Telescope Reviews: Sketching at the EP....give it a try!!

The Sketching forum has a vast amount of members who post sketches on a regular basis, and an even larger number of visitors who enjoy looking at the many sketches posted here. This post is for those who are frequent visitors but for one reason or another, have never tried sketching at the EP themselves.

Far too many folks are under the impression that they just can not sketch, or that their sketches aren’t good enough.
BALONEY!

Everyone, regardless of their skill level or talent can make a sketch at the EP, the biggest “talent” involved is simply learning to do so under low-lighting conditions (red light) while observing. Even this only takes a little time to learn.

So, you claim that you are no Michelangelo or van Gogh…and you don’t have to be. Sketching at the EP isn’t about your artistic ability; it is about your excitement and enjoyment of observing the many objects in the night sky. This forum isn’t limited nor was it intended for only those who are proficient at sketching, it is for everyone and anyone who enjoys observing and recording their observations in a concrete form.

Yes, it is true that there are many here that are extremely talented at sketching, but not a single one of these folks started out as proficiently as what they are now. They all had to practice and refine their sketching techniques to get to the level they are at now; and they continue to learn and improve with each and every sketch they make.

The sketching forum is not a talent search or a forum intended for only those who have learned to refine their sketching techniques, it is for anyone who enjoys replicating on paper (or the computer) what they see when observing.

I would also like to point out that the Sketching Forum is not a “Purest” forum. There are those who consider one type of art superior over another, which is a shame. It is these folks who have limited themselves to the joy and enjoyment of the many artistic endeavors of others. Traditional art (paper & pencil, pen & paper, chalk, oils, etc.) and digital art (computerized) are simply mediums of ones own choice, familiarity and comfort level. The actual finished product, regardless of your medium of choice, is still simply a personal expression of what one sees while sitting at the EP. No single medium, method or process is superior or better than another is when one is simply expressing his or her own personal observation(s) while at the EP.

So, what do you need to start? Here is a fairly comprehensive list:

1. Paper
2. Pencil
3. A red light (to preserve your dark adaptation)

Now that wasn’t too difficult, was it?

The next step is to actually put onto paper what you are looking at through the EP. The simplest objects to begin with are double stars. Two dots on a piece of paper. In most (but not all) cases, one dot will be larger than the other.

First draw a circle on the piece of paper to represent the EP.

Now, start with the primary (the larger of the two) first. Center it in your EP and draw a dot on your piece of paper.
There, your first sketch is already halfway done.

Next, draw the secondary (the smaller star). Simply try to place it in the proper position in relation to the first star that you drew. If the secondary star is northwest of the primary star, that is will you will want to place it.

Make note of the orientation. A simple way to do this is to simply watch and see what direction the object is moving in the EP. The direction that it is moving will always be West. North is simply counter-clockwise to the west.

Now provide any information you wish, such as the scope you used, the EP used and the time and date:

There, you are done and have completed your very first Astronomical Sketch. It wasn’t too difficult or time consuming. As a matter of fact, chances are you spent more time saying, “I can’t do that” and finding other excuses than it did to complete the sketch.

As you become more comfortable sketching, you can then add more detail(s) to your sketching such as background stars, color (if any), etc., etc…

Ask anyone who sketches and they will tell you the same thing: Sketching actually improves ones ability to see fainter and more detailed nuances of any object. Mostly due in part to the fact that while sketching, one spends more time observing the object they are sketching than they would by simply observing it and moving on to the next object.

So, now that you have run out of excuses, give it a try. It is a great way to create a record of your observations and more than that it is FUN!

I hope to see more folks give sketching at the EP a try and share their results with the rest of us.

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Orion XTi10 f/4.7
Meade NGC 70mm f/10
Orion UltraView 10x50 Wide-Angle Binoculars

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A wise man can see more from the bottom of a well than a fool can from a mountain top.