I've started painting in the sky using subtle dabs of pink and yellow over the blue to make the sky shimmer - a technique used by the impressionists. In order to pitch the tone of the sky correctly I painted in the sunlit areas of the puffins' white underparts first, as these will be the palest areas. I also painted an orange foot as another important colour reference when mixing the colour of the sky; sun shining through the orange feet will make them the most brilliantly coloured part of the picture so they have to stand out as brightly as possible against the sky.

Stage 2; I've finished painting in the shapes of the birds using my field sketches as reference, blocking in the main areas of shadow and the markings.

This is the very first stage of a new oil painting depicting a group of puffins coming in to land. I have washed the board with burnt sienna to provide a colour contrast to what will ultimately be blue sky. This will enhance the colour value of the blue, as tiny specks of the red/brown ground will show through in the finished piece. I have started roughing in the shapes of the birds to establish their placement, positions and a general overview of the composition. This is done with thin, diluted oil paint - I never draw with a pencil or charcoal; oil paint is easier to wipe off to correct mistakes. Picture size; 28" x 37". .

King penguins - Gold Harbour, South Georgia. The left-hand bird is holding a small chick on its feet, underneath a fold of skin that keeps it warm.

My first icebergs! Somewhere between the Falkland Islands and South Georgia. Sketched from the deck whilst wedged between the railings and a life-boat winch. This is a small sketch (only 5" x 7" - that's about120mm x 180mm in new money) but I may work it up into a large oil painting, perhaps with a black-browed albatross flying past - these were our constant companions.

Rockhopper penguins - Falkland Islands. These were sketched in a mixed colony of rockhoppers, blue-eyed cormorants and black-browed albatrosses on Carcass Island. Living up to their name these rockhoppers had hopped about 200ft from the sea up a VERY steep, rocky slope to get to their nests - no wonder they looked tired!

Fur seal pup and female fur seals asleep - Stromness, South Georgia. Fur seals, especially adolescent males, like chasing people so it was nice to sketch these ones asleep!