GAH! I was lookin' at the detail one before! This is really amazing!!! =O The detail image was cute on its own, but this adds a whole new level of depth! Or... detail.... or whatever the art term is XD I loves it!

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"It's hard to be an ornithologist and walk through a wood when all around you the world is shouting: 'Bugger off, this is my bush! Aargh, the nest thief! Have sex with me, I can make my chest big and red!' "
-Terry Pratchett

Wow, thanks a ton!
I'm gonna add a second detail of the owl/dog whenever my computer feels like loading it...I just like to be able to look at them seperately and then together...

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"Work...now...Freak...later!" ~John Crichton, Farscape

"Gentlemen, I wash my hands of this wierdness." ~Jack Sparrow

omg!! this totally pwns all gryphons!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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You will curse the day you did not do all that the Phantom asked of you...!!!

please enter my Dragon contest! [link]
You honestly dont believe in Dragons? ಠ__ಠ

Many thankies...

--
"Work...now...Freak...later!" ~John Crichton, Farscape

"Gentlemen, I wash my hands of this wierdness." ~Jack Sparrow

Wow, that is definitely amazing. Personally, I like the hawk/tiger mix better, but I have loved hawks ever since I can remember. Great job!

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Life is lifeless without love, make sure to live it the right way, for love is one thing that the more you give, the more you have to give. ~ me!

And my amazing avatar and lit tag were made for me by the marvelous ~TheAntimonyElement

Thanks! I've loved raptors for forever, and I am personally much more fond of diurnal birds like hawks/eagles/falcons, so this was a good reason for me to get off my lazy butt and draw some owlness. What kind of hawk is your favorite? I love golden eagles, harpy eagles, gyrfalcons, and ospreys. I'm hopeless...

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"Work...now...Freak...later!" ~John Crichton, Farscape

"Gentlemen, I wash my hands of this wierdness." ~Jack Sparrow

My favorite hawk, and the one that a character in my book is based off of, is Coopers Hawk, and gyrfalcons are pretty too, especially the white ones. I attempted to draw a hawk at one point and I could not for the life if me get the feathers to look right. You don't have that problem at all. How long have you been drawing?

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Life is lifeless without love, make sure to live it the right way, for love is one thing that the more you give, the more you have to give. ~ me!

And my amazing avatar and lit tag were made for me by the marvelous ~TheAntimonyElement

Wow, thanks! Cooper's hawks are very pretty, though I've never seen one up close...

I've been drawing for as long as I can remember, probably before I could write. I've always loved birds, wings, and dragons, though, and I've had several pet birds, which really helps. The best way to draw something realistically is to see how it works in real life, which is mostly how I've taught myself to do wings.

My (probably useless) tips for drawing feathers are as follows:
1) Think of a bird's wing as your own arm. The bones and joints are the same, and have pretty much the same proportions. Don't let the wing bend in a way your arm couldn't. Also, the shape of the primary feathers follows the shape of your hand: the first big primary (index finger) is NOT the longest--it's one of the next few. Don't forget the alula, either: that's the "thumb feather" that lets birds fly slowly without stalling.
2) Always draw feathers from the base of the leading edge (upper side, usually the narrower side of the shaft) to the tip and back again. This gives a wing its shape and keeps the feathers neatly lined up. Let the feathers overlap--you can erase the hidden edge later.
3) Draw the shaft (the stiff part through the middle of the feather)! It keeps a drawing from bending strangely and gives you a reference for the rest of the feathers. Remember, though, that the shaft is not "centered" in all types of feathers!
4) Pictures are good! I never draw directly from photos, but just staring at a picture of a wing can help you understand how it's put together. I've got a couple of really great "coffee-table books" with portraits of raptors from different angles that have really helped me to understand the musculature and alignment of different bird's wings and feathers.
5) Learn the different parts of a wing, and the kinds/uses of feathers found in each. The primaries are shaped differently from the secondaries are shaped differently from the coverts, and each set functions differently. Really nitty-gritty technical details can really make abstract sketching easier--if you understand the concept, your art improves whether you draw that much detail or not.

I know I just wrote you a novel, sorry...I talk a lot
I'd love to see some of your art, you should post it!
Hope this helps!

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"Work...now...Freak...later!" ~John Crichton, Farscape

"Gentlemen, I wash my hands of this wierdness." ~Jack Sparrow

thanks! I'll definitely have to try those. Most of my drawings are just really rough sketches, but I may get around to putting a few of the nicer ones up here. I write a whole heck of a lot better than I draw, and when I do draw, its generally doodles or something about a character. I'll see what I can do about getting some of them on here though.

--
Life is lifeless without love, make sure to live it the right way, for love is one thing that the more you give, the more you have to give. ~ me!

And my amazing avatar and lit tag were made for me by the marvelous ~TheAntimonyElement

I'd like to see your characters, especially if you do refs! (I LOVE looking at refs... ) I want to do one of Embyrn one of these days...

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"Work...now...Freak...later!" ~John Crichton, Farscape

"Gentlemen, I wash my hands of this wierdness." ~Jack Sparrow