Easy Simple Still Life Drawing

5 Basic Drawing Techniques to Draw a Still Life

Drawing a still life is an amazing way to enhance your drawing skills. But as artists, are you doing it right? A Still life drawing is different from a usual drawing, and hence, difficult to draw. If you're a beginner and are just starting to learn basic drawing techniques , you can begin with simpler objects, like mugs or balls. You can move to complex shapes once you've spent considerable time with the principles.

It is recommended that you start drawing by focusing on the big picture and work on the correct placements of objects or shapes on the page. Details like shading and adding textures can be done after balancing the light and dark.

Let's have a look at some basic drawing techniques for drawing still life.

1. Measure your subject

Your subject doesn't have to be a bowl of fruits every time, it can be anything that is inanimate and inspires you.

basic drawing tips 1 measure the subject One of the first basic drawing techniques is Measuring your subject, measure roughly how your subject looks like, with the help of a ruler or pencil. Then take measurements from different angles: top of the frame, top and bottom of the subject, and so on. You can even put your paper near the subject and try walking back and forth from the vantage point to check their relative sizes.

2. Start Drawing the shapes

basic drawing tips 2 start drawing the shapes
Once you have noted down the basic measurements, you can begin drawing shapes and basic forms of the design and keep checking if the proportion is correct or not. You can use a ruler or string for that and erase it with the chamois rag whenever needed. Then you can refine the lines and cover the paper.

3. Delineate Shadow Edges

basic drawing tips 3 delinate shadow edges Now, you can block in the main shadows and proceed towards adding some basic tones with lines and some dark halftones.

4. Model the Form

basic drawing tips 4 model the form
You can take as much time as you want for this step. It includes modelling the form, meaning creating smooth transitions and even tones in your drawing. You can change your pencil if you want, and use a kneaded eraser to lighten the tones.

5. Add Details and Finish

basic drawing tips 5 add details and finish As a general rule in pencil art, you should proceed from simple to complex shapes and details. So this is the step where you can refine the tones and add details, shades or texture while keeping in mind the values and the relative tones of the parts in the drawing. It is up to you if you want to continue with the same tools or switch to different pencils. Although it is recommended that you use vine charcoal for light halftones and charcoal pencil for darks. Finally, add some strokes of white chalk for the very brightest areas to finish the drawing.

When it comes to drawing complex drawings like a portrait or a still life, professional artists can lend their hands to help you out through drawing lessons online . Pencil Perceptions is one such platform where you can get trained by the best coaches and mentors and learn basic drawing techniques to improve your drawing skills.

Was this blog helpful? What are various other basic drawing techniques that you know?