An eagle spreads its wings to their full width while gliding above jagged peaks and clouds. The huge wingspan, long feathers at the wingtips and fierce profile make this eagle coloring page a powerful choice for anyone who wants to practice shading on a large scale.
The eagle sits in the middle with wings stretched to each side, drawn in rows of feathers that grow from small ones near the body to very long ones at the tips. The head is in profile, with a curved beak and a deep-set eye under a strong brow. Below, a line of mountain ridges stretches across the page, and soft-edged clouds float between the peaks and the bird.
Meant for kids from ten to fourteen. Although the size of the bird invites wide strokes, shading the long feathers needs good pencil control. It makes a great finishing page after coloring the owl, because it repeats the layered technique at a larger scale.
Download the PDF for your paper size and print at one hundred percent. Since the eagle takes up lots of space, avoid automatic fitting so the wingtips keep their margin. Paper of medium or heavy weight stands up to several layers of pencil without tearing.
Color the body feathers medium brown and the wingtip feathers dark brown, with a golden touch on the back of the neck. For the sky, a gradient from light blue to orange suggests sunset, and mountains in distant violet create the feeling of space. Leave the clouds white with soft grayish-blue shadows.
Looking at an eagle in flight is a good excuse to notice how birds soar. The long feathers at the tips, spread like fingers on a hand, help reduce turbulence, and the broad wings ride rising currents of warm air so the bird climbs without flapping. As you color, you can hunt for those details and decide which area of each wing is darkest, where the feathers overlap and cast shade. Try leaving thin gaps of bare paper between feathers where the light hits them; those small highlights make each wing look layered instead of flat, and they cost you nothing but a little restraint.
A golden eagle is dark brown with a golden patch on the nape and paler feathers at the base of the tail. The beak is yellow near the face and dark at the tip, and the feet are yellow with black talons.
Color each feather with long strokes that follow its shape from base to tip, pressing harder as you approach the end. That builds the natural darkening at the tips.
Use soft colors and horizontal strokes with almost no pressure. A very intense sky takes focus away from the eagle, while a light gradient and a few blended clouds let the bird stay the star.
