By: Wyles Daniel

As someone who enjoys sketching as a hobby, Nolan Rosen understands the concept that practice can lead to improvement. While some people may have more natural drawing abilities or instincts than others, sketching is a skill that can be developed and enhanced with regular practice and patience.

Whether you’re an experienced artist or just starting on your sketching journey, here are some helpful tips to consider.

Practice Hand-Eye Coordination

Before you dive into sketching your desired image, it’s a good idea to begin with some warm-up exercises aimed at activating hand-eye coordination. Drawing freehand circles is a great place to start. Once you feel more comfortable, you can try more complex shapes like cylinders and spheres. You can also work on improving your hand-eye coordination by doodling lines of varying sizes, incorporating different levels of pressure and various mark-making techniques.

These simple activities can help you improve pencil control, leading to smoother line work in your sketches.

Start with Basic Shapes

Basic shapes like circles, squares, and rectangles serve as the foundation of almost any object you’ll sketch. It’s beneficial to practice drawing these shapes so you can create more symmetrical forms and, in turn, improve the final appearance of your work. A flower, for example, can be broken down into a few circles and a line, while a house may consist mainly of a square and a triangle.

Although most objects are more complex, this approach can still be applied. Try to visualize how you can break down complex subjects into basic shapes and then refine the sketch by adding additional detail and line work.

Try Different Pencils

Not all pencils have the same effect—some are better suited for darker shading, while others work better for softer, lighter strokes. Usually, you can find the hardness of the graphite on the side of the pencil. The grade will typically include a letter (H for hard or B for blackness) and a number that indicates the intensity or degree of the effect. It’s worth experimenting with different graphite pencils to see how each one behaves on the page. You might also want to explore mechanical pencils.

When starting, it’s a good idea to experiment with both mechanical and traditional pencils. You may come to prefer one over the other, but both have their advantages. Mechanical pencils are great for consistent, precise lines and never need sharpening. Plus, they come in various ergonomic designs. However, many people enjoy the tactile feel and versatility of traditional pencils. These are excellent for sketching as well as adding different shades and tones to your work. Additionally, traditional pencils tend to be more affordable.

Holding the Pencil

The way you hold your pencil can influence the intensity of your shading. There are various ways to grip the pencil, but they generally fall under two common methods: overhand and tripod. The overhand grip involves lightly holding the pencil between all four fingers and your thumb, allowing you to use the edge of the pencil to create broader markings. This grip might feel a bit different from the tripod grip, which is commonly used when writing.

While the overhand grip is often preferred for sketching broad strokes and shading, the tripod grip can also produce different shading effects depending on how you position your hand. For darker marks, hold the pencil closer to the lead. This will provide more precision and control. For lighter strokes, position your fingers further up the pencil.

The 70/30 Rule

The 70/30 rule is a helpful composition guideline for sketching. The idea is to guide the viewer’s attention toward the central subject of your sketch—whether it’s a person’s face or a focal point in a landscape. The focal point should occupy around 30% of the page and have more detailed features compared to the rest of the drawing. The remaining 70% can be used for background elements or less detailed shading, which will help direct the viewer’s gaze to the primary subject.