Learn to draw anything. Pencil drawing lessons

Most likely, everyone periodically has the desire to draw something, and not just a doodle, but so that everyone likes it. Especially often, such a desire appears when looking at a beautiful and talented picture. It would seem that it’s so difficult? I want to learn how to draw coolly with a pencil, so I take paper and draw a masterpiece. But when it comes to implementation, then difficulties arise: either the center is shifted, the scale and aspect ratios are incorrect, or the details did not work out. How to quickly learn to draw with a simple pencil , if immediately, because of your own ineptitude, the desire to create masterpieces disappears?

Remember that even the most talented masters did not learn immediately: everyone has gone a long way in order to improve their skills and delight others with beauty. This is preceded by more than one year and more than one month of hard work - very little time will pass, and now we are already drawing well simple pictures and people.

The pencil is considered the most simple tool for drawing, so it’s worth starting your training with it.

It takes some getting used to carry a pencil and notepad with you in order to make sketches. Only hard work and perseverance will help you achieve your goal. But what to do if, apart from desire and some abilities, there is nothing?

Drawing: how to draw something beautiful and easy for beginners

So, to draw pictures, you need to know where to start. remember, that For beginners, a pencil is the most convenient tool. This is because it is easy to erase, and if the line is wrong, it can be changed. Moreover, there are different types of pencils, with the help of them you can easily create a beautiful drawing.

The main advice for future artists is never do not start drawing with complex and large paintings until you learn how to depict details. You are unlikely to succeed, and the desire to draw again will simply disappear.

First learn to portray individual items. To do this, highlight one element from the others with your eyes. Then visually evaluate the shape and size. Next, highlight where on the paper it is best to place it, taking into account the size and shape. Do not forget that tall elements are positioned along the length of the paper, and wide elements are positioned along the width.

In addition, keep in mind that a real object is usually larger than a piece of paper, so you need to draw it, taking into account aspect ratio and scale. Is not simple task for a beginner. Therefore, to develop skills, below there will be suggestions simple exercises, which will help allocate space for the drawing.

Drawing exercises

In these drawing exercises we draw objects as diagrams, without creating small parts- this is something that a beginner can draw simply and beautifully. Here it is important to see how objects are created using simple figures and their dimensions are taken into account. By acquiring such skills, in the future you will be able to automatically find the location and size of the picture.

Exercise No. 1: so the first task is that you need to draw an object not from natural size, and from the picture. This greatly simplifies the task, since there is no need to select an element and find a place to place it - everything has already been done. You need to reproduce the same thing, but in a different size, so that it does not become a copy.

Repeat similar exercises with other images, developing an understanding of proportions and space.

Let's draw a mountain. First, take a close look at the picture. Visualize it on your sheet. Now draw a straight line. This will be the foundation. Study the shape of the hill and its slopes. If the mountain has equal sides, then depict it as a regular cone, whose height is less than the width of the base. To understand how many times the parts differ in size, you can take a ruler, but the main thing is to be able to do this by eye. In this situation, the proportions of height and width are 1:3.

To get the aspect ratios right, create a vertex first. Find a place on the horizontal where you will place it. Create 3 equal segments on the line. Next, find the middle and draw a perpendicular. Then mark the top of the mountain at a distance of 1 division from the base. If the image matches, everything was done correctly. Now try to create the same mountain, but in a different size.

Do not forget that to correctly determine the aspect ratio of an object, you need to start by dividing the base into equal parts, and then move on from there. A task like this will teach you to accurately determine ratio of various elements of objects. And this is the basis of drawing.

Exercise No. 2: another challenge is that it is required to depict a mountain with different proportions of width and height. Here they will be 1:4, and the top deviates at right side. The task is more difficult, but not impossible.

First, repeat the steps of the first exercise: draw a straight line, dividing it into equal parts (here 4). Then there is a peculiarity - the vertex will not be in the center of the segment. It seems to be above the third segment, so we draw from it perpendicular line. Then the top is laid off. Usually, when creating a drawing, the base is divided by 2 or 3, rarely by 5.

Exercise #3: this exercise will require depiction on one sheet profiles of different mountains, which have different vertices in location and height. Don't be afraid, the task is not too difficult. Imagine each hill separately, mentally draw a dotted line to the bases. And then you will understand that the first exercise is simply repeated several times.

