Learn How to Draw - Free Drawing Lessons and Tips for Beginners
D rawing is a wonderful art form all on its own, but it is also an excellent exercise for other forms of art, like painting for instance. Learning how to draw will open your mind to your surroundings enabling you to really see what is before you.
My goal with this drawing lens is to provide you with the best possible resource that will guide you on becoming a better artist. This lens on drawing includes lots of great resources to help improve your drawing skills including drawing lessons and techniques, videos, books & more! I will be constantly updating this lens with new information and resources so be sure to bookmark and visit often. If you have any suggestions or comments, please leave them in the feedback box below. Thanks!
Enjoy!
My goal with this drawing lens is to provide you with the best possible resource that will guide you on becoming a better artist. This lens on drawing includes lots of great resources to help improve your drawing skills including drawing lessons and techniques, videos, books & more! I will be constantly updating this lens with new information and resources so be sure to bookmark and visit often. If you have any suggestions or comments, please leave them in the feedback box below. Thanks!
Enjoy!
You may also want to visit my other online resources for artists:
Creative Spotlite - Free Art & Crafts Lessons & Resources For Beginners - This is my first site created over 6 years ago. It is a growing collection of free arts and crafts demonstrations and lessons on a variety of different topics including painting, drawing, crafts and photography.
The Art Instruction Blog - Free Art Instruction and Resources for Beginners - This is my blog on art instruction. It has become quite popular and is filled with lots of great resources for artists including step by step demos, artist interviews, videos, projects and more!
What you will find on this Drawing Lens
- Free Ebook
- Artist's Poll
- Drawing Supplies
- Drawing Basics - Choosing & Using Paper & Pencils
- Check Out my Squidoo Lens on Drawing Supplies!
- Recommended Books On Drawing From Amazon
- Sensational Sketches In Six Simple Steps by Sandy Sandy
- Learn How To Draw - Top 20 Drawing Tips For Beginners
- Basic Drawing Techniques
- Great Books on Drawing Techniques
- Free Pen and Ink Drawing Lesson by Mike Budden
- DVD - Drawing - Drawing with Pastel & Charcoal by Craig Nelson
- Art Drawing Videos
- Step By Step Drawing Demonstration
- Recommended Books on "How to Draw People"
- Pencil Drawing Tutorial By Faith Te
- New Squidoo Lens
- If you like this lens, be a sport and leave some feedback.
- Learn How To Draw Cars Online
- My Squidoo Lens on How To Draw Cars!
- Free Online Drawing Book!
- An introduction to Negative Drawing with Mike Sibley
- More Great lenses on Art Instruction
Free Ebook
Inside The Artist's Studio
Artist's Poll
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Drawing Supplies
What Do I Need To Get Started?
So you are all excited to learn how to draw, but perhaps you need some advice on what drawing materials you will need to get started. In all actuality, you really do not need much to begin. Drawing is probably the most economical art form. You can begin with a #2 pencil and a piece of ordinary scrap paper.
Eventually however, you will probably want to upgrade and purchase better supplies. A beginner drawing set will do just fine. The following beginner drawing set has a variety of great tools that will help produce wonderful drawings and is quite affordable.
General's Drawing Pencil Set No. 20
A complete drawing and sketching set for a variety of drawing techniques, all in one handy storage box. All pencils, except the flat sketching pencils, are pre-sharpened . 10 multi-pastel pencils in assorted colors 4 charcoal pencils (HB, 2B, 4B, and 6B) 1 charcoal white pencil 2 flat sketching pencils 1 extra soft Kimberly Drawing Pencil 1 layout pencil 1 kneaded eraser 1 pencil sharpener
Click here to purchase this drawing kit now!
The only other item you are going to need is paper. I would recommend two kind of drawing surfaces. One for your to practice on and one for your finished drawings.
For practicing and sketches, I recommend newsprint:
Click here to purchase a pad of newsprint paper
For your finished drawings I recommend:
Strathmore 400 Series Drawing Paper Pad.
Eventually however, you will probably want to upgrade and purchase better supplies. A beginner drawing set will do just fine. The following beginner drawing set has a variety of great tools that will help produce wonderful drawings and is quite affordable.
