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JTMB's Bird Art (2 Viewers)

Good analogy, Ed!

Thanks, Colleen! You know, I've come to think of birding (and now art) as being like playing music (which I've done my whole life, including a couple of pretty good bands). In both pursuits, every time I thought I was getting to the point where I actually had some decent skills, I would meet someone who was occupying a much more advanced part of the universe. I came to view music as an open-ended scale with no real end in terms of potential ability for those who had the talent and the drive. Sketching birds from life makes me realize how little I really do know about them, which of course is one of the primary reasons for doing the sketching...! With the common birds especially, I find that once I know the jizz of the species, there's a tendency to just glance and 'get the ID' quickly, but you really don't truly look at the birds in detail anymore. Sketching forces the looking in detail, even though I'm not at all trying to do photorealistic stuff. I am just tremendously excited by the whole new world that this is going to open up.

An honest assessment of my birding knowledge is that I know western US birds quite well - excluding pelagic species (haven't done a big pelagic trip yet due to seasickness issues), and my shorebird skills are only average, not great. I've done a reasonable amount of eastern US birding, but mostly casually before I got serious about the sport, and I haven't birded internationally at all.

Thanks again everyone for the very friendly welcome!
 
Sketching birds from life makes me realize how little I really do know about them, which of course is one of the primary reasons for doing the sketching...! With the common birds especially, I find that once I know the jizz of the species, there's a tendency to just glance and 'get the ID' quickly, but you really don't truly look at the birds in detail anymore. Sketching forces the looking in detail, even though I'm not at all trying to do photorealistic stuff. I am just tremendously excited by the whole new world that this is going to open up.

That's been exactly my experience John, especially the part about IDing birds quickly based on the jizz and then not looking again. I don't know if you ever read Sibley's 'Birding Basics.' In it he shows an example about IDing a bird. First he shows a graphic of four letters. The rest of the series shows the letters a little bit more obstructed each time so that it gets harder and harder to say exactly what the letters say. He says this his how you go about IDing birds. And I think he's absolutely right. You use those few brief clues. But you never really look at birds. You just use the clues to ID.

Once you have to sketch them you feel like you're looking at birds for the very first time. I'm sure that's why I could ID the seven warbler species I saw today and don't have a hint of a sketch to show for it! I tried to look but each time they were gone before I'd focused almost.
 
More sketches - Cooper's Hawk and Great Blue Heron

Thanks, Ken, and I like your goldfinch piece - I'll comment in your thread here soon!

This morning I tagged along on an Audubon field trip that I wasn't signed up for, and wandered around the area separate from the birders to find some sketching material. As you more experienced folks know, there is lots of material out there - all you have to do is be in a good location, sit down and some of it comes right to you!

These are all done in sepia Pigma Micron ink, taking Busby's advice to sketch with pen to avoid the temptation of grabbing the eraser to 'fix' the sketch. I like using pen, but it was pretty intimidating in a from-life situation.

The first page (all these are in a 9x9" - 23x23cm - Aquabee sketchbook) consists of very quick (perhaps 10 seconds) gesture sketches of some House Finches and one starling in a distant tree. My purpose here was to simply try to get the body shape somewhat close.

103-0061-PAN-HOFIetcFromFill-Aug28,10-WS.jpg

The next page was fun to create because of the subjects - a pair of hatch year Cooper's Hawks, who were cavorting about like two young teenage boys. They would perch for a bit, then one would chase the other off the perch and they would engage in a brief mock aerial chase and then perch again, before flying off to check out one thing or another.

103-0062-PAN-COHASketches-Aug28,10-WS.jpg

The next four pages (one of which will have to be in a separate post for the number of image limit) are of a Great Blue Heron that was hunting, and then preening, near where I was sitting.

