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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

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  1. J

    Getting the curved flight feathers right

    Hi Andy, Glad to see you've taken up drawing birds. You mentioned proportions in your first post, so you might find this helpful. When you've sketched your subject out lightly in pencil, check how different parts of the drawing relate to each other. Do this by choosing one measurement (eg the...
  2. J

    Moilanen's Birds

    Love the character of this bird. You've caught that really well. If you darken the branch to a similar tone to the tail, the positions of each will be less noticeable. Water-soluble graphite pencils are great, aren't they? A very under-used medium, I think.
  3. J

    Sketching birds and integrating colour/shadow

    Hi Andy, it's fine to use a graphite pencil for the under-drawing before using pastel. Or you could use charcoal - dust off the excess and you'll be left with a grey outline that won't affect the subsequent pastel colours. Or you could use a pastel pencil, that is a very similar colour to the...
  4. J

    Moilanen's Birds

    Hi Oskar, My thread was out of date too. I tried to resurrect it, but I might have to start a new one. Looks like you had a good sketching session. I especially like the tufted duck and the gull. Good idea to write notes alongside your drawings. If you don't mind, may I make a suggestion? Make...
  5. J

    Sketch

    Glad to read Bigshent's thread and to see that I'm not the only one to have been away from Bird Forum for aeons. Anyway, considered starting a new thread, but decided to resurrect this one, just so that all my stuff's in one place. Had loads of things going on over the past year or so. Led a...
  6. J

    Shents Scribbles

    Good work, especially if you haven't done much painting lately. Characteristic poses and pleasing liveliness in both of these.
  7. J

    Tips and tricks

    No secrets, but a few ideas that might help are: Choose just one species per sketching session, preferably going somewhere you can see lots of the same species. That way you won't get confused by the different proportions of many different species all at once. Start by looking closely and...
  8. J

    Sketch

    After an extended Bird Forum holiday - can't believe it's over a year since I posted anything - I'm back. I hope this doesn't duplicate anyone else's post, though it's worth repeating if it does, but Katrina van Grouw's book The Unfeathered Bird has now been completed. All being well, it is...
  9. J

    Welcome to Nick's dining room table.

    So let me get this right, you're not content with making me jealous of your sketching talent, now you're making me jealous of your birding experiences too? ;) Seriously, all credit to you - fabulous sketches when time and materials are against you. You've really given us the feel of the caper...
  10. J

    My Pictures

    Waxwings with attitude! I love those sketches, they have real character.
  11. J

    Sketch

    Thanks for the comments about the Grey Wagtail pic everyone. I repainted the water several times, so it's a relief you find it convincing. Love the idea of a dipper flying downstream Phil, especially as I keep "dipping out" on dippers. (Sorry, pun intended.)
  12. J

    Sketch

    If you're going to post comments like that... ...I don't mind how long ago it was!"
  13. J

    Recent sketches

    Lovely cormorant sketches. I particularly like the quality of line in those head studies (2nd batch): terrific work. Since you asked for a crit I'll just suggest checking size of head compared to size of body. Maybe head should be slightly smaller or body bigger? But I'm just being picky -...
  14. J

    I think I need feedbacks...

    I love these sketchbook pages - everything from the characterful sketches to the page designs, textures, use of text... Keep it up, you're on to a winner.
  15. J

    GREETINGS...Introducing myself to this Forum

    Hi, welcome to the forum as an artist not just as a viewer. Lovely woodpecker and an intriguing combination of materials. Can't wait for the next image.
  16. J

    Sketch

    I'm back from an extended BirdForum holiday, though sadly I didn't go anywhere so it wasn't a real holiday. Many thanks to everyone for the kind comments about the woodpigeon painting since my last post. I'm marking my return with this acrylic of a grey wagtail. I wanted to use the angular pose...
  17. J

    Mall Galleries Wildlife Exhibition 2010

    I'm wondering how much of the PV wine Neil consumed before he took that footage! There are a few images from the exhibition on the SWLA website http://www.swla.co.uk/index.htm. The site also has a Members List section with images and web links for each artist. They aren't necessarily recent...
  18. J

    Mall Galleries Wildlife Exhibition 2010

    Thanks, Nick. Don't know what the others thought, but my impression was that sales at the PV were well down this year. There must have been a sales spurt later.
  19. J

    Mall Galleries Wildlife Exhibition 2010

    Wow, that's great, thanks Mike. I stayed at the PV til early evening and it hadn't sold then so this is a surprise. Well done to Tim & Nick too. Lots of great work there as usual, and I thought it was a more consistant standard this time - no single piece stood out above the others to me, though...
  20. J

    Wings Over Winecountry, Colleen's place

    Don't know about you two, but I find the size of my sketches relates to confidence. When I first started drawing from life everything was tiny but as I progressed I started to draw larger. Even now I tend to draw smaller if I feel out of practice. Time may be a factor too. If I know my subject...
  21. J

    Joint Thread

    Lovely light on your mourning dove. I feel like I'm there, watching it.
  22. J

    I think I need feedbacks...

    Just had a belated look at your fabulous Ibis sketches. You have a wonderful ability to capture character without getting bogged down in detail. Lovely work!
  23. J

    Sketch

    Here's my latest painting. Woodpigeons aren't a subject I'd usually find inspiring, but I happened to look out of the studio window to see these two in a nearby cherry tree. The light was filtering through the branches and I just loved the mix of colour and shadows. I've tried to keep a loose...
  24. J

    JTMB's Bird Art

    Aaargh! It's so frustrating how many art teachers have put people off the subject. I guarantee that in every beginners' class I teach, at least one person will make a similar comment to yours. I'm sure there are good art teachers all over the world, but there also seems to be a proliferation of...
  25. J

    Sketch

    Thanks for the feedback. No, I didn't think Google ad-words were worth bothering with either. I just use various online methods to share my art. Sales are nice obviously, but I think collectors probably search for known artists by their name rather than other search terms. Having said that...
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