The Art of Ken Gilliland: Digital Art/Birds

One of my first bird images using one of my first 3D models, the hummingbird and flowers.

I wanted to play with a very subtle rain effect in Vue in this 2001 piece, and of course, had to use some of my favorite actors for the scene. Awards: 3D Cafe Platinum Award, E-on Software Picture of the Day May 12, 2001, Digital Artworks Award Gallery and Yuisa Image Award.

This 2001 Vue image actually uses Cherry trees but they looked like oaks to me. Awards: Digital Artworks Award Gallery, Digital Art Valley Image of the Month and Kota Press Gold Award 1/02

My first Songbird ReMix image. I wanted to give the feel of what I see on my feeder daily.

Sometimes the simple pleasures are the best-- how often do we walk by an everyday site and fail to stop and marvel at what we've missed-- the leaves of a tree, caressed by the wind, a simple blade of grass and of course, the frolicking bounce of finches and sparrows at work and play...

Here's a typical scene from the heights outside our yard. Lazy finches gather on the power lines to watch the Acorn woodpeckers carefully stockpile acorns for the winter top the pole. I can guess what the finches chatter translates to... "Hey, don't you know the guy down there fill the feeders every day"

This is a landmark piece in my bird art as I realized I both entertain and educate about the plight of endangered species. Click for more information about this bird. Awards: Digital Artworks Award and DAZ3D Showcase Gallery in 2004.

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One of the first of many European birds I decided to model/texture. Click for more information about this bird.

Here's a pair of Blue Tits waking up on a chilly morning in Barvaria... I can't believe I just typed with a straight face... who names these birds anyways? Click for more information about this bird.

The Kookaburra that saved the Songbird ReMix series. I was going to end the series until some users asked me to create a Kookaburra which in turn heralded the second generation of Songbird ReMix models. Click for more information about this bird.

California Quail forage by some white oaks. After 4 years or so making birds, I finally got around to creating one of my favorites. Click for more information about this bird.

For some reason, whenever it hints at being a real hot day in the morning, Elsa, my lesser-citron Cockatoo begins being a really, really "bad burrr-rd". She screams causing our pressed-tin ceiling in the kitchen to vibrate and I don't care how many times you've heard that scream, you lose all motor control when it happens. After cleaning up my shattered coffee mug I dropped mid-scream, I broke down and turned on the air conditioner, then I got Elsa settle down a little (which is also known as letting her have her way by being on my shoulder or wrist while I work at the computer-- talk about carpal tunnel!). Anyways, that was inspiration enough to use my new SBRM2 Cockatoo to show Elsa what a "goo-ooo-ood burd" really is. Click for more information about this bird.

As with some of my imagery, this image took on a life of it's own where I feel almost like a spectator in it's creation. I have no idea what those pigeons are gossiping about. Click for more information about this bird.

A pair of American Goldfinches find romance and thistle seed... Click for more information about this bird.

A pair of Downy Woodpeckers forage in Yosemite. Click for more information about this bird. Award: Daz3D Spotlight 2006

Here's my SBRM Sun Conure playing a CG toy with a blurred photo background. Click for more information about this bird.

Three Rock Ptarmigans slowly move to their winter foraging grounds as the first snow falls. Click for more information about this bird.

Two Ringneck Pheasants, frightened off by my render command in Poser, try to escape... little do they know they are a wing beats away from hitting the Millennium Cyclorama. ;-)Click for more information about this bird.

Here's a common scene in my yard-- one or two Band-tailed Pigeons get lucking enough to land on the feeder. Within moments, all their pals decide that's a good idea as well and start mobbing the feeder, eventually upsetting the apple cart. All fly away and restart the process. I watch from the front porch, it's entertainment for hours... Click for more information about this bird.

Rainbow Lorikeets head to their roosting spot.Click for more information about this bird.

Once the most populous bird in the world (estimated population 5 billion), the passenger pigeon would within sixty years go extinct, entirely due to human intervention. In written accounts given by those who actually saw the Passenger Pigeon flocks in 1850, "When the flock took off, the day would turn to night with a black cloud of birds, two to three miles across and forty miles long". Click for more information about this bird.

A collection of my pet-oriented birds. Award: Daz3D Spotlight 2006

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There was an "anti-Valentine's Day" theme going on at the place where I sell shirts, mugs etc... so I decided it would be fun to do an image for the theme, with a bird, of course. Click for more information about this bird.

Black-cheeked Lovebirds are an endangered species found in Zambia (East Africa). Click for more information about this bird.

Two Thick-billed Parrots enjoy a pinecone. Click for more information about this bird.

The Cape Parrot is named so because it lives on the "Cape Horn" of South Africa. Click for more information about this bird.

In 1990, the last identifiable Night Parrot was found as "road kill" in southwestern Queensland, Australia. Click for more information about this bird.

Here's a male King of Saxony Bird of Paradise. The long antennae-like plumes are used in courtship as well a feather-like cape around the neck(not shown in this render). Click for more information about this bird.

