The Complete Guide to Drawing for Beginners. Yoshiko Ogura
come ruined. After completing a great masterpiece, be sure
to spray on your fixative spray!
Drawing paper
Watercolor paper
Useful Items to
Have on Hand
Tissues, blending stumps or
spare cloths
These items are
useful for smudg-
ing parts of your
drawing. You can
also just use your
fingers—if you don’t
mind getting them
dirty.
Viewfinder (page 36)
You shouldn’t rely heavily on
this grid to scale your draw-
ings, but it comes in handy on
occasion.
Easel
If you have a desk, this item isn’t a necessity.
However, when working on large pieces
or drawing outdoors, an easel becomes an
essential item. There are foldable and portable
types you can select from.
13
Getting Ready to Draw
Organize your tools before you start!
As with beginning any athletic activity, you need to warm up and get ready before drawing. It is import-
ant to get everything ready to use to reduce distractions while you are drawing. Here are some tips to
help you prepare.
Sharpening your pencil
Use a craft knife to sharpen your pencil
Use a craft knife to sharpen your pencil by hand—don’t
use a pencil sharpener for this task. The point of the pencil
should be trimmed to be longer than it would be if it was
being used for writing. This allows you to produce a finer
line. It also makes the side of the lead available for shading.
The only way to achieve this is to sharpen the pencil by hand.
You can also sand the point into shape using a fine grade of
sandpaper.
1
When sharpening your
pencil, hold it in your left
hand, and hold the razor in
your right hand. Support
the blade by pressing on
it with the thumb of your
left hand while you whittle
away from you with your
right hand. (If you’re left
handed, reverse the hands
described in the procedure
above.)
2
Rotate the pencil with your
left hand. Shave away at
the material, and try to
keep the shape of the point
acutely conical. Pare away
both the lead and the wood
as you go.
Tips on sharpening
the pencil
If you are too aggressive when sharp-
ening, the shape of the pencil will be
negatively affected, and the wood
portion will become asymmetrical.
You might even scratch the paper
when drawing because of the uneven
angles of your pencil. When you
sharpen the pencil well, it will be easy
to use. Put effort into sharpening
your pencils well.
If there’s too much unsupported
lead sticking out, it will easily snap.
If there’s too much wood and not
enough lead, you might scratch the
paper, so give plenty of attention to
the tip of your pencil.
14
Preparing a kneaded eraser
A kneaded eraser is a “white pencil”
The kneaded eraser is flexible and can be molded into
any shape you like. It is a given that its job is to erase, but
it also plays an additive role. You draw and erase con-
stantly as you work on a drawing. Quite often you are
using the eraser to create and add detail. Hence, it can be
considered a “white pencil.”
Cut the eraser
When you take your kneaded eraser out of the package,
cut it into the right size for you. As you can see in the
image below, the eraser is just the right size to be held
with ease. If the eraser is too small, the eraser will deform
as you use it, or smear on the paper. Have your erasers
prepared in advance and ready to use in order to reduce
distractions while you’re drawing.
Knead the eraser
To prepare your eraser
for use, hold it in your
hand to warm it up and
massage the eraser into a
shape that is easy for you
to hold.
Checking the paper surface
Identifying the front and back
Front
Smooth to the
touch
The paper you use should have distinct front and back
surfaces. There’s the rougher side, and the smoother
side. The smooth side is the front, and the rough side
is the back. It might be hard to discern at first, so you
might want to ask someone else for their opinion.
Back
Rough to the
touch
Paper surfaces
15
Having good posture
Keep to one vantage point
It is important to keep your vantage point consistent.
Once you choose to draw at a certain angle, stick to that
angle and view position. If you keep changing positions,
you will lose the