• 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.

May Sketchathon! (1 Viewer)

And...

Woody
 

Attachments

  • sketchathon6.jpg
    sketchathon6.jpg
    104.3 KB · Views: 61
  • sketchathon7.jpg
    sketchathon7.jpg
    184.7 KB · Views: 72
  • sketchathon8.jpg
    sketchathon8.jpg
    88.6 KB · Views: 70
  • sketchathon9.jpg
    sketchathon9.jpg
    139.8 KB · Views: 68
  • sketchathon10.jpg
    sketchathon10.jpg
    81.5 KB · Views: 75
Wendy, I agree with what others have said except that the wheatear is my favourite. It feels right to me having been watching some very smart males over the weekend. You've caught that upright stance perfectly. Love the landscapes too, I'm planning some en plein air myself in the summer.

Elizabeth, good luck with the sketching! I'm looking forward to seeing birds described in those effortless, flowing lines of yours already.

Woody
 
Thanks all for your encouragement. It is really great to participate and to see everyones work. I shall certainly continue and hope to do some sketching on Skomer island this or next weekend sailing permitting. For those who dont know Skomer it is a small island off the Pembrokeshire coast here in Wales - Just over an hour from me. Really worth a special visit especially spring and summer because it has hundreds of puffins as well as many other breeding sea birds
including shearwaters which I saw up in Scotland by the way.

Happy sketching! Dryslwyn
 
Woody, lots of stuff to be inspiring your next painting I see, my absolute ABSOLUTE favourite is the last one, the quickly scribbled yellow wag on a fencepost, there's so little pencil, and so much of the bird's character. The colour on the avocet's nest is brilliantly rendered. Looking forward to seeing what paintings develop from these, personally I'd like to see a painting of these so-called 'ugly little fluffballs'. :)
 
my absolute ABSOLUTE favourite is the last one, the quickly scribbled yellow wag on a fencepost, there's so little pencil, and so much of the bird's character.

Glad you said that Nick - It's my favourite too.
I think the redshank on the fence may turn into a painting but I've got so many ideas at the moment that my head's spinning as it is! :D

Woody
 
I've got so many ideas at the moment that my head's spinning as it is! :D

Woody

Tell me about it, I'm still trying to get through all the pics I was going to do from last month's camping trip, and now there just seems to be more to do. Maybe I should get off the internet and into the dining room!

The redshank will make an excellent pic!
 
Woody, I have to agree with Nick on that last sketch. That's the one man!

So, being inspired, I might try to find time to go through some relatively new photos I have and do some sketches from that today. Are we allowing that?

I forgot to mention to Wendy that I love watching you work, so to speak. I think what everyone has said about it all is pretty spot on. I can't decide if I prefer the wheateater over the grasshopper warbler; both are so well executed with the minimal amount of detail as possible...I hope that makes sense, I seem to be at a lose for the right word right now.

Anyway, cheers to everyone!
 
Redshank and Yellowwag are elegantly drawn - and brimming with character. I'm drawn (no pun) to the avocet as well - simply because it's beautiful!
Elizabeth - I think you ought to get t he house cleared first! ;) and in my opinion, a good drawing is a good drawing, regardless of derivation. As Nick so eloquently put it earlier in the thread - visual memory or not - the creative process is what counts. I for one, don't field sketch to make documentay images - I do it to feel part of the natural world and it then begins to reveal itself to me, little by little - this is when the drawings work. If, by working from your photographs, you can transport yourself back to the time and place where you observed the subject, perhaps you can also 'reconstitute' the whole ambience of being in the field. I was just going to add - be careful not just to copy the photos - and then I remembered who I was aiming the comment at. Interpretation is what you're all about!
Just been back to your sketches Woody - and I missed the coot - which is tip top. What's a fluffy lump (sheep's wool - or something more sinister?)
 
Last edited:
Some lovely sketches coming in , this one is for Woody.I know he likes his Barn Owls. This one was so busy hunting it did't bother about me coming up to about twenty feet away twice head on .It was magic.
 

