How to Paint a Feather in Watercolour with Paul Hopkinson

Equipment

Colours

Burnt sienna

Burnt umber

Raw umber

Scarlet lake

Lamp black

Demonstration: Pheasant Feather

'The humble pheasant is one of those bigger birds that is quite common in rural locations, with the stunning male showing off his colours to the best during the breeding season,' says Paul Hopkinson.

'We very often come across bird feathers whilst walking the country lanes, with many feathers having their own individual and recognisable design, resulting in plenty of painting projects.

'This detailed pheasant feather is an example of the clear, defined pattern you tend to find and one I would love to show you how to paint!'

Reference photo

Begin by lightly drawing the feather’s shaft, keeping your lines very light.

Note how this starts in a gentle curve, wider at the bottom then tapers to a single line towards the top.

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The colours you will need for the next part are burnt sienna, burnt umber, raw umber, scarlet lake and lamp black and a No. 1 brush.

Firstly wet one side of the feather.

Immediately drop in a milky consistency of raw umber.

Immediately add burnt sienna and burnt umber to the edge of the centre line so they blend a little towards the middle of the vane.

Give this a gentle dry with a hairdryer from a distance then do the same for the other side.

Once all is dry make up a watery mix of burnt umber and burnt sienna.

Add the lighter tones you see for the colour behind the details.

If you look carefully at the photo through the details, you will see the lighter shades of colour showing through. They change in places and can be seen underneath the darker lines that appear in the vane.

Take your time as these initial foundation washes will help give your feather structure and the much-needed background colours.

Let it dry or dry it with a hairdryer.

The final layer of detail is where we paint those lovely markings onto the feather.

Again, really look closely at the photo.

Using a creamy mix of burnt umber and lamp black paint the finer, darker details, following the direction you can see the lines in the photo.

This again is important and will give your feather shape and texture. With this you need to think about more than one direction, such as the direction the interlocking barbs go and the directions you can see the main feather markings follow.

Next, very lightly soften the shaft of the feather. Load the No. 00 brush and tap off the surplus water onto kitchen roll a couple of times.

Keeping to the centre very lightly add a damp line and carefully ease the outer lines inwards towards the damp area. This should give you a lightly blended and curved feel.

Once dry, carefully paint the fine central line to the shaft.

Now to paint the fluffy bits of feather at the bottom. All you need for this is a milky mix of burnt umber and lamp black.

Load your brush, tap it once or twice onto kitchen roll and add these fine lines in varied directions.

You will also notice lots of very fine lines within the feather so using a milky mix of burnt umber and burnt sienna and hardly any paint on your brush add these in. Skip places as well, especially towards the outer edges.

Finally, fine tune any of the darks you feel may need to go a touch darker.

The finished study

Pheasant Feather, watercolour, 7x7in. (18x18cm)

See more from Paul on his website, www.devonartist.co.uk or visit Patreon: www.patreon.com/TheDevonArtist

This demonstration is taken from the February 2020 issue of Leisure Painter. Enjoy endless inspiration with access to past and present issues of both The Artist and Leisure Painter magazines, plus exclusive video demos, tutorials and more, with our Studio Membership! Discover how you can join today.

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