Frequently asked questions
✍🏻 What do you do?
I’m (mostly) a native bird illustrator and work from my home studio in Lake Ōkāreka, a quiet village outside of Rotorua. I’m lucky to have the lake on my doorstep and native forest all around so I have a huge variety of native birds nearby that provide me with an abundance of inspiration for my work.
I create a range of bird inspired goods that I sell online and through a selective range of outlets around the country. My range features original illustrations of native birds as well as more design-focused products like enamel pins.
For more about me please see my about page.
🐦 Why birds?
Why do you only paint birds?
I only paint birds (mostly) because I’m utterly obsessed with them. Birds provide me with so much inspiration, I love spending time in the wild watching them and I love learning all about them. I’m not just an artist that paints birds because they’re popular, my whole life revolves around them! I have spend many hours volunteering with them and continue to advocate for our native birds wherever I can.
🥝 Online Ordering
What happens when I purchase from your online shop?
Firstly I an so grateful for every purchase through my website! Once you confirm your order I will get a notification as soon as you purchase and will get your items prepared, packed up and ready to send within 5 working days. The courier then collects your order from my front doorstep and it’ll be delivered shortly after.
Do you offer discounts?
I have enamel pin and greeting card discount bundles available in my shop, and very occasionally I’ll send a discount to my newsletter subscribers. To join my newsletter click here.Do you use eco-friendly shipping?
Yes! all my shipping is plastic free (with the exception of A4 prints) - I use recycled cardboard and paper tape when shipping orders from my website. everything is wrapped with care and i use recycled tissue paper for delicate items. I also donate a portion of sales to Trees That Count to help offset the carbon emissions caused by sending my products throughout NZ and the world.
For shop Terms and Conditions click here.
🎨 Process
What medium do you use?
I use gouache for my hand-painted illustrations, it’s my absolute favourite medium. Gouache is an opaque watercolour that can be used just like watercolours with added water, or it can be used to create large flat opaque areas of colour. I can also create digital illustrations for files that are going to be screenprinted.Do you paint from photos?
Yes I do! I take lots of bird photos and have a huge catalog that I refer to when planning a new artwork. I find using photos is the only way to get a true likeness of the bird I’m painting and photography is such a huge part of the art making process for me.
🤝 Commissions & Collaborations
Do you do commissions? If so how much would it cost?
Yes I do commissions! If you would like a quote please get in touch with a few details about what you are looking for.Do you do collaborations?
Yes! I love collaborating with like-minded people. If you’d like to collaborate on a project please get in touch. I have worked on some projects that I’m really proud of, to see them view my portfolio.
📷 Photography
What camera do you use for bird photography?
I have a canon 7d mark ii with a canon 100-400mm lens. it’s my most prized possession and is 10 years old now but still does the trick. I take it with me wherever I go to see birds.
Where do you get your reference photos from?
I take them all myself! I love photographing birds, it gives me a good excuse to get immersed in nature, and I feel like I can better represent birds in my illustrations when I know their personalities and behavioural characteristics. I am often at my local sanctuary Zealandia snapping photos of all the beautiful native birds and I try to travel to other birding hot spots in NZ to see a variety of birds when I can.
Can I use your photos for my own art?
The short answer to this is no, please don’t draw or trace my photos for your art. I take my own photographs to use in my illustrations because I want the pose and perspective I use to be unique so the same bird isn’t seen in another artists work. I share my photos because I love talking about our native birds and sharing facts about them too, This leads to many people either asking to use my photographs for themselves or simply ignoring copyright laws and drawing/painting/tracing my photographs. As the photographer i am the copyright holder and to draw from someone else photograph (or create any derivative work from it) is in breach of New Zealand copyright laws. I insist that my photographs aren’t used without my express permission.A lot of effort, time, patience and money goes into bird photography, but it is very rewarding, and I encourage others to get out and take their own photos, it’s so much more meaningful knowing you have spent time with the bird you are illustrating or drawing. You can read more about this on my blog post here.
📒 Wholesale
Do you sell Wholesale?
Yes I do, if you have or know a store that might like to stock my range please get in touch! I have a dedicated wholesale ordering page which is password protected, to gain access please email me with a little bit of information about your shop.
👀 More info
Where can I get more info and product updates?
The best places to stay up to date are my Instagram page and my newsletter!
