TSG63. 6 tips to start sketching in 2025
and welcome to Portfolio Playground!
Dear Sketchbookers,
It is the beginning of this year and this learning journey about making a portfolio- I mean it can be that or a place where you improve your art skills and make original art.
But first things first, in order to be faster and have more ideas coming through, I would like us to work on our sketching skills; not only the sketch we use before we make a painting, but the kind of sketching we can use to learn.
Sketching to learn is something I have been struggling with since I started making art. I always felt it was more of a chore than something I enjoyed, but I know I need it! I just didn’t want to dedicate my nice sketchbooks to do that. This lead to to think that maybe I should be using copy paper to sketch, but then a second problem appeared. I don’t know where to store it and keep a track on it.
Tip 1. Get a sketchbook only for learning.
So I looked for the perfect sketchbook- for sketching! I am sorry if this sounds so silly, but it was something I really needed. I have now a 100-page, ring-bound sketchbook from Strathmore in A4, which is the perfect size for me to work on it. It helps me make more small sketches on one single page. The only problem it has is that I use it on the go. For this, I have a small sketchbook with detachable sheets I can paste later on my big sketchbook. I know many people say the art supply doesn’t make the art, but in this case, the art supply made me feel more comfortable. Royal Talens also makes affordable A4 sketchbooks, but I know I can make more than sketching with pencil, so I normally feel like wasting paper.
Tip 2. Collect references in batch
After I found my learning sketchbook, the next thing was to get enough references for some days so I didn’t have to look every time I sat down to sketch.
The first place always go to is Pinterest and this time was no exception, I made a new board with references. Although I love having Pinterest as a resource, I am unsure if it is the best way to learn how bodies move, as many of the photos feel staged. So, I like collecting also references to sketches from other illustrators, where they have a single character and different poses. *A small note about this, as this is only a learning reference I do not consider this cheating, but I would never use the characters themselves for my art.
The other thing is making your my reference photos. This is something I love doing when I am working on a complicated pose and I know I won’t find any reference online. For children’s photos, it is a bit more complicated if you don’t have one, so this is why there are 2 more ways, reference packs and books.
You can find a ton of reference packs from Grafit Studio. I got one last week with 200+ references from the same girl. This pack was great, as it was full of active poses and portraits. Having a single subject making different poses helps a lot to understand how bodies move, so I highly recommend something like that.
Last but not least, I also got a book called Illustrators’ Reference Manual: Children. This is my old-time favorite! I could only get one from World of Books, and there is still one in stock if you feel like getting it. This book is not printed anymore, so it is not so easy to find it. I remember I had to wait ~6 months to find one in stock.
Tip 3. Find the right pencil
Now that you have found the perfect sketchbook, it is time to find the best companion to it. I cannot make the same marks with the same flow with different pencils. I know some people love magic pencils, like this Koh-I-Noor, but I don’t like how my sketches look. Lately, my favorite pencils are the Technalo RBG from Caran d’Ache which I got from one of my best friends last year. Other good ones are the Mars Lumograph 9B from Staedler or the Prismacolor, col-erase. Even though these 2 pencils are the complete opposite, sometimes I feel like using one and sometimes the other. The 9B is dark and smooth, while the Col-erase ones are hard and light.
Tip 4. There is not only one sketching technique
I will go in-depth in other posts about this, but the main idea is to use more than one way of sketching a subject. I am sure this helps tremendously by connecting different parts of the brain into studying something, it is like repetition but on steroids. I have found and tried more than 12 ways of sketching subjects. I am so excited to show them to you!
Tip 5. Focus on one age at a time.
This month will be all about learning how to draw babies and children. Next month we will focus on adults and then on old people. I will include 2 pages from the Illustrators’ Reference Manual for paid subscribers at the end of the post (I would love to see some of your sketches!)
Tip 6. Get a sketching buddy!
(If you are interested in subscribing for the whole year I left the 40% discount until the end of January. Price for the monthly and the yearly subscription will go up after this)
I think of the Sketchbook Games community as my buddies, so feel welcome here, and let’s draw together!
We will have 2 sessions this month to work on drawing children.
The first one will be on Monday 6th at 8 pm Central European Time so we can celebrate the Three Kings Day together! We will focus on different sketching techniques. This will be a relaxed session where our sketches will (and need to) be away from perfect.
In the second session, we will have our first co-host of the year,
and we will work on references to create an original character. This session will be open for paid subscribers of either one of us. It will be held on Tuesday, 21st at 7 pm Central European Time.
To register for each session follow these links from lu.ma: