Learn How To Draw
1 – If at all possible, always draw from life and not photographs.
2 – When drawing, less is sometimes better. Do not attempt to draw every line and detail that you see or you will give your viewer too much information to absorb.
3 – Do not try and get all of the information in your drawing completed at one sitting. Drawing is a process. Layout the general idea of your drawing and then slowly add in your details.
4 – Do not be overly judgmental about your drawing before it is completed. This may cause you to become discouraged and give up.
5 – Do not take on subjects that are too complicated at first. This will certainly cause you to become discouraged if the drawing isn’t as good as you expected it to be. Start with simple subjects that you know you can complete and then progress to more complicated ones.
6 – Forget everything you already know about a particular subject before you start drawing it. Draw what you see in front of you and not what you know already about that subject.
7 – Make sure you have excellent lighting. Nothing is more frustrating to an artist than poor lighting. If you can’t see you can’t draw. If you do not have a well lit room with natural sunlight to work in, then check your local art supply store or search online for full spectrum lighting products that mimic natural sunlight.
8 – Get yourself a pad of newsprint paper. Its very cheap and great for practice and doing preliminary sketches.
9 – Keep your pencils sharp. There are drawing techniques that require a blunt pencil point , but for the most part, you should keep your pencil points sharpened.
10 – Vary the weight of your lines. You should keep a conscious effort to use a variety of different lines in your drawing by pressing harder or by lifting your pencil. This may seem like an obvious thing, but when an artist becomes deeply focused in a drawing, they can sometimes forget to use this simple technique.
11- Keep a sketchbook with you wherever you go. Whenever you have a free moment, practice your drawing. It doesn’t matter if the subject is a light post, an insect or a garbage pail. The more often you draw, the more observant you will become.
12 – Do not over use smudging and blending techniques to achieve values in your drawings.
