Nothing special but...

[Joe Ray]

Hi all.
Last December I was birding at Exminster Marshes in Devon, and scanning through a few Canada Geese when I picked out a lone White-fronted. As these are scarce/rare birds in Devon, they require a full description for submission to the county recorder.
In my pocket I had a notebook and a blunt pencil, so I made an attempt at a sketch.
Can anyone suggest any extra techniques that I could have used to improve it, and to aid my sketching in future?
Cheers
J

[Nighthawk]

I think you made a very good sketch of it and have covered all relevant details and colouration of a WFG with your writing. Can't add anything better that you could do, well done!

[AndyB]

Nicely done Joe, has all the raw energy of a field sketch. Field sketching is all about practice and the more you do it, the more you find the shorthand you need to get the general impression down. Don't be afraid to do lots of versions before getting it right, maybe loosely sketching half a dozen outlines and shapes before finding one that feels right. Keep at it, Andy

[Joe Ray]

Thanks guys.
I have a couple of other images I'd like to upload, however my scanner is not working at the moment, when it's fixed I'll see if I can get a few more up.
Cheers
J

[Bobolink44]

can't wait to see - keep 'em coming

[Colin Key]

I would like see more of this sort of thing, and if I can lay hands on my old notebooks I might post similar. Apart from have artistic merit in their own right, they serve as an example to beginners as to how valuable even the most trivial (not that Joe's are in the least bit trivial) of sketches and notes can be.

Ian Wallace is a first class birder who, I'm afraid, I cannot stand (the kilt and the funny hat don't help), nor can I cope with his style of writing in either books or magazine articles, but his field notes and sketches are a wonder to behold.

Colin :smile:

[AndyB]

Agree, notebook scans can be exciting to see and gives you a sense of being in the field. I'm guilty of working mine up when I get home and adding watercolor to them so not very "field-like" - I need to get a bigger scan of this one but here's one that lasted several days - sketching and painting frigatebirds from a hotel balcony in Mexico.

[Joe stockwell]

pipit at keyhaven, probably either scandi rock or water

[AndyB]

nice bird with a red throat - well done

[Firstlight]

Hey,
I asked a question about field sketches and notes and all I got was "used to do it/can't find my notes etc", and here you all are, hidding away down here with all these excellent entries, nice to see and you should keep it up.
regards David.

[Joe stockwell]

sorry fl im always sligtly ashamed about my work because its such a mess

[nickderry]

good to see the field notebook/sketchbook still exists! Nobody should be worried or ashamed about it being a mess, that's what it's there for. Some lovely stuff here.

[FayJ]

I love to see this sort of thing.
Andy, I have a Magnificent Frigatebird sketch from South America. I did it in biro so it's a mess, but then so's my notebook! It took me a couple of minutes rather than a couple of days like yours. I'll scan it and post it sometime.

I am afraid that, although I enjoy sketching, I am less than prolific and months can pass between sketches. It seems to be a block I can't shift!

[Firstlight]

Hi Nickderry,
Looked at your sketches, good stuff keep it up.
regards David.