Blue-Throated Hummingbird with Hibiscus

by Joan Shaddy

 Note from Marci: After painting this delightful study , I know you will want to paint more hummingbirds. Joan has a book available with several other studies that can be ordered by contacting Joan:

Joanie Shaddy
13201 Olympia Way
Santa Ana, Ca 92705
shad.ca@worldnet.att.net

Price of book: $18.50
Postage; 1.60
Total $ 20.10

(Below) Detail of plate
BIRD COLORS:

  • CROWN: grey/green (also sides of head)
  • BILL: light grey/black
  • EYE: black/dark brown with prominent white stripes above and below
  • GORGET: (gor-jet) irridescent light blue
  • CHEST and BELLY: dull grey
  • WINGS: grey blue
  • UPPER WING COVERTS: green
  • BACK AND UPPER TAIL COVERTS: grey/green
  • TAIL FEATHERS: dark grey with white tips on three outer feathers

PALETTE:
  • light grey
  • cool shadow
  • dark brown
  • black
  • white
  • cream
  • ochre
  • pecan
  • mixing yellow
  • black green
  • chartreuse
  • moss green
  • royal green
  • sultan green
  • apricot orange
  • carnation
  • blood red
  • true blue
  • purple
This technique uses an OPEN MEDIUM.

Starting with BILL,use cool shadow and a small amount of black.

Wash EYE with dark brown, wipe out highlight. With a small liner, paint a TINY light line around pupil with black or dark grey.

Wash entire top part of HEAD with chartreuse, leaving a white stripe behind the eye and under the front part of the eye to the end of the bill. The area just behind the eye is grey.

Using true blue, wash GORGET, using a little purple just under the "chin".

Wash royal green over the back using a little grey on UPPER TAIL COVERTS.

BELLY is light grey. Wash WINGS with cool shadow and UPPER WING COVERTS with chartreuse.

TAIL FEATHERS are black with white tips on the outer three feathers.

Pick up a #2 dresden or a #2 filbert brush, dip into medium and press flat and dry. Working UP from the bottom of the BELLY,push out a few feather tips and going into bottom edge of GORGET. Wipe brush and re-flatten. Pick up true blue and indicate a few feather tips into wet blue of GORGET and into the purple under "chin".

With clean brush, indicate some feather tips into grey paint behind EYE. Wipe brush.

Pick up some royal green and work UP from back of HEAD towards the bill, decreasing the size of the feather tips as you come to the bill.

Using SMALL amount of black green indicate a few darker feathers on CROWN only.

With a small square shader, pull the cool shadow on WINGS down toward tips, indicating separation between feathers and leaving a small amount of paint at tips of feathers.

Using royal green,indicate some feathers on BACK and UPPER TAIL COVERTS.

With a small square shader, pull DOWN TAIL feathers, indicating separation between feathers. Wipe out white tips on outer three feathers , leaving a tiny edge of black on the very tip.

NOTE: Here, I painted in background before painting flowers and BEFORE firing. You may choose to paint background on the second fire.

FLOWERS:
Wash top HIBISCUS with mixing yellow. Using yellow ochre, make ruffles,being sure that all point toward the center of the flower. Indicate darker center with pecan. Wash PISTIL with mixing yellow, paint little round POLLEN dots at top and upper sides of pistil with pecan. Take a wipe-out tool and "dab" out center of each dot.Wipe out highlights of petals and ruffles.

The two BUDS and the other two HIBISCUS have a wash of apricot orange. Use carnation to indicate ruffles. Blood red was used for the darkest center.

Using same method, paint buds.


I try to vary the greens on the leaves and add some flower colors along with pecan.

I washed the uppermost leaves with chartreuse and shaded with sultan green and royal green. The darkest leaf is under the yellow flower and is black green.Paint the rest in varied greens and flower colors.
Using cream, wash in the sunlight. I used true blue for the SKY area, working down the sides into cool shadow. ( I wanted this to stay light and airy , so two applications of cool shadow were used along the bottom.)

FIRE 014-016

SECOND FIRE:

Intensify colors where needed with washes.

FIRE 016-018.

Enjoy.....

Joan Shaddy

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