Another skill - skills to draw straight lines without tools. This is not too easy, it will require training. First draw vertical line using a ruler. Now practice, trying to create maximum parallel by hand. A similar exercise is repeated with the horizon.

Mastering shading

When creating masterpieces with a pencil, you will need to master shading skills for the volume of an object. It will show where the shadow falls and where the light falls. Start with simple shapes: cube, ball, cone, etc. In addition, if you look closely, you will notice that these figures have penumbra.

In order to obtain a smooth transition from light to dark, you will need pencils with different densities. After mastering this skill, you will easily learn how to draw three-dimensional details. For classes, you can choose interesting and stylish drawings for beginners - not very complex, but beautiful, they will delight you with the result and maintain confidence in your abilities.

How to draw a person correctly

If you have achieved success in previous tasks, then let’s figure it out now, how to draw a person. This is not the easiest task. Let's consider step by step drawing. First try creating people on paper who are standing - this is important for distinguishing between aspect ratios.

Draw a vertical line and build off of it to create a mesh, i.e. the main lines of the waist, shoulders, head, arms and legs. But how do you understand the size of these lines? When drawing from life It is important to use a pencil as a measuring tool. For example, you want to determine the distance from the waist to the head. Take a pencil, visually align its tip with the level of the crown, then mark on it where the waist is located. Transfer the size onto paper. This way you can measure all the items.

Drawing people is a difficult task. Start by creating the base, then draw in the details.

To test yourself, remember that the body is visually divided into 8 parts. One part is equal to the size of the head. In representatives of the stronger sex, the body length is 3 heads, and the border is located on the chest, chin, crotch and belt. The legs are 4 heads, and the center is near the knees. The width of the shoulders reaches 2 1/3 the size of the head. The length of the arms reaches 3.5 times the size of the head. Female proportions differ - the body is more elongated, and the hips are considered the widest part.

If you have determined the proportions of a person, drawn marks, then give shape to the body. To do this, all elements are drawn in the form of cylinders and ovals. If you like everything, then draw the outline. Now all that remains is to create the details - fingers, hair, face, clothes.

How to draw a portrait

The greatest difficulty is creating portraits. The difficulty is that to obtain a similarity you will need to correctly draw all the details and features. So, let's figure out how to draw a portrait for beginners.

First tip: think about what can be easily drawn or copied from a photo with a pencil? Separate areas of the face: nose, eyes, lips from different angles, even ears. Then move on to creating the full image. For beginners there will be easier work Based on the photo, you can gradually move on to personal observations, sketches and sketches from life.

Tip two: Start by creating an oval shape for the head. Then draw a vertical line down the center. She will divide the face into equal parts. Then divide it into 2 parts horizontally - this is the line where the eyes are located. The eyebrows are located in line with the upper edges of the ears.

Third tip: The length of the nose can be determined as follows: divide the gap between the eyes and chin by 2 - this is the location of the tip. Its width corresponds to the gap between the edges of the eyes. These relationships are not an axiom, but most often faces are drawn this way.

There is a certain concept of facial proportions that can be taken as a basis.

When positioning the parts of the face, you need to create the contour of the lips, nose, ears, and hair. If you are satisfied with the details, then start drawing. Now all that remains is to add the finishing touches.

Graffiti style

If you like lettering, then you should consider . Eat different directions and stylistic exercises for drawing words, letters, phrases. And to understand in what specific direction you will create, you will need to study them all.

Practice on paper first. Create a word. The letters need to be placed at a distance corresponding to ½ the height of the letter, because they will need to be outlined. Now give each letter volume and convexity with shading.

Selecting Tools

The choice of tools and sheets plays a significant role in drawing. So, what devices to choose:

There are different types of pencils. A simple pencil happens With different levels softness. They are often designated by Latin letters: B - the softest, H - the hardest, and HB - hard-soft pencils. Besides this, there are also numbers from 2 to 9. These show the tone;
a beginner will need different pencils with different hardness. In addition, when drawing you will need soft eraser;
paper plays an important role. It is better to use thick white sheets - they can withstand corrections. A grainy sheet is suitable for a pencil because the shades are visible on it.

We looked in detail at how to learn to work with a pencil and how to draw something beautiful at home, but now let’s sum it up. Let's look at some brief tips on how to get better at drawing - the list, of course, is far from complete, but it sums up the experience:

Create sketches.