103-0064-PAN-GBHESketchesFromFill-Aug28,10-WS.jpg103-0067-PAN-GBHEfromMontlakeFill-Aug 28, 10-WS.jpg103-0069-GBHESketchAtFill-Aug28,10-WS.jpg
 
Magical. The heron walking off the page is a cracker; beautifully drawn (legs especially) and bags of character and humour. Keep it up, King Solomon would be wringing his hands.
 
Magical. The heron walking off the page is a cracker; beautifully drawn (legs especially) and bags of character and humour. Keep it up, King Solomon would be wringing his hands.

As usual Tim says it well. But Mike also says something about being fearless in another thread. And it looks to me like you're doing so yourself, going out with a group and drawing what you see, and with pen no less. I think you're doing just great and my guess is that over the next 6-12 months we'll see tremendous improvement.
 
Lovely to see the visceral "bare bones" of sketching fom life!

I look forward to the continuation of your SPECIAL thread!

Excellent!
 
Hello again, everyone!

Thanks Ken, Phil and Arthur (the latter for yet another warm welcome on this great forum)!

This one is a sketch, but from a reference photo, not life, and has a couple hours in it. It is in a Moleskine sketchbook, about 5.5 x 8.5 inches, done using Polychromos pencils. This is a Redhead, a fairly common duck in the eastern part of Washington state where I live, but uncommon to rare on my side (the wet side!) of the mountains. A few are usually seen in the annual Christmas Bird Counts done by Puget Sound area Audubon societies. The reference photo was used with permission of a friend of mine who is an outstanding bird photographer - Gregg Thompson.

And yes, I didn't plan ahead too well, and so the poor subject here got an unwanted haircut at the crease of the sketchbook. :-O

Comments, critiques and suggestions always appreciated.

103-0075-PAN-REDHinCP-Aug29,10-WS.jpg
 
good to see you jumping in with such enthusiasm and great sketches...re the redhead, many including the great LJ, let the sketches cross the spine to the next page...of course this works better w/o a spiral binding...but it's an idea I've used with the moleskins.
 
Hello again, everyone!



And yes, I didn't plan ahead too well, and so the poor subject here got an unwanted haircut at the crease of the sketchbook. :-O

I used to always admire a Degas that I saw frequently at the Art Institute of Chicago. It was composed of two pieces of paper because he'd run out of room, or planned badly. This is a common mistake of beginners, and yet for all their experience it also happens to the most developed artists.

But other than that a nice lively painting, and very full of color. I like the fact that you're not being shy about using color. I think being able to use it can really make the whole process more exciting and rewarding.
 
With this drawing it's obvious that you're seeing and appreciating the effect that light has on an object, the heavy shadow area on the back accentuates the light on the head and neck and the areas of highlight show more intensity of sun. Great stuff and don't worry about the crease thing, unless you were planning to frame the picture then it doesn't matter a bit really. Better that you get the proportions of the drawing right than worry about the spine of the sketchbook.

Mike
 
Merlin Sketches

Thanks Colleen, Ken and Mike! The sketchbook the Redhead was done in is definitely not intended for finished pieces, so I was ok with how this turned out.

I'm hoping now that because I'm so focused on learning how to sketch from life there will be more opportunities to sketch good birds because I'm 'tuned in' to looking for them even more than normal. And yesterday provided a data point on that. I had seen a Merlin (a once or twice per year visitor to areas visible from our yard, so always a treat) a couple days ago make a strafing run through our and our neighbors' yards. Hoping it wasn't a 'one-day-wonder' situation, I glanced out yesterday and saw a raptor shape in the snag tree about 150 yards from our house. We are fortunate to have it because a number of raptors perch hunt from it during the year. I ran in and grabbed the scope and it was the Merlin. So I quickly set up for sketching and did a page in my 14 x 11 inch sketchbook, and one sketch on a second page before the bird flew off. Visibility was tough in that it was late afternoon and the bird was almost backlit.

Oh, and the upper left bird on the first page is a goldfinch that spilled over from the previous page.

