David C. Simon

@davidcsimon

Australian artist, writer, wildlife photographer, dungeon master, and bird-nerd. Autism & ADHD. All photos are my own unless otherwise credited. All subjects are wild and living unless otherwise noted. #noAI

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David C. Simon@davidcsimon· 25d

Here's something I've been working on for a few months now: My Hivescum Desperado character for a Wrath & Glory game that I'm playing with some friends. Her name is Niamh, and she's equal parts Space Cowboy, Accidental Robin Hood, and Sullen Goth Girl. #blender3d #oc #3dart #40k

3D render of a character against a plain gradient background with the artist's username in the bottom right (@davidcsimon). The character is a small, thin young woman wearing black jean shorts, a red shirt, a black leather coat with red lining and golden stitching, and brown leather accessories including a bandolier, gunbelt, and two holsters. She has short hair with shaved sides that is brown and grades to red at the tips. She is dramatically posed with two oversized revolvers (Liberator Auto-stubs, in 40k lore) - one in each hand. She is firing one gun, the other is trailing smoke from its barrel. Her legs are mechanical (augmetic) and she has a bionic eye with tubes connected to a metal graft on the side of her head.

Close crop at 100% of the character's face. She ins snarling, but has a slightly desperate look about her too. There is extensive scarring around her augmetic eye and skull graft, suggesting a serious injury in her backstory.

Close crop of the character's waist showing showing detailed texture work. The belt buckle is a silver jawless skull (40k style) with one augmetic eye. She's wearing a leather pouch on her gunbelt with a brass clasp. Her shirt is subtly patterned with floral designs.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· 25d

Red Wattlebird, ventral view. #birds

Photograph of a large brown, white, and black honeyeater in a flowering cherry tree. The bird is vertically gripping a thin branch and is angled so that its belly and throat are visible. It has a vivid patch of yellow feathers on its belly, and both of its large red cheek wattles are visible.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· 27d

Our cherry tree is flowering again. #birds

Photo of a Red Wattlebird surrounded by pink cherry blossoms. It is a large honeyeater in shades of white, black, and brown, with red wattles on its cheeks and vividly red eyes.

Photo of a Eastern Spinebill with pink cherry blossoms. It is a small honeyeater in black, orange, brown, and white, with a long curved beak and vividly red eyes.

Photo of two Rainbow Lorikeets with pink cherry blossoms. The foreground Lorikeet has its beak around one of the flowers while the background Lorikeet is coming in to land on another branch. They are small parrots in green, yellow, red, blue, and orange, with - you guessed it - vividly red eyes.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· 28d

Hello #PortfolioDay! I'm an enthusiastic amateur artist (2D & 3D) with a special interest in fantasy & sci-fi.

Digital painting of a scantily-clad red-skinned tiefling standing in front of an arched stone window. She has long swept-back horns and short messy black hair.

Digital painting of a scary woman with zombies. She has deathly white skin and is wearing a black dress with Day-of-the-Dead inspired face paint. She has one hand raised with claw-like fingernails and is using it to manipulate strings of magical water, puppeting the zombies in the background.

Digital painting (over a 3D render) in the style of a maritime painting. A 2-masted topsail schooner sails towards the setting sun near a rocky coast with rough seas while a large dragon-like creatures soars in the distance.

Digital painting of a female elf crouched on a mossy ridge in a forest looking down into a gully, accompanied by a small feathered dinosaur (a mononykus). She is bare-footed, with a green cloak and plain brown clothing with a kookaburra feather in her headband that gives Ranger vibes though she's actually a Druid.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· 29d

Also at Winterfest: A pair of Red-rumped Parrots watching me as I walked back to my car. #birds

Photo of two small parrots on a met cable in golden hour sunlight. One (L) is dull grey green and yellow, the other (R) is bright green, yellow, and turquoise.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jul 8

It's my BIRTHDAY which means I'm obliged to ask for reposts and you must comply (I don't make the rules)! I'm David, a disabled and chronically shy Australian artist and photographer with autism and ADHD. I like birds, video games, fantasy & sci-fi, history, TTRPGs, and long walks in the forest.

Photograph of an immature Eastern Spinebill - a small Australian honeyeater - drinking from brightly coloured Corymbia flowers while hovering. The bird is various ahdes of brown, orange, cream, and black, with vivid red eyes.

