Drawing For Beginners

The Complete Guide to Mastering Pencil

Drawing

***FREE BONUS INSIDE***

Table of Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1: Getting Started
Get the Proper Materials
Pencil Sets vs. a Single Pencil?
Begin with Basic Shapes
The Use of Guidelines
Chapter 2: A Guide to Understanding Artist
Pencils
Components
Grading
The HB Pencil
Hand Stance
Color
Preferences
Chapter 3: What Pencil Is The Best Use In Drawing And
Sketching?
Chapter 4: The Different Pencil Art Techniques
Light Pencil Outline
Heavy Pencil Outline
Hatching
Stipping
Cross-Hatching
Back and Forth Stroke
Scumbling
Chapter 5: Blending Pencil Techniques
How to Blend Pencil
How to Hold the Pencil When Blending for First
Timers
Shading Using the Side of the Pencil
Chapter 6: Drawing with Graphite
Chapter 7: How to Improve Your Sketching Skills
Chapter 8: Top Drawing Mistakes Made By
Beginners
Conclusion
Introduction
There are a lot of reasons why there are many people who want to learn how to draw with pencil.
Some people want to do it for the passion of art and some just want to add it as one of their hobbies.
Regardless of what the reason is, if you are really passionate about learning how to draw using the
pencil as a medium, know that it is possible for you to master this form of art and it ’ s never too late
to learn.
Learning how to draw is not for people who have short attention span. But if you are serious and
really passionate about it, then it ’ s not going to be a problem!
Foundation building has to be your main goal if you are just a beginner. Drawing is not very
complicated, but it requires constant practice. Always keep in mind that you can ’ t master it
overnight, but it ’ s not impossible for you to master it in time.
In this book you will learn how to draw using the pencil, points you need to remember to get started,
techniques you need to know, and other important things you have to remember to master drawing
using pencil.
Copyright 2014 by Arleen Hotzak - All rights reserved.

