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How to paint a Mountain Bluebird step-by-step

Posted on February 8, 2012 by John Muir Laws

I have received several requests for more step by step guidance on drawing birds. I have started adding a touch of white colored pencil over dry watercolor and I really like the results. Note how much this illustration tightens up when I add the white pencil and the dark Verathin pencil lines at the end. Make sure the watercolors are dry between coats. The paper also needs to be bone dry before adding colored pencils or the pencils will tear the paper. Study the two animations below then download the bluebird painting study sheet, print it out on heavy paper and try it yourself.

http://www.expeditionaryart.com Maria

Thanks for sharing! I like your use of colored pencil.
http://www.magpienest.org/birdbybird/ Pica

Love this Jack, thanks!
http://www.birdpaintings.wordpress.com John Costello

Thank you, this is brilliant, how did you do it before without the white and brown pencils? Really good tip and going to be testing pencils myself
- http://www.johnmuirlaws.com/ John Muir Laws
  
  Thank you Alan, I really enjoyed looking at your bird illustrations on your site. I suggest my readers check it out. This technique is also fast in the field. I used to tighten things up at the end of a drawing with my graphite pencil. Now I like to use the white Prismacolor and a brown col-erase pencil. The advantage of the col-erase is that if I overdo it, it is can be erased!
Sandy Smith

I want to practice painting these birds. Is there any way to stop the animation at each step so that I can study it, paint, and then move on?
- http://www.johnmuirlaws.com/ John Muir Laws
  
  That is a great idea Sandy. I will try to figure out how to do that for future posts.