So what's the deal with this little House Wren? Why did I have SUCH a hard time figuring him out?

I think a couple of things were going on;
1. we've been sketching too many little birdies facing west. Personally, I find it much harder sketching a bird that's facing to the right. My pen strokes have to move to the left, which is uncomfortable and unnatural.
2. angles angles angles. Forehead, throat, upright tail, bum facing us. All these angles are important, and tiny distortions in any of them throw off the entire stance of the birdie.

But enough with the excuses, let's just get down to work and see what happens. Take your time and start again if you need to I sure did. (Many times, btw, but I didn't show you all my earlier attempts.) Today we're focusing on shading so make sure you're using a pen that you can control the value spectrum light to dark. Are you READY???

Reference photo: Keshava Mysore

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Your fellow artist,
Elaine Whittingham