Thankfully the Christmas rush is over and I begin to prepare for a New Year.  I seem to be in a painting mood as the three paintings will show but my favourite so far is The Puffins, they are in Acrylics.  So I hope you like them all.

 

More Paintings

Here are some of my earliest watercolours that were from 'my head' and not practice books. At this stage I hadn't sampled the delights of quality paper but it still did the job for me and quite often I keep some cheap paper to doodle on.  I still find now and again that if a painting goes wrong I do worry  but it's only paper and paint and I have ripped up many paintings that I disliked.  After visiting an art gallery once and noticed the price of some paintings that looked similar to mine I try not to throw anything away, you never know when a masterpiece might turn out, lol!

So here's a couple of landscape watercolours from maybe 6/7 years ago. The boat is facing the wrong way so as it is now your eye goes out of the picture.

The next few are within the last 3/4 years,  

Both snow scenes are in Acrylics, the seal painting was cut down from a larger one as I liked the simplicity of it. The Cottage is in Watercolour. That is a particular favourite of mine.  Hopefully I shall try to add more over the next few days but if there's any questions, then I will try to answer them.

Well as promised I am going to put as many as I can of my various paintings, some done in Watercolour and some in Acrylics, there's the pencil work and watercolour pencils as well.  Sometimes a little doodle can create an idea for a painting, then there's the photographs as a guide if I see a nice view but find it difficult to set up my art gear there and then.

Painting 'plein air' is enjoyable and yet it can feel stressful if you don't like people looking over your shoulder but I don't bother about that, we all see things differently and paint accordingly.

I began painting some years ago while we had the newsagents, a fortnightly magazine started out teaching you how to paint and it also came with equipment, paints and brushes.  The brushes I no longer have but the paints and container are still a reminder for me of how it all began.  I look at my first ever painting and smile, my hubby had it framed for one of my birthdays!  About halfway through the course I disliked the way the teaching was going so I stopped buying the magazine and began purchasing books that appealed to me. Perspective, depth and distance were and still are at times a struggle but a challenge  that I take on from time to time.

So here we go with some of them.

A Lovely bird

Today I nipped out, just for an hour and knew just where I was heading for. The area of 'Apple Dumpling Bridge', I have frequently seen quite a few Jays there so I was hoping against all hopes of getting a good photo. I can't remember just how many shots I have tried at catching this shy and elusive bird on camera.

Parking up I could hear them but no sighting as yet, I did see the Green Woodpecker and tried to sneak up on it but it saw me!

 A short distance away I disturbed a Jay in the undergrowth burying an acorn, it flew but not far so I waited in the -1 degree cold and sure enough it came back and with 2 others in trees on either side of the area.  Using a wide tree trunk, (and knowing me you would need a wide one!) I used it as cover while slowly getting closer. Standing to the side of the tree I was amazed it didn't seem fazed by my being there and managed these shots.  I have no idea whether male or female and apparently it can only be found out from Bird ringers that have handled them.

They are part of the Crow family and it has been suggested they could easily 'plant' around 3000 acorns a month so in that respect they do a great service to our woodland areas.

Another day out

After struggling with a recent throat infection I decided to spend a gentle day out at Blashford Lakes again.  A place where I know I don’t have to walk far, so with camera, tea making facilities and art bag I set off on a cold crisp day.  Arriving around 11am I was grateful for the extra layers of clothing.  Opening the car door the sound of constant bird song and drumming of a Woodpecker was lovely. I could hear Siskins but they were high in the tree tops so difficult to see but oodles of Great and Bluetit with even more Chaffinch in every tree.

A short walk to the Woodland hide and out of the corner of my eye I noticed a Water Rail on the frozen pond just before the woodland.  Settling down on a log I waited and tried to capture it skidding across the ice but too many logs were in the way and this bird was living up to it’s known shyness.

Entering the hide I remembered to switch off my phone and searched for Bramblings but there were none to see. The Nuthatch was making brief visits to the feeder so I propped myself against a post and waited, they are lovely and colourful but rarely do I see any in their natural environment so they are always a pleasure to view even on a feeder.   Leaving the hide I walked towards Ivy Lake passing a larger frozen pond on my right which seemed void of any life at all, but I will come back to  that later.


Having read reports that the 2 Bittern’s spend quite a bit of time on this lake I was hoping for a sighting but apparently it is on the other side of the Lake. Wigeon, Shoveler, Coot, Cormorant, Tufted Duck, Gulls, Shelduck and Gadwall plus some others that I couldn’t make out were all on the Lake but some distance away. After a while I decided to take a leisurely stroll back and that’s when I heard this strange call, then another calling back from across the frozen pond.  Pretty soon the air was full of this sound. It reminded me of a larger than usual noise of Bearded Tits ‘pinging sound’ but this was not possible.  Another birder walking along the same path towards me stopped and listened while I was scanning the reeds for any sign of movement but nothing.  I was very excited by it all.

As we met, the gentleman said, ‘well that had me fooled for a time’, so I enquired as to what he meant.  He replied it was the sun on the ice, it was ‘pinging’! So that’s why I heard it all over and couldn’t find one single bird or anything to cause it!  The first and only other time he had heard this was about 10 years ago.  I was so pleased, not only to have heard this strange phenomenon but to have someone right there that knew what it was.  I would have pondered over this for many a while!  

I settled into the car and poured a cuppa, bliss, quickly followed by a late lunch while warming up and watched the birds going back and forth to the car park feeders.  To my right was a small copse and finally I caught sight of one of the Woodpeckers, with camera and sarnie in hand I slowly crept up to get a photo but it saw me and flew off.

 Re charged I walked the short distance to Ivy north hide in the hope of at least one of the Bitterns being on show but sadly not. Birders were waiting patiently for the Water Rail so I told them of the other area with which one could be found. Time to head off home on a cold but totally enjoyable few hours.  You can use one of their buggies so come Spring that is what I hope to do and then be able to get all the way round the Lakes.


 The Thrush was a pleasant surprise as it foraged around near the front of my car.  Not wishing to disturb it I waited and waited till it decided to fly off elsewhere. Worth the wait as we hardly see these birds anymore.

The last photo was yet another Thrush so it just had to be photographed as well.  A great day out and Blashford Lakes never fails.

Paintings in Acrylic and Watercolour

Here's one of the rare bird paintings I have done. It's the Bittern to which I had the pleasure of it being so close at one of the Hides in Tichfield some time ago now. I keep saying I shall have to organise myself and put them up for sale, if only to create some more room.  The photograph is not good so I might try and do another one when we have a good deal of natural light.

My next one is called Sunset at Stokes Bay, I altered the wire mesh that is part of Browndown camp to a more pleasing wooden fence.

This next one is a favourite, my two sisters and myself have one each, all slightly different.  I must get it hung up somewhere!

My last one for now is the walk down towards Apple Dumpling Bridge, if you want to know where that is it's on the same lane near Rowner that leads to the 17th Century Experience.  Well worth a stroll when the weather permits.  Any length of rain and you will need Wellies!.