A Drawing Lesson -Part I
I am always surprised when someone compliments me on my drawings. Twenty-five years ago, my art world started when I arrived at a watercolor class only to find a still-life set up on the table. The teachers said, “Draw this.” What! I thought this was a painting class! I did not know how to draw or even where to start.
Here are a few great drawing tips that I have learned over the years.
I use my pencil A LOT! Not just for drawing but for measuring and comparing. So grab your favorite pencil (mine is a Ini OC-Gel HD 0.5) and let’s get started!
Here is a lovely ocean scene at the Oregon coast near where I live:
The first thing I do is the hold my pencil vertical and stretch my arm out so that my elbow is locked. All my measurements are done with a locked elbow so that the comparisons will be the same.
How big are the rocks?
With my thumb, I measure from the bottom of Haystack Rock to the bottom at the tallest part. |
Now I measure how wide the rocks are. |
At this point, I would make pencil marks on my paper using these measurements.
5 thoughts on “A Drawing Lesson -Part I”
Gosh, Jacqueline, I was just this morning hoping to find little drawing advice! I have your on-the-go video (on my iPad…SO convenient!) and have watched it again and again. We are planning a trip to Italy in the fall and it has been very helpful. I've been prepping my journal using your advice and now I know what to practice next;-) gaining perspective using my pencil as a measure…should be fun, Thanks!!
Jeanne D.
I always learn something when I visit you! I do so love to sketch beautiful scenes like this one! Happy summer my friend!
Thanks Lavender Dreams & Jeanne! I too will be in Italy in Sept. Jeanne!
This is my first time visiting your blog and I'm so impressed with your willingness to give advice. I will definitely be back!
Thanks so much.
Cheryl
Thanks so much for saying this Cheryl! I appreciate the feedback.
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