Animals in Art Week
Hi everyone, my name is wildly-arts and in this tutorial I'm going to lay out some tips and tricks that will help you with your bird art. Our focus is going to be on owls, however most of the information in this article can be applied to any species of bird. I specialize in digital art but you may use these suggestions for traditional art as well!
Let's look at some lore
- Owls are associated with transition, mystery and protection in cultures across the globe.
- Native Americans associate the meaning of owls with wisdom, foresight, and keeper of sacred knowledge.
- Native Americans associate the meaning of owls with wisdom, foresight, and keeper of sacred knowledge.
- The owl is sacred to Athena, the Greek goddess of learning. Owls are even depicted on some Greco-Roman currency as a symbol of status, intelligence and wealth.
- In ancient Hindu, Celtic, and Egyptian cultures the symbolic meaning of owls was based around guardianship of the underworlds and a protector of the dead.
- It's important to note the symbolism of nocturnal creatures, a category that owls fall under. This means that they are known to represent shadows, dreams and psychic awareness.
Time to get to some art tips
Firstly, I believe that it is extremely important to observe the animal that you're drawing - studying photos or videos will suffice, but getting the chance to see your subject in real life is the ultimate option. Observing personality, what captures the bird's attention and how it interacts with its environment can all help to more accurately illustrate your feathery subject.
It's no lie that animals can be challenging to draw in general. When it comes to birds, the level of detail in the feathers can be intimidating and it's often difficult to know where to begin. When you start your illustration, you're going to want to focus less on the finer details - rather, pay attention to the general shape, colors and textures of your artwork as a whole. The details will come later.
It's always a good idea to use a reference (or multiple)! I cannot stress this enough. Learn how to draw what you see, draw it over and over again, and you will see improvement. But please remember, it is very important to either use your own material or credit the original photographer.
I would strongly suggest beginning your sketch on a medium grey background. White does not often occur naturally, and not only is grey a more balanced tone but it will also allow you to better judge exactly how much shadow and highlight needs to be applied.
I like to use any charcoal-type sketching brush for the steps that I will be showing you today. I am currently using the charcoal brush purchased from Aaron Blaise at creatureartteacher, I find that the natural textures produce good results.
I'll give a basic breakdown of my method. The species that I am illustrating in this tutorial is a Spotted-Eagle Owl from Africa.
- 1. You're going to want to start with the simpler shapes - the rounded head (note the typical flat face though, this applies to any owl) and the oval-shaped body. Your reference will be useful at this stage to get the proportions correct.
- 2. Connect the shapes with a rough outline and sketch the shape of the pointed wing, rectangular tail and plan the angle of the legs. Make sure you know where the bird's center line is - the feathers tuck into each other on each side of the breastbone and it often makes a visible line.
- 3. As you can see, the bird in my sketch is facing away slightly so the eye that's closer to us is going to be bigger. Notice that at this angle, the beak doesn't fall directly on the center line - rather, slightly off to the right hand side. The further the head is turned away from you, the further the beak will stick out. This is also a good time to draw the legs, toes and talons - cylinder shapes for the legs and a few small circles to make up the toes. The pads on the underside of their toes are usually quite prominent and the talons point outwards sharply from the upperside of each toe.
- 4. Roughly sketch the more prominent features. The level of detail you add is completely up to you! I like to add as much as I can in this stage so that it results in a detailed lineart with more depth. I always struggle with toes so I decided to outline them and erase the inner sketch just to give myself a better idea on what the outcome will look like.
- 5. When I'm happy with the shape of the bird I then lower opacity and change the color of the base sketch before starting on the lines. The thickness and opacity of the lines is dependent on your particular style. One thing to remember is that most owl species are very "hairy" between their eyes, on either side (and underneath) their beak and covered in fluff everywhere else (especially around their neck and legs), so adding lots of soft textures is a must.
- 6. Remove the base sketch and touch up anything else that needs attention.
Some questions to consider:
What is his mood? Every species of owl can dramatically change his appearance according to how he is feeling at any particular time.
agitated/alert -> slim, upright ears, more angular face
relaxed/calm/content -> rounder & softer appearance, ears flatter
Eyes are very often the centerpiece of any owl artwork. Don't be scared to use a bright flashy yellow, orange or red pigment for the iris (species dependent). I also try to make sure that some sort of eyelid is visible as many owl species have very prominent eyelids.
Owls have fixed eyes and therefore have the ability to turn their heads up to 270 degrees to view objects that are not directly in front of them. They can do this because they have twice the number of vertebrae in their necks compared to other birds.
Regarding the size of the pupils, you have two factors to consider - his mood, and your light levels.
The size of the pupil is certainly something to pay attention to:
agitated/alert AND/OR brighter environment -> smaller pupil
relaxed/calm/content AND/OR lower light level -> larger pupil
What is he doing? Is he relaxed and resting, or alert and hunting? This will determine if you will be able to see his legs or not. Remember, owls have very long legs underneath the fluff!
alert/hunting -> legs more visible
resting -> chest feathers covering the legs
Remember, all owls are different. Their bone and feather structure, color and size all vary significantly between species.
It will help you to notice these differences. Do some research on the species that you are going to illustrate, enough to understand a little bit about not only the diet and habits, but why the animal looks the way it does. There are over 200 different species of Owls, so pick a favorite and go with it! Learning about anatomy and skeletal structure is something that is worth investing time into (if you haven't already, have a look at what an owl looks without feathers!)
Let me know if you have any questions or comments- I really hope that this guide has helped you in some way. Be patient with yourself in your artistic journey and have fun! 
![Adoptable Auction! [CLOSED] by wildly-arts](https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/3f046a89-8902-425b-a524-c0dfaf6ad936/d9w5qav-90cb041b-8432-4c47-9230-aaf064761344.png/v1/fit/w_300,h_900,q_70,strp/adoptable_auction___closed__by_wildly_arts_d9w5qav-300w.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9MTEzMyIsInBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzNmMDQ2YTg5LTg5MDItNDI1Yi1hNTI0LWMwZGZhZjZhZDkzNlwvZDl3NXFhdi05MGNiMDQxYi04NDMyLTRjNDctOTIzMC1hYWYwNjQ3NjEzNDQucG5nIiwid2lkdGgiOiI8PTEwMjQifV1dLCJhdWQiOlsidXJuOnNlcnZpY2U6aW1hZ2Uub3BlcmF0aW9ucyJdfQ.kpJSE7nEZo3DZbAkVkv-fOGxahwey3ypFhiYVKjMMPU "Adoptable Auction! [CLOSED] by wildly-arts")