This is the main point. Required to create per day at least 5 sketches. It's worth doing your best here. Take advantage of every chance to create drawings: on the road, in the office, at home. This improves your skills, develops imagination, and the ability to understand size relationships. Drawing storyboards and comics is useful.

Copy the works of masters.

Imitate the masters, it develops taste. Do 1 copy every 3 months. This should include the originals good artists. Try to get as close to the source as possible, study not only the techniques of the masters, but also the cultural features of that era.

Experiment, don’t be afraid of mistakes and don’t put off creativity until later. This way you will soon learn how to create masterpieces.

Draw from memory.

Even when drawing from life, you have to create an image from memory. Besides, it is important to draw small elements from memory- this will improve visual memory and imagination.

Repeat mistakes.

People often quit at the first problem: they are afraid of repeating the mistake. But you shouldn't do this. If it doesn't work, start again. Don’t avoid mistakes; they are worth taking a closer look at - perhaps this is where your individuality lies.

You shouldn't draw from a photo.

Yes, at first this is the only way to train, but then you shouldn’t do it. The lens is not able to convey the full depth of forms.

Take a break.

Don't concentrate on one thing it's important to be able to switch. If something doesn't work out, take breaks. Start different drawings, change points of view, technique.

Conclusion

Even if drawing with a pencil or paints (pastels, watercolors, oils, etc.) is a completely new area of ​​life for you, don't be afraid to set goals, both modest and global. It is important to remember why you decided to learn drawing: will it become future profession or a hobby, do you want to please your friends or relatives with a landscape or portrait as a gift, have you just decided to master a new creative niche?

Fears of your own inability do not give you peace, constantly buzzing in your ear, “You won’t succeed anyway”? Don’t put off ideas and plans for later, gradually purchasing boxes of pencils and paints or spending weekends looking for that “best paper” in stores. Make your wishes come true today- just take a notepad and pencil and start making, albeit not very skillful, but at least your own sketches.

First, ask yourself one simple question: why do I need to learn how to draw with a pencil and what do I want to depict? There are quite a lot of goals in the world, and everyone has their own. Eat cool idea for a comic - there is also a desire to create, because who else but you will draw your story? People who are fans of some game, movie or comic book learn to draw just to portray their favorite characters. And there are also those who want to draw art in order to earn extra money.

Basic knowledge on how to learn to draw with a pencil yourself

On the one hand, it seems simple matter, but we assure you that this is absolutely not true. Of course, you won’t have to learn the basics of color rendering, as you would if you were using paints, but instead you will have to get used to the basics of rendering shadow and penumbra, and this is not easy, but it is almost half the success. You always need to start with the basics, which we will tell you a little about.
1. Tool selection
Any business must begin with preparation, and our case is no exception. Finding an answer to the question of how to learn to draw with a pencil without answering the question of how to choose the right pencil is quite difficult.
All simple pencils vary in softness, you should know this from school drawing lessons. The softness and hardness of pencils are indicated differently. Nowadays it is quite difficult to find pencils whose softness/hardness indicators are designated as “TM”, “T” and “M”. Of course, they exist, for example, they are produced by the Konstruktor company, but most often pencils can be found with Western markings “HB”, “B” and “H”.

• “B” (from English blackness) is the most soft pencil, which also gives the darkest shade;
• “H” (from English hardness) - hard and “light” pencil;
• “HB” is a standard (hard-soft) pencil, in addition to the combinations “TM” and “HB” it is designated by the letter F (from the English fine point).

In addition to the letters indicating softness, you can find numbers on the pencil markings, and so that you don’t get confused, look at the graph, which shows what shade each pencil will draw with

"NV" is a hard-soft pencil. A person who can draw well enough good level, with its help you can depict anything: a dark area, an outline, a shadow, a stroke. Of course, it will not give a deep enough dark color, which a pencil marked “HB” usually gives, but the drawing will look quite decent. Dudes who think they know how to draw can talk as much as they like that they can draw anything with one pencil of any hardness, but famous artists always have a few on hand different pencils. You should always have a pencil marked “HB” - this pencil is universal in nature. It's great for marking main lines, primarily because it erases well. With pencils of increased hardness it is much more difficult: after erasing, a “scratch” remains, which is difficult to remove. Of course, with experience you become convinced of the usefulness of a hard pencil (making thin “outlines” is very cool), but it’s best to start with a hard-soft one, simply because it’s easier to erase.