General's Drawing Pencil Set No. 20
A complete drawing and sketching set for a variety of drawing techniques, all in one handy storage box. All pencils, except the flat sketching pencils, are pre-sharpened . 10 multi-pastel pencils in assorted colors 4 charcoal pencils (HB, 2B, 4B, and 6B) 1 charcoal white pencil 2 flat sketching pencils 1 extra soft Kimberly Drawing Pencil 1 layout pencil 1 kneaded eraser 1 pencil sharpener
Click here to purchase this drawing kit now!
The only other item you are going to need is paper. I would recommend two kind of drawing surfaces. One for your to practice on and one for your finished drawings.
For practicing and sketches, I recommend newsprint:
Click here to purchase a pad of newsprint paper
For your finished drawings I recommend:
Strathmore 400 Series Drawing Paper Pad.
Drawing Basics - Choosing & Using Paper & Pencils
It is always good to get a second opinion. I found this interesting video on YouTube that is part 1 of a series of videos about the basic materials needed for drawing & sketching. Includes hints and tips on using a variety of drawing materials including pencils, pen & ink, charcoal, water-soluble pencils and even erasers...
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Check Out my Squidoo Lens on Drawing Supplies!
II recently created a new lens on Squidoo that is all about drawing supplies. I have included detailed information about drawing materials like mediums, canvas, brushes and more.
Follow this link to reach my Squidoo lens on drawing supplies!
Recommended Books On Drawing From Amazon
Here are some highly recommended books from Amazon.com on drawing and sketching for beginners and advanced artists.
The New Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain: A Course in Enhancing Creativity and Artistic Confidence by Betty Edwards
illustrated with 12-page color photo insert and li more...0 points
New Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain Workbook: Guided Practice in the Five Basic Skills of Drawing by Betty Edwards
Millions of people have learned to draw using the more...0 points
Classical Drawing Atelier: A Contemporary Guide to Traditional Studio Practice by Juliette Aristides
Ateliers have produced the greatest artists of all more...0 points
Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain by Betty Edwards
Edwards uses the latest in brain research to expla more...0 points
Drawing for the Absolute Beginner: A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Drawing by Mark Willenbrink, Mary Willenbrink
Learn how easy it is to draw anything you set your more...0 points
Lee Hammond's Big Book of Drawing by Lee Hammond
Now beginning artists can get all the drawing help more...0 points
Keys to Drawing with Imagination: Strategies and Exercises for Gaining Confidence and Enhancing Your Creativity by Bert Dodson
Every artist wants to be more creative, and this b more...0 points
Drawing for the Absolute and Utter Beginner by Claire Garcia
Based on the author's own workshops, this title he more...0 points
Pencil Drawing Techniques by David Lewis
Bet Borgeson, Douglas Graves, and others show how more...0 points
Henry Yan's Figure Drawing Techniques and Tips by Henry Yan
This book is focused on various techniques and sty more...0 points
Drawing for the Absolute and Utter Beginner by Claire Garcia
Based upon the author's own successful workshops, more...0 points
Drawing for Beginners: A Step-by-Step Guide to Successful Drawing by Peter Partington, Philip Patenall, David Cook, Bruce Robertson
Based on the successful Learn to Draw series, this more...0 points
Sensational Sketches In Six Simple Steps by Sandy Sandy
Awesome step by step drawing tutorial by the very talented artist Sandy Sandy. In this step by step demonstration Sandy Sandy covers the following topics:Block In Shapes, Refine and Add Detail, Dampen The Paper, Flood The Wash, Add Calligraphy and Add Background Value.
You are sure to learn a great deal from Sandy's teachings.
Follow this link to view the entire step by step drawing lesson
Learn How To Draw - Top 20 Drawing Tips For Beginners
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.
Learn how to draw online - Follow this link to read the rest of these drawing tips...
Basic Drawing Techniques
There are a couple of ways to approach your drawing and those are linear and tonal. The linear approach focuses on line and outlines of shapes. In tonal drawing, you make use of gradations to indicate the various planes of your subject.Avoid smudging and blending your marks and use your pencil more to achieve value in your drawings.
Avoid staring at your drawing too often. Focus on the subject and only glance at your drawing. This way you will not constantly judge your drawing, or think something is wrong or out of place.
Do not throw out any of your drawings. Keep a neat portfolio of everything you draw. This is an excellent way to see your progress over time.
