Click here to download free Sketching Tip Sheets and Tutorials in PDF format. You will find many free downloads for Pen, Ink, and Watercolor Wash. http://www.peninkwatercolorsketching.com/ Sketch when inspiration strikes.
Keep your smallest, fastest sketching kit next to the spot where you read newspapers or magazines. When you see a picture you'd like for a reference, grab your tools and take five minutes to put it on paper right then, not later. You can also sketch when you are viewing videos online. Just pause the frame at an inspiring scene, animal, or person. It's like asking a live model to "hold that pose for me."
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Why are artists told they can't use black?
Because for some reason student artists are told they should not use black, they often end up using too few darks, and their paintings lack strong contrast or what is sometimes called "eye pop." The no black rule may come from the theory that color mixes are interesting while black is just another pigment. After years of following the "no black rule", I now use Winsor Newton's Sepia for a warm black and sometimes make a cool black by adding a Paynes Grey wash over my black ink.
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Thumbnails can precede sketches that precede paintings.
Sketching probably started as a way to test subjects and layouts for larger works or paintings, so one rarely thinks of making a little trial sketch before a bigger sketch before a bigger painting. I very much like the idea of trying little thumbnail sketches before starting larger sketches and often draw a one- or two-inch frame to try a quick tonal arrangement of objects before beginning a sketch.------------------------------------------
Record the date, place, paperstock, and special materials for each sketch.
Because sketching is done at the moment, later it can be difficult to remember all the elements that came together for the sketch to emerge. The notes you take on the edges or on the back of the sketch can be valuable tools when, later, you wish to retry a technique you used in the sketch.
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Sketching is a journey, painting is a destination.
Paintings must turn out right. They get framed and the finished result is what counts. Sketching is about how much you can discover along the way. How it turns out does not matter. The fun part is to look carefully at what we see and evaluate how it would look in a sketch. What new techniques can we try next? How many rules can we break? Contrary to the "warms in the front and cools in back" rule, can we make a picture work with a cold ice blue foreground and a hot red background?------------------------------------------
Don't be afraid to try something new.
If you have an idea for a new sketching technique, try it. And if the sketch doesn't work out, don't throw it away. Date it, note the technique used, toss it in a box, and try another. Remember that you learn from your failures as well as your successes
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Establish a Goal Before You Begin
Because a good sketch is spontaneous, I never spend more than a single session on a sketch, seldom adjusting it later. This makes sketching more like a musical practice session. Before starting, I decide what new technique or criteria I want to work on: color harmony, focal point, mood, perspective, source of light. For instance, I am currently working on composition and hope that establishing the darks first may be helpful. When painting, there are a lot of things to consider, and you have to address them all at once. With sketching, the process and not the result, is what is important. So with each specific sketch, I can concentrate on getting one thing right: warm or cool colors, line quality, scale, soft or crisp edges, foreground vs. background. You know the list.
------------------------------------------Watercolors with ink are easier because darks are established first.
Many artists say that transparent watercolor is more difficult than oil because white and light areas must be reserved during the painting process, while, with opaque oils, highlights can be added as the final touch. Try starting with hot press watercolor paper, a waterproof black ink such as Platinum Carbon or Noodler's Bulletproof, and a waterbrush. Sketch with the ink and, with the brush, pull gray washes of varying densities from the black lines. After the ink and washes have dried, use watercolors to glaze hues over the gray tones. I find this initial placement of darks on my paper makes it much easier to arrange objects and create a balanced composition before adding mid-tones. In the past, teachers used a similar method by having students first sketch with dark charcoal, then spray with fixative, and finally paint with watercolor. New waterproof inks offer an easier technique.------------------------------------------
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