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Ed's thread (2 Viewers)

You also, I hope. looking very nice, by the way. Errrr, the plodwank, not you - no offence.

Usual combo from weekend

- Nodding Dogshank nudged along

- managed to get out as a friend of my son wanted to see a Buzzard and we manged to get on this one as it went upfor late afternoon flap round. So rather rewarding and a capture the moment image rendered in haste with the tools to hand at the office. The background turned out interesting- green highlighter with dilute blackcurrent juice on top, which turns it blue I discover.
 

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Excellent remembered observation this Ed - just the way it should be done! Purple and green highlighter makes blue, eh? - they didn't do that one on the Tweenies. I'd better try a bit of that me-sel.
Just to be fascile - the second drawing down - you really ought to stop b*ggering about and get this little character onto a canvas - stunning.
 
Hello all. Unusual subject for this weeks Monday lunchtime sketch (cartoon) as I don't normally spend much time on cricket or passerines. But had the pleasure on Sunday of watching a Pied Wagtail taking a catch at Lords with Kevin Pietersen in action in the background.

I have a nagging feeling the wag is based on a mental image of a drawing I have seen somewhere, but I don't know where.. so apologies if I have nicked it off this forum or indeed from anywhere else.

Disgraceful composition too, but the mid-foreground was vast and empty and hopefully the mown squares knit it all together..
 

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Hello all. Unusual subject for this weeks Monday lunchtime sketch (cartoon) as I don't normally spend much time on cricket or passerines. But had the pleasure on Sunday of watching a Pied Wagtail taking a catch at Lords with Kevin Pietersen in action in the background.

I have a nagging feeling the wag is based on a mental image of a drawing I have seen somewhere, but I don't know where.. so apologies if I have nicked it off this forum or indeed from anywhere else.

Disgraceful composition too, but the mid-foreground was vast and empty and hopefully the mown squares knit it all together..


Lovely work Ed, you've hit me for six...I'm bowled over in fact!

(will apologize for that later, honest;))
 
That's a nice reaction to the crick pic from all- in answer to On-Firecrest, the style has evolved out of a determination to seize the moment and crack on and produce something- so these little novelty items are rattled out at my desk monday lunchtimes using biro, coffee and other stuff to hand. Strictly no artists materials.

Meantimes in another world the Nodding Dogshank nods on. Currently on some really hard bits, mapping out where spots and streaks will go and trying to get them to look right. One of the hardest things in all bird painting IMHO- source of tears ever since I first ever tried to get the barring on a Peregrine to turn into spots on the upper chest without too abrupt a transition or looking too regular..

Once that little challenge is o'ercome, the bird gets feather texture, fringing and the subtle stuff added all over and some shadows and lights and hoorah I can move on...
 

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One of the things that really amazes me about your work and attitude to 'it' is the disparate nature of your handling of media. I would never have imagined that an artist who can conjour up a piece of wildlife art in between the 5th and 6th balls of the 18th over at said test ground with such click and vibrancy - could then have the balls-aching patience to sculpt a fine piece of illustration such as is emerging before our very eyes. What's the secret Ed?
Wonderful, informative works - both of them.
 
That's a nice reaction to the crick pic from all- in answer to On-Firecrest, the style has evolved out of a determination to seize the moment and crack on and produce something- so these little novelty items are rattled out at my desk monday lunchtimes using biro, coffee and other stuff to hand. Strictly no artists materials.

Meantimes in another world the Nodding Dogshank nods on. Currently on some really hard bits, mapping out where spots and streaks will go and trying to get them to look right. One of the hardest things in all bird painting IMHO- source of tears ever since I first ever tried to get the barring on a Peregrine to turn into spots on the upper chest without too abrupt a transition or looking too regular..

Once that little challenge is o'ercome, the bird gets feather texture, fringing and the subtle stuff added all over and some shadows and lights and hoorah I can move on...

