Birds and Backgrounds

Copying one of Florida's beautiful water birds from a photo is not so hard, but putting the bird in a setting that looks natural or just completes the painting is much harder. In my fifth year of our wonderful water color class at the Pines, I am working hard on pulling it all together. I could not do any of this without our volunteer instructor, Bob. It is also a great pleasure to be in a class of students ranging from beginner to professional. Collectively, the resulting paintings are inspiring and amazing.

Green Heron

The green heron is difficult to spot as you walk along the boardwalk of a nature preserve. He is shy and hides under greenery at the water's edge. He looks neckless, but has a very long neck which he contracts until it is needed to snatch some food. His neck is probably 10 inches long.

Limpkin

The Limpkin can be very noisy and he gets his name from his slow, crippled appearance when walking.

Snowy Egret (work in progress)

This bird and his background are mostly imaginary although loosely based on a real bird. This is a huge leap of faith for me as I grow as an artist.