Freestyle machine embroidery

I've been working hard on extending my machine embroidery skills.  I've been following mainly a book called "Freestyle Machine Embroidery" by a textile artist I admire greatly,  Carol Shinn.  She gives lots of detailed information, and exercises which I found very useful to follow through.  The book is available from Amazon.  In the end I made a piece inspired by my recent holiday to Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory depicting my favourite scene - a Jabiru eyeing the river cautiously, as he was surrounded by saltwater crocodiles.

Jabiru, freestyle machine embroidery on soluble film using a loopy stitch worked upside down.  Appliqued to dyed and machined  background of nets and laces,