5 comments about Enchanting Fairies: How To Paint Charming Fairies and Flowers.

1. A beautiful book with clear, easy to follow instructions. A great addition to any collection for fairy lovers/artist. As a lover of fantasy and creator of fantasy art for many years I enjoyed this book very much. I especially love the fairy babies included in this book,
   since they often seem be left out.



2. I thought the step-by-step painting technique demonstrations were excellent. Aside from being a how-to on painting fairies, there is a lot in the book about rendering natural details like flower petals, bubbles, leaves, water, hair, flames and snowflakes. All of the techniques Barbara Lanza uses to create her enchanting worlds can be applied to landscape and still life painting, as well as portraiture. I've learned a lot from her book.



3. I bought Barbara Lanza's book and was thrilled. Great product for the price! Her beautiful, delicate illustrations and clear instructions were easy to understand. I also liked that her love of fairies came across and inspired me. The variety of fairies and flowers was also refreshing. I would recommend this book if you would like to learn fantasy art!



4. I am a self taught oil painter and craft artist who was raised on Fairy stories. When I saw this book advertised I hoped it would help me and it has. I like her Fairies, not to baby type of cute.
   
   She has great pictures with detailed instructions of how to achieve her art work using two different media. The way the book is written, her instruction is also adaptable to any media or type of work you want to do. A friend was having trouble painting a nice drape of fabric on one of her projects. I showed her my Enchanting Fairies book and it showed her exactly what to do. This is a good investment.



5. I bought this book for my daughter who loves to draw and loves fairies. She has read other fictional works by the author and enjoyed them. This drawing guide had the right mix of how to and fictional background to keep her interested and inspired to draw the various examples as well as take them a step further. It also has enough detail in the information and interesting presentation to keep the "child at heart". If you want to draw this particular fantasy subject or just people, it is an enjoyable read that contains many useful details.

5 comments about Painting the Landscape in Pastel.

1. I found it very informative, giving me new ideas to use in my art. Great pictures.



2. I ordered this book because it was supposed to provide "lucid instructions for first time pastelists" but I found this definitely not the case. There are no instructions--just advice and that is so general that it is close to useless. Much better instructions with demonstrations can be found in other books. There are many illustrations in this book, but for my taste, the paintings are crude and unattractive. Certainly nothing I would care to emulate.



3. Handell"s current work doesn't impress me as much as his former style. Sometimes longtime artists get carried away with their own notoriety, and get just too artsy. This is more a"coffee table " book than something to learn from.



4. (I'm not clear on the contribution by author Anita Louise West; the text is largely in the first person singular -- Handell's.) This is a decent, if short-winded, introduction to common, fundamental art concepts (color temperature, intensity, complementary colors) and a few pointers specific to the pastel medium. There is little that you cannot get elsewhere in more depth, and some puzzling statements ("A toned paper helps the artist enhance contrast in values" -- p. 20) that beg elaboration. Many of the points are theoretically demonstrated by Handell's own paintings, with a paragraph each of his discussion; but his comments often seem arbitrarily chosen, if not downright wrong for the painting in question. For example, p. 40, he states "these light green colors [of the spring outside the studio window] contrasted with and complemented ... all of the darker interior colors of the studio," but the highest-key portions of the painting are in the interior. On p. 39 a view of a pier shows a flag at half staff. Hendell states, "I purposely played down the detail of the flag," yet it is in plain sight and eye-catching. In fact, the most interesting thing about an otherwise trite scene is the flag (I would have titled the picture "Half Mast") because it adds particularity and involves the viewer ("what's going on?"). The painting is divided exactly in halves horizontally, classically a compositional no-no, so I would have liked to read the artist's discussion of this choice. In some other paintings the artist seems confused (or unconcerned) about the principal light source -- although since Wayne Thiebaud routinely gets away with this, maybe it's not a big issue. In summary, this book is a lightweight, and hopefully encouraging, introduction to a wonderful medium, but the discussion of individual paintings should be read with one's critical faculties in place. Plus, it never hurts to browse another artist's works, even if the lessons contain nearly as many "what not to do's" as "what to do's".



5. Though I paint in other mediums, I am new to pastels. This book is the only one I will ever need. The pictures are beautiful and lush. The instructions and explanations are simple to understand. Would heartily recommend this book to new or experienced artists.

