Honestly I've never been a landscape person. So I spent a while at the window sketching branches.

I asked myself "what makes a tree real to me?" What makes it alive? What's consistent and random about the shape of the branches? There's so much to be said about using live references. What used to feel like a collection of lines became a more intricate pattern, twisting and turning every which way.

Normally before starting something new, I take some time to thumbnail or draft a composition. A lot of the time the beginnings get covered up to become the actual work, but this go-round my initial plans were very different from the final version.

The original composition included the woodsman's own axe buried in his back (credit: my husband), the work of the fiesty tree spirit. A cool idea, but a.)The more violence a piece has in it, the less the size of the audience it will appeal to. And b.) In blocking out the composition, I thought it didn't create a dynamic enough connection between the characters. The ensnaring vine idea came about 50% of the way thru working, and I think it creates some nice focal lines, while not destroying the message that she's in charge.

It's interesting that this is also the first time I've started a composition in all black & white maybe ever. I put all the color over top in layers later. I kept some things consistent with my normal work practice - I rarely ever have more than 4 working layers in Photoshop at a time, and I only keep them as long as I need them before flattening the image. It makes it feel a bit more like a real canvas, and even though some people might say it's unwise to commit to things during early stages, I find that it gives me much tighter control over the overall color and lighting schemes (read: if I apply a Levels filter, eg., it affects everything instead of one element). If something needs to be taken out, I usually prefer painting over it like I would on a traditional piece than taking out a layer. Not to say that layers are bad, that's just how I work.

Enjoy!

Also, to clear up any confusion, I got married back in July, so I'm using my new last name, Sheppard. Still the same girl!