NZ bird art, illustrations and accessories by New Zealand bird artist Melissa Boardman
faq’s
• Online Ordering •
has my order shipped yet? Once you place an order you immediately receive a confirmation email with the details of your order. then once your order has shipped (usually Within 5 working days) you’ll receive another email confirmation your order has shipped and a tracking number so you can see its progress. If you haven’t received an email with shipping details yet then your order likely hasn’t shipped yet.
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.
Where can I buy your book? You can find my book in most good bookshops throughout the country, if your local bookshop doesn’t have it you can request they order it in for you. If you’re based overseas you can purchase through mighty Ape. PLease note that I’m not selling my book directly so you won’t find it in my shop section of this website.
• 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 6 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, but only stationery items are available for wholesale. I don’t wholesale my patches, stickers or tote bags. I welcome enquiries for my stationery range, please email me at melissa (at) melissaboardman.com or get in touch through the ‘contact’ page on this site. 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.
• Illustration •
What medium do you use? all my illustrations are painted with gouache, 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.
do you do commissions? if so how much would it cost? yes I do commissions! costs vary because there are so many variable factors, if you would like a quote please get in touch with a few details about what you are looking for. I specialist in native NZ bird illustrations so if it’s bird related I will definitely consider it!
do you sell originals? yes! I have a range of originals available - if you like a print but would prefer the original please get in touch!
can you tell me more about your process? I’m always happy to talk about my process, and to answer questions on anything from finding inspiration, being a full time artist, even the technical aspects of illustration. If you’d like to listen to me talk about how I work, check out this interview I did for Radio New Zealand here.
• Shipping & returns terms & conditions •
Plastic free shipping! I pack my orders in reused, reusable, recyclable kraft boxes or wrapping. with No bubble wrap in sight. Instead I use recycled tissue paper if padding is required. Be assured if you order from me you won’t be left with plastic packaging that you don’t know what to do with.
shipping within NZ Most orders are shipped within 3 working days, you will receive a shipping confirmation once your order is on it's way. All items are sent via NZ post, tracking may provided depending on the value of the item. Most items within NZ should arrive within a week, although standard mail only delivers on certain week days.
international shipping Yes I offer international shipping, but unfortunately at this time it is at buyers risk. I simply cannot afford to refund or repost items that get lost in the post. Most orders are shipped within 5 working days via NZ Post's International Air option, you will receive a shipping confirmation once your order is on its way. Unfortunately tracking is not available for international orders, it's simply too costly, and in order to provide a reasonable shipping cost it’s not feasible. • Shipping to Australia usually takes around 12 working days. • Shipping to US, UK and Europe usually takes around 20 working days. • Shipping to everywhere else usually takes up to 24 working days.
Returns & terms
purchasing any items from my website does not transfer reproduction rights. I retain all rights to my designs and illustrations, you may not on-sell, redistribute or offer any of my products as giveaways or promotion on social media without my express permission.
I take extreme care when packaging items to avoid damage in transit, but if your items arrives damaged please contact me and I will send a replacement. I cannot accept change of mind returns sorry, as items such as Fine Art Prints are made to order.
Please make sure to provide the correct and full shipping address at time of ordering, (including flat number, suburb etc) I ship the address provided on the order, (not the PayPal address) The shipping cost will have to be covered by the customer if the item has to be re-sent due to a customer error.
Pickups are not available at this time sorry, as I work from my home and my studio is at the back of my house so it’s a bit awkward!
If you have any questions or concerns feel free to get in touch, I want you to be completely happy if you purchase anything from me.
Thank you!
If you have any other questions not covered here feel free to get in touch using my contact page here.
