Class Overview:

Ever wished to capture the beauty of a bird on paper, but felt intimidated by the sheer complexity and amount of details? This intermediate-level class offers a focused, manageable approach to achieving stunning photorealism using colored pencils. Instead of drawing an entire bird, we will zoom in on the textures and vibrancy of feathers, using the magnificent Scarlet Macaw as our guide. By breaking the project down into distinct sections (head, breast, wing, and tail feathers), you'll learn techniques in real-time, giving you the skills to draw any type of bird plumage with confidence.

What You Will Learn:

Sectional Drawing: Understand how to break down a complex subject into manageable parts, focusing on details without getting overwhelmed. We will use several reference photos of the stunning Scarlet Macaw as a guide for our Class Project.
Layering and Blending: Master the core techniques of applying multiple colored pencil layers to build rich color saturation and depth.
Creating Realistic Texture: Learn specialized strokes and methods to convincingly render varying feather textures, from soft downy fluff to stiff, sharp quills.
Color Mapping: Learn to observe and map the subtle color shifts required for hyper-realistic results.
Burnishing and Glazing Techniques to create glossy and iridescent feathers.
Transferable Skills: Acquire techniques that can be immediately applied to drawing any other bird.

Who This Class Is For:

Intermediate Colored Pencil Artists: This class is ideal for those who already understand the basic properties of colored pencils and are ready to tackle detailed realism.
Anyone looking to elevate their Colored Pencil skills beyond basic blending.
Prerequisites: You should have some prior experience with colored pencils and a basic understanding of layering. If you need to brush up on your foundations before we start, you can always check out my Short Class series on Skillshare or my first class on Introduction to Realism with Colored Pencils (Class Links have been provide at the end of this section).

Materials Required:

You will need a decent set of Colored Pencils(oil or wax-based, set of 48 or more), suitable drawing paper (preferably one that take a lot of Colored Pencil layers), Basic Stationary and a Craft Knife for adding highlights. Color charts and reference images will be provided within the class and also in the Projects and Resources section.

I am so excited to share these techniques with you and help you elevate your colored pencil art. Let's get started!

Classes on Basic Techniques for Beginners:

Smitha Rao

Pencil and Pastel Artist

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