6 Easy Steps for Pencil Drawing

The humble pencil is a versatile and ubiquitous tool for drawing. There are several significant considerations when choosing your ideal pencils to get the most out of it.

Thus, these tips would offer a sound foundation for amateurs and several handy reminders for more professional artists, whether you are a seasoned professional or just learning how to draw.

• The Shakespearean Question

“2B or not 2B?” Choosing the correct pencil grade for your drawing would help you generate the ideal possible sketch. Graphite pencils are available in a hardness scale from 9B (dark, soft) to 9H (pale, hard), with F and HB in the middle of the range.

Usually, the B grades are appropriate sketching pencils, while the H grades are appropriate for technical drawing.

• Sharpening the Pencil

Several drawings need a sharp and fine point for pinning down a line that’s crisp. Some require a flat and broad side to the lead of the pencil for blocking in tone. A blunt point often could serve your purposes.

Whatever your preferences are, be sure that you always bring with you your sharpener. Be sure that it’s sharp and that you have few with you if you go out to draw if you utilize a normal handheld sharpener. Usually, a desk-mounted helical sharpener would last much longer and grinds your pencil to a point that is much longer. Always cut away from your body if you utilize a craft knife.

• Obtain the Ideal Pencil Hold

Various pencil holds are appropriate to various marks. Experiment with various methods to grip the pencil as you draw. Also, work out best grips for various methods of mark making. It is significant to consider where you’re making your mark from – shoulder, wrist, or fingers?

• Consider the Lines

The type of mark you create would greatly affect the look and feel of your pencil drawing. Give few consideration to the speed at which you create it when you create a mark. In addition to that, consider the weight that you put into your stroke. A lightly drawn line is exploratory and pale; a heavy line is definite and dark.

Try to avoid feathery and uncertain marks when you’re starting out.

• Blind Contour Drawing

The 1^st exercise, called the “blind contour drawing”, is a playful and popular exercise that helps you to unselfconsciously draw, making marks that are bold without feeling anxious about the results.

In front of you, set up a subject and fix your eyes on the top, place your pencil on the paper. Trace your eye around the subject without looking down at the paper. It should follow its contours and edges. Also, let the pencil follow the same method on the paper as you do so.

Draw in an unbroken and single line and do not look back at your drawing until you’re done. It would look disproportioned and strange. Well, it’s supposed to be like that. Regularly repeat the exercise as a warm up.