bonsaiTALK Community - View Single Post - California Juniper Transformation

I decided that fig. 3 showed the most promising aspect of attaining something looking like a tree. I liked fig. 2 a few months ago and thought that I may be able to achieve a nice slanting tree, but the branch structure for a slanting tree was wrong, and I did not think it made the best use of the trunk. There is also some Shari considerations that make the more traditional upright tree more promising.

Fig. 9 shows the slanting branch removed from the tree. It cut fairly easily due to borer and army ant infestation and damage. The damage is shown in fig. 10.
Fig. 11 shows a very nice natural twisting stub of a branch that I wanted to work into the front of the tree. I will preserve as much of this as possible. Fig. 12 shows the natural Shari under a dead branch that runs all the way down the face of my chosen front. This will be hollowed and carved out to accentuate the dead trunk. Fig. 13 shows the back of the trunk and the way the living portions of the trunk twists and turns while moving up the trunk line. Fig. 14 is some dead natural Jins that will have to be cut and carved back to integrate into the design. While during this stage they look fine long, on the finished first styling they will be much too long and interfere with the flow of the design.