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Chapter 1: Getting Started
Drawing, whether it is realistic pictures or cartoon characters and anything of that sort, everyone
begins with the basics. Every kind of drawing carries its own features and individuality so you ’ ll
need to take the time to learn every category that comes with it. But of course, you have to focus on
simple things first, and in this book you will learn all those.
Get the Proper Materials
Regardless of what kind of drawing you are going to do, you will have to begin with the proper set of
paper and pencils to use. In choosing the paper, don ’ t use glossy sheets as they could be too smooth
that it will prevent the surface from holding the pencil's lead granite. You should also avoid using old
paper as they are going to catch too much granite. Printing paper or office paper would be ideal.
When it comes to choosing the right pencil, it could be a bit complex depending on the person ’ s
preferences but there ’ s a standard that a lot of artists follow. For your primary outlines and sketches,
you would want to have faint lines and a hard pencil is going to be ideal. Use an HB pencil for those
first outlines. If you would like to begin putting darker lines and shades then change your pencil with
soft grade pencils.
Pencil Sets vs. a Single Pencil?
When you chose which materials you need, you ’ d have made a choice on whether to buy a set of
drawing pencils that have different grades or simply buy one pencil in a flexible grade.
Again, it always depends on your personal preference and different people have their own
preference.
The learning process of shading techniques using pencil is the same in both situations, so you don ’ t
have anything to be worried about. You ’ ll just have a bit more work to do here in choosing the right
set for you since you ’ ll have more gradients to try.
Begin with Basic Shapes
Professional artists could easily draw shapes and lines, but for most beginners, using template would
be necessary. The most ideal way to make your own template is by mastering the basic shapes. By
become skilled at drawing an oblong or egg, you could make a human face. By becoming skilled at
drawing rectangles, squares, and angled lines you are able to draw the pattern to make houses or
other structure designs.
The Use of Guidelines
Following guidelines is as important as learning how to master drawing shapes. It ’ s where the faint
lines of a pencil become really important. There are a lot of easy templates you can learn to master
just remember to start with the basic.
Chapter 2: A Guide to Understanding Artist Pencils
Pencil is known to be the simplest mediums to use in drawing. They ’ re not hard to control and use
and commonly make your workout ’ s foundation. But even though pencil is very easy to master, there
are still important points you have to remember. In this chapter you will get guides to get you started:
Components
Pencils are not made equal – they can be made of anything. What we known as the “ lead ” is
essentially a pole of graphite within a wooden barrel. It can be water-soluble that lets the graphite to
act like paint on paper when you coat it with water using a paintbrush. You can also use charcoal and
others, but regardless of what you choose to use, they all contain what are known as the Grades.
Grading
Pencils are divided into two classes which are B and H; it depends on whether they ’ re soft or dark
and rough or light. They ’ re commonly preceded by letters or numbers like HB, 7B, and 5H.
Pencils in B category are soft and have thicker charcoal or graphite sticks that let more graphite to be
put onto the paper. That ’ s the reason why they are softer and darker. Many artists use 2B to do
outlines. 3B to 5B is the midrange which gives average dark shades. If you want to get darker tones,
then you may want to use 6B and above series.
The graphite tip of H is hard and is a lot rougher than the other types and doesn ’ t let too much
graphite onto the drawing surface. It is easier to control when shading in lighter tones.
The HB Pencil
HB is a middle-grade that ’ s slightly both B and H, thus it is ideal for everyone ’ s needs. HBs are
usually used for outlining though. It depends on your preference on how and why you are using it.
Hand Stance
Holding the pencil right is a very important thing to consider as well. There ’ s a technique to have
dark shades from using H pencils and getting light shades from using B pencils – it ’ s all about how
you hold them! Increasing the angle between the drawing surface and the pencil point and putting
lighter pressure from the hand can produce lighter shades, and by doing the opposite, you will get
darker tone.
Color
Yes, we ’ re still talking about your black lead pencil here. The color tone is something that is usually
overlooked when drawing with pencil. For instance, a color yellow would appear to be a bit of light
grey while red would look like much of a medium grey.
Most colors don ’ t have similar tone, and even similar color in two different types of lighting would
come out as different tone. So you need to be aware of color toning and make the
proper “ color ” with value adjustment.
Preferences
Knowing when and how much you would use a pencil is depending on your preference. Deciding how
dark you want your drawings to look like is another aspect of having your style.
Even though getting inspiration from other is a good way of learning, copying someone else ’ s style
is not necessary! Just go let your creative juice flow and enjoy every stroke of pencil on paper.
Chapter 3: What Pencil Is The Best Use In Drawing And
Sketching?
As mentioned in the previous chapter, there are a lot of types of drawing pencils, and in this chapter
you will see an overview of line darkness, lead hardness, and types of pencils you can use for
drawing.
An important thing to remember here is that the softer the lead of the pencil is, the darker lines you
will get. B pencils are soft while H pencils contain harder leads.
Here are the list of different pencil leads and what they look like when you use them for shading and
the different kinds of pencil to use for drawing:
Pencil Grading Chart

Clutch or Lead Holder Pencils

Clutch or lead holder pencil use 2mm graphite refills that are similar size as what a wood cased
pencil have. There ’ s a clutch device in its tip that ’ s activated by the nozzle that holds the refill
inflexibly in position. Though it is 2mm, they could still cover the paper easily when needed. Making
a chisel point on its tip lets you cover bigger areas using the flat side but just turning the pencil can
give you a sharp chisel line id you need it. If you do this, you wouldn ’ t have to sharpen the graphite
every so often.
Wooden Pencils
Wooden cased pencils are the most commonly used pencils by many professional and aspiring artists;
they generally come in 9B to 9H sets. It ’ s most ideal for beginners to start with these but you have to
know that they have some drawbacks.
First is that their weight and the balance changes as the pencil gets shorter when sharpening it.
Secondly, if you are following a technique consistently, a regular sharpening would be necessary. And
the biggest drawback that most artist deal with when using this pencil is that the graphite isn ’ t
always pointed in the wood so once you sharpen your pencil, the tip becomes off-centered. But these
drawbacks are easy to overcome.
Mechanical Pencils

