# Some of my Freehand Drawings



## Jinxi

Here are some of the freehand drawings I have done recently. I have only just started drawing, and because I have never had any art lessons it has been quite a challenge!

Let me know what you think.






Baby Goofy





Baby Minnie Mouse





Bart Simpson





Donald Duck





Roger from the series American Dad


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## Trides

Lovely. Makes me jealous.


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## Jinxi

Thank you Trides


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## Gumby

You show definite talent, Jinxi.  Very nice drawings, I love cartoon characters.


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## MJ Preston

Well done Jinxi. Freehand drawing is very difficult to achieve.


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## Jinxi

Thank you so much Gumby and MJ  I have just been picking images off Google and attempting them. I am keen to improve my skills and see where it takes me.


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## JosephB

You're doing fine with you're line work. I'd work on somethings that require shading -- starting with just simple shapes. 

One thing I learned when I first took some lessons is how important it is to work with the right tools, and when it comes to pencil sketches, that means buying leads that vary from hard to soft. Softer leads will get you the darkest values and blacks so often missing from drawings when people are first learning. Dark values give your drawing depth. Get some half-way decent paper too. Get a good, hand  pencil sharpener too. Electic ones will break your soft leads. Also buy some good erasers -- my favorites are the kneadable, soft kind. You can use those to "draw" too -- by lifting pencil of the paper to create different shades. The ones on the end of pencils are the worst and will just tear up your paper.


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## Jinxi

Thank you Joseph.

I purchased a beginners book which instructed me on the different utensils to buy. I have pencils ranging from HB to 8B, coal pencil and a 'smudger' thing. I have a basic plastic sharpner and a proper eraser. I have bought a decent sketchpad as well, but have not yet used it. I have attempted a few shading images, and they didn't come out too badly 

Thank you so much for your advice.


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## Custard

I haven't been drawing for too long but try the 4b pencil. It appears to be so much better than any other pencil that I have tried. Much easier to draw with since its is smoother.


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## Jinxi

Great. I will do. Thank you Custard!


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## Jinxi

Here are three images that I have done using a little shading. The jacket is not so great - the size ratio didn't come out so well


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## Jinxi

Here's one that I did while the internet was down at work. Unfortunately you can't really see the shading, but it's there  Oh and ignore the pumpkin-like face - seems to be my problem area.


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## JosephB

You're on the right track with your shading, Jinxi 

The most important thing about drawing people is understanding the basic shapes and proportions, and also understanding how people are put together -- what's under the skin, the muscle and bone. There are several anatomy for artists books out there -- you should really check them out. At school, we actually went to the medical school and drew cadavers, but I was so nauseated by it, I got nothing out of it. Heh. I think I was hungover too, which didn't help.

When I draw people, I just concentrate on the shapes and the lights and darks. A good thing to do is break it down and do studies with varying levels of detail until you really understand what your drawing. Another thing I do when I'm drawing -- I squint a lot, so I can just look at the basic shapes and lights and darks and see how things hold up.

Here are studies I did for a painting -- starting with just basic shapes and adding more detail as I went along. I know I had ones with more detail and unfortunately, I gave away so many paintings without photographing them -- so I don't have the end result. Not everyone has to do this. My sister has so much talent, she can draw something with amazing detail and accuracy right off the bat -- I have to work at it a lot more.


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## Jinxi

Wow, those are brilliant Joseph. Thank you so much for your advice. I will definitely have a look at those anatomy books. I have to have an image in front of me to be able to draw it, whereas my man can draw the most incredible things right off the bat as well. It makes me cringe when I think about how long I have spent staring at the image and it's detail before I even start drawing 

I will try to draw people in the same way that you have and see how it goes.

Thank you again!


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## Jinxi

I was thinking about getting a design tablet, a Wacom Intuis4 Small, but they are quite pricey and I was wondering if anyone could give me some feedback on whether it is worth it or not?


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## Syren

I have a Wacom that I use for work, doing freelance concept art and some commissioned portraits and other artsy bits. I can answer whatever questions you may have about the tablet and certain programs that work with the tablet, like painter and photoshop, gimp and OS support.

I will say that they are a bit costly and you should really consider where you are at and where you intend to go with your artwork prior to purchasing. Don't get me wrong, I think you show a lot of talent in the works you've done so far and I would never try to talk someone out of their creativity... I just mean that the tablet is basically an artists tool, just like a pencil or an easel. They have their uses and sometimes are necessary, but they have a cost and 'need' should be considered. Don't forget that on top of the hundreds you'll pay for the tablet, there will be a few hundred more for the right software. There are free alternatives, but you're really looking at Painter or Photoshop if you want to be truly productive. Just things to consider.

I do think you have talent though... it all depends on how far you want to run with it. Cheers 

//Sy


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## Jinxi

Thank you Syren.

I am very interested in getting into Graphic Design, so it would be something that I would make use of. My question is this, I have heard that it is very difficult to use, is this true?

Also, I believe that when purchasing it, it comes with Sketchpad, Corel Sketch and an Adobe programme. I already have Corel Paintshop on my laptop. Would I still need the programmes you have suggested?

Thank you again for your advice.


