Waxwing

I have had a rather long break from painting over the Christmas holiday. I was away from home for most of it and so there was no opportunity for me to focus on putting paintbrush to paper.
However after a few practice sketches to help me get back into the swing of things, I have produced this little number.
Waxwings are one of the most spectacular winter visitors to our shores. Their lovely creamy pink feathers, punky crest and black eye mask make a striking image. There have been huge flocks spotted all over the UK, and a retail park in Folkestone, Kent was lucky enough to have a flock of nearly 400 visit its car park. It did not take long for them to devour all the berries on offer!
It was not easy trying to get the colouring of this bird correct. The main colour is a mix of pink, cream, blue-grey and orange! I layered all the different colours over one another, using more 'paynes grey' in the shadows around the feet. I think I am most happy with the head of the bird. The flash of orange next to the beak, and the crisp red of the berries make a lovely contrast. I will probably do a few studies of these Waxwings, as I find their colours and characters to be very interesting.