Mechanical pencils are available in different thicknesses: .3mm, .5mm, and .7mm. A lot of artists are
using these entirely and can produce spectacular work with them. They are very ideal for detail work
but not really suitable for the main.
Chapter 4: The Different Pencil Art Techniques
This is the most basic pencil technique and could be referred to as the ‘ light outline ’ or the ‘ heavy
outline ’ .
 Light Pencil Outline

The light outline is commonly used to make your guidelines and could be drawn using freehand or
ruler.
To make a light outline, just lessen the pressure you are going to use. Draw down on to the drawing
surface and give it a slow, flowing motion.
 Heavy Pencil Outline

The heavy outline is usually used in the final examples of every element, when you ’ re satisfy with
your work, you can add heavy lines to get more graphite that makes it almost impossible to erase it.
Heavy outlines are normally drawn using the freehand and could be made by holding the pencil closer
to the tip in order to control it better and increase the pressure to the shades that you want. You might
also think that it is easier to put heavy outlines in little pencil strokes in order to avoid errors.
You can practice drawing straight light and heavy lines using freehand, and find out how you ’ re most
comfortable when holding the pencil. You ’ ll know the bet position when you can create straight
lines.
 Hatching

This technique is just marking out little lines huddled together to make fill color from afar.
This method is a type of shading technique and similar to outlines, it could also be light or heavy by
decreasing or increasing the hand pressure you will put on the pencil.
 Stipping

This drawing technique has the same principle as he hatching drawing technique, but the lines are
essentially smaller, the same as tiny dashes.
This method is a shading technique and ideal for smaller areas like the eyes ’ iris or stubble beard or
other facial hair.
This method is great when blending that is used it light
pressure.
 Cross-Hatching

This technique has the same method as the hatching as well, except this process is also repeated in the
reverse direction in a next layer over the first layer.
This method is a good shading technique that is good in adding darker shades to the pencil portrait, as
numerous layers could be added. But if you want blend the graphite this is not really recommended.
 Back and Forth Stroke

This pencil drawing technique is possibly the first shading method many of us learned as a kid.
It ’ s just moving the nib of the pencil in back and forth motion at a fast speed all to the similar
direction.
Again, you are able to change the pressure to make heavier or lighter pencil tones. This method is
beneficial near the subject ’ s outline to make sure that the fill shade stays in the right part.
 Scumbling

And last of all, the Scumbling pencil drawing technique. This is a method of moving the pencil in
small, round motions which keeps them all compact.
This is a brilliant method to keep the shading tight and blended properly. It is very nice to use if you
want to keep your graphite soft on the paper and blend the shades firmly to make a smoother texture.
The best way of practicing these techniques is by alternating between heavy and light shades, and
work out which techniques are the most comfortable for you.  
Chapter 5: Blending Pencil Techniques
Blending is basically the merging of variety shades together in order for every shade to flow well into
the next making a really soft and realistic shade. It ’ s particularly helpful in filling color and making
profundity and texture that you will learn about in this chapter.
Blending is another important matter for pencil artists. There are many artists, who think the medium
just is not suitable for blending, and such methods have to be left to charcoal and pastel artists, but
this is not the case for everyone.

