• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Winter Journal (1 Viewer)

mayoayo

Well-known member
Greetings..I am starting a new thread to document a bit my field work in this coming season.Since my new location is reasonably close to some good observation sites,i am planning on going out at least a full day each week,to do some studies. I feel a bit more confident using watercolor in the field,and i am actually becoming very fond of the technique..Last year i purchased my first good set of watercolor,a nice w&n artist color set with a good selection of rich colors,and the difference with other lesser sets i used before is huge.These are very beautiful colors and I cant wait to get out and keep practicing.
These last two weeks i was able to go out one day each week.My first outing was the first time since july that i was out birding,after a very busy and stressing summer ,so You can imagine how much i enjoyed..Still,the sketches were not very good,for i felt a bit "rusty",and could not develop much ..The second outing,last Tuesday,was a bit better.I felt more natural and made sense of everything i started,I even went back and reworked a sketch i had started last week,when the very same bird appeared in scene ,pretty much in the same place(resident Greenshank)..weel,i was happy with the result,and for now is the only bit worth of sharing,so here You go..I hope i can keep posting in this thread all the way til next summer..
So number one,"La Gamba Verda"....
 

Attachments

  • image.jpeg
    image.jpeg
    374.9 KB · Views: 179
Another day in the field,,, Today a number of Snipes were moving around and i was able to watch them and paint a little. I am not unhappy with the results,and i had a great time,but still a lot of room for improvement..These pieces are a couple inches larger than A3 in each side..I would like to work a bit larger,but the format i am using is the bigger size i can fit between my back and my bacpack !
Anyway..number two of this winter journal:
" Becadell al Delta del Llobregat"
 

Attachments

  • image.jpeg
    image.jpeg
    407.7 KB · Views: 204
Last edited:
Nice Greenshank and congratulations on having the resolve!

I was going to comment yesterday during an exploratory visit but didn't and now Ed has beat me to it. I completely agree. Keep at it and congratulations on doing so. I hope that others will join you here as it's a great way to get support and encouragement.
 
Hi again..Thanks for the kind words ..Ken ,i saw your facebook page and you are full blast with loads of nice work..congratulations..
Last week I did not go out,or better said I did not work in the field..Found lots of birds though,that I am planning to study in the comming weeks,..A couple of Little Ows,in a nearby farm house at the edge of town,and a gorgeous Peregrine that seems to live in the local church tower..saw her this morning at 8 am eating a pigeon,and even though being in the middle of town,I think I will go tomorrow and try to sketch with scope ,even if i get some looks from people walking by..It is an irressitible bird!
I did go out today,hoping to find a Bittern that was seen a couple days ago in the local reserve,but the "Heron-Owl",as i call it,did not showed its streaked neck,,,I saw a very agressive Goshawk kill and eat an egret,though and was able to try my luck with some sketches..I was at the time trying to draw Lapwigs,but the Gos was more interesting...The bird was there for a good while,and i did some notes when the views allowed ,most of them pretty bad,..finally was able to engage in a sketch that i liked and worked on it for a little bit,but i got a bit distracted with a group of people that entered the hide,and lost momentum..I digiscoped a few pics and videos though ,and im planning to go back to this note ,and finish it a little...
(By the way, Ed, i saw in your blog that you were digitally finishing some charcoal sketches with good results..maybe thats a way for me to experiment with these unfinished drawings...)
Anyway..i leave you a picture of the field sketch for now and if i do some work to it,ill post it
Page three of my winter journal.."Azor on the works"
 

Attachments

  • image.jpeg
    image.jpeg
    394.3 KB · Views: 134
Last edited:
Geez ,,!

Hello once again,welcome back..today i am not going to write a lot,but want to share a picture i made a few days ago,and that ,if not finished,at least has a good composition and i am happy with the rendering...These guys arrived last week and are staying for the winter,so I shall have good chances of studying them again,perhaps even finish this same piece a little..
My local Peregrine seems to be stablished ,and i see her everyday ,but so far only did a few notes one afternoon,and a couple of drawings of one of her meals that i found lying in the street ,few yards from the church tower..A Woodcock !!!.I took it home,but my daughter forced me to dispose of the body and didnt have much time to study the poor thing..cool bird though...So besides finishing the Geese,i have to do a full study of my neighbor Peregrine one of these days,,,oh..Also saw two Bonelli's Eagles that seem to live not too far...so plenty of birds to draw
Now i leave you with these study of the Greylag Geese ..
Thanks for stopping by
Manuel
 

Attachments

  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    68.9 KB · Views: 114
Last edited:
Hi Manuel,

Nice water colours you have produced here and you have captured the composition nicely, It is not a easy Thing To do when out in the field/outdoors to capture what you see and put it down on paper, your mind has to be Fully On what it is doing I have tried in the past to capture with a pencil on paper tufted ducks working/drawing very Small with some success but with other distractions around I found it not easy, my mind can wander at the most quite of times, but my Interest for art is always there so I admire your pictures I think Water colours are a wonderful way to capture nature look forward to seeing more pictures from you here.
 
Alright ...!..thanks..I dont have more watercolors ,unfortunately,..on my last visit to the hide i tried to finish the geese,but did not go well,so lets hang onto the last picture for now..,!..Got a Lil bittern sitting in a dark spot,quite far,but the light was fading and my scope ,pushed to 60x ,got too dim for detail,but it was the longest observation i had for the species,that stayed there for quite a long time...I have to look at some of the studies from that last outing again,maybe there is something worth to post,or at least to finish in the studio...will see..
Over the weekend went back to look for the Bonelli's eagle but only found a common buzzard ,still nice to watch..did a number of fast studies with a fountain pen,but wast happy and looked for some other media..had with me a bic ballpen,and that felt better,.more ductil,and smooth...so inspired by the media i went today to look for my new neighbor ,Mrs Peregrine,with an hour and a half to kill ,my scope ,sketch pad and ..the biro...Didnt go too bad,i struggled to gain momentum ,but found good trends to get a grip ,and worked until the light allowed and kids coming out of school reminded me that i was in the mid of town.The sketch is ok,but now i see her looking abit concerned,and on top of the church she showed no worries..just pure fierceness..
Ok..another page,"Peregrine sketch"
 

Attachments

  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    101.4 KB · Views: 88
Avocet and Godwit

A half day on the hide today,after a long while ...good birds and had a good time sketching...A chance to post a note on this abandoned thread..I am quite busy these days..
Thx
 

Attachments

  • image.jpeg
    image.jpeg
    83.7 KB · Views: 132
Very nice! I like the idea of a bird journal. I might try to start something like that when the birds come back. Cheers!
 
Warning! This thread is more than 8 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top