5 comments about Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Watercolor.

1. Kinda new to painting. Im a web designer and went to painting to "enhance" my art side. I worked with oils, but wanted to learn about watercolours. This book is a great one to pick up.
   
   Just put paper on the carpet first...........



2. This book gives a broad overview of watercolor techniques, from loose and washy, to photorealism, including glazing, spattering, color theory, and masking. It's a good way to see all the variety found in watercolor today. I only wish it could have gone into more depth on some of the more unusual techniques.



3. I am new to water color and have many questions ,and this book answers them and gives more information that is very useful



4. If you can only purchase one book on watercolor this is the one. It is very comprehensive covering every aspect of watercolor painting from materials needed to showing all the various painting techniques.



5. This book gives good detail and excellent examples to allow various styles to emerge. Very organized and easy to read. It covers so many different aspects that I, as a newbie, have found it a must-have out of the many books that I have purchased to help me learn. This really is one of the very best of the many that have been written out there. You'll not be frustrated or feel left lacking for knowledge.

5 comments about Perfect Neutrals: Color You Can Live With.

1. I am delighted with this book, which is very current since it was just published in 2007. It covers every color in the palate, but in their muted, neutral versions. It's divided into several sections that show ideal ways to blend each neutral color family, including reds, purples, blues, yellows and greens, in addition to several shades of white, beige, gray, taupe and brown. Each section has fully referenced pictures of swatches of paints, fabrics, and flooring material. The paints are readily available in the USA from Benjamin Moore among other suppliers.
   
   The quality of the photography is outstanding, with crisp, clear detail. The book focuses on the work of a handful of designers in USA, England and South Africa. It is nice to see the geographic dispersion -- the South African rooms, for example, contain feather headdresses on the walls which are just extraordinary and something I've never seen in USA.
   
   If you are doing your own design, you can easily replicate what is presented here. Not only are there schemes to copy, but the author clearly presents a practical methodology to create lovely interiors using the "neutral" fabrics, paints and materials that are widely available today.
   
   I own lots of design books. This one ranks among the very best.



2. This book shows how many muted colors can become beautiful, new neutrals for your decorating. Each section is broken down into color palettes. Easy to flip to hues you are interested in. Colors used in photos (of famous int. designers) don't always agree with paint, fabric and rug swatch examples used in each section. Paint colors are all referenced, but furniture, etc are not.



3. I don't know much of decoration and having this book makes me feel like I have the best decoration book I could wish for...full of pictures and great ideas.



4. The book is well priced and full of beautiful color photo's showing this neutral concept that is always in style. Nice work on color boards of real materials that you can research. I see this influncing many of us to use more neurtalized colors in our palettes for our homes and places of work. As big user of the Munsel, color theory is alive and well and it shows in this book neutrals will always be in style they are the canvas and background that enhances the higher chroma colors.
   
   This will become a resource book for me.
   
   MS (Industral designer and colorist)



5. I was thrilled when I opened the package and discovered that my used copy of Perfect Neutrals was even nicer than I had anticipated! The cover in intact, and like the book, it shows no signs of wear. Prompt delivery, great price, and top quality--I am one happy customer!

5 comments about Oil Painting For Dummies (For Dummies (Sports & Hobbies)).

1. I am currently working through this book and it is wonderful... a step-by-step guide that is simple, yet advanced.



2. Excellent book; I'd give it 4 stars for traditional oil painting. I'm knocking one star off because there is very little about water soluble oil painting, which is an important topic these days.
   I wish they had included more about water mixable oil painting facts and techniques. One example would be to warn people that you have to settle on one brand since they are not compatible as they are with traditional oil paints. Also, what about explaining about mediums to use? It's not the same as with traditional oil paints. So I have to go through this book ignoring the talk about how to mix with mediums and thus I have to find that information elsewhere, which interrupts the flow of working through this book.
   
   A couple of minor suggestions also:
   Include a checklist of the projects for readers to track their progress.
   The painting on page 15 showing the various stages of the painting process - explain more in detail, pointing out examples on the painting itself, maybe with arrows and circles on the painting explaining the different parts.
   
   I sure wish they would come out with a "Soluble Oil Painting for Dummies" book or incorporate it into this book, especially about how to use water soluble mediums.
   