A lot of pencil artists find that blending is really fun part of drawing. When done right, you can get
amazing drawing as an end result.
Pencil Blending Tools

In blending your pencil drawing, you will need to use either a Paper Stump or a Tortillon. Both have
their own unique qualities.
Paper Stump

A Blending Stump is flattened rolls of paper that has pointed ends on both sides. It may come in
different widths, but the ends are always sharp. A blending stump has twopointed ends so that when
one becomes dirty, you can use the other side. It is usually cheap so you can dispose it when it
becomes too dirty. But you can clean it by rubbing the dirty end using sandpaper.  
Tortillion
Like the paper stump, a Tortillon is another blending material that is made of firmly rolled or warped
paper; the two almost look exactly the same but tortillion is smaller and narrower than the paper
stump and its point tip is more efficient in areas where precision is needed.
Some people use their fingers to blend their drawings, this is not recommended, in fact, this
shouldn ’ t be tolerated.
The human finger contains natural oils from the skin and whenever you touch the paper using your
bare skin you ’ re diffusing these oils on the paper and the oils would stick to the lead and act like a
glue. This should not happen since adding lead to these parts becomes a bit tricky and could
compromise your drawing!
That ’ s why there are a lot of artists who use a piece of tissue to use as their arm rest while drawing
using the pencil. It would also minimize smudging.
How to Blend Pencil
Useful Tip: Making use of small round motion like scumbling using a blending tool can help you in
keeping the blending nice and tight. The motion should be the same as the picture below:

Holding the blending tool in lower position and minimizing the pressure used on the tool could help
you in having a good control over blending technique.
 
How to Hold the Pencil When Blending for First Timers

If you are a beginner and going to try this for the first time, you can try to use an overhand grip of the
pencil like shown in the picture above. Fill a paper with wide marks made by the lead side until you
feel comfortable using a pencil held in this position.
When you think that the blending you made does not look nice, and you are able to see a clear
difference between lines, then you can carry on blending it with circular motion. It will unify well
ultimately, just be patient with it and do not use too much pressure on the paper!
Shading Using the Side of the Pencil
You can create this kind of shading using the side of the pencil lead held at low angle. Using the back
and forth motion, you can create a nice shading that is not hard to control.

