~Basic drawing tips~

H e l l o
Okay so when someone says "teach me to draw!" my heart sinks a little because of the sheer stupidity of the request. it comes close to "DRAW ME" in terms of comparison in that it makes me suicidal! Then there's those who sarcastically say it thinking it is witty and original when in fact it's more common than the serious ones. ANYWAY!
NUMBER ONE

O u t l i n i n g
When you are drawing ANYTHING you want to start with a feint outline to give some shape and definition to your piece. This is essential in still life drawing or portraits as well as landscape drawing. It is like perfecting your image before you even start shading or colouring! Okay so you COULD use the pencil you draw with and just press lightly but what would be better is to actually use a harder pencil. I use a 6H or a 7H for outlines, any harder and it will just scratch the paper. These are great because they erase so easily. Even a HB which is generally considered the median of pencils can be a bitch to erase!

P a p e r
The type of paper you use can effect the quality of your drawing! You would be surprised how many people would never thing to use watercolour paper for watercolour pencils. I'm not even kidding! So few make the connection! If you take art a bit more seriously and like to paint, try buying a canvas pad. They're cheap have a great texture and because the pages are similar to that of a real canvas, it dries a hell of a lot quicker!

B l a c k
DON'T BE AFRAID OF GOING DARK! I saw the Year 11 portraiture and was stunned to see how light all of the drawings were! Pressing hard with a HB is feeble compared to a 5B! Especially on eyes! Make the pupil as black as you can and leave the eye whites as blank as possible! Darkness ads unfathomable depth to a piece! Look at my Oprah drawing (my first of the series) and then Brad Pitt! I used a 7B for most of Brad and you can see the improvement!

B l e n d i n g
I am usually fickle about blending with my finger but sometimes on large areas of skin I tend to do so. A smudge stick costs about 20c and is a great tool for controlled blending and smudging. The worst part of using your finger is that every time you touch the paper you will leave a fingerprint which is a bitch to get rid of later down the track

M i s t a k e s
If you are a perfectionist like myself, DEAL WITH IT! Everyone makes mistakes. As long as you have a quality eraser shouldn't be that bigger deal. trial and error is the best way to improve!

H a r s h R e a l i t y
Sadly, some people cant draw to save their life and shouldn't be allowed to hold a pencil. But you shouldn't aim to be like that kid in your art class that you hate because of their talent. Everyone has their own strengths so stick to them but don't be too close minded. It's kind of like singing, you either can or you can't but maybe training or practise can make you a little better.

Have a good one guys! xo