A small fish should have stayed in school as it learns it's first and only lesson... always stay deep when a Belted Kingfisher is above. Click for more information about this bird.

...And human males think they have it tough when it comes to romance... The male Vermillion Flycatcher first must hunt down an exceptionally colorful and gawdy anthropod or butterfly and present it to win his intended's approval. Click for more information about this bird.

The O'o nuku'umu (or more easily pronounced, Black Mamo)was endemic to the islands of Hawai'i, Mau'i and Moloka'i.Click for more information about this bird.

Noctural birds offer some interesting rendering challenges... such as trying to keep lighting subtle enough to be natural. Here I tried a backlit moon approach. Click for more information about this bird.

It's strange that I haven't done a Robin piece in all the years' I've been doing bird art. Click for more information about this bird.

I came up with a clever title for this piece-- but have gone brain dead as far as coming up with something equally as clever for what that cardinal rule should be... oh well... Click for more information about this bird.

My Turkeys models. Click for more information about this bird.

One of my favorite real-life birds. Click for more information about this bird.

The only Trogon found in the US. Click for more information about this bird.

Clearly my favorite Yutucan birds. I saw one while I was in Belize. Click for more information about this bird.

The Toco is the largest of the Toucans and found in the Northern part of South America. Click for more information about this bird.

A Keel-billed Toucan, several manakins and a tropical parula take a nap. The Keel-billed Toucan was the inspiration for Froot Loops' "Toucan Sam". Click for more information about this bird.

A Blue Jay and Squirrel look for nuts. Click for more information about this bird.

Two American Robins welcome the new addition... This is my first official "Motherhood" render. While progress on this project has been slow, I think I'm finally starting to turn the corner to completion. And yes, Robins lay blue eggs.

Three pipits sing the "Feed Me Now" Song. Here shows my hatchling and nest models for my next in line on the Songbird ReMix series.

For a change for pace, I used DAZ|Studio for my Rufous-headed Woodpeckers. Click for more information about this bird.

Of course, I couldn't do a birds of the Amazon collection with including a Macaw... Rendered in DAZ Studio. Click for more information about this bird.

While not quite as striking as it's jet black male counterpart, the female Amazonian Black Tyrant is a beautiful bird nonetheless. Click for more information about this bird.

Rendered in Poser 7 with very minor postwork. Click for more information about this bird.

Here's two male Bananaquits having a stand-off over turf. Click for more information about this bird.

Turkey Vultures ride the thermals. Click for more information about this bird.

Here's two Griffin Vultures from my new project I'm working on. In researching vultures, I found an interesting fact... Old World and New World vultures are NOT related other than in a superfical appearance and their diet. Old World vultures use their eyes to find their food while New World vultures use their noses. Click for more information about this bird.

Emperor Penguins at play. Click for more information about this bird.

Galápagos Penguins at play. Click for more information about this bird.

King Penguins on an ice flowy Click for more information about this bird.

A Painted Bunting looks for lunch. Click for more information about this bird.

Black Skimmers fish. Click for more information about this bird.

The Black-footed Albatross is the only dark albatross of the northern Pacific Ocean and nests primarily on the Hawaiian Islands. Click for more information about this bird.

The name 'booby' comes from the Spanish term bobo, which means "Stupid". Click for more information about this bird.

2 Petrels face Penguin fury after snatching one of their young. The Southern Giant Petrel is a scavenger by nature but will hunt stray Penguins (and especially chicks) if the opportunity arises. This Petrel is also known as "the stinker" because of its' ability regurgitate a foul-smelling oil which they spit at intruders. Click for more information about this bird.

Cape Petrels breed on numerous islands surrounding Antarctica. Click for more information about this bird.

Brown Pelicans forage on the beach. Click for more information about this bird.

Puffins look a little like the lovechild of a Toucan and Penguin :) Click for more information about this bird.

The Parakeet Auklet is found in the boreal waters of Alaska and Kamchatka and Siberia. Click for more information about this bird.

Tufted Puffins enjoy a sand eel snack. Click for more information about this bird.

The Crested Auklet fight off a Herring Gull. Click for more information about this bird.

Whooping Cranes go fishing. Click for more information about this bird.

Sandhill Cranes forage in a marsh. Click for more information about this bird.

On the Job Training for cattle egrets. Click for more information about this bird.

The African Spoonbill is a widespread resident across Africa and Madagascar. Click for more information about this bird.

Painted Storks take advantage of a Koi pond. Click for more information about this bird.

A frog tries to stay a leap ahead of the agile Bare-throated Tiger Heron. Click for more information about this bird.

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White Storks make the rounds. The legend that the European White Stork brings babies is believed to have originated in northern Germany, perhaps because they arrived back in Europe on fairly predictable dates and almost exactly 9 months after the previous mid-summer. Northern Europeans of Teutonic ancestry encouraged storks to nest on their homes hoping they would bring fertility and prosperity. Click for more information about this bird.

AYellow Bittern keeps an eye out for lunch. Click for more information about this bird.

One of the most endangered birds on the planet. Click for more information about this bird.

