Starting with the basics

**LaGuardian** · October 27th, 2006, 07:28 PM

This is my first sketchbook thread. I'm just trying to learn the basics and improve and over time I hope to get to be able to become more involved, doing challenges and things like that. In the beginning I am planning on focusing on pencil rendering, both learning how to use the medium and learning about how to render light. You help is much appreciated.

Here's my first post, it's was supposed to be a value scale of balls, I only made it to eight instead of the originally planned ten balls, I'll make another one soon and try to get it right.

Also on here is a crumpled paper I drew and posted in the new artist part of the forum, but I will put it here too so you can see what I need to improve on.

**David Kassan** · October 28th, 2006, 01:46 AM

good start. When you are drawing the paper from life, be sure to compare all of your value areas up against over value areas that are on the object. Drawing and painting from life is all about Comparison. You are comparing values next to each other and you are comparing sizes and angles from one plane to another, Ask yourself questions as you draw. Is that too light? too dark compared to that section? is that angle off cause that is too big. Be task oriented when you draw draw everything into context with what it is around, find two angles that will help you discover the third angle, etc etc. Good luck and I look forward to seeing your improvement here. draw well.

**rorke** · October 28th, 2006, 05:21 AM

David is right on the mark... its all about drawing what you see...NOT what you "think" you see. Sit down and draw an apple...draw a ball...do some still life studies. Do some self-portraits... draw some sketches of your hand. Ask yourself, "How is the light hitting it...?" "Is each part of the object in correct proportion with everything else?"

... if you draw something and it doesn't exactly look like the object... ask yourself why is that?... and look at the object again and erase and start over until you get the exact likeness of that object.

I can already see in your work that you are thinking about it... And that is a very good sign

Heres some lessons
http://www.geocities.com/~jlhagan/K9...troduction.htm
http://www.jdhillberry.com/how_to_draw_pg2.htm

Heres a site with some Good refference material.
figuredrawing.com

**Arekkusu** · October 28th, 2006, 05:57 AM

Yo man,

Good start, getting the basics down is a good idea. Try to draw as often as possible is the only advice I can truly give I guess, as I dont wont to reiterate the advice of David Kassan and Rorke.

Keep it up dude and post some more stuff.

**LaGuardian** · October 31st, 2006, 05:38 PM

Here is another attempt at the spheres, again it didn't work out quite the way I wanted but, I got ten of them and the scale is a bit better than the first try. They still don't come out as spherical enough so I will have to push that more on the next one, also including my attempts at making a gradient.

**LaGuardian** · November 1st, 2006, 10:20 AM

Some head sketches off tv, the first set were all 3 minute sketches ( they are local politicians and they were given 3 minutes each to speak on the program). The second sheet was while I was watching a documentary so I saw their faces on and off, maybe 3 to 5 minutes each.