Attachments

  • Barno 3.jpg
    Barno 3.jpg
    47.3 KB · Views: 75
  • Barno 4.jpg
    Barno 4.jpg
    43.6 KB · Views: 92
First page, bottom bird is the one for me, that is truly excellent. Wish it would stop raining here so I could get out scribbling, not much fun getting soggy sketchbooks.
 
First page, bottom bird is the one for me, that is truly excellent. Wish it would stop raining here so I could get out scribbling, not much fun getting soggy sketchbooks.

I agree to both points!

After a slow start this is taking off. A lot of excellent sketches, gives me something to work to. Thanks to everyone who's posted, can't wait to see what else is to come.
 
Well there you go that was my holiday, apart from the bit where I was dragged around the shops in the rain.

Dont know where to start Paul. great field sketches. Really like the stone curlew amd the spoonbill drawings, full of life and display a keen eye for posture. The Eider drawings are favourites, really good solid field sketching, keep up the great work...
 
These are a couple of sketches I did with the help of a still image although I did do some 'jottings'. Never seen a grasshopper warbler before. It was amazing - it sat on a rock trembling and emitting that strange insect like noise. It was so small and looked so fragile. Its so hard to believe they travel so far and that any survive.
View attachment 84844 View attachment 84845

Hope to find time to work up some sketches.

Dryslwyn

These are wonderful, particularily the Grasshopper Warbler, a great little painting that oozes character. The earlier landscapes are most accomplished as mentioned, however this little painting is a triumph. a pleasure to view it and thank you for posting and indeed, taking part...
 
I have the itch and only have a day to wait!

Wish me success![/QUOTE]


The itch was scratched so well!! The Yellow Wagtail calling is a stunning little field skech. Like the Common Tern a lot to on the fence, the colour Avocet is tremendous too. So much great stuff on the thread now its hard to keep up...
 
Some lovely sketches coming in , this one is for Woody.I know he likes his Barn Owls. This one was so busy hunting it did't bother about me coming up to about twenty feet away twice head on .It was magic.

Lovely Arthur, I agree with the others that bottom sketch is spot on. You're quite right, I can't get enough barn owls! I love it when they fly straight at you. My 'local' barn owl seems more cautious this year, I wonder whether the brood is not so big this year so he's not hunting quite so intensively as last year. Can't wait for my holiday in Norfolk in august, I'm hoping to spend a bit more time in the company of your barnies!

Woody
 
I see you got a mention in Birds Illustrated Woody. It is Birds Birds Birds in Faversham. for May. ent. Water Birds.

'Tis indeed Arthur. I'm off to the preview this evening, it will be the first showing of my ringed plovers on the pebbles, and probably the redshank too among other, older stuff, so I'm quite looking forward to it. I see also that, in the ad, my painting of wigeon over Oare has been attributed to Paul Apps! Can't win 'em all eh?

Woody
 
Good luck Woody - I'm sure your stuff will simply walk off the wall (just hope someone pays for it, this time !!! ;) )
With regard to other artists getting credit for your work - can't imagine that ever happening ;)
My fulmar piece is exhibited next week - PV on Friday.
 
Nice day

Just to bring the thread back on line, so to speak.
Managed to pinch 35 minutes on the cliffs this afternoon - super day, but now I remember why I used to like my opld Opticron HR60 STRAIGHT scope - my new Nikon ED82 ANGLED is a superior beast for 'normal' conditions, but when you are trying to look almost vertically down a cliff-face, you end up nearly falling over the bl**dy cliff!!! - Not funny!
Anyway - here are a few drawings I managed. I may workone or two up later on . . .
 

Attachments

  • guil1800.jpg
    guil1800.jpg
    87.2 KB · Views: 91
  • guil2800.jpg
    guil2800.jpg
    112 KB · Views: 85
  • guil3800.jpg
    guil3800.jpg
    78.2 KB · Views: 87
Warning! This thread is more than 17 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