Apologies for the delay - I'm battling with the next video... and it’s winning at present
I've returned this, I hope, to something nearer the values of the original - although I have slightly boosted the darks. So, I'll assume this is close.
MARTINA-Magpie.jpg
Based on that...
The brilliant white highlight in the eye draws me directly to the Magpie's head. No problems there. Then my eye drops to his chest, and here I agree with Laurene, the criss-cross lines don't suggest feathers. Instead, they're a distraction.
The branch it's standing on is perfectly pitched - it's there, but it doesn't take attention away from the magpie. Lower down, I think the big branch has lost its roundness. It's equally detailed from top to bottom, and it's almost equal in values too. As it's a cylindrical form, it would have received more light on top, and be darker below, as it curving away from us; and the detail would lessen too, because we're no longer looking directly at it. I'd also like to see a few darker values in there to balance the head. The drawing is a little top-heavy at present.
The foliage is OK, in that it doesn't distract.
But there's one thing that really doesn't work for me, and that's the background. Using graphite powder seems like a good idea, but it needs to be smoothly applied. Here, it's patchy. And the patches have edges. For example, in the top-right corner, there's a light halo around the branch (around the Magpie too). And to the right of the branch is a darker patch that doesn't connect in any way to the left-hand side. The result is that the background appears to be a roughly plastered wall... just behind the bird. But I think you intended it to look far away in the distance?
If you want to try that again (advice here from someone who's never used graphite powder
) is to cover
the whole of the background first. Try to steer clear of any area that has to be white, such as the Magpie's chest, but you should be able to lift the graphite out after applying it.
The nearest technique I use is to shade skies very lightly with 2H and then, again lightly, blend it. I apply that over everything, but I can see my guidelines through it, so it's easy to lift out areas that shouldn't be toned down. But it does ensure a very even coverage over the entire area.
But all that said, it's a magnificent Magpie!
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. I'm a beginner without a drawing course, just Youtube videos and recently Mike's book 
.
But there is something that irritates me about this drawing and I don't know exactly what it is. Is it the lack of range of values? Are the shadows cast partially wrong?
)...