Continue practice this method until you can make a graduated hatch similar to what shown above.
Chapter 6: Drawing with Graphite
Graphite drawing pencils come in a lot of different grades that it might be difficult for beginners to
keep in mind what every pencil grade specifies. Luckily, graphite pencils are coded universally,
which makes it easy to identify.
Graphite is an affordable and one of the most commonly used medium, and if done correctly, it could
result in wonderful piece of art. The lead inside the graphite pencils is made of a natural rock that ’ s
mined. Actually, diamonds and graphite are the only types of carbon polymers there is in the nature.
Here are 5 graphite drawing tips that can be really helpful for beginners:
1. Keep the drawings clean
Graphite drawings could easily get muddled and dirty, so it is always a nice idea to use something to
keep your drawing clean. One of the most commonly used is a sheet of paper below your wrist to
avoid smearing your drawing all over the place. If you are right handed, you can try to draw starting
from the left side all the way to the right side or if you are left handed, then start from the right to the
left, this will minimize the chance of having your hand touching and destroying the drawn areas.
It doesn ’ t matter if you just washed your hands, there ’ s always a small oil residue on the skin that
may go all over the paper that will make the graphite even harder to get rid of. Because of that, you
may want to avoid using finger in blending. You can experiment using different materials if you
don ’ t have paper stump of tortillion – you can use cotton swab or tissue as improvised.
2. Use the proper pencil grade
Pencils come in different grades starting from 9H to 9B. H means hardness and B mean blackness,
therefore, a 9H pencil would be really light and hard, and a 9B pencil would be really black and soft.
It is easier to erase the harder pencils but they are more difficult to blend. Harder pencils are usually
sharp so they are good to use when adding details to the drawing. You can use HB for the mid-tones,
B for the darker tones and H for the highlights.
Try getting a wide range of tones on the drawing you are going to make ranging from the lightest to the
darkest. A real black is hard to get using graphite since once the paper is drenched with graphite, it
would shimmer. You are able to use charcoal from your pencildrawings to get a true black.  
3. Erasers
Erasers are a really useful tool in drawing using the graphite. They could be used in erasing errors or
mistakes and to create lighter areas in an already drawn part in subtractive drawing methods.
Kneadable erasers are what most artists used as they could be shaped into a fine point and don ’ t
leave any kind of residue after erasing. Poster putty could also be used similar way you ’ d use
kneadable erasers, except it ’ s slightly stickier. It works nice to progressively get rid of the graphite
— every time you are using it on a paper, it ’ ll eliminate some more graphite, lightening the area
gradually without harming the paper.
4. Lines
Drawing with graphite seems like a paradox as we usually often ponder on drawing when it comes to
lines, but lines don ’ t happen naturally — differences in textures and tones are what are restricting
the objects, so if you would like to draw in a realistic style, it would be helpful to pay attention to the
shade and light and not on the lines alone.
Of course, everything depends on the style of drawing you would like to get. But for many, lines in a
drawing mainly if the lines have some diversity in thickness, is more attractive.
5. Shading and Crosshatching
If you ’ re using the crosshatching to shade, your drawing would have a more realistic effect if your
crosshatching goes for the shape of the subject. Having that said, it depends on any style you would
like to get. A crosshatching that goes in the same direction on a drawing could add a fascinating
result.
Chapter 7: How to Improve Your Sketching Skills
In this chapter you will learn 10 easy sketching tips that are going to be very useful for you to be
better in sketching.
Becoming a professional sketching artist, you will need long hours of practice, but to be easier for
you to master this form of art, here are simple tips you have to keep in mind when you are just starting
out.
Tip #1: DO NOT STRESS YOURSELF OVER MAKING A BIG SKETCHING WORK OF ART
Sketching is about showing your creativity and expressing yourself, but there are a lot of aspirants and
professional artists who stress out about coming up with huge and complicated sketch drawing. This
is something you have to avoid. Doing a lot of small sketches than making a big complex one would
be more beneficial for you in a lot of ways.
Tip #2: LEARN TO SEE LINES IN EVERYTHING AROUND YOU
Find the vertical and horizontal lines. Watch out for the curves and concentrate on them. By following
this simple sketching tip, you’ll learn how to draw what is in your head and you will start to draw
naturally as it would become a habit.
Tip #3: BE MINDFUL OF YOUR HEAD’S POSITION WHILE SKETCHING
The smallest movement of your head could change the viewpoint of what you’re looking at and switch
the appearance of what you are sketching.
It doesn’t mean that there’s right and wrong head position, but when you start sketching with one
standpoint, you have to ensure that you will be consistent on it.
Tip #4: DON’T GET FRUSTRATED WHEN YOU CAN’T COME UP WITH IDEA OF WHAT TO
DRAW
If you know to yourself what to draw, but can’t think of anything to draw, just draw shapes. Not only it
will this take you out of your mental block by using your hand, but it will also give you some ideas on
what to draw out of the shapes you will come up with.
Tip #5: IF YOU WANT TO MAKE A PART A BIT LIGHTER THAN THE REST, USING AN
ERASER IS NOT ALWAYS NECESSARY
By just putting something darker next to it, you can make a part lighter than the rest. It’s the contrast
standard at work and the brain cannot notice the difference.
Try to experiment with this sketching tip and you will see that you are able to do a lot of amazing
things.
Tip #6: BEFORE STARTING YOUR SKETCH, ALWAYS MAKE THE OUTLINE VERY LIGHT
TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU CAN FIT EVERYTHING IN YOUR CANVAS
Through this, the proportions would look so much better and you would not run out of space while
you are drawing.
Tip #7: ALWAYS SKETCH QUICKLY
Always try to sketch faster and you will improve the way you draw and you will also get a better
understanding of forms and line. Furthermore, your strokes would look smoother and look more
unsolidified.
Tip #8: IF YOU’RE TRYING TO DRAW SOMETHING THAT LOOKS DIFFICULT, DON’T GET
INTIMIDATED
Don’t get frustrated. Just make different shapes out of it. Everything contains the basic shapes: round,
square, cone, and cylinder.
Tip#9: ALWAYS HAVE SOME Q-TIPS WITH YOU
It is small and not hard to bring anywhere you go. Plus it is always useful when you need to blend
something.
Tip #10: FOCUS ON THE LIGHT SOURCE OF WHAT YOU ARE SKETCHING
Shading is very important to make your drawing look photorealistic, so you have to make sure that
you get make it properly. When the source of light is on the left side of the subject, then its shadows
have to be always on the left side.
These sketching tips mentioned in this chapter might sound very simple but do not undervalue their
significance. Always remember these sketching tips when you are drawing and your works will be on
your way of making a piece of art you will be proud to show off to everyone!
Chapter 8: Top Drawing Mistakes Made By Beginners
Since most beginners choose to learn on their own, it is common for beginners to make some mistakes
in learning how to draw and how to do it properly. And there’s no wrong in committing mistakes.
These mistakes make you better in drawing with pencils.
In this chapter you will learn the top three mistakes that beginners usually make in pencil drawing.
Mistake #1: Using the Wrong Paper
When you notice that your drawings are usually paler than what you planned, what’s wrong might be
your paper choice. Cheap papers usually have sides that are too smooth to get the pencil’s particles.
A thick notebook on the other hand stops you from putting on enough pressure on your pencil for your
drawing to end up as dark as you wanted. A nice type of paper you can use would be the standard
bond paper to begin with or buy a sketchpad. You can put a piece of cardboard below some sheets to
make a surface to make it more stable.
Mistake #2: Being Scared to Go Black
Do not be scared give everything when you are shading. There’s nothing wrong in going past dark
shades and go all out. A lot of people beginners are scared to shade because they don’t want to do
mistakes and start all over again. If you have no idea how the shading will look like when you
actually do it on the real thing, you can always have scratch paper where you can practice the shading
before actually shading on the real thing.
Mistake #3: The Use of Wrong Type of Pencil
Just like using the wrong type of paper, the best way to know if your pencil is not the right one is by
examining your drawings. If your drawing is too pale and you notice that there’s almost no dark
shadow, then you’re likely using the wrong kind of pencil. If you want to achieve darker and more
distinct drawings, then you can consider using 4B, 2B, and B pencils. You should also keep sharpener
with you to make your pencils more effective for drawing.
BONUS!
This video has really great insight on the topic of drawing. Keep an open
mind and listen to what Ethan has to say on the topic of drawing. It will
help change your perspective.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO!
Conclusion

