Painting no. 28

Painting no. 28

Crested Tit

When I first started seriously painting birds I told myself I would only paint birds that I have seen and experienced, starting with the birds in my garden - remember my garden bird series?   I still try and do this as I do prefer to paint birds/animals/landscapes I've actually studied from life and would preferably like to paint them from life!  However I've not got the skill yet for that - and probably never will - they just won't keep still long enough and I'm in awe of artists who sketch wildlife in the field.  I will give it a go at some point  but the next best thing for me is to use the photos taken (or rather Gary has taken) when we're out and about in the mountains, at Nature Reserves, in the garden, at the zoo etc etc.   I don't think it really makes a difference to the finished painting in my case - can you tell from this painting whether I've seen a Crested Tit? Probably not!  And unfortunately I haven't seen one ...... yet.. but hopefully when we go to Scotland later in the year I will get to see one .... but I've studied many other birds and hope it comes across how much I adore them!   Anyway the reason I've painted this little cutie is because it is the current theme on Paint Colorful Birds for Fun on facebook and I couldn't resist it.  After painting him I can't wait to see one for real (fingers crossed) when we visit Scotland in June