottom over an entire year. The Canyon is a place of immense scale and profound natural beauty, and so hiking down in the Canyon is in many ways the only way to truly enjoy the true nature of it.

Fourth is that it involves some authentic adventure. Many people also love rafting, which is a great way to experience the Canyon. What hiking offers that rafting doesn’t is an adventure that involves the full spectrum of the experience - the amazing feeling of winding one’s way down, down, down through layers of rock and into the depths of the Canyon. Then the enjoyment of the Colorado River, and of course finally the hike back out. It’s amazingly rewarding to complete a hike in and out of the Grand Canyon - and when you top out and treat yourself to a very nice dinner, massage, and a night of sleep, there’s no doubt you’ve worked for it. You can live it up in style, knowing you’ve done what very few people ever do.

hike the grand canyon

If you’re inexperienced, it’s best to hire a tour company for an adventure like this. Don’t attempt it on your own if you don’t know what you’re doing - Grand Canyon National Park performs more than 400 rescues per year, and the vast majority of those are overly ambitious hikers who try to do it on their own. There are several fantastic guide companies that will treat you like a king or queen on a trip like this, whether it’s a rim-to-rim or a down-and-back trip. Don’t wait to experience the depths of the Grand Canyon!

How do 3D glasses that are polarized work?
Stereoscopy is a technique used to create a three-dimensional illusion by narrowing the margin of light that enters the eye using Polarized 3D glasses for the effect. To present a stereoscopic motion picture, two images are projected superimposed onto the same screen through orthogonal polarizing filters. With a pair of orthogonal polarizing filters, the viewer can afford these eyeglasses due to its low cost and high quality. Similar to the method of diffusion, the effect is achieved by filters passing through a light that is specifically polarized to block the orthogonally polarized illumination, giving the viewer’s eyes to only see one of the images.
3D video
The difficulty arises because light reflected from a motion picture screen tends to lose a bit of its polarization. However, this problem is eliminated if a ’silver’ or Aluminized screen is used. A station using dual head graphic cards, a silver display surface, a few polarizing filters, and properly aligned DLP hardware can be utilized to create a reasonably priced system. (under US$10 000 in 2003) For people wearing polarized glasses this is the perfect system for displaying 3d data There is a system now available, called a GeoWall that has helped the Earth Sciences field immensely.
Polarized 3D Glasses
An image combiner can easily be used in order to present dual images to a single viewer. This typically consists of mirrors that are silvered and two image screens. One image is seen directly through the angled mirror whilst the other is seen as a reflection. One pair of filters is integrated into the screen, and the viewer wears another pair like glasses. A similar technique uses a single screen with an inverted upper image, viewed in a horizontal partial reflector, with an upright image presented below the reflector, again with appropriate polarizer’s. Cathode ray screens are best suited to polarizing glasses, since LCD screens contain polarizers to control the presentation of pixels, and the polarization can conflict.
3D Video
Keigo Iizuka Discovered a cheaper form of this by using a laptop computer using cellophane sheets,actual 3D pictures have been around since 1936 when Edwin H. Land first applied it to motion pictures. Polarizing projection and glasses were most widely used during the early part of the nineteen fifties when they were used to watch three dimensional films in movie theatres. Only a minute amount of the total 3D films shown in the period used the anaglyph color filter method. What is new is the use of digital projection, and also the use of sophisticated IMAX 70mm film projectors, with very reliable mechanisms. Using varying forms of polarization, a completely new chronicle of 3D animation films are now beginning to reveal themselves to theaters. Polarization doesn’t work as well with home presentations, whether broadcast or on DVD. At this point only anaglyph glasses may be used to view the new HD shows and are beginning to be aired occasionally by NBC and the Discovery Channel.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITbXTFgyrjI

As a youngster you probably paid little attention to a vision correction that fixed both distance vision and near vision. Unfortunately, once you pass the age of 40 your vision correction takes a front seat to what you can and can not enjoy.

One of the big factors that most overlook is vision as it relates to hobbies. I would like to list a couple popular hobbies and outline the possible visual demands and what type of vision correction may be necessary.

For starters, let’s quickly go over why vision correction becomes important again after the young age of forty. It is at that time in life when eyes lose the ability to adjust focus from up distance to up close. This happens to everybody and there is really no way to elude it. The condition is called presbyopia - reading glasses, it is a normal eye condition.

Because presbyopia affects the eyes ability to adjust focus, a single vision correction can easily be utilized with contact lenses, glasses, or refractive surgery. The challenge comes in when a person wants to see clearly in the distance, and then be able to look at an object close up and see them both clearly without changing their contact lenses or putting on another pair of eyeglasses.

On to the hobbies: a popular hobby today is photography. With photography, especially digital photography, a person’s visual demands are great at both distance and near. The most obvious solution is clear distance vision and a pair of always there glasses for reading, similar to clic reading glasses that are always there.