Photo of a Little Wattlebird - a large Australian honeyeater - standing on Corymbia buds. It is a mottled brown and white bird with faint blue eyes. It is poking it's tongue out.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jul 6

Photo of two people in fantasy costumes. One (left) is dressed as Ciri from the Witcher (I think? I never finished The Witcher 3. I'M SORRY!), with white hair, linen top, gloves in black orange and blue, a leather belt, and brown pants. The other is dressed like a tribal warrior in furs with braided golden hair, bare arms with gloves of leather and fur, metal pauldrons, and stylised metal skulls with leather belt and kilt.

A women in a voluminous black gothic dress with much lace and many frills. She has dark magenta hair with a gold and black tiara, black feathers, point elf ears (ethically sourced, I hope), and is holding a spikey black and red sword.

Photo of a person dressed as Astarion from Baldur's Gate 3, wearing an outfit of dark purple, black, and white, with red and gold trim and a brown leather belt, all ornately decorated. They have curly white hair, pointy elf ears (probably *not* ethically sourced, knowing Astarion), and a dagger.

Photo of a young woman wearing an exquisitely detailed dress of a medieval noble woman in green and gold with fine jewels and headdress, holding a short sword (or long dagger) and looking off frame with s smirk on her face that says "I just thought of a great use for this..."

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jul 6

Photo of a women in a black outfit featuring a jacket, long skirt, black staff with vertebrae and horned skull, and wearing a face mask of a stylised bird skull. The mask's beak is open as it is articulated with her jaw, which is also open as she screams/yells/sings/caws (I don't recall) at the spectators.

A Plague Doctor (which we all know weren't really a thing, right? The image and concept were invented in the 19th century as part of the gothic revival) dressed in black with classic beak mask and black hooded cowl. They are pulling a small wheeled trolley with plague doctor illustrations, black rats, and text saying "The Black Death. When going viral meant something".

Photo of a young woman dressed as a stylised medieval knight with red cape and tabard, ornate metal shoulder and arm guards, holding a sword in one hand and a dandelion flower in the other. It's possible that one (1) dandelion was harmed in the creation of this outfit, but they're an invasive weed in Australia so I'll allow it.

Photo of a young woman in 18th century men's clothing including vest, breeches, stockings, puffy sleeves, a cravat, and a tricorn hat with a big white feather. The vest and breeches are pastel green with ornate leafy patterns, and the shirt and cravat are pastel peach. The hat is a light orange brown. It may sound absurd but trust me: She wears it extremely well.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jul 6

Photo of a woman dressed as the Wicked Witch of the West with green makeup, black clothing, and iconic black witch's hat. She is merrily twirling around, sending fabric everywhere.

Photo of a young women in a steampunk outfit featuring a white blouse, black jacket, skirt in black red and grey, heavy boots, a black top hat with a skull and something pointy, and a small lacy black parasol. She's wearing a sash in turquoise that matches the colour of the dragon-like creature on her shoulder.

Did I forget to mention the creature on her shoulder?

Photom of a young woman dressed as... I want to say Daenerys from Game of Thrones? Sorry, I didn't watch past season one. She's definitely giving those vibes though: Long white hair, pale skin, black armour, ready to slay.

Photo of three people in various equally impressive costumes. Left: Tribal druid with furs, braided hair, facepaint, and a skull/antler staff. Middle: Gothic Anthropomorphic Raven of Death (GARD) with a full head bird skull mask and black feathers, a corset, and clawed fingers. Right: A woman in Highly ornate stylised fantasy armour in gold, blue, and red, with a golden leaf-bladed sword, braided hair, and a... smartphone? No, that must be a magical talisman of some kind.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jul 6

Photo of a person in a fantasy druid costume with a stylised dear (?) skull as a mask (ethically sourced I assume) complete with talismans hanging from the antlers, ragged brown robes, a horned staff, and a bloody red ribcage with more talismans. Oh and what looks like a chicken foot and the tail of some unfortunate fluffy animal (also ethically sourced, I assume).

Photo of a person dressed as a Knight Templar, including great helm, mail hauberk, tabard, and carry a flag of the templars. It's so well done that I didn't even notice the jeans and white sneakers until I started writing this alt text.

Photo of a person dressed as the Dark Urge from Baldur's Gate 3 (silver dragonborn with patches of red scales on their throat, arms, and sides). They are wearing a skintight bodysuit from the waist up that has the scales printed in exquisitve detail, and a magnificent dragonborn headpiece with articulated jaw. They're holding something in their right hand that is probably from BG3, but it's a long time since I played it and I never played the Dark Urge origin because I'm a coward.

