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So glad you addressed the reason why the loose sketch can look better than the finalized drawing; that eluded me for years. Even just slightly accenting the thickness of the line on the shadow side can enhance the gesture and the life of the drawing. Great video!
I didn't think I would learn so much from a short 5 minute video but I feel like this will change how I do sketches forever. More recently I think I've been 'accidentally' doing sketches more this way because I've started to loosen up a lot more (I used to think all lines had to be dark and bold) but what I learned from this video will help me to intentionally stay loose and sketch more effectively. Thanks Proko, I'm always surprised at just how much I learn from your videos 😄
It's very important to taper the end of the stroke. When you add the next stroke, it will look like one stroke *if you tapered the line* This is also one way to create smooth gradations using strokes (hatching).
As a person who is already partly good at drawing, this simple line does improve your work. Such practice emanates the feelings and will help you become better than you are.
My 7th and 8th grade art teacher always, for 15 minutes every day, would have us to these warmups. He would give us 3 pieces of paper (so we don’t fill up our sketchbooks fast) and we would just draw lines and circles. That improves my art so dramatically I still do it every day. Never forget the fundamental lines and circles, because you’ll use them in every drawing.
you know, i've been practicing art on and off just to kill time and everytime i see a video from this guy it's like seeing a god at work, this dude is absurdly good compared to most people i often watch, he has the ability to teach all of these separate things in art and not just 1 portion of it, absolute legend, much respect for the grind you've put in
Thanks Proko, I have always felt a little anxious when joining all lines so some times I would rather skip lines by using the hypotenuse. Your advice is duely noted as try to re-strengthen my left hand and become ambidextrous once more.😎🏁
I have trouble doing tapered strokes, not because I can't confidently do lines or cannot make long strokes, but because no matter how confidently I try to do my linework, the beginning end of the line is not tapered
I ghost my lines in, doing the motion before I actually make a mark. Having that little bit of practice for the motion and the little bit of movement before and after the line actually starts can help a lot with that.
you know what i JUST realized, just now with this video? that the stunning lines in hair that i've tried and tried and failed to emulate are 90% more likely to be *several* tapered strokes combined than the single stroke i've been thinking they were. and even if they WEREN'T, i could likely emulate them better if *i* were to use several strokes instead of one.
This makes a lot of sense! Do you have any advice on how to achieve these lines and keep that look of energy when motion in the upper arm and shoulder isn't possible? Would you break these tapered lines even smaller since the range of physical motion is limited? Or is it better to try to apply these same concepts as best as you can? Thank you for all of the work you put into your videos, they are very helpful and motivating!
I always saw this line in all your instruction videos from before. this video popped up just as I was starting to use it in my own drawings, I now actually feel like my understanding and execution improves more easily with each drawing I make. It seemed like an uphill battle when using other types of lines for sketching.
So are tapered strokes and complex lines the same thing? Or do you use tapered strokes for loose sketches and then also use tapered strokes for the cleaner line image when you’re tracing? When would you not use tapered strokes? Sorry for my confusion.
You can use the tapered stroke for both the loose sketches and for the finished drawing. In the video, there's the example of me drawing the small cartoon turtle. The loose red pencil sketch and dark trace drawing over it are both done with tapered strokes. You wouldn't use a tapered stroke when doing technical drawings or when doing strict proportion measuring.
It's much better to draw with your shoulder, but It is a hard technique to manage when you are drawing without a table (using your knees on a bed for example)
It's always amazing to see someone who draws complex curves with great line quality and they don't even rotate the drawing pad. Hope that I can one day draw as well as you do @Proko. Love your content!
Another tip I learned the hard way, please try to have good posture while drawing. Bad posture will strain your body quite quickly and it will impact your drawing ability. If you can, sit straight eyes forward or even just stand.
I would recommend Dead Hang's on a pull up bar, daily. This will prevent/reverse forward rounded posture. Every artist should Workout and keep especially an eye on their Glutes/Hamstring, Lower Traps, External Rotators, Core and Serratus anterior. I had to learn it the hardway.
wow i needed this. i've been trying to grasp this concept intuitively but having it explained and categorized makes me realize exactly how to focus practicing it.
Disney used a process where they would xerox the animators pencil drawing directly to film starting with One Hundred and One Dalmations until the Little Mermaid.
This video was really helpful! Loose sketches are actually a moving picture at one place. All those lines make the drawing look like its in motion and moving. For films the movement is sequentially. This video opened my mind, why loose sketches are looking full of energy and are more interesting than just a few lines.
I'm early??? Ah man you are a mind reader exactly what I am practising after watching you yt short(I'm which you replied to me) I am improving my flow of line and understanding different lines(from one of your video) I am actually a engineer and practice industrial design but they usually miss the organic flow (I mostly do mecha) Your videos are a great help for me Could you possibly do a short on Or if someone can tell me How to cross hatch my drawing (or just provide some information) I usually try to hatch with the basic form it's made of but in complex organic form its not that beneficial Someone??????
Hey! We actually have a lesson on cross hatching from comics legend David Finch that you can check out here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-bNjkPMsbvTs.html
How hard you press depends on your needs in the moment and the pencil hardness you're using. And the same goes for the arm or wrist movement. Generally, small details are made with the wrist and large strokes are made from the shoulder.
Please also make monthly subscription courses. The current premium courses are too expensive for me. Too bad I really wanted to learn from these courses. Love your work!!
Thank you for saying loose sketches tend to look better than the finished product with clean lines! I crave the liveliness and energy my sketches contain, so I suppose I need to work more on getting my sketches even more expressive so the line work doesn’t appear dull in the end.
I spent a fair bit of money on a nice art kit from Jazza (other art RU-vidr) and now all I'm doing instead of drawing is watching art videos with no structure from one to the next (because it's a RU-vid feed, not a curriculum) and becoming paralyzed with the utter doubt and futility of even trying...Maybe I should give the courses a shot. I see some free classes there to trial it.
That's a hard spot to be in! If you're finding it hard to know where to start, a course can help! We do have a free sampler of lessons from different courses that you can try to see whose teaching style or subject matter benefits you most. If you're just starting out, my new Drawing Basics course is a good option. Figure Drawing will help you draw the human body and more quickly. Hope to see you in there!
Same way as you do traditionally. Just make sure your brush and your Apple Pencil support pressure sensitivity. Not all models of the Apple pencil or brushes in your app of choice may.
Make sure your hand is already moving in the direction of the line you're making when you touch your pencil to the paper. Like how the taper happens at the end because of you raising your pencil while still moving, the taper at the beginning of the line happens as your already moving pencil makes contact with the paper.