If this setup is not satisfactory to some hobby photographers, a pair of mulitifocal contact lenses fit as a modified monovision is a great solution. This means that the eye used through the viewfinder is wearing a distance correcting contact lens with a small bifocal add power for a slight improvement in reading. The other eye is slightly undercorrected for distance and has a marginally greater reading add. With two eyes vision will be good all around and the hobby photographer will be able to see all the details on the camera as well as the subject in the distance.

Hobby computer users do not have as great near vision demands as they think. The computer screen is usually about 2 feet away from their eyes, and this falls into intermediate distance. Simply wearing normal contact lenses and a pair of reading glasses is the best solution. However, for those that do not want this type of correction a properly fit pair of multifocal contact lenses will also do the trick.

For hobbies that entail all up close and intermediate vision, the opposite of computer vision correction can be done. Musicians want to see their instruments and the details of the sheet music. The compromise in distance vision is usually acceptable. So under correct the distance slightly and wear a finely fit pair of multifocal contact lenses for good intermediate and near vision.
Next time you are visiting your eye care provider, be sure to bring up your hobbies and realistic visual demands. It will make everybody a lot happier a lot sooner if honesty and real expectations are used. Hobbies are activities that we all enjoy doing. Let’s keep it that way and not let a pesky little thing like presbyopia get in our way.

It is always fulfilling in our part if we are able to spend our extra time to useful yet enjoyable things. After a stressful office works, it is always nice to spend time to unwind. While there are people who spend time on just ’so so’ things, others prefer to devote there time in things that are more productive and thus they spend time for outdoor activities like painting, bird watching, and hunting.

how to sketch
If you are willing to spend your extra time in doing things which are more productive, outdoor painting may be interesting to you. But of course, before you proceed to your first ever painting session you must learn how to do oil painting on canvas. You can purchase basic painting guide at the stores in your locality.

best bird watching gadgets
If ever you want to spend your spare time by just going out, you may be interested to go to bird watching spots near you. This gives you a chance to know better about birds and aside from that, you are making a close attachment to nature also. But then again, before you go for bird watching, you must be fully prepared so that you are able to enjoy watching birds absolutely. So, you need to have effective bird watching kits. These equipment allow you to watch birds closely so better get one now.

And, if you do like these two outdoor activities, then you can do it simultaneously! Yes, you can do that. All you need todo is to gather your painting materials then go to bird watching spot and then you can start painting– you can make birds as your subjects. Isn’t it nice idea? Yes it is!

activity hunting games
But if you really want a more physically challenging activity, you may choose hunting. Hunting pertains to the act of pursuing animals to capture them or kill them for consumption or business related activities such as selling. In primitive times, hunting was an essential human exercise because this is necessary as medium of survival. It was the prime source of getting food and clothing and other basic needs. In present times however, hunting can be referred to regulated and legal duck hunting games. Hunted animal creatures are referred to as game animals, which are commonly pointing large mammals or migratory birds.

By now, most people have read how nesting dolls originated and how they are all hand painted by very particular artists using very small brushes to make an entire set come to life. All that is great but I wanted to explore some rather odd ideas for a nesting doll set that I am not sure have been created (this could be a great idea for someone with an artistic flare who can bring a couple of these sets to life for us). I have been studying this concept for quite some time and am now ready to announce these ideas to the world – here we go.

My original and perhaps best idea is to develop a set of dolls around great TV families. Families that we grew up with, that are a little bit nostalgic but who would also be very recognizable are the types I am speaking about. I would start with the Brady Bunch and include the Mom and Dad, Alice and the 6 kids in one set. I think that dolls nesting set could become a top selling line and would serve to honor what is probably the number one family of that generation. The next family to be enshrined in a set of nesting dolls would be the Partridge family. I would include the band manager, Rueben Kincaid, to be sure that there were enough dolls to make a complete set. The Clampett family of Beverly Hillbillies would be next and I would be sure to have a doll made out of the likenesses of Miss Hathaway and the banker to round out the set.

I would then progress to the greatest sports teams of all times. I would include a couple sets of Roger Maris and the Yankees, maybe another with the Los Angeles Lakers when they were winning all those championships, and maybe another of the best team to have played baseball in Cincinnati the Big Red Machine, since many people in the Midwest would probably love a set and they are my favorite team of all-time.

I would also include a hall-of-fame set where you might be able to take your favorite sport and have dolls that look like a set of a couple of years of hall-of-fame inductees. I think these would also sell well because a doll set could be made for every season and sport, so there are lots of great groups to select from to start sets.

My next group to do would be unique to corporate groups such as a team of corporate executives. This may sound a little corny but I think thatmost corporate leadership teams would buy a set made up of themselves, especially after they have had a good year. This one may be working from the fringe, but I think there are lots of items in popular culture that are not being done at the moment that could be good for tine nesting doll industry and be fun for the people who are in the sets.

