 Wildlife
art and other useful book recommendations
'Drawing
Birds' by John Busby
I learnt more about art in a weekend class with the late,
great John Busby than I had in all my school art lessons, and
here is John's experience and wisdom laid down for your benefit.
Lavishly illustrated by John and guest artists, and packed with
useful advice, this should be in the library of any (aspiring) bird
artist >>
Drawing Birds by John Busby
'Drawing
& Painting Birds' by Tim Wootton
Another great book the bird artist shouldn't be without is Drawing
& Painting Birds by Tim Wootton. A veritable treasure trove
of images and art tips, again with plenty of guest artists' images
to inspire >>
Drawing and Painting Birds by Tim Wootton
'I'd
rather be in the studio! The Artist's No-Excuse Guide to Self-Promotion'
by Alyson B Stanfield
A must for everyone who wants to sell their art, and should be compulsory
reading for art students. Even if you're already marketing your
art you'll still pick up tips from this book. Just one extra sale
and it will have paid for itself. Bargain! >>
I'd Rather Be in the Studio!: The Artist's No-excuse Guide to
Self-promotion by Alyson B Stanfield
Sargent
Portrait Drawings, Dover Art Library
It’s no secret John Singer Sargent is one of my art heroes, so I
was delighted to find a book about his portrait drawings. Wonderful
images in their own right, they’re also a masterclass in tonal drawing,
quality of line and using an eraser as a drawing tool. At just over
£5 you’ll never find a more affordable masterpiece! >>
Sargent Portrait Drawings (Dover Art Library)
'The
Unfeathered Bird' by Katrina Van Grouw
Katrina van Grouw's
The Unfeathered Bird is a unique book on bird anatomy. Crucially
it shows the birds in lifelike positions and indulging in typical
behaviour, a real bonus for the wildlife artist. All the drawings
are made from actual specimens, and Katrina's draughtsmanship is
second to none. If you've ever wondered what goes on beneath the
feathers this book is for you. And if the thought of muscle and
bone seems a little gruesome, rest assured there is a quirky humour
to the images that will make you smile rather than squirm. Another
essential for the bird artist's library. >>The
Unfeathered Bird by Katrina van Grouw
'The
Wildlife Artist's Handbook' by Jackie Garner
Well, I would
recommend my own book, wouldn't I? But the main reason is because
it's different from the usual 'How to...' books on the market. The
Wildlife Artist's Handbook acts as a companion to the reader
as they progress from the first tentative drawings of a moving subject,
to being confident enough to share their work with a local, then
global, audience. It is a dual purpose book, offering practical
advice, and showcasing wildlife art from history and from 30 contemporary
professional artists. Whether or not the reader picks up a pencil,
they will enjoy the inspiring images from this beautiful book. >>The
Wildlife Artist's Handbook' by Jackie Garner
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Optical equipment recommendations
Swarovski
binoculars and telescope
My first thought when I used my new Swarovski binoculars was “Oh,
that’s what I’ve been missing all this time”. I was delighted with
them when I bought them and I’m still delighted with them years
later. I recently tried the very latest ELs and I was amazed that
they were even better - I didn’t think that was possible. Using
the best optical equipment is pure pleasure and I love this company’s
commitment to wildlife conservation too. I use 8.5x42 EL binoculars
and an ATS 80 HD telescope with a 20-60x eyepiece. If you want to
use a telescope for wildlife sketching purposes choose an angled
eyepiece so you can shift your gaze between subject and sketchpad
with minimal movement. www.swarovskioptik.com
Canon
EOS 600D Digital SLR
I'm certainly not an expert photographer but I get a real buzz from
using my camera. It has coped admirably with every light level from
the British countryside to Egyptian tombs, or my own studio to museums
and galleries. It's aimed at entry level amateur usage and if you
want a camera that takes everything in its stride, is comfortable
to use and will do far more than you'll need, this is it. The Canon
EOS 600D Digital SLR Camera (inc. 18-55 mm f/3.5-5.6 IS II Lens
Kit) is the latest version of mine. And here's the Canon
EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS II Lens for the above camera.
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 Art
Material recommendations
Paint
brushes
Winsor & Newton's Series 7 kolinsky sable watercolour brushes
The Rolls Royce of paintbrushes. I'll compromise on some things
but never on watercolour brushes. They've been made to the highest
standards since Queen Victoria commanded Winsor & Newton to make
the very finest watercolour brushes. Unbeatable.
Winsor & Newton Series 7 Kolinsky Sable Water Colour Brush (size 2)
Winsor
& Newton Series 7 Kolinsky Sable Water Colour Brush (size 4)
Winsor
& Newton Series 7 Kolinsky Sable Water Colour Brush (size 7)
Winsor
& Newton Series 7 Kolinsky Sable Water Colour Brush (size 10)
Liquitex
Acrylics
Anyone who has been to one of my acrylics workshops can be in no
doubt of my preferred brand. I use Liquitex’s Heavy Body range because
I love the thick, buttery quality of the paint. It’s always a consistent
quality and can be thinned down or bulked up when necessary to suit
the varying painting requirements. It seems to me to have a slightly
slower drying time than some other makes, which is a definite advantage.
My favourite colours for wildlife art are: Titanium White, Unbleached
Titanium, Ultramarine, Yellow Oxide, Burnt Sienna, Burnt Umber,
Raw Umber, Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow Light. Available from good
art materials stockists such as Jacksons
Art Supplies or Ken
Bromley Art Supplies
Fabriano
Artistico Extra White Watercolour blocks
Fabriano watercolour paper seems to fall in to the Marmite category
(you either love it or hate it). I love it – the paper, not the
Marmite – because it’s always consistent quality, acid free, it’s
strong enough to lift off colour without damaging the surface and
no animal by-products are used in the manufacturing process. Blocks
are a little more expensive than sheets of paper but I’d much rather
spend my time painting than stretching paper so I consider it money
well spent. You can find out more about watercolour paper in my
blog post Watercolour
paper - the differences explained
>>
WATERCOLOUR BLOCK FABRIANO EXTRA WHITE 9x12 140lb HP
>>
WATERCOLOUR BLOCK FABRIANO EXTRA WHITE 12x18 140lb HP
>>
WATERCOLOUR BLOCK FABRIANO EXTRA WHITE 9x12 140lb NOT
>>
WATERCOLOUR BLOCK FABRIANO EXTRA WHITE 12x18 140lb NOT
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 Miscellaneous
recommendations
Daylight
lamp
I don’t want to stop painting when the light levels drop, so here’s
my secret weapon. It’s a daylight balanced, twin fluorescent tube
lamp that clips to my drawing board or can be attached to a base
on the floor. It gives a wide, even beam of light and is 100 times
better than a single “daylight” bulb. Since discovering this lamp
I even love dark winter evenings >>
Twin Fluorescent Bench Lamp
Gloves
I bless the day I discovered shooting gloves, otherwise known
as mitten gloves or glomitts. They are fingerless gloves with
a mitten cover and are perfect for keeping enough fingers free
to hold a pencil whilst keeping the rest warm as toast. My original
ones are double thickness windproof fleece with Thinsulate for
warmth. As they were designed for shooting they had a rubber grip
stitched across the palm but I cut that off because it gripped
my sketchbook too well - I needed my hand to move smoothly across
the page. Inferior gloves skimp on the thumb cover or the quality
of fleece, so beware of cheap imitations.
Lowe
Alpine Convert Mitten Glove
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