Yes, it’s a still a bird but at least I broke my streak of posting fountain pen sketches. This time around a used a Wikimedia Commons photo and my Inktense pencils and blocks. I’ve used Inktense a lot but almost always as a background with pastels or colored pencil layered over it. I had forgotten how wonderful they are to use from beginning to end. They layer beautifully, create interesting washes, and the white can be as translucent or opaque as needed–a real treat for someone who’s always struggling with saving white paper for highlights.

I love how this crow turned out and wish I would have gone to the trouble to use better paper with this one.