Ed amazing ! thought your pied Wag is sublime, your style is wonderful
good to see the Nodding Dogshank progressing. Barring on the breast
of a peregrine ah .. . The stuff of nightmares know where your comin
from on that one. Could'nt crack it for years but one day Yes...
it all comes together blood sweat and lots and lots andlots of
tears!

great work Ed
 
...

Barring on the breast
of a peregrine ah .. . The stuff of nightmares know where your comin
from on that one.

I thought you might...

I duno how long I must have spent during the poster paint era (that's the 1970s for the younger forum members) trying to copy Thorburn/Lodge/Tunnicliffe/DM Henry Peregrines by daubing small ill-formed bars onto what passed for pinkish wash, end result looking like what I would now recognise as a piece of char-grilled salmon.

Then if miraculously the breast and flanks worked out OK, you had to take a deep breath and start on the barred scaps and mantle..
 
I thought you might...

I duno how long I must have spent during the poster paint era (that's the 1970s for the younger forum members) trying to copy Thorburn/Lodge/Tunnicliffe/DM Henry Peregrines by daubing small ill-formed bars onto what passed for pinkish wash, end result looking like what I would now recognise as a piece of char-grilled salmon.

Then if miraculously the breast and flanks worked out OK, you had to take a deep breath and start on the barred scaps and mantle..

:-O :-O , Yes the religious worship and copying of his holyness
D.M. Reid Henry 's Gyr falcons Too , from Hawks Eagles Falcons of the
world. (early eighties for me!) Total torment sometimes if you didn't
quite pull it off, or got to the end but did the feet wrong ARRHHH!!.

I have a phobia still when it comes to getting feet right, usually
the last thing I put in still today. My wife ribs me mercilesly about
it,

" have you finished it yet " ,

um Yeah.

" what about the feet !"

EERR UMM just doing that:-C


"Just put em in !!!"

"Yes Dear"
 
Never seen a red naped nodding dogshank, hear they are increasingly rare these days!

It does look like a bunch of matadors have been at it, a previously unidentified threat..the Bloody Napeshank.

I should add, just to tie the two little threadettes above together, that I happened to be browsing yesterday evening in an old book of my father's and the frontispiece- a DM Henry painting of a Red-naped Shaheen. So red napes all round- funny old world.
 
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It does look like a bunch of matadors have been at it, a previously unidentified threat..the Bloody Napeshank.

I should add, just to tie the two little threadettes above together, that I happened to be browsing yesterday evening in an old book of my father's and the frontispiece- a DM Henry painting of a Red-naped Shaheen. So red napes all round- funny old world.

What Book was it Ed, ?
 
Well here's what I was up to today lunchtime, not originally intended for posting but then I thought well why not stick em up..reason for this little working out session is a promise to self to re-learn (maybe learn for the first time) how a generic wader (chose Buff-breast for ease of photo reference) lores and ear coverts are laid out. Resolve strengthened by looking at some skins last month and being amazed by how few feathers go to make up the pattern..for some reason, prior to this latest Nod-related exercise I had thought they had millions of tiny feathers like those close up pics you see of a Honey Buzzard's wasp-proofing.

Now if anyone fancies printing off pic 1, drawing on their version and posting - that would not be out of order at all.
 

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Thats really good stuff to see. As virtually a complete beginner in bird art i do appreciate that it has taken some of you folks years of hard work to get where you are and produce such great work - its like all drawing isn't it - there are no short cuts you've really got to get in there and see whats going on.
 
Thats really good stuff to see. As virtually a complete beginner in bird art i do appreciate that it has taken some of you folks years of hard work to get where you are and produce such great work - its like all drawing isn't it - there are no short cuts you've really got to get in there and see whats going on.
That's a well-put description Wendy - get in there and see what's going on - I like!
Very nice studies Ed. As you point out, different species are arranged very differently indeed. What about an Emperor Penguin, maybe?
 
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