I just want to be able to draw things I see as accurately as I can. Like a face, mountain, classroom etc... any artists here got any tips or websites regarding learning how to draw almost photo-like images. I know this will take a long time to learn but I think it would be a cool skill to have.
First study anatomy, then go to the cemetery and dig up some dead bodies. But really as you most likely know the human form is the most difficult to reproduce. Any mistake and a human will spot it immediately and it stands out - looks really funny. Of course the hardest part is the imperfections and detail of the human form. Thats all i know though.
umm...just imagine and draw anything and practice practice practice. Try to make lines smooth and seem as though they are part of one continuous line
Check out the book, Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. It doesn't take a long time to learn. In school, blind contour drawing was helpful. That's where you look at the scene, not at your paper, until it's done after a set amount of time, maybe 1-5 minutes. Let your eye follow the contours as you see them, and let your hand follow them on paper. Don't lift your pencil at all, even if you have to cross over stuff you already did, it's an exercise. Use big paper, at least 2x3 feet, get a big pad of it, and some rigid surface to clip it against while you draw. Use drawing pencils, #2 to #6. Don't be afraid of leaving a dark mark. Don't make quick sketching strokes, let one line be bold and expressive.
It's about finding the outlines and reproducing them. The requirements are good spatial perception (depth and relativity of the size of things), good co-ordination, and the ability to map the above to something that looks like a reproduction (like, with a pencil, or whatever). Animals and humans sont tres difficile, peut-etre le plus difficile...
You don't need any special things like "good spatial perception", or co-ordination, nor is drawing simply about drawing the outlines of things. If you have sight and movement, you can draw. Drawing is about representing mass, contour, weight, tension, movement, space, mood, light, texture, and other things, whatever you see.
I was about to mention that book; it's good but I fear there is no substitute for professional tuition. We need someone who can point out where we are going wrong, how we can deal with difficulties, etc. As has been said, the human form is incredibly difficult to draw. I would suggest drawing fruit, cups and so on from various angles and under different lighting conditions.If such drawings cannot be done accurately, there is no point in trying to draw the human figure. It requires a long apprenticeship and innate talent.
:roflmao: This was kidding right? Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! As for the OP questions: 1. learn from the expert e.g. by taking a course / class 2. Maybe you could firstly take photo of it, print it, put a thin/ transparent paper above the print out paper, then start to draw on the thin paper by following the line. I guess this will give you the feeling on how to put them into sketch. 3. Try to ask Kadark, here is his art work: http://www.sciforums.com/showthread.php?t=77158
I realize that its a bit difficult when you print a photo and directly follow the print out lines. Here is an additional tips. After you take photo of the image that you want to draw, edit it with some photoeditor tool, for example microsoft photoeditor, then apply some enhancement effect. This one that I use is called 'stamp effect': Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Then, print it, put a thin/transparent paper above the print out paper, then start to draw on the thin paper by following the line beneath. I guess that will give you the 'proportional feeling' of the drawing.
I'm not sure its a skill you can learn. My teachers would say that artists are pretty much born to be artists, there are those that draw well, but they do it through lots of practice, they tend to have difficulty with new materials, pencils, paint etc. They tend to concentrate on certain areas (e.g portraits) I suppose. I've been able to draw and paint since I was in nursery, I don't recall learning how to draw or even taking lessons, I just did it. In school, teachers would give advice and thats about it, I don't think anyone can teach you how to draw. Do you have something you are particularly interested in? portraits? still life?
Myles and inzomnia are both wrong. The human body is no more "difficult" to draw than anything else. The technique is the same. When you look at the body, do not see it as a body, only as an arrangement of shapes, negative space, and contour. Once you can draw something, you can draw anything. We tend to see things, not as they are, but symbolically. We don't draw the lines that describe the eye, we see an eye and draw the symbol for eye. That's why people say they "can't draw people", or "can't draw hands". inzomnia's technique would only be helpful if: 1. You turn the drawing upside down. 2. You don't trace it, but draw it freehand. Upside down will fool the brain into seeing the real contours and not recognize the symbolic nature of what you are drawing. I do have a degree in Art, although I've never posted any of my artwork here.
Not sure what you mean by "special things". I think an art teacher would say that "getting the outlines" is fairly important. It's what sketching is about, I think you'll find. Co-ordination isn't some special ability, but some people don't seem to have much of it - some people can't tap out a beat and stay in time all that well, or play an instrument because they keep "tripping over" their fingers, or move themselves around in time to music or a beat (dance, dammit, dance!).
