Working on a Heron

Well, I finally go back to work. And it feels pretty good.

I'm working on a 12x16 acrylic painting of a black-capped night heron. I have the bird and the stump it's sitting on done, so tomorrow I only have the background and the water to do. I should be able to finish it tomorrow, but I'm sometimes surprised about how long it takes me to do backgrounds. (It's all the individual leaves of grass which take time.)

I must confess that I'm enjoying working on something a bit larger. I usually tend towards the small sizes, but there's only so many small birds plus the details are easier on a larger scale. Right now, I'm contemplating doing some larger birds, such as an eagle or an owl. These still won't be life-sized, but 20x30 or 18x24 is still a decent size for me. There's 2 problems with anything larger -- shipping and my ability to reach the top of the painting. Yes, it's sounds silly, but when you are short, trying to paint large paintings not on an easel is a challenge. I end up doing a lot of the painting upside down!

I think it's time to check on the fire again (large wildfire about 1 mile away) and then relax and watch a DVD.