new to painting (1 Viewer)

i have recently tried my hand at oil painting having never held a brush before i have been to some classes painting landscapes using the "bob ross" technique with some moderate success for my next project i am hoping to attempt a reed bed and was hoping to include some birds possibily a marsh harrier and wondered if anyone had any tips (cheats) to acheive a good image

Hi Paul,
I'm a watercolour painter, not an oil painter. Re. "cheats" are you referring to getting a good drawing first? I suggest a lot of practice to get the drawing right. When you have one you're happy with, you can use a grid to change the size, or to transfer it to your canvas. You might want to check out an artist's website I belong to, called Wet Canvas! They have forums for just about any media, including oils, and drawing. You could probably pick up a lot of tips there. Like Bird Forum, it is free to join. But you can check it out, have a look in the forums, etc., without joining. The url is: www.wetcanvas.com. If you decide to join, you can indicate that I referred you. My username there is MLQ.