One more plover

one more plover

Early stages

I picked a neutral warm ground color for the panel, drew a 2- inch light pencil grid and did a quick sketch. Then I started the underpainting. I try to use as much of that ground color in the piece, letting it show through as much as possible. 

I thought it would be fun to show you the beginnings, before I obsess over all the final details. This stage is always quite loose. You can count the brushstrokes before they all get glazed over and merged. I try to get the value range in order with the darkest darks and the brightest highlights. The colors start off quite muted.

This is the third plover—a semipalmated—that I’ve painted from my summer travel in Cape Cod, Kittery and Bar Harbor. This bird rewarded us with a visit after a long wait in Racoon Cove north of Bar Harbor. I spent some time lying in the sand to get a very low bird’s eye view. Hard to believe, but that plover is on the waterline in the photo below.

piping plover on the nest

racing plover

on the easel

Once I have this one finished, I'm moving on to a larger board where I hope to be in form to paint a  more complicated composition. I hope to finish this semipalmated soon, and it will be for sale at FishCrowStudio.com.

---