Golden Hour Reflections on Shem Creek ~ Brown Pelicans in living color!
As many of you know, the Brown Pelican is one of my favorite birds to photograph and paint. Shem Creek, in Mt. Pleasant, is one of my go-to places to photograph pelicans. They are usually very active because shrimpers and fishermen discard unwanted fish overboard.
Late in the afternoon, at Shem Creek, the sun’s warm rays of light bounce off the surface of the water creating all kinds of crazy reflections. The Golden Hour light also highlights the feathers of the pelicans giving them a warm glow. The combination makes for what I find to be very artistic images, some almost appearing abstract in nature.
The other evening I took a series of photographs that I found unusual and they’ve captured my attention as an artist. I don’t know if they will inspire future paintings or not, but for now I thought I’d share some of the images.
Sometimes in a painting I prefer to focus on the bird and keep the background simple. Other times a colorful, busy background might create a unique painting that isn’t all about the bird. For collectors it is all personal preference. For decorative purposes it might all come down to what colors work well on the wall. For me it can become a tough decision as to what kind of background I want to paint. Most often I choose to paint what I saw and photographed, but there are times when I will place the bird on a different background.
Some of these images might make good paintings and others I know would drive me crazy if I had to paint them (best left as photographs). I hope you enjoy seeing my Brown Pelican photos from Shem Creek. If there is one that really appeals to someone, I do do commission work.
I will definitely be painting another Brown Pelican soon, whether it is from one of these photographs or from one of the hundreds of others that I have taken!
Thank you for reading my journal and for your interest in my art and my photography. I am currently working on a painting of St. Michael’s Church in Charleston.
“One of the joys of being an artist is having the freedom to follow my passion….”
What’s next?
Drawing by William R. Beebe