   But otherwise this is an admirable book. I'm glad they wrote it.



3. I have read through half of the book and, even though I have some experience with oils, am learning something new or different in each section. It is easy reading and is designed to allow you to read each section independently in any order. However, reading it straight through exposes some redundancy - not necessarily a bad thing. The color mixing study, in the end, helps you to understand how to mix colors to create highlighting and shading. But the mixing proportions are not defined clearly enough - so the exercise does not yield accurate results. The author does not explain that the same color in different brands are not truly the same and produce different results. But you get the idea.



4. This is a great book for all us self-taught artists. It teaches us what all those terms and things are that we never understood, and how to acomplish them. I've been painting for 45 years and this book helped me a lot...."Back to the drawing board!"



5. Of all the oil painting instructional books I have purchased, this one is the very best. It takes you from the basics or oil painting in a very understanble way for any novice. Through the book, you are taught every element of oil painting from beginning to end. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who has the desire to oil paint. Make it the first one in your library.

3 comments about Lift Off: Air Vehicle Sketches & Renderings from the Drawthrough Collection (Air Vehicle Sketches).

1. I'm no 3d master, but when I wanted to get back into it I was looking for some inspiration. This book didn't let me down. It's filled with mind-bending stuff from really talented people.



2. Scott Robertson is an educator as well as a designer. That shows in this book, editorially, since he reveals early thumbnail, development sketches and final renderings. If you want to see a designer's process laid bare, here's a helpful resource. Don't forget Scott's Gnomon DVDs, as they further expose his process and techniques.



3. For those craving more futuristic design books, the Robertson works are highly desirable. He's no Syd Mead or Ron Cobb, but his works are slick, and well-rendered. A note of caution however; he is a much better artist of ground vehicles than aircraft. Most of his air vehicles are obviously derived from passenger car sketches, sans wheels. If you have the funds for both of Robertson's books, great. If you can only buy one of them, buy his book on ground vehicles.

5 comments about Virtual Pose 3: The Ultimate Visual Reference Series for Drawing the Human Figure.

1. i really love using this book (and the CD). i want to mention that i have a Mac with an operating system that isn't updated (OS 10.2), and i purposely got Virtual Pose 3 because i assumed (rightly) that a more recent version of these books would come with a CD-ROM that's not compatible with my operating system. so thankfully i CAN use this CD, which is the best part of this book.
   
   in my opinion, the book itself would be improved by 3 things:
   
   1. more dramatic lighting (although i believe the author has addressed his reasoning for this)
   
   2. a spiral binding (easier use for drawing from the book itself)
   
   3. larger pictures (at least some)
   
   i do like the models in this book very much, and the poses are great. i'm a bit of a beginner, and i only get to go to a life drawing once a month or so, so this is a great resource for me to just do lots and lots of gesture drawing, along with some more detailed work.



2. I am going to be critical, but I'd like to open with saying that this was a really cool and thoughful project for someone to come up with and offer to the artist.
   
   I get quite a chuckle at all the people who are angry about there being airbrushed vulvas and anuses. In your usual life drawing class you are not going to have the model eyeballing you with their privates. Its not like there is a shortage of vulvas and anuses online if that's what you want to draw. And any artist who has developed true capability with the human form can use the suggested form shadow as a base from which to draw a glorious sphincter and beautiful floral labia to make any viewer blush. Until then get over yourselves. The models, used to having a choice of what they want to show the students; are entitled to keep four square inches of themselves private from the world.
   
   Virtual Pose 3 is a good step up form Virtual Pose 2. And I appreciate the creativity of the poses and opportunity to see a pose from all sides. However I am still disappointed that these poses aren't lit properly to describe the form. Generally they are top lit so in standing poses you get some minor indication of core shadow and somewhat overly bright reflections on the skin on they upper torso,and everything below is pure ambient light and this obliterates form. While some poses are better with lighting than others; on the whole, the lighting is uninteresting and lifeless Virtual pose could take some cues on how to light their models by checking out an artistic soft porn site like Met Art. But hey, I suppose you are going to often be faced with the difficult challenge of illustrating people in ambient light. So Virtual Pose 3 will give you a real work out as you figure out how to describe form with even lighting all over!
   