Thanks to the supportive folks on the forum, I'll post these even though some are rather awful - but to be expected at this point. This is the first time I've sketched any raptor from life.

Sorry about the poor quality of the images - it's raining outside, so these were taken inside in poor light with a flash.

103-0081-PAN-MERLINinSnag-Sketch-Aug30,10-WS.jpg

103-0082-PAN-MERLIN-Sketch-Aug30,10-WS.jpg
 
Now you've been thoroughly bitten by the working from life bug, John. It will get better and worse, better in the sense that the drawings will just keep getting better, worse in that it will become more of an addiction.

I was going through my sketchbook that covered most of the last year. I ran into a drawing I did on the bayshore side of Cape May last fall of a merlin. It was my first from life as well. It reminded me of just how much of a beginner you can feel when faced with a new bird. It may take me about 10 more merlins before I can feel comfortable with sketching them from life, at least I hope 10 will be enough!!
 
Western Wood-Pewee and Ruddy Duck

Hi again all,

Here are two more sketches from photos. Being so new to sketching from life, I feel that mixing in some sketches from photos will still be helpful to me learning to draw and paint birds in general until my life drawing skills improve a bit (or a lot, hopefully!). Or do the masters on this forum think it's best to forget the photos almost entirely, except perhaps as supplemental references to life drawings when turning them into a finished piece? I suspect this topic has been hashed through thoroughly before, so my apologies for the repeat question. I know Busby is completely anti-photo except for using in-flight fast shots to get a better handle on the mechanics of flight. Input appreciated as always...!

In any event, these were done quickly. The Western Wood-Pewee probably was fifteen minutes, done with an initial graphite sketch, then watercolor pencils followed by a water wash. The Ruddy Duck (one of my favorite waterfowl species because of the drake's rather comical breeding plumage) was done in Polychromos colored pencils and took probably 1 1/2 to 2 hours. The Wood-Pewee was done from a photo of mine, and the Ruddy Duck was a friend's photo used with permission.

Thanks!

103-0086-PAN-WWPEinWCPencils-Aug31,10-WS.jpg

103-0091-PAN-RuddyDuckInCP-Sep1,10-WS.jpg
 
Some beautifully done work here, rich in tones, colours and with a genuine feel of energy - the ruddy is a fine piece, they're not the most popular species over here as a potentially damaging non-native, but however people view that situation, nobody can deny how brilliant they are to paint!
 
love that blue bill....

I'm no master, and since it takes years to do that I think and I'm starting so late in life, I still use photos and mix with my sketches....here are some tips and ideas I use that I came across last year when I started the same place you are.

when out in the field always sketch from life no matter how bad

when I get home, I check my photos for details I couldn't see or didnt get right , next time out I really look for those parts

At home put the photos in slide show on the computer with 15 seconds time between....simulates the wild situation, go thorough the same show several times, you can add to the sketch each time, or draw again, this too is like field sketching where the bird returns to the same pose again...this really helped me sketch

Try to wean yourself off the dependency of a photo to do a work... you can tell if you are, draw the bird from memory if you can do a workman like job, you are not dependent any more and can use the photo to supplement. For me that was the big change.

Learn to value the truth of the honest response line, at least as much, maybe more than some human xerox copy of what the camera sees. And learn when the use of each is useful for the work of art.

Sometimes don't take the camera out so you won't be tempted and will be reliant only on your eye....this is bound to be a time when some instant unique moment happens you will never see again, and you'll say I wish I had my camera:-O

Hope some of that is useful....I expect I will always use photos in my work, but sure can tell a difference now when I do, my work even from photos is no longer frozen stiff....
 
Just looking at a number of Eastern Wood Pewees while out today John. At least they sometimes sit still long enough, and come back to the same perch so often, that you actually stand a reasonably good chance to sketch them from life, unlike the wood warblers.