Whether you ’ re going to give a drawing lesson to a beginner or you want to make yourself learn how
to draw, there is one important thing you always have to keep in mind. There are frustrating and
difficult times in learning how to draw, but in the same way, it ’ s also substantially worthwhile
experience. Learning everything about how to draw using pencil can be compared in learning how to
walk as a child – when you do it a lot, you get better at it.
Drawing is a very amusing hobby and actually something that can also be profitable. If you would like
to learn how to draw with pencil, following the tips and techniques included in this book is very
useful. Make it as one of your hobby. One amazing thing about this hobby is that you don ’ t need to
spend a lot of money getting started as you can acquire all the essentials at really cheap price, as long
as you have a pencil and a paper and you can start to draw anything you want.
As stated earlier, learning how to draw with pencil isn ’ t always an easy task for everyone, but with
enough time and practice, you ’ ll eventually be good at it. Learning how to draw is a talent, and this
is a kind of talent that every individual could possibly have.
Finally, if you enjoyed this book, then I’d like to ask you for a favor, would you be kind enough to
leave a review for this book on Amazon? It ’ d be greatly appreciated!
Click here to leave a review for this book on Amazon!
Thank you and good luck!
Preview Of Some of my other Books

Click here to check out ‘Zentangle for beginners’ on Amazon