DING DARLING BAYOU | Niki Butcher

J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge © 2020

Photographic Story We spent a glorious week on Sanibel Island, enjoying the beaches and the interior of the island. One of our favorite places on the island is the Ding Darling Wildlife Sanctuary. On our first morning on the island, we drove out to see how Ding Darling was doing. Everything was very still and quiet. It felt so wonderfully peaceful. I am so thankful to the Sanibel people who have worked hard to keep their island a natural sanctuary. I wish more barrier island folks would do the same. The Art of Hand Painting Black and White Photographs Photographed with a Sony digital camera and instead of oil painting with Q-tips and cotton balls, Niki was able to paint using Photoshop. Changing from the old-fashioned way of doing her art, to the new ‘fashion’ of using technology was challenging, but she’s enjoying getting back to her own personal expression. Archival Print Making Niki’s open edition gicleé artwork is printed on Sunset Bright Velvet Rag matte finish paper using eight archival inks. A state-of-the-art Epson Stylus Pro printer creates deep, rich dark values that hold subtle detail in the shadows as well as bright vivid colors that are truly tropical.