Holding the pencil - Hold your pencil in a way that is most comfortable for you. Some hold the pencil just as you would hold a pen or pencil if you were writing. Others hold a pencil with the pencil between the thumb and index finger, with the rest of the pencil resting under the palm of your hand. Whichever method you use for holding your pencil, make certain that you do not hold the pencil too tightly.
Contour Drawing - This very basic technique is simply drawing the outline of your subject without any shading to indicate form.
Blind Contour Drawing - Similar to contour drawing, only you do not look at the paper. The point of this exercise is to force you to better observe what it is you are drawing. You should have no concern over the outcome of your drawing so it is important not to peek.
Hatching - This drawing technique uses a series of parallel lines drawn close together, in the same direction, which gives the appearance of value.
Crosshatching - Similar to hatching only you draw multiple layers of hatch lines at different angles that overlap one another.
Tonal or Value Drawing - In this approach to drawing we are indicating the various changes of light and shade in our picture without the use of strong edges and lines.
Upside Down Drawing - Drawing upside down is a wonderful exercise to awaken the right side of your brain. When you turn an image upside down, you are making it somewhat abstract and unrecognizable. This forces you to draw what you see as opposed to relying on your memory to draw something.
Negative Drawing Technique - This technique teaches you how to properly see the "white" or "negative" space in your picture. This is the area that surrounds your subject or "positive" space. Instead of drawing out the positive part of the drawing with line, you draw in the shapes that surround the positive part of your drawing.
Dry Wash Technique - This technique works quite well if you want to cover large areas of your drawing. It creates a nice soft tone. You begin by adding marks with a pencil or apply some graphite powder to the desired area on your paper. Then using a tissue or soft cloth pick up some of the graphite and gently rub it across the paper, almost as if you were painting.
Great Books on Drawing Techniques
The Encyclopedia Of Drawing Techniques (Encyclopedia of Techniques)
Amazon Price: $24.04 (as of 07/06/2009) 
Basic Drawing Techniques (Basic Techniques)
Amazon Price: $14.03 (as of 07/06/2009)
Pencil Drawing Techniques
Amazon Price: $13.57 (as of 07/06/2009)
Pen and Pencil Drawing Techniques
Amazon Price: $13.57 (as of 07/06/2009)
Complete Guide to Materials and Techniques for Drawing and Painting
Amazon Price: $20.51 (as of 07/06/2009)
Free Pen and Ink Drawing Lesson by Mike Budden
How to Draw the Chetnole Church by Mike Budden
Here is a wonderful step by step drawing tutorial done in pen and ink by the very talented artist Mike Budden. Watch how Mike draws the Chetnole Church using a photograph as a reference. You will be amazed at the results. Enjoy!
Click here to view this pen and ink drawing demonstration
DVD - Drawing - Drawing with Pastel & Charcoal by Craig Nelson
Learn drawing with pastel and charcoal with Craig Nelson
Learn new drawing methods from nationally recognized master teacher Craig Nelson. This intermediate to advanced instructional video workshop on pastel and charcoal drawing is ideal if you want to improve your drawing or improve your painting. In Drawing with Pastel & Charcoal, an experienced drawing and painting expert teaches you the sequence to use, design and placement, shapes, dimension, and effective use of light and color.
Drawing with Pastel & Charcoal
This Craig Nelson Drawing Video/DVD is great for anyone interested in drawing, if you want to improve your painting skills or just enjoy knocking out a quick sketch.
Craig Nelson, CAC, shows you how to block in preliminary shapes, achieve proper placement and proportion, and how to pick out and render elements for a convincing three-dimensional scene.
You learn how to sequence your drawing for the best chance of success, where to look for the brightest lights, anticipate soft and hard edges, and how to take advantage of reflected light and bounced color.
Craig discusses and demonstrates the importance of using a variety of lines to make a drawing more interesting and contribute to the artistic qualities of the overall drawing. He helps you hone your observation skills and bring what you see back to your drawing (or painting).
Working from photographs, Craig's drawings come to life in a matter of minutes.
Craig Nelson taught drawing and painting at Art Center College of Design in LA from 1974 and at the San Francisco Academy of Art College since 1990 where he is now Director of Fine Art Painting Department.