   I'd like to see a Virtual Pose V or VI, but with artistic form light. As with Muybridge what a cool thing to attempt.But it won't be the ultimate reference series for the artist until the lighting loses its sterility.



3. I bought VP2 and VP3. At first, it was quite a novel idea, to plug in a disc and "rotate" the model 360" and draw from that. It was actually good practice for figure drawing. One gets a feel for the outlines and general
   proportions of the body, and with much practice, this book will help one
   improve one's drawing skills.
   However, there are some flaws. First, even though the photos are in full-color, the harsh lighting and poor resolution of many of the photographs make any serious, interior study of subtle shadows all but impossible. Look at a master figure drawing, and you'll see that the fine interpretation of shadows is paramount for a good figure study. Otherwise your figure will look "solarized" and crude. I found myself blocking in whole planes with singular, unnatural tone, trying to use my imagination to "figure out" what the tone should be. Worse, the arbitrary and non-dramatic lighting cast sharp secondary shadows on the figure which were quite displeasing. You could leave those out, but then you are left with a single-tone figure with no interior "body" shadows.
   Secondly, most of the poses are quite useless for artistic purposes. Unless you paint people doing yoga (see the cover), the poses will be only good for practice in studying the body, that's it. It's too bad, because it actually takes less effort to pose the model in natural sitting or standing poses you can actually use, than it does to pose them like a pretzel, but the author is obviously not a serious artist, and does not realize this. He is only concerned with giving a variety of dynamic-looking poses, most of which are actually quite useless for finished art.
   Thirdly, the Quicktime utility the disc comes with is sort of flaky. I wanted to "zoom in" certain areas (like I was able to do on VP 2, although the resolution is even worse in that edition), but VP 3 did not allow me
   to zoom in, even though the control was there. That was quite disappointing, because then I had to really lean forward and squint at the computer screen and draw--not very pleasant for a 1 hour figure study!
   
   In all, a decent idea and useful for the artist wishing to get the basics of figure drawing down. But for the serious artist, I suggest working from live models, or pose your friends and photograph them and then paint them, for a more serious, artistic figurative work. Posing the model so that you bring out the art of the interior, subtle shadows, and selecting a suggestive pose is paramount to becoming a good figurative artist. I have since sold both my VP2 and VP3 to a used bookstore, and have no regrets.



4. This is more than helpful for my art class. This is great!



5. I was hoping for a little bit more than this. I'll just sum up where I feel it is lacking:
   
   1. No lighting variation. The lighting is the same in every pose and it's not all that neutral a choice even, it's like noon sun where a lot of the anatomy doesn't cast a shadow. I would have liked the same pose with a few differently lit versions - this would teach a LOT about the anatomy.
   
   2. Resolution. It's the digital age and artists want material several times higher res than the public. You won't get any extra detail zooming in which is disappointing for people trying to study a subject better.
   
   Others have complained about the censorship... I didn't notice it for awhile, but it does appear any area very near the anus or vulva visible was covered over digitally. (Penises however, are displayed without any alterations.) Maybe this was necessary to not make the product too controversial or appeal to the wrong crowd... but on the other hand when you buy reference material you expect accuracy not this sort of thing.
   
   So I would say this is a pretty limited product overall, but you could use it as a basic pose reference for some basic poses (mostly sitting or "artistic", almost nothing that looks realistically dynamic).
   
   Overall I would rather pay more in the future to get a much more complete, useful product.

2 comments about Watercolor Painting For Dummies (For Dummies (Sports & Hobbies)).

1. Wow! Most art books are like the ones you remember from college--sky high prices and nothing but print. Art books need pictures, and this one has plenty of them in color--no guessing as to the artist's tecnique. You can use it as a reference, or start from scratch. It gives you sources for everything you need. A must have for any artist's library.



2. Watercolor Painting for Dummies is a great book for both beginners and artist who just need to brush (no pun intended) up on the fundamentals of w/c painting. If you're looking for a book to give you all the information you need because you are just beginning, this is it. This book is chock full of everything you need to know and everything they teach in art class.
   Another good thing about this book is you don't have to start from the first chapter and read from there (unless you are a beginner).
   And there are several projects you can paint "along" with.
   This is a good book to have and refer back to again and again.