Eurasian Bitterns forage. Click for more information about this bird.

Often times we do things without thinking things through (such as ignoring a leash law) and how something that seems harmless is quite the opposite. Everything we do affects something else in our world. "In nature there are neither rewards nor punishments; there are consequences" -Robert Ignersoll Click for more information about this bird.

In response to predators, the American Avocet sometimes issues a series of call notes that gradually changes pitch, simulating the Doppler Effect and thus making its approach seem faster than it actually is. Click for more information about this bird.

The Caribbean or "American" Flamingo is the pinkest of the 6 species of Flamingo. It ranges from pink to Coral red in color depending on location and availability of the crusteans which give it it's color. Click for more information about this bird.

The James's (aka Puna) Flamingo is found in small range in the Andes, from the southern tip of Peru through western Bolivia and northwestern Argentina to northern Chile. Click for more information about this bird.

I think I captured the Lesser Flamingos pretty well because my wife's first comment on the piece was that she could "smell them" from here :) Hopefully that means the piece doesn't stink as well :lol: Click for more information about this bird.

A Ruddy Turnstone discovers a hermit crab emerging from the sand while Stilts wade for their meals. Godwits fly above searching for better pickings. Click for more information about this bird.

Funny how things happen... I posted this piece on an online forum and decided to rerender it in a large size. Upon reloading it, I realized the camera settings were all messed up-- the best I can guess-- my cockatoo must have waltzed over the keyboard/mouse (as she often does). In any case, I had to reset the camera and do a little rearranging in forground which in turn made a much better composition. I guess I have to share credit on this piece with Elsa, my Lesser Citron Cockatoo :lol:

California Quail, white-crowned sparrows and dark-eyed juncos forage. This is one of my test render for the third generation of my Songbird ReMix model.

Normadic jacanas and spoonbills follow the water in Africa. Click for more information about this bird.

A Northern Jacana forages on lily pads for insects (hence it's nickname, "Lily Trotter"). Notice the very big feet-- this gives the bird the ability to walk on floating vegetation. In Jamaica this bird is also known as the 'Jesus bird', as it appears to walk on water. Click for more information about this bird.

A Western Screech-owl gets a meal. Click for more information about this bird.

This image shows the days upon days I spent created feathery texture maps on the owl. Click for more information about this bird.

Probably my favorite Hawaiian bird. It's call sounds like a squeaky hinge. Click for more information about this bird.

Fun with the title... a Red-capped robin stalks a Stag beetle in the Australian Outback. Click for more information about this bird.

White-fronted Honey-eaters feed on the nectar from Rosemary Grevillea flowers. Click for more information about this bird.

The Mistletoebird is common wherever mistletoe grows and is important in the dispersal of this plant species in Australia. Click for more information about this bird.

The Mallee Emu-wren sings as a group of Diamond Firetails watch. Click for more information about this bird.

Nightingales are named so because they frequently sing at night as well as during the day. The name has been used for well over 1,000 years, being highly recognizable even in its Anglo-Saxon form - 'nihtingale'. It means 'night songstress' Click for more information about this bird.

The Texas Henslow’s Sparrow has been extinct since 1983 thanks to urban sprawl. Is it acceptable for a small species like the Texas Henslow’s sparrow to vanish (thanks to us)? What about two such species? Or three? When do we decide the world will not be the same without them? This is a question we cannot put off anymore. Currently, one-in-five species (mammal/plant/insect) are on the cusp of extinction, in a good part thanks to us. Unless we get very serious about protection within the next decade, broken symbiotic relationships will put us on the extinction list as well. Click for more information about this bird.

This reminded me of a quote of how developers bulldoze trees and name streets after them. So where does the New Years’ resolution title come in? This image to me is a poignant reminder of what is happening around the world. The one New Years’ resolution I plan to keep is to continually bug my non-environmentally sensitive representatives to become more sensitive. This is especially important within the United States as a new Congress convenes. Click for more information about this bird.

In redoing my birds for my "Threatened, Endangered, Extinct 2" I came across the an entry I sadly had to update to "extinct" from it's initial release. When I created the Po’o-uli there were still 3 left in existance; 2 males and a female. Shortly after it's release, the female died from avian malaria, dooming the species to certain extinction. Click for more information about this bird.

Romance on the trellis. Click for more information about this bird.

The Borin Grosbeak of Japan (Borin Island) has been extinct for 180 years. Click for more information about this bird.

Spix's Macaw is now believed to be extinct in the wild.he reason for it's decline to around 50 remaining birds in captivity is two fold. The primary reason for the decline is poaching for the Pet Trade. While many birds breed well in captivity, Spix's Macaw do not. Click for more information about this bird.

The Colorful Puffleg was once thought extinct until it was rediscovered in November 1997. The Puffleg obviously gets it's name from it's cottonball-like feathering on its thighs. Click for more information about this bird.

A little bittern fishes using a common wading bird techique. The bird create it's own shade by wraping its' feathers around. Fish are then fooled into what they think is safe shady cover. Click for more information about this bird.