You may see birds only in the distance, but they can still give your sketch a sense of life. I remember discovering Frederick Franck’s lovely, evocative drawings and noticing how he let dashes and dots suggest the birds he saw in a landscape. I’ve used a similar effect here.
1" (2.5cm) flat brush, no. 8 round brush with a sharpened end, assorted watercolor pigments, black ink pen, white gel pen, textured watercolor paper
STEP ONE: Suggest Trees
I let the texture of the paper aid me in suggesting lacy trees in the background by skimming my almost-dry brush across the surface.
STEP TWO: Add Birds
After I got home, I used a white gel pen to add more snow geese by placing dots and dashes against the dark hill.
STEP THREE: Splatter Paint
A little wet-in-wet work and spatter gave texture to the foreground.
STEP FOUR: Add Ink
Sharp touches of ink made the foreground details crisp and brought them forward.
STEP FIVE: Add Final Details
I used the end of my brush to draw in the tree branches and the geese in the sky.