5 comments about The Bible of Illuminated Letters: A Treasury of Decorative Calligraphy (Quarto Book).

1. There's little question that this is a beautifully produced book, and a delight to flip through. Just fine, if this were marketed as a coffee-table book. The product description is quite misleading, however, giving the impression that the book contains step-by-step instructions that anyone could follow. However, completing the projects as described requires not only a sizable investment in various paints, inks, tools and other materials (vellum and gold leaf are two examples) but also the skilled hand of a fairly well-accomplished painter. Moreover, each chapter showcases only one letter from the alphabet covered in a step-by-step, color format; the rest of the alphabet is printed in small, black-and-white renditions, with little or no guidance regarding colorschemes, etc. Overall, this book reads like the pet project of a collection of affluent artists in this genre, concerned primarily with showboating and of the opinion that few buyers of the book will ever use it as anything more than...like I said earlier...a coffee-table book.



2. I have a couple of books on illuminated letters, but this one is the book I reach for first.
   
   It is ABSOLUTELY gorgeous!
   
   It is produced by the "Barron's" company [which also publishes "The Calligrapher's Bible" by David Harris], and they know how to publish calligraphy books - their books are SPIRAL-BOUND so that they lay flat when you are using them, and every detail has been thought of and included.
   
   Just the cover alone is beautiful, but once you open the book it is evident that the author and publisher are truly on the "same page". Illustrations on every page. Gold ink where it belongs. Color everywhere.
   
   Gorgeous!
   
   But that's not the end of it ...
   
   Chapter 1 : Tools & Techniques
   Chapter 2 : Preparing to Work
   Chapter 3 : Alphabet Directory (including "Borders & Motifs")
   Chapter 4 : Contemporary Gallery (examples of actual work by artists!)
   Glossary
   Resources
   Calligraphy Societies
   Further Reading
   Index
   
   I can't gush on about this book enough. If you are interested in calligraphy (especially illuminated letters) then DEFINITELY add this to your collection!



3. As a struggling illuminator and scribe for the SCA, I find this book to be a teacher when I need one and a great beginner to advanced book for callig and especially illumination. Due to time constraints and the fact that I am a willing, but poor (in talent) paint and ink artist, I haven't spent much time in art classes. This book has helped me get through more than a few hurdles I have had and inspires me to do more. This book was well worth the money and I would highly recommend it to others.



4. This is my favorite illumination book and I have many. As a scribe in training in the SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism), I am learning all the facets of calligraphy and illumination. This book is the one I refer to the most. I have purchased copies for friends and recommend it highly. It has detailed step by step instructions from painting to gilding. It is easy to read and has beautifully illustrated images.



5. THIS IS A COMPREHENSIVE, BEAUTIFULLY LAYED OUT BOOK WITH STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO CREATE ILLUMINATED LETTERS. IT IS QUITE DETAILED & HAS MANY COLORFUL ILLUSTRATIONS THAT IMPEL ONE TO START DRAWING THESE BREATHTAKING LETTERS RIGHT AWAY. I THINK THE PRICE IS LOW & I WOULD'VE PAID MORE FOR SUCH A HIGH QUALITY BOOK. IT'S A GREAT ADDITION TO ANY LIBRARY. A+

5 comments about Fashion Illustration for Designers.

1. I have purchased almost every book on fashion illustration out there, and this is still the best. It covers all media, has beautiful full color illustrations and hundreds of black and white. It also shows how to illustrate males and children of all ages.



2. I found this book the best for examples on learning to draw draped garments on the body. Although not explicitly meant for this purpose, this book divides each type of garment by chapter and gives examples for drawing them, appropriately. I find her approach realistic, and her style excellent. She definitely helped me!



3. i teach from this book and it is instrumental in creating enormous breakthroughs in students' sketching abilities. you will never tire of this book. loads of information. a must.



4. I have a lot of worthless books on fashion illustration, however, this one is not one of those. It is worth the money and then some. She is clearly a good teacher, the illustrations are great and the videos are a bonus. Buy this book, you won't be disappointed.



5. My teacher recommmended that I get this book and I absoulutely love it. Karen Hagen is a great illustrator and gives a variety of ideas of different mediums to use and how to coordinate them all together. This book is also great for those who don't quite know how to draw. There are step by step instructions and the illustrations are great!