Click here for more information including pricing, customer reviews and a free preview video!
Learn new drawing methods from nationally recognized master teacher Craig Nelson. This intermediate to advanced instructional video workshop on pastel and charcoal drawing is ideal if you want to improve your drawing or improve your painting. In Drawing with Pastel & Charcoal, an experienced drawing and painting expert teaches you the sequence to use, design and placement, shapes, dimension, and effective use of light and color.Drawing with Pastel & Charcoal
This Craig Nelson Drawing Video/DVD is great for anyone interested in drawing, if you want to improve your painting skills or just enjoy knocking out a quick sketch.
Craig Nelson, CAC, shows you how to block in preliminary shapes, achieve proper placement and proportion, and how to pick out and render elements for a convincing three-dimensional scene.
You learn how to sequence your drawing for the best chance of success, where to look for the brightest lights, anticipate soft and hard edges, and how to take advantage of reflected light and bounced color.
Craig discusses and demonstrates the importance of using a variety of lines to make a drawing more interesting and contribute to the artistic qualities of the overall drawing. He helps you hone your observation skills and bring what you see back to your drawing (or painting).
Working from photographs, Craig's drawings come to life in a matter of minutes.
Craig Nelson taught drawing and painting at Art Center College of Design in LA from 1974 and at the San Francisco Academy of Art College since 1990 where he is now Director of Fine Art Painting Department.
Click here for more information including pricing, customer reviews and a free preview video!
Art Drawing Videos
Drawing Videos Showing Artist Techniques
Excellent art drawing videos from YouTube. Enjoy!
Step By Step Drawing Demonstration
Drawing the Human Face By Ron Lemen
Here is a great step by step drawing demonstration of the human face by the very talented artist Ron Lemen.
Click here to view this step by step drawing demonstration.
Recommended Books on "How to Draw People"
Draw 50 People from the Bible: The Step-by-Step Way to Draw Noah, Moses, Delilah, Jesus, Saint Peter, Mary, and Many More... by Lee J. Ames
Draw 50 People Of The Bible shows aspiring artists more...0 points
Drawing: People with Gene Franks (HT234) by Walter Foster
In this unique how-to-draw book, Gene Franks invit more...0 points
How to Draw People: A Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners with 10 Projects (How to Draw) by Susie Hodge
For most beginners, people are the most rewarding, more...0 points
Drawing: People with William F. Powell (HT257) by William F. Powell
In this book, artist William F. Powell invites you more...0 points
Heads of People (Walter Foster "How to Draw" Books, 158) by Verily Hammons
Step-by-step lessons on how to draw heads of peopl more...0 points
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Drawing People Illus (The Complete Idiot's Guide) by Brenda Hoddinott
The fine points of faces and figures... The Compl more...0 points
Drawing People: How to Portray the Clothed Figure by Barbara Bradley
A complete course in drawing, Drawing People focus more...0 points
Drawing and Painting People: The Essential Guide
Everything you need to know to paint faces and fig more...0 points
Drawing the Clothed Figure: Portraits of People in Everyday Life (The Art of Drawing) by Giovanni Civardi
Using pencils, charcoal, pastels, pen and ink, wat more...0 points
Pencil Drawing Tutorial By Faith Te
How to Draw the Human Eye
Here is the first tutorial from Art Studio - a female eye. My method in graphite pencil drawing aims to render subjects as realistically as I can. The following is a step-by-step demonstration of how I draw eyes. While I very much hope that it helps you in drawing realistic eyes, do experiment and develop your own way of drawing. I myself sometimes do not follow some of the steps exactly as I like to experiment and try to find better ways of achieving a specific texture or effect....Please follow this link to view this step by step drawing demonstration.
New Squidoo Lens
How To Draw Cartoon People
Be sure to check out my Squidoo Lens on How To Draw Cartoon People. It contains lots of great resources and information to help you learn how to draw better cartoons.
Follow this link to reach my lens on How to Draw Cartoon People!
If you like this lens, be a sport and leave some feedback.
Thanks!
mtmeade1 wrote...
The lens is great! It is almost what I was thinking for my lens. So much so it's close to creepy :),lol. My twist would be while gearing towards drawing for the beginner, I am going to iclude Step by Step for Kids as well. The beginner child needs some special instruction and since I love teaching my 8 yr. old the basics of drawing and painting in watercolor, I thought I would include some of that in my lens. Overall I love your site and give it 5 stars !!! Keep up the good work.
