Wednesday, April 5, 2017

ANOTHER START - BEACH BIRDS


After painting plants, I have to return to birds.  My reference for this sketch is a great photo taken of Royal Terns on the beach.  (Because of their black top-knot that looks slicked back, I always call these birds Elvis Birds.)

One of the terns is obviously getting a good talking-to for something, but it doesn't look like the message is getting through.  (Of course, it's actually a puffed up/large juvenile tern wanting his/her mother to FEED ME - like all birds do.  Mom was trying hard to ignore this insistent baby and just kept walking away, with baby following, squawking all the while.  


I drew the sketch out on tracing paper, and will transfer that to watercolor paper, pushing the birds farther apart so the beaks are not touching.




6 comments:

Jeanette Jobson said...

This should be a good one. Terns are always amusing, if not noisy, birds. Funny, I did a sketch a couple of years ago of an almost identical scene of two terns on a beach.

I'll look forward to seeing more.

http://carolking.wordpress.com said...

Elvis birds! Looks like a great start.

E.M. Corsa said...

My first thought was exactly what Jeanette said - "This should be a good one!"

Jennifer Rose said...

yeah the babies can be pushy when they want food, amusing to watch tho

another one i am looking forward to :) and really like your nickname for them

Lisa Le Quelenec said...

I have an insistant 'baby' at the moment so I know how the poor mum bird feels lol...

I loved the monochrome drawing that you did a while back of this type of bird and know this painting will be just as good!

RH Carpenter said...

Thanks, Jeanette (I searched on your blog to see that sketch = pretty close!).
Thanks, Carol, Elizabeth and Jennifer Rose :).
Thanks, Lisa. I guess babies of all species an be pretty insistent - I do like to watch the young birds flapping and chirping for food at our feeders now - new ones coming every day and you hear them early! I remember that drawing on the toned paper!