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novablue — Sunbathing raptor
Published: 2012-06-09 08:58:54 +0000 UTC; Views: 993; Favourites: 29; Downloads: 18
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Description
Sunbathing velociraptor mongoliensis. Apologies for any inaccuracies - I'm sure there are plenty...ProMarkers, pencil, colouring pens.
Original is A3, this is a (crappy...) photo. I know we always say this but, looks better in RL
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Comments: 10
My observation is: "warm-blooded" animals don't need sunbathing. I would call it "resting," not "sunbathing," because "sunbathing" is a question of life and death for reptiles - tortoises, lizards, crocodiles - because if they didn't do it, they would be too slow to catch prey or escape predators. A velociraptor could get a heatstroke doing this.
The stiffness of the tail has been discussed above, no need to mention it again, but the tail should be much longer - two thirds of the animal's length, in fact - which would mean the tip of the tail would be well off this picture.
But to not be so negative, I really like the anatomy of the body and head, the feathery crest looks awesome. I also like the forelegs - you did them just perfectly, the feathers cover the fingers and don't end at the wrist like in some other (wrong) reconstructions I have seen, and I like the tuffs of those slightly longer feathers on the hindlegs, I like this slight reminiscence/influence of microraptor in this particular detail.
Overall, it is a beautiful picture, the atmosphere is peaceful, the colors are gorgeous and I like your technique!
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Hm, I thought I replied to this on my phone but seems the reply isn't showing up...
Thanks for the comment
Re: sunbathing, while warm-blooded animals might not need it, it doesn't mean they don't enjoy it now and then - my dog will often search out the sunniest spot in the apartment, I have seen the same behaviour in horses, cows, cats, chickens etc. The raptor's pose was actually based on sunbathing birds with their wings spread out, google it and you'll see what I mean
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Well, my point was that lions search for shadow during the day, so it was kinda odd seeing velociraptor doing the exact oppostite despite living in an even hotter environment
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Here's a secretary bird sunbathing in almost the exact same pose
[link]
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Well, thanks for the pic
After seeing this, I am quite sorry for what I have written. I am glad no offense was taken
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I like that little crest in front of its eye--kinda reminds me of a cedar waxwing. The colors and textures and pleasant too.
Granted I'm no expert, but the anatomy looks good. The end of the tail might be a little too bendy--it was pretty stiff towards the end, and more flexible at the base.
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Thanks, I started drawing them with that feather crest a while ago and for some reason it just felt right, so I usually draw them like that now lol
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And you're right about the tail... I actually know that they are believed to have fairly stiff tail, so there's no excuse to not draw them with it, I don't even know why I curved it that much lol!
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