One little bumble bee.

If you know me then you'll know I love bees. They are starting to return to the hedgerows and flowers of Mid Devon and they are returning to my paintings too. I have been working on a very large piece this week and there are quite a few bumblebees in it. Here is step by step guide to just one little bee

Firstly I make a simple sketch 

Then I paint the tiny eye, leaving a white spot for the light reflected, there is cerulean blue in there too

Once I add a bit more blue for the antennae, and nosey bit. I move onto the yellows . I use Windsor yellow and cad orange and burnt sienna  to add graduation of colour to show light on the bee. I treat each little bee like finished painting in itself.

Then I add the blacks, be careful you remember which is yellow and which is black. I use Paynes grey for the blacks with blues in there too. Leave the yellow wet enough to allow the colours to merge without loosing the definition

i also painted his little legs

I keep going and added the pollen sack too with my lovely Windsor yellow, making sure there is a highlight on there.

Then finally i paint the wing and I add some clear varnish, to make them even more wing like

I hope you all have as much fun painting bumblebees as I do x