I know the subject of working from photos has been brought up many times here and there are varying positions and feelings. I think what Colleen says makes a lot of sense. And I'll confess that I've never been good at developing a good enough mental image of anything to draw it well. My wife who's not an artist is actually much more skilled at this. I seem to need something in front of me.

The one thing that has struck me most about working from life is that it shows me what I don't know, and what I didn't even know I didn't know. So if I do then look at photos later I'm looking with a purpose, to figure out how the bird fits together. But it's working from life that is what gets me interested in how if fits together to begin with. And then of course they're is the 'jizz', the feeling of the bird, that you can only get in the field.

For instance Cedar Waxwings always seem very sleek to me so my most recent drawing of them tries to keep that feeling of sleekness, even though I'm mainly working from photos. The whole drawing though was prompted by a field sketch.

The other thing for me in working from photos is that it's hard to have an emotional connection to them unless I remember seeing the bird when I took the photo or have seen the bird in the field often enough that I feel like I'm still seeing the real bird even when I look at the photo.

The one thing I can't bring myself to do is work from photos of a bird I don't know, even if I took the photo. I have some photos of a lifer duck for me from last May, a Harlequin. But between some badly focused photos and my otherwise complete unfamiliarity with them I just can't bring myself to try to do something with them, handsome though they are.

To sum up, and this is just for me, if I can still feel an emotional reaction to a photo I took then I'm not averse to using it, especially if I've done some field sketches already.

But as someone who avoided getting out and doing field sketches for a couple of years I'd also add that it was very easy to find excuses for just using my own photos. But the work always seemed a bit lacking. Once I made a point of doing field sketches it got much more comforatble working from photos when that was all I had.

So I'd just say work with what you have but get out and work from life as much as you can. I think you'll be pleased with the results.
 
Thanks, plus House Finch and Pileated Woodpecker

HI guys!

Thanks Nick, Colleen and Ken for sharing your experience and advice. I definitely will wean myself off of photos as much as possible, but as with Colleen and Ken, they do have a practical purpose, especially for folks who are new at the game.

Nick - I didn't realize Ruddy Ducks were an invasive species over there. They have been declining in our area, and although not rare, they are not that easy to find. I see one or a couple each year, and that's about it.

Here are some more from life that I did yesterday evening and this morning. The first page contains three quick line sketches of House Finches near our feeders. They are in Pigma pen and the only one I had was a 1.0, so the lines are on the too-strong side. I feel I got the basic shapes sort of ok, but to me the birds look too generic. I'll have a lot of chances to practice on this species, as they are one of the daily species that is quite heavily represented around our feeders during fall and winter.

103-0099-PAN-HOFIfromLifeInPencil-Sep2,10-WS.jpg

The second drawing was done this morning on a quick birding walk through a natural area near my place. Right by the parking lot, a Pileated Woodpecker was hammering away on a dead tree within about 50 feet of the car. I dug out the camcorder and shot for a few minutes while he worked away. Later, a half mile away, I sat down to wait for some fall migrants to hopefully show up and TWO Pileateds landed in a nearby snag and started working. I decided to concentrate on the head and did this sketch quickly in Pigma 0.1 sepia pen and had only a couple minutes before they flew off. I think this came out a bit better overall than the House Finches, but it was another lesson in not knowing what you don't know as Ken mentioned. The dark stripe through and above the eye I got more or less correctly positioned in the field. However, even with binocs, it appeared to me that the dark malar stripe went from front to back across the chin. But when I got back and looked at the field book, it curves down along the neck and to the shoulder. Oh yes, in the field the eye appeared dark and so I drew it that way. In reality, the eye has an orange iris and a black pupil, different than what is shown here.

At that point I decided to put some watercolor washes on the bird using watercolor pencils. So here is the Pileated drawing/painting.

All comments and advice are very welcome.

103-0097-PAN-PIWOfromLifeInWC-Sep3,10-WS.jpg
 
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