Performing a reverse cell phone number lookup is a fantastic way to learn details about the origin of an incoming call when it is made from a cell phone. Using a reverse lookup, one can find out exactly who called and other information about the individual who placed the call. Occasionally it could be to trace the origin of a prank call, or perhaps it may be to find out more about your daughter’s new boyfriend whom you want to ‘check out’ before releasing her into his care. In the workplace, reverse cell phone number look-ups could be used to find a bit more information about potential candidates for certain positions. In this manner, unbiased information can be gathered rather easily, with the information being new and worth noting.

Normally, cell phone numbers will not be handed out free, as may be the case for a land phone. One might try to use yellowpages.com or whitepages.com to do this, but there is no guarantee of success as there is with reverse phone paid databases. If comparing this to land lines, it’s quite difficult to find the one who’s making crank calls to cell phones.

A directory with reverse cell phone numbers will help you discover the details of the phone number you provide along with the physical address of the caller, according to the cell phone numbers indexed for that region.

There are important considerations with “reverse cell phone” number directory services in general and specifically concerning the disclosure of sensitive information. This information is known as “public records” although in some locations they aren’t public in any sense. The laws and rules that govern tracing of reverse cell numbers vary from place to place. Therefore you might need to research if this is legally allowed or is in violation of the law in the nation where your number search originated.

Generally the service provider in this specific field may ask for some cash at the time you visit them to get the data concerning the mobile phone number. Several service providers say that they are providing this service without charging any fee. But at all times try to authenticate the legitimacy of these companies before you present the name and address to these people.

If you are using a web site to get information about a given cell phone number, you may need to start by supplying the cell phone number for the site’s search engine to use. The site’s search engine will then start browsing web pages to see if the number matches a number that can be found somewhere on the internet.

The providers of the “reverse cell phone” directory service will inquire about the specifics such as your identity and cell number. On account of this, you need to be very careful when dealing with “reverse cell phone” lookup businesses that don’t charge a fee. It’s hard to trace unlisted numbers utilizing this means. Searches with cell phones are simple if you have the information.

Canon G9 Review Simply The Best Canon Digital Camera

Anyone shopping for a digital camera these days, is absolutely entitled to being overwhelmed, confused and bewildered. There is such a wide range of cameras, manufacturers, and features available, it’s insane. It’s almost enough to make one hearken back to the days of the Model T, when Henry Ford offered his customers any color of car they wanted, as long as it was black. Well, I’m about to make things much simpler for you. Let’s take a look at arguably the best camera manufacturer today - Canon, and three of their best cameras. Don’t worry, these aren’t just the most expensive models. They range in price from $200 up to $1500, with one priced right in between.

Canon is the most prolific camera maker today. Part of that reason, is they cater to every level of photographer. From absolute novice to seasoned professional. That’s also why they sell more cameras and camera lenses than anyone else.

My first choice for best Canon digital camera, is the Canon Powershot A720 IS. If all your interested in is a simple point and shoot camera that’s easy to use by anyone, then congratulations, you’ve found it. Taking outdoor pictures in good lighting, you’ll be hard pressed to find a better camera at any price. If you don’t mind fiddling a bit with the A720’s white balance and metering mode, you can also compensate for picture taking in less than ideal lighting situations. For around $200, you get image stabilization, 8 megapixels, 6x zoom, and a real optical view finder. The view finder is missing on many cameras in this class, but not the A720. Which is fortunate, as it really helps framing your shots better than a LCD, and can considerably save on batteries when you turn the LCD off. If your going to use the full 6x zoom, I would recommending a decent tripod. As with many cameras in this category, there is a delay in between taking pictures when using the flash. Usually around five seconds. Inconvenient to be sure, but hard to get away with out spending a bit more money.

Speaking of more money, lets talk about my second favorite choice for best canon digital camera. The Canon PowerShot G9 is designed for those amateurs who are getting a little more serious about the photographs they take, but don’t have the budget or inclination to move up to the more expensive and demanding world of SLR photography. The one big feature you get with the G9 that you won’t find on a simple point and shoot is RAW format. It basically saves your images without compressing them into jpg format and losing some picture quality. RAW is far more flexible when it comes to editing pictures later. You basically get more manual control of your picture taking, like a SLR, but without the added size and extra lenses. You can get a G9 for about $500 these days.

So you’ve had it with slow compact point and shoot cameras with average picture quality, and are looking to move into the realm of SLR photography. Cool, because my third pick for best canon digital camera, is the Canon EOS 40D. Currently going for about $1200 just for the camera body, so be sure to save room in the budget for lenses (probably $1500 with a basic lens). Unless you plan on changing careers, and becoming a professional photographer, this should be the last camera you’ll ever buy. The only real limit to taking amazing pictures with this camera is the photographer and of course his/her budget for new lenses.

So there you go, a good starting base with three canon cameras that should suit the novice, semi-pro, or full blown professional categories. Once you’ve picked one as a reference point, a closer look at some similar digital cameras would be in order. The more informed you are, the happier you’ll be with your next camera, and the photographs you take with it. More info about Canon Powershot G9 on Amazon.com