A guide to capturing the beauty of birds using modern, expressive watercolour painting techniques.
Painting watercolours in a loose style is a technique admired by many artists, yet there are a range of skills to master in order to achieve a sense of freedom and lightness of touch. Birds present us with a vibrant array of colours and textures – from the iridescent plumage of the hummingbird to the zingy turquoise blue of the kingfisher – and with such varied and lively characters they are a wonderful subject to paint.
Supported by instructional photos throughout, experienced artist Sarah encourages you to let go of the detail whilst providing you with all the techniques required to paint beautiful and characterful portraits of birds with colour and verve.
- 10 step-by-step projects accessible to complete beginners and more experienced artists alike. Learn the importance of shape and tone in depicting form.
- Discover how watercolour works through experimentation and play with different tools and techniques.
- Explore various colour palettes, composition techniques and background basics.
- Develop your approach to key features such as feathers, feet, wingspans and faces and other tricky areas such as creating texture, adding shadows and achieving translucency.

- 160 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
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Information
Table of contents
- Cover
- Title Page
- DEDICATION
- Contents
- Introduction
- PART ONE: The Fundamentals
- 1 The Importance of Shape and Tone
- 2 Exploring Watercolour Paint
- 3 Introduction to Composition, Layering and Expressive Mark Making
- 4 Introduction to Colour
- 5 Painting a Bird Using Three Colours and Black
- 6 The Importance of Edges
- PART TWO: Advanced Techniques
- 7 Developing a Loose, Intuitive Style
- 8 Rendering Details in an Expressive Fashion
- 9 Painting Black Birds and Incorporating Environmental Aspects
- 10 Depicting White Birds and Creating Environmental Elements
- 11 Making Your Mark and Finding Your Voice
- Tool List
- Suppliers
- Picture Credits
- Acknowledgements
- eCopyright
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Yes, you can access Painting Birds by Sarah Stokes in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Art & Art Techniques. We have over 1.5 million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.