How to make a pair of Angel Wings

Step 2 Research

I spent quite a while studying photos of various birds wings on the internet. I decided I wanted the wings to look like those of an ibis, so typed 'ibis flying' into Google pictures and looked at the pictures, measuring the proportions of the wings. I was particularly interested in the ratio of their length to their depth and the layout of the feathers. I would recommend that you do the same if you want the wings to look realistic. I kept some the best pictures open on my laptop whilst I built the wings. Choose wings you like the look of and keep the pictures for later.

Dividing the length by the depth gave a ratio I could then apply to my own wings. Remember to note whether you are measuring from the point where the wing joins the body of the bird or from the centre of it's back. Make sure the view of the wing is as flat-side-on as you can otherwise the wing will appear shortened and your measurements will be wrong.

The wing in the picture below is 9cm by 3cm. Dividing 3 by 9 gives a ratio of 0.3 recurring.

You also need to calculate how far along the wing the joint is and record it. This is calculated in the same way. Note the layout of the feathers along the wing.

The photo below is good because the wing is full-length and the orientation of the feathers can easily be seen.