Sunday Secrets #30

  This entry was originally posted on Sunday,  August 12, 2012

Today's Sunday Secret is from Emma from Victoria, BC

She says, "I'm not very good at drawing and find myself constantly trying to fix my sketches. I can spend hours drawing before I even start painting. How much time should I spend on drawing for my paintings?"

 

Emma, thank you for your question.

 

Drawing is a very important skill to have if your painting technique is going to improve.

It is the foundation to a good painting.

It is especially important to have a good foundation in watercolor since it can be difficult to repair a watercolor gone wrong.

And the more detailed you want your painting, the more detailed your drawing will be.

Thus it will take longer.

 

As with all skills that you wish to become good at, it takes practice and time.

We don't become maestros overnight.

 

However, there are a few things that can be done to speed up your drawing process and get you moving on to your painting faster.

 

One is to use a grid for your drawing.

 Another option is to transfer an enlarged photograph to your paper using graphite paper. 

The grid and transferring an image will actually help improve your drawing skills.

In the meantime, practice drawing whenever you can.

Drawing From A Grid

  This entry was originally posted on Tuesday, May 22, 2012

When I was first introduced to a grid, I hated it!

It was one of those with all the little squares and it didn't make much sense to me.

Then a friend of mine introduced me to a much better grid.

A whole other world of drawing opened up for me.

 

This grid starts with the last post where I showed how to draw in proportion from your photograph.

Using that same piece of paper, you will next draw another diagonal, making an X.

 

 

At the same time, you will draw and X on your photo.

 

 

Then you will draw a + through the middle of the X on both the drawing paper and photo

 

 

Now your paper and photo is divided into 4 rectangles. These rectangles are then divided up further by adding another X and + to each one.

 

 

Each one of these rectangles can again be divided up into smaller ones by making that X and +.

 

You can get as small as you want if you need to capture more detail.

 

I found this grid easier to follow because I was able to see negative spaces easier.

An Easy Way to Draw in Proportion

  This entry was originally posted on Monday May 21, 2012

Proportion can be a difficult concept to grasp as you are drawing.

Especially if the mathematics of it eludes you.

Well, there is an easy way to draw in proportion if you are drawing from a photograph or a sketch.

And it doesn't require math.

Which is even better.

 

First take your photograph and draw a diagonal line from the lower left to the upper right corner.

Next place a piece of tracing paper over top of your photo and draw the side and bottom edges, extending the lines out. This creates 2 lines that are perpendicular to each other.

Then draw another diagonal line from the lower left hand corner to upper right corner of the photo and extend it out further. 

Then find the height which you want to work with and draw a line that will meet the diagonal line. 

 

Where that line meets the diagonal line, draw another line down.

 

 

This size is now in proportion to your photo and you can use it to draw a more accurate drawing.

 What is great about this is that you can draw the diagonal line out further and make the drawing even larger.

Paint and Draw From Life

   This entry was originally posted on Thursday, May 17, 2012

One of the best ways to improve your drawing and painting skills quickly is to paint from life.

This can be especially difficult for those that do their best painting at night.

 

Set up a simple still life or go outside and paint (also called plein air painting).

Especially now that the weather is getting better.

 

Photos tend to flatten out objects and landscapes.

When you paint from life, you learn how to capture the 3 dimensionality or the perception of depth of your subject better.

It will also help you understand and paint that dimensionality when you do paint from photographs.