[Mottles]

Hi All:
First totally all pyrography effort 6" x 9 1/2" birch panel.
Critique Please!
I used my Razor Tip burner and a skew and writer pens. I found that I relied on the writer pen the most. Waiting for my spear shader to arrive in the next few days. Lot's to learn but I really loved the experience.
Suggestions, comments, thoughts most welcome.
Kathy
y Note: I remember while working on this piece how much the landscape reminded me of Northern California (my old home) and pheasant season.

[CustomBurns]

Looks good, Nice job.

[squbrigg]

Well done Kathy! Makes me want to grab my shotgun and go pheasant hunting! Around here wild Pheasant are a challenge to hunt, they walk and hide so well, flushing only when at too long a distance for a shot. Reserve raised Pheasant are no challenge, they flush to wing at perfect gun range.

Great effort for your first burn! We shall be expecting great things from you in the future!

Bob

[AlArchie]

Nice work. I don't use pyro, except to enhance carvings so can't critique a piece like yours.

As for tips (pun), just took a class in using burners to enhance relief carving from Fred and Elaine Stenman. Elaine gave me what I thought was a good tip, and I'll pass it on/ She took my new skew tip, and sanded the sharp point down to a blunt tip, but kept the sharp edge on the straight portion of the tip. The darn thing can now be used both in the draw and push strokes, laid slightly on it's side as a calligraphy tip, and even as a shader. So, with one tip I can burn lines, add items like grass going both up and down, write, and shade! If you have a replaceable type tip, I'd suggest trying this. She did this to my new fixed tip pen (shudder), but donated another tip for my replaeable pen. No sum-loss there, I guess, and the instructional time spent was well worth the cost of the pyro pen.

Al

[Old_Gord]

Hey Al, any chance of you taking a pic(and upload here) of the two pen tips, like a before and after?

.

OG

Originally Posted by AlArchie

Nice work. I don't use pyro, except to enhance carvings so can't critique a piece like yours.

As for tips (pun), just took a class in using burners to enhance relief carving from Fred and Elaine Stenman. Elaine gave me what I thought was a good tip, and I'll pass it on/ She took my new skew tip, and sanded the sharp point down to a blunt tip, but kept the sharp edge on the straight portion of the tip. The darn thing can now be used both in the draw and push strokes, laid slightly on it's side as a calligraphy tip, and even as a shader. So, with one tip I can burn lines, add items like grass going both up and down, write, and shade! If you have a replaceable type tip, I'd suggest trying this. She did this to my new fixed tip pen (shudder), but donated another tip for my replaeable pen. No sum-loss there, I guess, and the instructional time spent was well worth the cost of the pyro pen.

Al

[Irish]

Kathy,

Beautiful work! The design is excellently balances with the dark in the grasses behind the pheasant cock. You have maintianed his body profile and proportions wonderfully. Just great!

If I were going to work a little more on this I might check the main tail feather to see if you can see the center shaft. I think that the shaft is fairly evident in pheasants. Plus you might want to add a few fine feather line details in that tail working from the center shaft out to the edges.

I don't know which burner you are using. If it's a one-temp then the fine lines are done just a sthe burner is heating up to keep them thin and pale in tone. If its a variable temp setting try turning the thermostat down for very pale colors.

A little shading where the breast tucks under the wing could also be added using those fine lines.

I seldom use a large flat shader! I have worked with it but don't like the finish that I get. Tends to come out patchy and more controlled by the grain of the wood then by my determinations. Instead I use fine lines and random textures to build up my shadows.

Great Job!

Susan

[AlArchie]

Gord, here's a sketch and really bad photo of the "rounded" tip, compard to the pointed one. with the ip rounded over you can push the tip away from you while burning, and not dig into the wood. Works pretty well.

In the photo, rounded tip is the one on the top.

Al

[Old_Gord]

Thanks Al, thought that was what you meant but just wanted to be sure.


OG

Originally Posted by AlArchie

Gord, here's a sketch and really bad photo of the "rounded" tip, compard to the pointed one. with the ip rounded over you can push the tip away from you while burning, and not dig into the wood. Works pretty well.

Al

[Mottles]

Hi All:
CustomsBurns: Thank you, I appreciate your compliment.
squbrigg: Thank you for the big vote of confidence now if I can only live up to it. LOL Out in Sacramento County in California there are both open game land and what I call game farms. Guess some like knowing their going to come home with pheasant--and some who like the challenge of finding their own.
AlArchie: Thank you, for the tip and for taking the time to draw a before and after picture. I did they to use my skew on it's side to see if I could shade with it. Minor success--maybe more testing needed.
Old_Gord: Thank you for asking Al to give us an example of modifying the skew.
Irish: Susan, Thank YOU so much for critiquing my pheasant and for your kind words. I'm including my updated pheasant along with the actual image I drew from a Dover copy write free publication. I should have taken the time to research my subject then I would have seen more detail. I plowed though my books after your suggestions and found what you were talking about. I know it could even be improved upon more. I blew one area at the top of the wing should have left that area lighter. This has been a really good learning lesson for me...I was surprised at the amount of shading that I could accomplish with the writing tip. Also I like seeing some wood grain in the work. I'm sure there are times maybe you wouldn't want the wood grain showing. But I do think in this composition it was effective.
Again Thank you All for your comments much appreciated.
Kathy
Hummm, having trouble uploading my two images??? But wanted to at least leave my thanks to you all. Will try to upload images later.

[Mottles]

Hi All:
Upload error on Mrs. Bumble I messed up somewhere between scan and save image. Re-saved images and did it right this time......LOL All went well!
The first image added some additional lines and shading after Susan's suggestions. Thank you Susan
The second image is of the actual picture/drawing I used for the pheasant. I did change the composition so as not to totally copy. The pheasant was drawn from a Dover copywrite free publication. I really like to use my own designs but as this was only practice I felt OK with it.
As always I value your thoughts, comments, suggestions for improvement.
I'm anxious to get started woodburning on my hubby's grandpa's antique lantern. It will be a real challenge but well worth the effort it's a terrific old lantern and I love that kind of thing.
Kathy