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## Syren

Graphic Design is a wide field... but if you're after something like designing original works and selling them as marketable products, (basically commissioned graphics/concept art) then a tablet is extremely beneficial. If you're more into classical graphic design, like layouts and structure, then I'm not sure it will help much.

Assuming that you want to draw things creatively, like characters and environments, the tablet is perfect. It isn't required, so far as the end product is concerned... but it is a quick and efficient way to push out quality work in a timely manner. Pah, I think I'm starting to ramble. Let me simplify.

I love my tablet. It is paintbrush, airbrush, chalk, pencil, ink, sponge, acrylic, oil... everything. All in one. Without the clean up! I don't know if you paint, but that alone is worth the money in my eyes... lol... no clean up! YAY!

It will never replace my 6B and my sketchpad, but it is invaluable to me now. What took six hours and many tool changes takes only a couple hours now and no tool changes. Just a click. Perfect. The feel is very much like sketching on paper. But you can undo, zoom, rotate, resize, push geometry... masks, layers, the benefits are many.

You'd have to see what they're offering with their current packages, and I'm sure that you can get software discounts through them, but it is still pretty pricey. Check their website for details. Mine only came with Painter Essentials 4, which was good enough to make me run out and buy the full version of Painter. Photoshop is industry standard, Painter compliments it perfectly, the two of them can do anything. 

As to difficulty, it isn't at all. The oddity of looking somewhere other than where you are drawing wears off in a couple hours and you sink right in. Especially if you can place the Tablet close to your monitor, like on a desk in front of it. Other than that though, the tablet is super easy... using a mouse is insane once you've done a tablet.

Best advice: Check out YouTube and watch the videos like tutorial vids. Great way to see them in action. 

Do a search for Speed Painting, Photoshop Tutorial, etc. Daarken is a friend of mine with many great tutorials on youtube... using tablets and photoshop. Seeing them in action helps a lot. If you can afford it and know you want to excel at it, then I'd say get it. I don't think it would hurt you to go through a couple weeks of studies to prove to yourself that you're in it for the long haul first. 

Hope that helps, if there's anything else, glad to help!

Cheers,

//Sy


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## JosephB

I'm a graphic designer, and I don't use a tablet. In fact, I very rarely draw as part of my job. If I need an illustration, I hire someone to do it, and I might sketch out a rough idea for that. Most graphic designers today do a lot of web design, in addition to print work and corporate identification etc. You're mostly working in Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign, Dreamweaver, Flash. I've always wanted a tablet, but I've never gotten around to buying one. These days, I'm doing more and more creative direction, which means I'm doing even less hands-on design -- mostly managing a creative team -- a designer, writer, production folks etc. So I'm mostly concerned with concept, strategic direction, overall look and feel etc.


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## Naddia

Jinxi,

You're getting off to a great start with your line drawings and shading. Here are a few suggestions I can offer on drawing:

1) Figure out what your favorite subject is to draw. Do you enjoy drawing cartoons? Landscapes? Abstract? Portraits? Once you know what you like to draw, practice drawing those as much as possible.

2) Keep all of your drawings. It's so much fun and a huge confidence booster to look back and observe how you've improved over time.

3) Draw whenever you can. Like an annoying photographer who always has their camera with them, snapping pictures every time you turn around, do the same. I can't remember a time when I didn't love to draw, but I got really serious about it at age 13. I carried a sketch book and pencil with me wherever I went (Yeah, people will think you're weird at first, but then they'll look at your work and go, "Wow! That's really cool. I wish I could draw like that."). A child in a park with a balloon, some books on a bookshelf, a cat in a window, an old woman praying at church - the picture doesn't have to include a lot of detail; just draw what you see. 

4) Once you're comfortable with shading, focus on motion. Instead of drawing items or people in a pose, draw them in motion. Water from a faucet, a sheet on a clothes line, a cat jumping out of a window.

5) Here are a couple little tips on shading. Put a light source into your picture, and then shade items in relation to your light source. Also, use shading sticks to give your shadows a much smoother and more natural look. And, most importantly I think, use your eraser. I shade more with my eraser than I do my pencil.

6) Draw what you see, not what you know. Everyone knows what an eye looks like, but if you're drawing a portrait of a person, you're not drawing an eye. You're using lines and shadows and spaces to create _their_ eye. You know how to draw an eye, but you'll never create that individuals portrait, their expression, their essence if you don't forget how to draw an eye. You're drawing lines and shadows. That's it. The eye will come to life on its own.

Great start to an awesome form of art, Jinxi! I hope this helps.

Nad


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## Jinxi

Thank you Joseph. I am planning on starting my own little company whereby I create websites for small companies, provide a service whereby I create invitations, logo's for companies, advertisements, etc. I would also like to offer photo editing. So I am planning on doing a lot of the creative work myself, as it is something I really enjoy.

Wow, thank you Nad for your amazing tips! My favourite kind of art is nudes and the female form, but until such time as I have built up a bit more skills, I will stick to cartoons  Your advice on drawing what you see is so helpful, thank you. My biggest problem is letting go of my mental picture of what the object should look like.

Thank you again for the advice! You have all been incredibly helpful.


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## Candra H

Nothing much to add except to say, you have a great eye and a lot of talent. Good luck and keep drawing. You'll get there.


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