Grey Seal Pup by Christine Haywood

I think it probably IS the right shape - the pup is lying on the sand, which will cause the plentiful subcutaneous fat to alter the fundamental shape anyway; the eyes do look very different; not so sure about them, but - I haven't been on close terms with a seal for a long time, and it may be that they too will be altered by the way the head is lying. It convinces me, anyway - as does the oily, inky intensity of the eyes.

Lovely, Christine, shape looks good to me

Lovely tones.

he looks how i feel Christine :-p he is adorably sweet, how incredibly talented you are, it is perfect :-)

Thank you very much for your comments. You have made me think, Robert, about how much I paint without questioning when using a photo to copy. The brain tells the eye what it should be seeing and that is not always correct!

I think its perfect!!!

I agree with everything Robert has said. This works for me though on every level. Maybe just a touch of shadow where the head lies on the sand would help it to sink more into the sand rather than lie on top of it. The dips and folds in the body have worked perfectly. All in all a very appealing painting.

Thank you both! Diana, I can see what you mean about the shading, I will definitely try that.

This is irresitible! Like Linda, I think It's quite perfect!