Drawing for the Absolute Beginner

✍ Scribed by Mark Willenbrink

• Publisher: F+W Media
• Year: 2006
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 131
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

With encouraging words and an emphasis on having fun, this guide takes you from the basic fundamentals of drawing to the complexities of creating landscapes, still lifes, people and more.

This inspiring book makes drawing in a realistic style easier than you may think and more fun than you ever imagined! Authors Mark and Mary Willenbrink (Watercolor for the Absolute Beginner) cover it all—from choosing materials and the correct way to hold your pencil, to expert advice on the tricky stuff, like getting proportions and perspective right, drawing reflections, and designing strong compositions. (It's not as scary as it sounds…not with Mark and Mary as your guide!)

At the heart of this book, a series of fun, hands-on exercises help you practice and perfect your strokes—24 mini-demos lead up to 9 full step-by-step demos. Each exercise builds on the previous one as you develop your skills, build your confidence, and enjoy yourself along the way. The...

✦ Table of Contents

Book Title
Copyright
About the Authors
Acknowledgments
Dedication
Contents
Pencils
Paper and Drawing Board
Erasers
Additional Drawing Tools
Chapter 1: Sketching and Drawing
Holding the Pencil
Structural Sketches
Value Sketches
Black-and-White Sketches
Contour Sketches
Combining Approaches
Chapter 2: Principles of Good Drawing
Using Basic Shapes
Gauging Proportions
Measuring Angles
Working From Reference Materials
Understanding Linear Perspective
One-Point Perspective
Two-Point Perspective
Three-Point Perspective
Hidden Horizons and Vanishing Points
Locating Vanishing Points,
Atmospheric Perspective
Ellipses
Arches and Roofs
Reflections
Chapter 3: Value
Contrast
Creating Values
Light Effects
Plotting Shadows
Chapter 4: Practice the Techniques
Clouds and Grass
Leafy Trees
Evergreen Trees
Brick, Stone and Wood
Rocks
Plane
Train
Automobile
Boat
Cat Face
Side View of a Cat
Dog
Cow
Swan
Human Figures
Faces
Chapter 5: Composition
Arranging the Elements
Number of Elements
Cropping and Formatting
Lines, Tangents and Shap
Chapter 6: Let’s Draw
Still Life
Textured Metal
Scene in Perspective
Natural Textures
Using Contrast
Expressive Portrait
Telling a Story Through a Drawing
Landscape
Seascape Composition
Glossary
Index