I'm feeling like I got the spark back and I have been drawing more lately.
Maybe it's because I have a vision whit what I whant to accomplish and
what I would like to do. Or it's just the fact that Cryptos is starting to
become bullish again. Either way, drawing is like meditation for me,
I get relaxed and it allows me to think better.
Below you can see the process of my latest drawing I finished yesterday.
Let me know what you think about it in the comments below.
I start with drawing a rough sketch gently using a 2H graphite pen. The most important is the eyes and the front of the head. Everything else I can adjust easily later. When the proportions of the eyes and beak are good I start drawing the details. The more time you spend the better details you get. I'm still practicing even if I have drawn since childhood. I also cover the background with a black marker pen. before I used to use graphite but it is eating pens and It reflects less with ink when taking photos.
Next step in the process is to start shading and drawing some structure of the feathers. I do this by drawing V patterns roughly how I see it in the reference photo. Every bird looks different so it doesn't matter if it's exactly in the right place.
I alter between 2B and 4B graphite pens and I am also using my eraser alot to get the feather like shading. I sometimes draw with the eraser on a dark shadow.
When everything is covered and about the right contrast i start go over the details. I use a white ballpiont pen to make highlights on every feather. this makes the drawing more like a photo even if you zoom in. I don't say I'm perfect, I have a long way to go for hyper realism. But I'll get there :)
I try to compare the reference photo with my drawing from a distance to get a better view of what should be changed. You could also look at the drawing through a mirror to easily see mistakes.
Below you can se the finished drawing and what pens I used