Night-herons are undeniably neat creatures. I first came across them during trips to Florida when I was a grad student and assisting with a course called Ecology of the Everglades. I had a tough time picking which I liked better, the Yellow-crowned or Black-crowned. Typically, the … Continued
Growing up in western New York state, I never saw Sandhill Cranes. My first encounter with one was during a bike ride shortly after moving to Ann Arbor to go to grad school at the University of Michigan. Rolling along … Continued
The sleek, fine feathering of Cedar Waxwings makes for a good challenge in watercolor. When picking out what to paint next, I usually try to choose things I’ve not done before. Breaking new ground keeps things fresh and offers new challenges. … Continued
This is a bit of a change in media for me. I haven’t done a pen-and-ink drawing in over 20 years! I was cleaning up my flat files, going through old paintings and sketches when I came across a piece … Continued
Years ago I read a quote by a famous bird photographer that stuck in my mind. He proclaimed, “Pictures of birds singing are hard to make but easy to sell!” I don’t know if that can be extrapolated to paintings, but it … Continued
It’s been over a month since I posted. I’ve been insanely busy with medical illustration and animation work, which is good, since my freelance work tends to be “Feast or Famine.” Plus, it was peak season for mountain biking. This blog is … Continued
I’ve always been amazed at how sturdy these little dynamos are. Being one of the earliest migrants in the spring and one of the latest in the fall, they tolerate a lot of cold weather. On top of that they … Continued
Getting good photos of Golden-crowned Kinglets to draw from is tough. We get them in decent numbers in our yard during the spring and fall months, but in their search for edible insects, they bounce around like electrons. I have dozens … Continued
This drawing is from an old photo. I got the reference for this diving pelican years ago from the pier near the lighthouse on Sanibel Island. I was on a photo trip with my brother Ted, and what a great time we … Continued
Golden-crowned Kinglets are powerfully cute, so this transparent watercolor painting was great fun to complete. In our house family members tend to get distracted by birds in the yard. That is a hazard—and benefit—of homeschooling the kids. It’s also probably one reason why our … Continued