4 Common Mistakes Made When Learning How To Draw

1. Getting Proportions Wrong. A very common problem beginners have is with how to draw the proportions of the human body (or parts of the body) correctly. The most consistent mistake is with the eyes and the face. Typically new artists will draw a persons eyes about two thirds of the way up the face when in fact they are closer to the middle of the face (look in the mirror and see). The tip of the nose is then around half way between the eyes and the chin, and a persons mouth is about half way between the tip of the nose and the chin. This "half-of-half-of-half" term is useful to remember. Hands are also frequently drawn out of proportion, as well as legs and arms. When learning how to draw parts of the body or animals, ensure you know the proportions of things in relation to other body parts.

2. The Wrong Tool For The Job. Many times people will use a pen in favor of a pencil or vice versa simply due to habit. Depending on what kind of drawings you are doing this may cause you some problems. You should learn which tools are best for whatever style you're currently drawing in. For example, when drawing things like comics or cartoons, or anything which uses outlines without shading you should use a pen, even a basic biro pen will do. If you're doing illustrations, fonts or caligraphy/lettering, usually you'll want to use a fountain pen.

Another routine mistake when sketching and drawing is using a pencil that's too hard or too dark. You should understand pencil grades and pick the right one for whatever you're doing. The grade of a pencil is simply a measure of how hard or weak the graphite is. H means Hard (which is lighter) and B means Soft (which is darker). This may seem backwards but it's because the harder the lead, the finer you can sharpen the pencil without breaking it, and thus the lighter the mark it makes on paper. The grade scale goes:

7H 6H 5H 4H 3H 2H H F HB B 2B 3B 4B 5B 6B 7B Softest < - - - Standard < - - - Hardest Darkest < - - - Normal < - - - Lightest

This means that for technical or engineering drawings you want a hard pencil like 4H which you can sharpen very fine for light and accurate lines. This means you can also erase mistakes easier. For writing letters and text an HB to 2H pencil is best suited. Being the most common pencil grade, it's also economic (this is why schools typically stock these grade pencils). For shading and sketching and more complicated designs you'd use Medium to Soft range pencils.

3. Using The Wrong Paper. It's hard to believe that something as simple as paper choice may have an impact on your drawings and sketches but cheap papers are usually coated with a light gloss or sheen which means the graphite of your pencil doesn't hold to the paper and instead you have to continually blow away excess graphite powder which builds up along your lines. You should place your paper on a hard and even work surface and ensure that the paper you buy is good quality. The best place to go is to an art store, they can help you find the best paper for what you're doing. Or you could search online where you can find hundreds of different quality and type papers for different purposes. These typically wont be much more expensive than standard printer paper, especially if you buy in bulk.

4. Copying From Flash Photographs. Flash photography flattens the features of whatever you're photographing, be it a person or animals. This makes it hard to copy onto paper because there are fewer lines and details. Many people will also take photos around their house or of their pets to work from. In the case of pets, they will look up at the camera and the photographer will point downward at the animal. This results in awkward proportions, the head is drawn much larger than the body, or is simply hidden. When photographing people or objects you should use natural lighting, ensuring that you are level with your subject. This will give you more detail and features to work from when sketching and will keep everything level and in proportion.

New artists learning how to draw may find http://www.howto-draw.com useful. There are illustrated examples of how to draw people, places and styles.