Photo of a bearded man in a hooded cloak and furs with a buckler, handaxe, and various leather accessories. The furs include what appears to be a fox pelt hanging from his belt which may or may not have been ethically sourced, but foxes are a pest in Australia so it's complicated anyway.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jul 6

Photo of a masculine person in an anthropomorphic costume that's giving me demi-werewolf vibes. He's topless aside from orange cloth draped over his shoulders and a few bandages wrapped around his torso and head, but there's extensive makeup that blends with his natural body hair to give a sleek hirsute appearance. The prosthetic claws are particularly impressive.

Photo of two people cosplaying as Fjord and Jester from Critical Role, including green skin for the orc and blue skin for the tiefling. The lack of giant lollipop is notable, but I understand it would have been awkward to carry it around the fair all day.

Photo of two women in hunched stances dressed as goblins with prosthetic faces including long, pointy noses. They are dragging a basket which - if I recall correctly - offers goblin ears, $5 for a pair. I don't want to know how these goblins acquired spare ears.

Photo of a young woman in a very gothic outfit including a flowy black dress with rose-themed lace in black and red, a very narrow corset, black and white face makeup, and two sets of black horns - one curled like a ram, the other straight like a devil.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jul 6

Some of my favourite cosplays from Winterfest 2026 (a thread) (PS: The alt-text for this thread took me over an hour to write, so maybe glance at it every now and again? Please?)

Photograph of a young woman wearing... look I'm going to be straight with you: My costume/fashion knowledge is extremely limited, and my pop-culture awareness is full of holes. I'm going to do my best to describe what I see in these photos, but I'm definitely going to miss some key details and make some mistakes, so I apologise in advance.

ANYWAY

Photo of a young women in white with subtle animal makeup on her face. An arrow protrudes from a red rose in her chest, which has stained her costume red with (probably fake) blood.

Photo of a man in stylised medieval armour. It is highly detailed, with quasi-religious seals and inscriptions like something out of Dark Souls or Warhammer. There's also some kind of animal at his side, but I'd rather not describe it because I'm on record as not liking them and I feel weird posting a photo of one.

Photo of a person in Viking-eqsue armour with black dreads and a mask that blends the look of the Predator (from the Sci-fi franchise) with a saxon helm.

Photo of a person in... oh lord, how do I describe this? It's a dress I guess, with puffy upper sleeves and skirt, and there's a corset and a veil and boots, and halo, and it's all gold and covered in jewels, but there are vertebrae and ribs on the chest, and the veil has a skull face with jewels in the eyes, nose, and mouth, and I need to rest for a moment...

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jul 6

I came home with over 11,000 photos after Winterfest this weekend. I'll post some of the magnificent costumes later, but here are some other moments that I enjoyed.

Photograph of two ranks of people dressed as Roman soldiers including armour, shields, spears, and pila. There is a mix of men and women of various ages, and their gear is very detailed and largely authentic.

Photograph of three men in scottish dress (Jacobites) firing a volley of flintlock muskets in a grassy field with spectators and tents in the background.

Photograph of four people fighting a melee (blunted weapons and minimal force) using armour and weapons from different european periods and regions.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jul 3

Coots are cute. #birds

Photo of four Eurasian Coots walking. They are small black water birds with white beaks and forehead shields, vivid red eyes, and large feet.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jul 2

Brushtailed Possum in our artificial hollow.

Photo of a large possum curled up and sleeping in a wooden box.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jun 30

Sorry for my recent lack of Birdposting. My AuDHD brain has become hyperfixated (again) on an unrelated project which means I tend to forget to do anything else. More birds will come. In the meantime here's a Fan-tailed Cuckoo that I saw across the road from my house a few months ago. #birds

Photograph of a small bird perched on the end of a broken, dead tree branch. The bird is grey and brown with light blue iridescence in the direct sunlight. It has yellow rings around black eyes. Being a parasitic cuckoo, it's more evil than it appears.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jun 19

BABIES! #birds

Photograph of two juvenile Rainbow Lorikeets on a branch, close enough to the viewer for a bokeh background and for one of the birds to be slightly out of focus. Both birds are brightly coloured in blue, yellow, orange, red, and green. Their feet are pinker than an adult's, and their eyes and beaks are darker. The foreground bird is looking at the viewer while the background bird gently leans forward and preens the other's head feathers.

