The Complete Beginners Guide to Improving Your Hand Drawing

Article by Carlos Cortés Hand drawing is not just essential in landscape architecture. It’s also fun! Here we have the complete beginners guide to improving your hand drawing. Do you feel amazed when looking at other people’s drawings or sketches? Do you think you don’t have what it takes to do your own hand drawings? Give a try —you might be surprised. Landscape architects use hand drawing to express ideas visually. It’s also a tool to analyze and explore the environment. If you are not sure on how to start or think you lack the ability, take a look at our guide. Here, we will show you some tips to start improving your hand drawing skills.

Improving Your Hand Drawing

First of All, Can You Draw? If you can talk, you can sing If you have fun, you can draw! Of course you can draw — you probably have being doing it for a while, even if it was just back when you were a child or today scrawling lines when you are bored. It’s really not a matter of learning to draw, but recognizing that you actually can. WATCH >>> Why people believe they can’t draw – and how to prove they can | Graham Shaw | TEDxHull

We are all born artists. This means that we all have the talent and ability to express ourselves through different mediums, in this case hand drawing. As we grow up, we might keep developing those skills. But if we don’t, we will need to start where we left off. Just be patient and practice! Some of the things that block us are directly related to our minds. Take a look at the 10 Reasons Why You Still Suck at Drawing, by Nick Shannon

It’s All About Having Fun! The main reason we stop doing something is because we are not having fun doing it. The fact is that to master a skill, we must practice a lot. But if we don’t find our activity enjoyable, we are going to quit sooner or later. It’s no different with hand drawing. The secret is to put aside all of our pre-conceived notions and get lost in our drawing. Hand drawing will make you more conscious of the environment and you will be able to express your ideas in a clearer way. But the benefits of drawing go beyond strictly work. This is why art therapy is becoming more and more popular nowadays as an alternative to reduce stress. Try different things, from perspectives and forms to techniques. Feed your imagination by watching the work of others. Risk and let your pen flow. WATCH >>> Why you should practice drawing

Watch and Copy Method This is a method to apply whenever we are learning something new. We learn by watching and then doing. What we watch and then replicate is what we call technique — and there’s good technique and bad technique. How do we differentiate between good technique and bad technique? Bad technique looks forced and can deteriorate our material, such as pens, pencils, and the paper we use. It can also cause long-term injuries such as wrist pain. On the other hand, good technique looks relaxed; it allows you to understand what you are doing, and it’s a money saver! WATCH >>> Linescapes: How to draw a tree

Find Yourself! What makes a drawing incredible and beautiful is the creator’s essence. You might want to draw in a specific style or like someone you really admire, but at the end of the day, your creations will be unique. The more you practice, the closer you will get to your very own style. This will allow you to know what suits you and your drawings better. You will be able to solve problems faster and bring people your personal view of a project or idea. Practice, Practice, and More Practice From 10 minutes per day to a four-hour class, what really matters is that you draw daily. You can pick your goals and objectives, such as filling a sketchbook with trees, and another one with rocks, patterns, clouds, etc. Then you will have the evidence on how much you have improved your skills. WATCH >>> How to start a Landscape Sketch

Those are the basics for every beginner at hand drawing. With the right motivation and constant practice, your drawings will become the best tool for your projects, but also something you enjoy doing, not just for work. Drawings are our thoughts on paper, and this may help you to achieve clarity of ideas and self-knowledge. Remember that most of the roadblocks are in our minds. Copy what feels good, but don’t force yourself to be like someone else. Practice makes the master, and as Pablo Picasso once said, “Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.”

What tips would you give someone who is a complete beginner when it comes to drawing? Let us know in the comments below! Go to comments Recommended Reading: 

• Drawing for the Absolute Beginner: A Clear & Easy Guide to Successful Drawing (Art for the Absolute Beginner)  by Mark Willenbrink
• You Can Draw in 30 Days: The Fun, Easy Way to Learn to Draw in One Month or Less by Mark Kistler

Article by Carlos Cortés

Published in Blog