1 - I LOVED drawing from the photo. I didn't have to readjust my perspective. But this isn't really my goal. It was easy to see details. Challenge was to get relative proportions. 2 - I definitely noticed much more than I would have even if I had been able to look at a bird for the length of time it took to do the drawing. I noticed the layers of feathers better than I would have in the field. Noticing these things from a photo will enhance my notice of details in nature.
1 - I started watching the birds in my backyard and have moved on to taking field trips to watch birds. 2 - I'm intimidated by the idea of putting my ideas on paper, but want try.