I was recently painting seagulls on beach as I sat in a beach chair. The problem with birds is they don’t stay still for very long. This seagull landed on the sand rather close to my chair, looking for food. I quickly sketched the bird in pencil lightly. By the time I finished my sketch the seagull was gone. I kept the visual picture in my mind as I started mixing a grey from ultramarine blue and burnt sienna watercolor paint. I painted the shadows on the seagulls body and then did a light wash using yellow and raw sienna for the background.
I finished up the details on the bird’s wing and head, along with his legs. I added the birds shadow along with some seaweed. As you can see the paper I was using had heavy texture. I find it easier to paint less fine details with this kind of paper.
To the right is another sketch I did while at the beach. This one is done with a black watercolor pencil that I dipped in water when I wanted a grey value. I spent more time completing this scene.
So the next time you have your watercolors try painting seagulls on the beach, or paint any view from your beach chair.
Thank you for sharing. I like how painted you the Seagull using negative space to the badkground.Respectfully Mercedes