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Following from the Red Kite, another bird of prey in A3 oil pastel, this time an Osprey! The reference photo, used with permission, was taken by Stig Frode Olsen again and can be found in the same book RSPB British Birds of Prey, 2010 (page 36). I'm

Following from the Red Kite, another bird of prey in A3 oil pastel, this time an Osprey! The reference photo, used with permission, was taken by Stig Frode Olsen again and can be found in the same book RSPB British Birds of Prey, 2010 (page 36). I'm aiming to produce a small set of birds of prey pictures like these, the next of which will be a Hen Harrier.

"Love this portrait of Rio. [...] Makes a fab pressie for any pet lover." -Michaela Strachan. Kind words from this fellow's owner, the wonderful Michaela Strachan, English television presenter you may know from such series as Countryfile or Springwa

"Love this portrait of Rio. [...] Makes a fab pressie for any pet lover." -Michaela Strachan. Kind words from this fellow's owner, the wonderful Michaela Strachan, English television presenter you may know from such series as Countryfile or Springwatch.

A4 commission of a dog called Echo, done as a special birthday gift for her owner, a friend of the commissioner's. I do prefer to work from complete reference photos, although as you can see here some extrapolation is usually possible in the event th

A4 commission of a dog called Echo, done as a special birthday gift for her owner, a friend of the commissioner's. I do prefer to work from complete reference photos, although as you can see here some extrapolation is usually possible in the event that, say, the tips of the subject's ears haven't quite made it into frame!

A commission done in A3 for a change, the reference photo of the Red Kite in question being used with permission from the amazing photographer who captured the image, Stig Frode Olsen. The full-sized photo can be found in the book RSPB British Birds

A commission done in A3 for a change, the reference photo of the Red Kite in question being used with permission from the amazing photographer who captured the image, Stig Frode Olsen. The full-sized photo can be found in the book RSPB British Birds Of Prey, 2010 (page 48), alongside numerous other great photos taken by Mr. Olsen.

An A4 commission of a cat who again, I sadly do not know the name of, only that she has very pretty eyes.

An A4 commission of a cat who again, I sadly do not know the name of, only that she has very pretty eyes.

An A4 commission in oil pastel of a French Bulldog, plus a bit of detailed greenery as a border to the bust.

An A4 commission in oil pastel of a French Bulldog, plus a bit of detailed greenery as a border to the bust.

A4 commission, a lovely Golden Retriever in oil pastel with a bit of pencil/graphite shadow behind her. Not my favourite background, but it worked to make the whiter edges like her ears more distinct from the page.

A4 commission, a lovely Golden Retriever in oil pastel with a bit of pencil/graphite shadow behind her. Not my favourite background, but it worked to make the whiter edges like her ears more distinct from the page.

An A4 commission of Olive here, almost entirely oil pastel, although technically mixed media I suppose as the gravelly ground used pencil too. Turns out gravel is arguably trickier than fur, but it went a bit faster once I'd finished agonising over h

An A4 commission of Olive here, almost entirely oil pastel, although technically mixed media I suppose as the gravelly ground used pencil too. Turns out gravel is arguably trickier than fur, but it went a bit faster once I'd finished agonising over how best to do it and got into the swing of it.

The same piece as before, but being listed again since I took scans before and after adding in the green watercolour background, which provided some much-needed contrast with his white fur.

The same piece as before, but being listed again since I took scans before and after adding in the green watercolour background, which provided some much-needed contrast with his white fur.

This A4 oil pastel commission was the second time drawing this springer spaniel, Toby, although the last time he was in pencil and wasn't busy chasing a leaf.

This A4 oil pastel commission was the second time drawing this springer spaniel, Toby, although the last time he was in pencil and wasn't busy chasing a leaf.

A5 oil pastel commission. Fitting three animals onto a piece of A5 paper while maintaining some level of detail is somewhat fiddly, as it turns out. Cute little fellas though aren't they?

A5 oil pastel commission. Fitting three animals onto a piece of A5 paper while maintaining some level of detail is somewhat fiddly, as it turns out. Cute little fellas though aren't they?

A 90th birthday present for my grandmother, and one of my favourite pieces. A4 oil pastel. There's no thumbnail of the reference photo I used for this one, as the kingfisher in question is not actually real; it's a small brass tiller pin on my gran

A 90th birthday present for my grandmother, and one of my favourite pieces. A4 oil pastel. There's no thumbnail of the reference photo I used for this one, as the kingfisher in question is not actually real; it's a small brass tiller pin on my granma's canal boat given life with a little colour. The reference material I did use was more a collection of old holiday photos smushed together for the composition while referencing random Kingfisher pictures to work the colour out. Very happy with the outcome.

A4 pencil commission for a friend from uni of their cat, who I sadly never learned the name of.

A4 pencil commission for a friend from uni of their cat, who I sadly never learned the name of.

The same bunny as before, but shown when framed, now with the border finished in pen to neaten it up.

The same bunny as before, but shown when framed, now with the border finished in pen to neaten it up.

A birthday gift for a known fan of bunnies, this particular lagomorph was wild on Lundy Island and photographed by a family member. The drawing itself was an A5 experiment in pen instead of the usual pencil or oil pastel, which I consider a success;

A birthday gift for a known fan of bunnies, this particular lagomorph was wild on Lundy Island and photographed by a family member. The drawing itself was an A5 experiment in pen instead of the usual pencil or oil pastel, which I consider a success; I really like the look of this style. However, my technique basically boiled down to "draw the whole thing's outlines in pencil, draw over them in pen, then carefully erase the pencil", so practice is required if I'm to use pen more in the future.

An A4 commission, Otis here was about as friendly as he was curly, which admittedly was tricky to draw but he was a lovable fellow all the same. Some slight pencil outlines for a background that I decided against filling in so as not to lose him in i

An A4 commission, Otis here was about as friendly as he was curly, which admittedly was tricky to draw but he was a lovable fellow all the same. Some slight pencil outlines for a background that I decided against filling in so as not to lose him in it.

Ginny, my first proper commission, completed just in time for Christmas for one of my co-workers in the pub I was working in at the time, who was in turn getting it as a gift for his mother. Apparently it was received very well, which is something I

Ginny, my first proper commission, completed just in time for Christmas for one of my co-workers in the pub I was working in at the time, who was in turn getting it as a gift for his mother. Apparently it was received very well, which is something I like to hear!

Toby, a Springer Spaniel, shown here in an A4 pencil piece done as a gift for my partner's parents. Forgot to add a date to this one before photographing it, but like Marley and the frog it's another 2016 piece.

Toby, a Springer Spaniel, shown here in an A4 pencil piece done as a gift for my partner's parents. Forgot to add a date to this one before photographing it, but like Marley and the frog it's another 2016 piece.

As well as pets I can also do wildlife, such as this frog found in my mum's back garden. Perhaps not the wildest of wildlife, but pretty enough in its amphibian way to deserve a little A5 picture of it.

As well as pets I can also do wildlife, such as this frog found in my mum's back garden. Perhaps not the wildest of wildlife, but pretty enough in its amphibian way to deserve a little A5 picture of it.

Marley, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and professional good boy. A4 oil pastel piece done as a gift for some family friends, and the first piece I did when getting back into art. The grass was slightly nervewracking for me because I'd never done it

Marley, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and professional good boy. A4 oil pastel piece done as a gift for some family friends, and the first piece I did when getting back into art. The grass was slightly nervewracking for me because I'd never done it before and didn't want to add a background that would ruin the rest of the picture, but with his white forelegs I had to have SOMETHING other than plain white paper behind him. Happily, it seems to have turned out okay, and it's not the focal point anyway.

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