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...one thing I am curious about is if you sketch in the field at all? Do you do live drawings while observing/photographing the subject? I like doing sort of 'short hand' notes to myself of the subject while I am photographing as I find this often helps me work out problems of proportion, form, and where those darn toes really are. Sometimes the photos I take miss some vital info that only real life observation seem to fill in for me.
I love to sketch from life but very rarely have the time. When photographing I tend to use the camera for taking the "short hand notes". Because I use a 400mm zoom lens and a motor drive I can quickly respond to a thought that it would help me later if I photographed a close-up of a foot - and a second later it's done. I use an enormous amount of film -- cheap film 
Where I tend to sketch is when I need something new right now. When I'm drawing a lot of foliage and need to keep the types varied I often go for a walk down the lane or around our garden and sketch leaf shapes and growing habits. Also I often pick examples and draw directly from life as I hold them in my hand.
Other elements of drawings are drawn directly from memory - if I need a flowerpot, a watering can, an old Victorian bottle, a wellington boot.... I just sketch away from the drawing until it's looking right then incorporate it.
I do sometimes make written notes while I'm sketching - often regarding dimensions. For example I sketched the trailer below (used to be my neighbour's, now it's mine - and I "repaired" it for the drawing!) and made quick measurements so I could correctly size the dog back in the studio.
MIKE
www.SibleyFineArt.com
www.Starving-Artists.net
lesters personal taxi .... see thats proof that we dont own dogs they own us!