Planning out a painting of a Turkey Vulture but first working it out in pencil. Turkey Vultures, as you know, are a very, very dark brown and makes it tricky to make out the subtle layering. Then, there is the so very delicate head, poised above all that soft plumage. Watercolour or oil? Have yet to decide. Why not both? All good practice for a most favourite bird of mine.
Kinglet
This is a combination of three tutorial exercises: painting the bird, learning to paint berries and learning to paint the leaves. I sketched the three exercises onto watercolour paper and gave it a whirl bouncing between two online teachers.
Visit Paul Hopkinson at the www.devonartist.co.uk and also Billy Showell at www.billyshowell.com.
Kinglet. Watercolour
Belted Kingfisher
I’m pretty pleased with this watercolour. It is officially one of my own and not done with any tutorial help. It is a looser style, which is actually more my style, as made visible by my oil paintings. Any road, this local Belted Kingfisher (actually a pair) live down by the shoreline and can be seen almost any day of the year. The rusty belt marking shows it is the female as the male has no rust colouring. I noticed part way through the painting process that the rusty belt should be lower on the body, not up like a necklace. Too late… once you have started a watercolour you are a bit committed. Never-mind, all good practice.
American Robin
A watercolour robin for practicing tiny feather strokes. One of my favourite birds, so it was very enjoyable.
Thanks to Paul Hopkinson for his thorough tutorial: www.devonartist.co.uk
WHAT THE LEAF TOLD ME by Ronald Johnson
WHAT THE LEAF TOLD ME
by Ronald Johnson
Today I saw the word written on the poplar leaves.
It was “dazzle.” The dazzle of the poplars.
As a leaf startles out
from an undifferentiated mass of foliage,
so the word did from a leaf—
A Mirage Of The Delicate Polyglot
inventing itself as cipher. But this, in shifts & gyrations,
grew in brightness, so bright
the massy poplars soon outshone the sun . . .
“My light—my dew—my breeze—my bloom.”
Reflections In A Wren’s Eye.
Little Wren
A practice sketch from a photo, prior to the little watercolour practice.
I suppose everything is practice really.
Naturelady takes remarkable bird photos, among other nature subjects. So if you need a reference that is in focus and captures the character of the critter, have a look. She provides her photos for free. https://pixabay.com/users/naturelady-3551620/
Winter Birch
watercolour, pastels, tinted paper
“Frosty Morning” Watercolour
Usually snow and most mushrooms don’t mix well together, but in this case, it reminds me of a frosty early winter day.