We've sorted out the pencils. So how can you learn to draw with a pencil without extra costs? Don't interrupt, dude! Everything is gradual.

2. Strokes
First you need to understand shading and the position of your hands while drawing. Each position gives different pressure on the stylus, and therefore different thickness and strength of the line. Pressure control comes with experience, so we recommend that you practice as often as possible to achieve optimal results. Get yourself a small notebook, either squared or without any markings at all, and practice. The more often the better. Try different angles of pressure different position hands and different type shading, remember that competent shading can make up for the most unsuccessful drawing. Therefore, one of the answers to the question “How to learn to draw” will be: “Learn to hold your hand and stroke correctly!” But we are not your help here. You must choose the stroke that you need and is comfortable with.

3. Sense of shape and shadow

At the first stage of drawing, it is very important to learn what a sense of form is. If you have basic knowledge of drawing, it will be easier for you. The shape of an object can be conveyed by correctly conveying the play of light using strokes of different strengths and directions. Remember, dude, the strokes don’t have to be practically invisible, the visual roughness of the drawing gives it character. If you couldn’t learn how to convey the play of light and shadow with a simple pencil, try first to learn how to draw using two tones in a sort of noir style. This way you will learn to understand how a shadow generally lies and plays on different surfaces, and drawing in the style of Frank Miller’s “Sin City” will help you master a couple original techniques. First, get a good black one. gel pen, bad pens will not cover the surface of the paper with an even black color. When you start to get better at drawing, or you like drawing like this, buy yourself a liquid liner or rapidograph.

It is very difficult to teach someone how to draw in a short article. There are a lot of answers to the question “how to learn to draw.” So ask yourself the question: “What do I want to draw?” If you want to draw people, we strongly recommend that you learn the basics of anatomy. Of course, many people will tell you that anatomy is superfluous, that it is much easier to download a special program on your phone, tablet or computer, in which you can put a person in different poses and look at him from different angles, so that you can redraw it later, but believe me, anatomy is a very important matter. If you are going to draw in a comic book or anime style, then anatomy, of course, will not be particularly useful to you (but it won’t hurt either), but such programs will be very useful. But what you definitely need is knowledge of proportions. Google them! It is the proportions that will give any of your work a sense of completeness. Even if you are going or in anime style, then you need to know the anatomy of human hands.

The book can be considered a good reference B. Hogarth “Drawing dynamic hands for artists. Tutorial» . Let's say right away that drawing hands is the most dreary and difficult thing in drawing a person, believe me.

How to learn to draw human figures with a pencil correctly? Read anatomy books for artists, for example, “Anatomy for Artists” by Jeno Barchai, many artists, however, do not like it, but these are purely professional holivars.

For each purpose of drawing there is its own literature. Do you want to know how to learn how to draw American-style comics with a pencil? Read books Christopher Hart. He has a great variety reference materials on different cases life. His books will help you learn how to draw monsters, comic books, learn the basics of page construction in a comic book, learn the basics of fantasy drawing techniques or science fiction. Also a very good book by the comics industry guru, Stan Lee, "How to Draw Comics". And also good advice- read more different comics and redraw them. This book is good for those who draw fantasy and sci-fi "Fantasy Drawing Techniques" by Bruce Robertson, however, in some places it is morally outdated, because many techniques can be easily done on a PC.

For the novice artists, passion as we recommend the book Gina Franks "Pencil Drawing" is a book by an old artist, a master of graphics and drawing with simple pencils. She will teach you all the basics of pencil drawing.

Do you want to know how to learn to draw manga or Japanese comics with a pencil? There are a lot of books on this topic. Be sure to make sure there are tips on drawing the types of the main characters, because it is the manner of drawing that reveals the character of the characters. The sorcerer girl from “Rubak” Lina Inverse, for example, is one type; to draw more realistic characters, other tips are needed.

Landscapes are much more difficult. Here you will have to study the laws of perspective, composition, the concept of the golden mean and all that stuff. Here we can advise you to draw more from life.

The most important thing in the question “How to learn to draw” is practice. Practice is very important! The best way to practice, in our opinion, is to redraw pictures and draw from life. The more often you do this, the faster you will learn to draw.

Every person needs to have an outlet in life. Even if a hobby is a job, it is still impossible to devote 24 hours a day to it. In a great way relax is drawing. How to learn to draw from scratch? It will take a lot of patience, a good eye and, of course, a lot of practice.