As before, but the foreground bird is facing away and the background bird is now preening its neck feathers while looking directly ad the viewer.

As before but cropped and focus on just one of the birds as it preens itself. It has one of its long tail feathers held between its tongue and upper beak.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jun 11

CREST #birds

Photograph of the crest of a Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, rear view, with sun coming from the side against a dark background.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jun 9

Mum and I found a female Brushtailed Possum (R) and her baby (L) dozing in a gazebo at the Blue Mountains Botanic Garden (mt Tomah).

Photograph of two Brushtailed Possums curled up on a wooden beam, protected by wooden beams on either side and a sloping wooden roof above. The young possum on the left is notably smaller than the one on the right, indicating that they are mother since Brushtailed Possums are normally territorial and antisocial with the exception of mothers with dependant children.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jun 7

Little Wattlebird on a protea flower in the rain. #birds

Photo of a large honeyeater standing on a large protea flower with light rainfall. The bird is brown and cream, the flower is pink, red, yellow, and white, and the leaves are green with red edges.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jun 3

A tense possum moment outside my front door.

Screen capture from a black & white night-vision camera showing three Brushtailed Possums on a suburban house deck. One possum is directly in front of the camera, clinging on to a screen door and looking down the deck at the other two possums. The second is on the deck, examining something dark (an empty flower pot), and the third is on the railing, watching the second, it's eyes reflecting the camera's IR light.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jun 3

Crimson Rosella in the rain. #birds

Photo of a damp, round, red and blue parrot. It is perched on a bush with one foot and holding a severed sprig from the bush in its other foot. It is looking at the camera as if to say "Why are you bothering me? I'm trying to eat here."

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· Jun 2

A Red Wattlebird pauses in front of a protea flower on a grey, rainy day. #birds

Photograph of a Red Wattlebird - a large honeyeater - head and breast framed by protea leaves with a red/orange/pink protea flower behind. The shallow depth of field means the bird is in focus while everything else is smoothly blurred. The bird is black and grey with white cheeks, bright red eyes, and red wattles hanging from its cheeks.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· May 31

Eastern Yellow Robin. #birds

Photo of a small passerine bird perched vertically on a tree-trunk with lichen. The bird is shades of grey with a bright yellow throat and belly.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· May 30

It wasn't just Pardalotes at Mt Tomah this week, the Silvereyes were also busily hunting for aphids. #birds

Photograph of a Silvereye - a small passerine bird in grey and light olive green with ruddy eyes and a white ring around its eyes. It is perched vertically on a maple branch and surrounded by orange and yellow maple leaves.

Same subject, different spot. Landscape orientation with a greater variety of leaf colours including green and red.

Same subject, different type of maple. All of the leaves are bright red with the exception of a single orange yellow leaf that is the same size as the bird.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· May 29

Here are the promised Pardalotes! It was a grey, wet day with very little light so most of my photos didn't work, but it was a thrill just to have seen these tiny beauties at all. #birds

Photo of a Striated Pardalote, an extremely small passerine bird, foraging for insects in a eucalyptus tree. The bird is round and coloured in brown, black, white, yellow, and orange. it has distinctive white striations on its black crown and white and yellow eyebrows.

Same subject, but the bird looks even cuter (somehow) with its head turned and beak open. Blurry photo due to poor light and subject motion, but too cute to trash.

Same subject different angle of the bird closer to camera with mroe detail visible in its face.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· May 25

King Parrot with raindrops. #birds

Photo of an Australian King Parrot in the rain perched vertically on a stick, close-up on the bird's head and breast. It is a green bird with red breast. It is facing the camera with its head bowed slightly, showing many small raindrops on its head feathers.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· May 23

Eastern Whipbird in the open (for once)! #birds

Photograph of a medium-sized passerine bird standing on a wooden garden fence. The bird is brown and olive with a black had and crest and white throat.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· May 21

Bronzewing on the move. #birds

Photo of a Common Bronzewing - a native Australian pigeon - jumping off a tree branch in dappled sunlight. The bird is various shades of brown, with pastel blues and purples, copper underwings, and brilliant bronze metallic wing feathers.

David C. Simon@davidcsimon· May 20

A young male Australian King Parrot. #birds