RED-TAILED HAWK, PART 1

While painting in the field during my last trip, I was trying to be aware of the local wildlife while I worked listening for bird song and keeping an eye out for any flyovers. I did manage to see a number of new species for me this time but also enjoyed re-acquainting myself with those birds on the West coast that I am not so familiar with. Disappointing was that most of the thrushes had stopped singing and were rather thin on the ground. Apart from the odd Kestrel and a few Bald Eagles, most of the raptors I saw were Red-tailed Hawks. Which got me thinking that I hadn't painted any birds recently so when things were running smoothly back in the studio again, I started on this portrait. Here I have washed in a background colour of Raw Sienna, Yellow Ochre and Sepia on smooth Arches w/c paper. When dry, I made a careful drawing of the bird then started modeling form using light washes of Burnt Sienna and Cobalt Blue. The darker areas were dropped in using washes of Sepia.