Choosing material

Of course, a professional artist will be able to draw a masterpiece with a simple pencil on an ordinary napkin, but people who are wondering how to learn to draw from scratch should not try such experiments. Otherwise, you can be disappointed in your abilities, never knowing what Mother Nature really put into you.

For the first lesson, you need to purchase an album with thick paper or buy a sheet of Whatman paper. Of course, you can draw on the “Snegurochka”, but the sheets intended for printing are so thin that the pencil will “stumble” on the backing, which is a table or easel. By the way, about the backing: you should not draw on the table; it is advisable to purchase (or make your own) an art tablet. Drawing at an angle is always more convenient, as the viewing angle becomes larger. And, of course, answering the question of how to learn to draw from scratch at home, one cannot help but mention pencils. The artist must have at least 5 of them. It is advisable to have 2 pencils of different hardness, 2 of different softness and one hard-soft.

There should also be 2 washing machines: one is a standard soft one, the other is a kneaded one.

Basics: learning the stroke

How to learn to draw from scratch? The first thing you need to do is train your hand. There are a lot of different exercises for this, for example, drawing eights, zigzags or straight lines. These simple exercises, if done 3-5 minutes before the start of class, can loosen your hand and it will listen to you better.

The next exercise is to study shading. It can be straight, inclined or crosswise. In the process of work, each artist develops his own unique style, but at the first stage it’s too early to think about style, you need to get better at it, which means trying different stylistic solutions.

Once the shading has been studied, you can move on to the form. But you don't need to draw it contour lines, namely strokes. This way a person will better perceive the volume, and at the same time perfect his stroke.

Sketches

Sketch books are very popular today. Moreover, both beginning artists and professional illustrators draw in them. Why do you need such a notepad? Everything ingenious is simple. The purpose of a sketch book is to always be at hand. You never know where you might meet interesting topics for sketches. Beginning artists who are tormented by the question of how to learn to draw from scratch just need to get a sketchbook. Here you can throw fantastic images or sketch surrounding objects. It doesn’t matter what will be depicted there, the main thing is daily drawing. And since in the modern rhythm it is difficult to find a free minute, if you always have a sketch book at hand, the task becomes much easier.

Geometric bodies

Anyone can learn to draw from scratch with a pencil. You should start your creative attempts with the image of geometric objects. After all, everything that surrounds us can be divided into cubes, spheres or pyramids. And if you have experience in drawing a base, then drawing, for example, a portrait will be much easier.

The first step is to learn how to draw a cube.

It is advisable to draw from life, and not from the monitor screen. After all, the image on a computer is two-dimensional, and it will not fully convey reality. It should be remembered that it is worth constructing the geometry, and not sketching the outer shell, otherwise it will be simply impossible to achieve an understanding of the form. After the cube you need to learn how to build a ball, then there should be a cone, a pyramid and all the others geometric bodies that exist.

Bodies of revolution

How to learn to draw from scratch? By working step by step first on geometric objects and then on a body of rotation, you can achieve significant results.

First of all, try to depict teapots and mugs. Most of these objects have a simple shape that will be easy to depict even for a novice artist.

The next stage is drawing vases and glasses. But you need to choose not elegant crystal objects, but rough clay products. Their form is easy to read, so drawing them graphically is much easier.

Having mastered fairly simple subjects, you can move on to more complex objects. For example, depict a still life. This task is given so that the novice artist understands how objects interact with each other. After staged still lifes, you can move directly to more lively drawings. For example, sketch before or after breakfast.

Landscapes

Having learned to draw well all the space in the house, you can go outside to paint. Drawing architecture and landscapes is a rather complex and time-consuming process. How to learn to draw landscapes for beginners from scratch? Swipe preparatory work at home, look at similar drawings in textbooks. Many artists post on the Internet not only ready-made sketches, but also step-by-step storyboards. Analyzing their work it is quite easy to imagine what simple shapes you can break this or that bush. As a workout, you can walk around the park from time to time and imagine how you can draw a tree, pond or bench. Before the image leaves your head, immediately upon returning home, draw from memory the object that interests you.

Animals and people

We figured out how to learn to draw with a pencil from scratch step by step, and now you need to understand where to start drawing a person or animal. Of course, the first thing you should do is sit down with an anatomy textbook. Only by understanding the structure human face and body, the artist will be able to create a realistic figure or portrait.

