hen mallard first 1/2 drawn on

Chris Finch

Chris Finch

Well-known member
i carved and primed up a hen mallard. my homework from Pete is to start drawing out the feathers, he said the biggeset thing is to make sure they dont look like shingles.

i was just wondering if you guys had any other ideas or tricks you use to make sure it looks natural.

the decoy is cork, basswood head, and pine bottom/tail board. it is also textured. i will put up a picture later
 
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Chris,

I also just primed a hen mallard last night. Now how to paint it, hehehe. The best advise I've been given is to sketch in flow lines from back to front so the feathers will accentuate the curves of the duck. To avoid "shingles," make sure to use odd numbers of feathers in a group and "jump" between flow lines to break up any unwanted patterns. A slight twist to a single feather will also break up the monotony and make the eye move between flow lines. Of course, less is more, lol! Good luck, I look forward to seeing how your homework goes.
 
Chris,

On the IWFCA web-site is an excellent tutorial for painting hen mallards by Tommy Rogers. Although it's mostly airbrush, a paint brush will work also. I like the side pocket layout pics the best. I think they show you what you want - randomness.

http://www.iwfca.com/how-to-articles/painting-a-mallard-hen-with-tommy-rogers.html

If the link doesn't work right, check out the "how-to-articles" on the site to navigate to the tutorials. He also has one just on feather layouts:)
 
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Chris,

I had a similar question a while back, only with a black duck. Someone pointed me to the IWCA's website for Tommy Roger's article on drawing feather groups. Make sure you check that one out as well. I haven't had a chance to put it to use yet, but the article helped me visualize what I need to do.

Best of luck.
 
look at a specimen! That should be your best reference--if you need a color schematic for decoys, drop me a line at
gwdecoys@verizon.net
i will be glad to forward info for both sexes of mallard to you.
G
 
Chris,

The tricky thing with mallard hens is avoiding harsh transition lines where darker colors meet lighter edges. Actually, soft transition lines are key in any paint job, but hens compound the problem. My advice to you would be to make sure you feel comfortable with your ability to do blends along the lines where colors change. Regardless of whether you are using oils & blending wet; acrylics and using an extender to do the blends; whatever.

Base coat some practice scraps of the cork and do some small patches of the layout for different feather groups. But in the end, just jump in and go for it! Remember, on our best day, we aren't even going to come close.

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View attachment Mallhencaller 004.jpg

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Remember, on our best day, we aren't even going to come close.
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We? Bob, you're lumping yourself in with a pretty large group which includes at least one decoy "hacker" (myself). On the other hand, I know to whom you are comparing our efforts and I must agree with your original statement. ;>)
 
I don't enter my birds in contests, as there is no "Caricature" Classification.

Great job on the hens Bob.
 
first half drawn out, it looks a lot easier than it is. there is going to be a lot of painting to do

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Looks good so far. I like how you angled the sidepocket feathers slightly upward. I think that really helps avoid the fishscale look.

A tip on the back feathers. Think of the head as the sun then imagine rays of light going out from there. Have your feathers follow that flow. I've also found that fewer larger feathers are easier to paint and still get the same effect. Less is more theory. Mlbob's hens are great examples. Look at the backs on his hens. Without counting I bet he only has half the feathers as your's. The top photo and the bird in the lower right corner is a great example of what I'm talking about. You can see the sunburst pattern in the feathers.

Not trying to nitpick your first attempt but it resembles my first attempt to a tee! It will turn out nice but afterwards you'll say to yourself I need to make this easier. Once you figure out the feather part hens are not hard to paint. Time consuming yes, hard no at least in my opinion. Post pics of the finished product.
 
avoid the fishscale look.

Less is more theory. Mlbob's hens are great examples. Look at the backs on his hens. Without counting I bet he only has half the feathers as your's.
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Yes! Or as Joe Wooster used to say: "Bobby, leave something to my godddamn imagination!"
 
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