Posted September 26, 2008
HandMadeInIndia wrote...
this is a good and informative lens for drawing lover
And i Love drawing..
Realy good work keep it up
i give 5 star
Posted August 27, 2008
Learn How To Draw Cars Online
Learning how to draw cars is a very popular hobby as of late, so I decided to dedicate a post on my blog, that lists some great resources online to help you learn how to draw cars fast.The following links include free step by step drawing tutorials of race cars, sports cars and other great tips for car drawing enthusiasts...
Click here for step by step lessons on how to draw cars...
My Squidoo Lens on How To Draw Cars!
Be sure to check out my Squidoo Lens on How To Draw Cars. It contains lots of great resources and information about drawing cars, including lessons, books, videos & more..
Follow this link to reach my lens on How To Draw Cars!
Free Online Drawing Book!
The Practice & Science of Drawing
Free online drawing book, The Practice & Science of Drawing by Harold Speed. Grab your favorite beverage, relax, and head on over to read this fantastic book on drawing.Click here to read the book and learn how to draw online.
An introduction to Negative Drawing with Mike Sibley
This is a wonderful and informative article on Negative Drawing available on my blog, by artist Mike Sibley.If you are not familiar with the concept of negative drawing, then I recommend you take time to read this article.
Click here to read the article on negative space drawing!
More Great lenses on Art Instruction
- Oil Painting
- You have found the best resource on Squidoo for all of your beginner oil painting needs including oil painting supplies, free oil painting lessons, oil painting books, oil painting videos and more. Click here for more great oil painting lessons from our main site, including free step by step oil pai
- Art Instruction - Lessons & Tips For Beginners
- Welcome to the Creative Spotlite Lens On Squidoo! The best online source for free art lessons and instruction, discount arts & crafts supplies, instructional art books, art instruction videos and more! Whether you are a seasoned artist, or just starting your journey into the wonderful world
- Watercolor Painting For Beginners
- You have found the best resource on Squidoo for all of your beginner watercolor painting needs including watercolor painting supplies, free watercolor painting lessons, watercolor painting books, watercolor painting videos and more.Click here for more great watercolor lessons from our main site, inc
- Acrylic Painting
- Welcome to my lens on acrylic painting. Here you will find free acrylic painting lessons and tips as well as great resources for beginners. Enjoy your stay and be sure to check back often.
- Portrait Painting & Drawing
- Welcome to my lens on portrait painting and drawing. This lens will feature tips and lessons on portrait painting and drawing as well as cover some of the more famous portrait artists in history.
- Art Instruction Video Showcase - How To Art Videos
- Hello fellow artist!Welcome to my lens on Art Instruction Videos & DVDs.I have spent a great deal of time gathering the best resources for you and I do hope you find this lens useful.There are plenty of free art instruction video clips lower down on this page.The featured videos on this page are
- How To Draw Cars
- This lens brings you information and resources that will help you learn how to draw cars, how to draw cool cars, race cars, sports cars, cartoon cars or whatever other type of car you are interested in drawing. I have gathered together as many resources on the topic of drawing cars as I could find including books, videos, art materials & supplies, links and more. Be sure to bookmark this page and return often as I will be updating this lens on a regular basis with links and other great resources.
- Figure Drawing & Painting
- Welcome to my squidoo lens on figure drawing and painting. I plan on making this lens a comprehensive resource on figure drawing & painting and will be adding new lessons, tutorials & other helpful information as time goes on.
- All About Oil Painting Supplies
- Welcome to my squidoo lens on oil painting supplies. Buying art supplies can be a confusing process for a beginner so I thought I would devote an entire lens to help you learn more about your oil painting supplies.
- Learn How To Paint Flowers
- Welcome to my lens on painting flowers. Painting flowers is a very popular subject amongst new artists. In this lens, I will provide you with tips and resources to help you along the way. Enjoy and be sure to bookmark this page and return often.
- Pastel Drawing & Painting
- Pastels are a wonderful medium to work with. If you are used to painting in wet mediums like oils and acrylics then you should give pastels a try. They are a very refreshing and enjoyable approach to creating art.