Of course, you can draw the contours of the body, but in order to accurately depict the figure, you need to build. The first thing to do is to redraw as many sketches as possible from an anatomy textbook and, of course, carefully study and master the proportions. It is necessary to have an idea of ​​how many times the head fits into the body, on which line the tips of the fingers end, etc.

To learn how to draw portraits, you need to do some preparatory work. A cut-off will help here - a plaster cast of a human head, the face of which is laid out on planes. Any artist, when drawing a portrait, must keep in mind the trimming scheme.

And of course, the same goes for animals and birds. To draw any four-legged or feathered creature, you need to look at what it looks like without fur and feathers. It is by knowing anatomy that an artist will be able to professionally draw any living creature.

Don't you know how to draw? It seems like it's high time you learned this! Pick up your brushes and paints and visit any site from our list!

Drawing with Anna Koshkina - an extensive selection of various video tutorials on drawing. Everything is explained in an accessible and understandable way.

Learn to draw in 30 days - a selection of lessons based on the well-known book “How to learn to draw in 30 days.” All you need is 20 minutes of your time, a notepad and a pencil with an eraser, and within a month you can draw!

A selection of lessons from the group “Drawing Lessons”- There are lessons for various techniques and lots of tips. There is also a section for painting lessons where you can learn to paint with watercolors, oils or pastels.

Drawing lessons for beginners and children - many drawing lessons with both pencil and felt-tip pens.

Everyone can draw! - full free course on drawing with pencil and watercolor.

A simple pencil - many video lessons on drawing in various techniques, there is also a section for children, video tutorials on drawing in Photoshop and an overview of various online graphic editors.

Drawing and drawing lessons for beginners - a large course on drawing and drawing, as well as many articles and tips, including even exercises for developing the eye and “getting” your hand.

Drawing: video tutorials - hundreds of educational videos on the topic of drawing an entire picture or any detail.

How to learn to draw - simple and complex lessons step by step lessons on drawing various animals, people and more!

DrawSpace is a portal with drawing lessons, a total of eight levels, each of which is divided into sections, the only minus/plus is that it is in English.

Learn to draw - also in English. They mainly teach how to draw people, but you can also learn how to draw caricatures.

Carol's Drawing Blog - blog professional artist Carol Rosinski, where she posts lessons. All lessons are divided into several levels, there are also videos and articles in which Carol shares her secrets. Another resource in English.

About: Drawing/Sketching - section big project About, dedicated to drawing, also in English. The site publishes many collections, training videos and articles on the topic of sketching and drawing.

DrawSchool is a resource for learning to draw. There are both free and paid webinars.

Purmix - with the help of this resource you will learn how to draw anime, manga, and tattoos, and you can use both video and photo lessons.

How to learn to draw- a whole channel on Youtube dedicated to teaching drawing. You can learn to draw a bug, a worm, and a bear.

PaintMaster - here you can learn graphic design, academic drawing and even interior design!

DrawMaster.ru - many lessons suitable not only for Photoshop, but also for ordinary pencils and paper.

ArtDrawing.ru - available full course drawing lessons from talented artist Yuri Sinchukov.

Pencil drawing lessons - a complete variety of styles, tastes, colors, and drawing themes.

• Pencil. You will need the simplest and most intuitive drawing tool in any case. Even if you want to learn how to draw with paints, you will need a simple pencil to create a sketch. Not all pencils are the same. Some are for drawing, others for drawing, others for everyday tasks. Too much hard pencils(3H, 4H and more) is better not to choose: they can easily scratch and tear the paper.

• Watercolor. Water-soluble paint is known for its lightness, transparency and wide palette of shades. However, painting with watercolor is quite difficult: you need to learn how to use its properties and have a good idea of ​​how the paint will behave on paper. On the other hand, if you put in enough effort, you will learn to draw in one of the most impressive techniques.

• Gouache. This is a thick matte paint that is diluted with water. It is perfect for the first steps in drawing. Thanks to the dense texture of gouache, dark tones can be easily covered with darker ones. This is very important, because then all the flaws and shortcomings can be corrected. Another good news: gouache is inexpensive.

