Duck Stamp
Duck Stamp
9" x 12"
For my duck stamp I chose the masked duck. I went through the list of ducks and decided that the masked duck was my favorite because I liked the colors of the feathers and the blue bill and I thought they were very cute. I also liked the habitat because they often live in ponds and a lot of the images had them surrounded by lily pads and other interesting plants. I wanted to include both a female and a male masked duck because they have different patterns on their faces and I thought that would make the drawing more interesting. I collected some images I found online of both ducks and examples of habitats to use as references. I made a folder with all the images and switched between them as I was drawing the pencil sketch so I could use elements from all the images to create a new image.
The materials I used were pencil, watercolor, and colored pencil. I started with sketch in pencil and I used very thin and neat lines so I could add details without making it too messy. Then I used watercolor for the basic colors and to show where the shadows and highlights are. I used the colored pencils over the watercolor to make the colors darker and add texture and details. I also used a white gel pen to make highlights on the water and parts of the ducks. My gel pen was difficult to use and eventually stopped working all together so I had to find another one in order to finish the water.
I used small lines to show the direction that the feathers went in and show where the lighter and darker feathers were. The small white lines on the water all go horizontally to show how the water moves. The colored pencil added texture to the feathers and the water. There is emphasis on the head of the male masked duck because it is in the middle of the page and that duck is in the front. I made the ducks and the lily pads more spaced out so the page didn't feel too crowded. There is a pattern in the ducks' feathers that both the male and the female masked duck have which creates some unity. Having plants in both of the bottom corners of the page makes it more balance. My project evolved as I added more details with the colored pencil and the white gel pen. My next steps could be to draw other more realistic thing and practice more with the colored pencil over watercolor.
images I used:
https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/masked-duck
https://ebird.org/species/masduc