needoptic
needoptic

needoptic: essays, drawings and a journal by Aurimas Adomavicius

Ink portrait of a woman with long straight hair, chin raised and eyes turned sideways with a skeptical look, in a black off-the-shoulder top, inside a rough square frame.

Really, 2026

Ink, Procreate, iPad

All 19 drawings

Four days of rain

Diary and observations from summer '26 in Lithuania.

Essay, 33 photographs, 18 minutes

More essays

  1. The ritual of the Leica M EV1 2026
  2. The unintentional camera 2026
  3. The gear 2026
  4. Italy 2025
  5. New Zealand: helicopter adventures in the land of the kiwis 2025
  6. Tokyo: largest city in the world, respectfully silent 2024

All 19 essays

Journal November 3, 2026

My focus and obsession drifts over time. I go through a photography period, get burnt out, switch to drawing, writing, or chaos in the kitchen. These efforts become interchangeable. Had a really good sprint last year with drawing - focused studies, light and shadow, rendering, anatomy. Created software that would help me track my efforts, then forced myself to hit ~20-30 hours of work a week… and burnt out.

So, knowing that, I now have set myself a low bar. Consistency over time is more important than sprints. I sit down with the iPad each day before the family is up and doodle whatever I feel like drawing. Lately it’s been portraits finished in ink, no detailed rendering, color, shading, etc. Keep the deliverable lightweight, can crank out one or two a day.

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