• Pastel (dry). These crayons are used to create designs in soft colors. Due to its texture, pastel is very easy to shade, which allows you to create beautiful transitions between shades. You should immediately prepare for the fact that your fingers and table (at a minimum) will be stained with dust and pastel crumbs. The finished pastel drawing is easy to smudge, so the pigments on the paper will need to be secured with varnish or fixative.

• Markers (“copies”). We asked artist-illustrator and teacher Anna Rastorgueva to tell us about this instrument, relatively unknown to most. Because she draws with markers and does it great. We are not talking about text highlighters or simple felt-tip pens, but about alcohol markers, which, thanks to their base, do not deform the paper and allow you to achieve smooth transitions between shades.

There are many manufacturers of such instruments, including Japanese brands, German, Chinese, Korean, and Russian. The price also varies - from 160 to 600 rubles per piece, so even a novice author can pick up a small kit to get started.

The palettes of this type of markers are unusually wide, with an average of 300 colors, so in order not to get confused, you can purchase a ready-made set, usually selected on a specific topic: architecture, nature, manga.

What if I don't know what to draw?

If you don’t know what to draw, but really want to, copy, draw and repeat after others. There's nothing wrong with that. On the contrary, this is a normal process. Take a picture that you like, put it in front of you and start.

Video instructions help a lot. Unlike advice in the style of “draw a circle, add sticks, add details - you will get a great canvas,” these notes do not lie. You will see exactly how the drawing is created.

Remember: creativity is an international thing. Don't be afraid to check out the YouTube channels of English-speaking bloggers, even if you don't understand what they're saying.

Try starting with these channels:

• Proko. An absolute must-have for anyone who wants to learn how to draw. The artist clearly, simply, and clearly explains the most difficult thing - how to draw a person. This is the base and foundation, so the channel will probably be in your bookmarks.

• Mark Crilley. The artist works in cartoon style, so those who want to learn how to draw cute, cute drawings will find everything they need here. The artist shows different techniques and in detail, frame by frame, demonstrates the simplest techniques for creating an effective drawing.

• Sycra. The channel will appeal to everyone who loves Japanese cartoons and wants to learn how to draw anime. Video tutorials cover the topic inside and out: body structure, facial features, costumes and everything, everything, everything.

• Bob Ross. Bob Ross is an American television legend. Perhaps the most inspiring program in the world was created by this man, who for 11 years taught people to create miracles on canvas. You may not understand what Bob says in his soft voice, but you cannot resist the artistic talent that penetrates you directly from the screen.

In general, choosing a topic is the second fundamental issue after choosing the material. And there is no need to limit yourself here traditional genres: portrait, still life or landscape. These days, daily household sketches are becoming increasingly popular. Like Instagram photos, artists quickly capture exciting topics in their notebooks, publish them in in social networks, study and communicate together. The subject of interest can be absolutely any object - from macro-sketches of insects to travel diaries detailed in every detail.

Anna Rastorgueva, illustrator, teacher

"You Can Draw in 30 Days" by Mark Kistler. One of the most famous books about drawing. As many years of observations show, after reading it and, importantly, following the instructions, everyone learned to draw.

"Discover the Artist in You" by Betty Edwards. Those who have doubts can immediately be informed: from this book, about 2 million of those who considered themselves “armless” have already learned to draw. For those who do not believe in their own abilities at all and think that all artists know some secret beautiful paintings, we say: yes, the secret exists. It's hidden in this book.

“A sketchbook that will teach you how to draw!”, Robin Landa. As a teacher himself, Robin knows that students draw best on the pages of their textbooks. This is where fantasy comes into full play! Therefore, he created a book in which you can (and should) draw. And learn along the way.

I want to draw, but I don't have time or extra money

The first step can be taken without much investment or effort. Download creative apps and get started right now.

Tayasui Sketches. One of the most beautiful and simple applications with numerous tools will teach you how to draw in different techniques.

Bamboo Paper. Wacom, a company that creates drawing tablets, has developed its own application for artists. Sketches, sketches and full-fledged drawings - this program will be needed at every stage of learning.

Zen Brush. This application will not help with learning, but it will put you in the right creative mood. With a brush you can draw characteristic strokes, and the finished drawing looks like a work of art from some distant eastern country.

We’ve sorted out the materials, the sources of inspiration, too, the books have been studied, and there are applications for the laziest. It's your turn - it's time to get down to business.

The main thing is to find what you really like. Go for it!

Anna Rastorgueva, illustrator, teacher