PART 1

Materials and Techniques

In this section I will introduce you to the art supplies you'll need — including some of my favorites — and explain how to use them. You don't need to rush out and buy everything at once. Try a few different materials at a time to see what's most comfortable for you. I do recommend getting the best quality supplies you can afford, so that you are not struggling with inferior products in addition to your own inexperience. Feel free to play, experiment and become familiar with different mediums before you try an elaborate drawing. The more comfortable you are with your supplies, the more successful your drawings will be.

Basic Supplies

One of the great things about drawing is that you can create wonderful pieces of art with few supplies and at minimal cost. Here is a selection of my favorite drawing tools. Try a variety of materials and brands to see what works best for you.

You can do most of the demos in this book on mixed-media paper. I love the mixed-media sketchbooks made by Stillman & Birn. Bristol board is also a good choice for the projects in this book.

When you are ready to begin, make sure you are in a comfortable place where there are few distractions, and have your art supplies close at hand.

My Favorite Drawing Tools

1 Blender pen — A blender pen is great for blending wax-based colored pencils. Pictured here is one made by Finesse, but the Derwent brand is also good. These pens contain a colorless solvent.

2 Pastel pencil — Pastel pencils are great for soft effects. You can blend them with cotton swabs and tortillions. They break easily, so be careful when sharpening and try not to drop them.

3 Colored pencil — Colored pencils come in a variety of colors, types and brands. Pictured is a Faber-Castell Polychromos colored pencil, which can be easily blended. I also like colored pencils by Caran d'Ache and Prismacolor. Prismacolor pencils are the softest and most opaque, so they are especially good if you are prone to sore hands, or if you draw on tinted paper.

4 Watercolor pencil — These are water-soluble and can be smoothed or blended with water. Draw or color as you would normally, then go over the pencil with a damp brush to activate the watercolor effect.

5 Liner pen — Waterproof ink fine-point pens, such as Sakura Micron, are a must-have for outlining your pencil work.

6 Drawing pencil — Keep a selection of graphite drawing pencils from 4B to 2H. The letter indicates whether the lead is soft (B) or hard (H), and the number indicates the level of softness or hardness of the lead. You will also need a pencil sharpener. I prefer handheld sharpeners such as T-Gaal or Faber-Castell. You will get the best results by rotating the sharpener rather than turning the pencil.

Watercolor Brushes

Choose small round brushes for painting with watercolor because they come to a fine point. My favorite is the Silver Brush Ultra-Mini Designer Round brush in sizes 6 and 10.

Erasers

Keep several types of erasers on hand. The kneaded eraser can be molded into a point to lift out highlights. When it's dirty, simply knead it until it's clean again. Click erasers work much like mechanical pencils. You may also want a large pink or white eraser for large areas.

Set of Pan Watercolors

I love using watercolor pan sets because they are tidy and portable. I refill the pans from tubes when the paint level gets low. My favorite is this one from Holbein. I have customized it by adding more pans to the original set. The Winsor & Newton Cotman set is a nice, compact set at a lower price. The pans are replaceable and refillable, a great choice for beginners and those on a budget. When using pan colors, I like to spritz them with a little water to moisten them before I begin painting.

Titanium White Watercolor Tube

I like to keep a tube of Titanium White watercolor on hand for adding bright, clear highlights. This can be especially effective for an animal's eyes. Make sure it is Titanium White, which is opaque, rather than Zinc White, which is more transparent.

Color Chart

A color mixing chart can be a useful reference tool for creating your palette of colors for blends of watercolor paints or watercolor pencils. You don't need to buy a lot of colors to create a large variety of hues. This is my minimum color palette of twelve watercolors. You can add or substitute your favorites, of course. For colored pencils, I like to make a basic chart just showing the colors without layering them. With colored pencils, the color indicated on the barrel of the pencil often differs from what it looks like on paper, so it is useful to have a chart for reference.

Color Temperature

An important thing to keep in mind when planning your composition is color temperature. Colors can be warm, cool or neutral.

Warm Colors

Warm tones such as red, yellow and orange convey bright emotions, passionate feelings and excitement.

Cool Colors

Cool tones such as blue, green and some purples have a gentle, calming effect.

Neutral Colors

To create neutral colors, try mixing together two complementary colors such as blue and orange or purple and yellow. Using neutrals gives your paintings balance. If you used only pure, saturated colors, your eye wouldn't know where to rest. Neutrals also provide a sense of depth.

Creating Contrast

I like to contrast color temperature to help draw attention to an animal in my paintings. For example, the warm oranges and browns of the American robin help it stand out against the cooler colors of the periwinkle flowers.

Drawing Techniques

Some techniques for drawing are consistent no matter what medium you choose. In this book we will tackle a variety of methods. Take some time to experiment with your supplies so they feel familiar to you. I keep a sketchbook and I try to draw or paint in it every day. Seeing the book fill up gives me a feeling of satisfaction. I love flipping through the pages of a finished sketchbook. Practice really does make perfect, and you will see improvement from the first page to the last.

Pencil Lines

Pencils vary in softness. You can vary the weight and darkness of your lines according to the hardness of the pencil you choose, as well as its sharpness. The top line here is drawn with a sharp 4H pencil. It is light and fine. The bottom line is drawn with a blunt 4B pencil. Colored pencils vary in softness according to brand. Some, like Prismacolor Premier, are very soft, while others, like Marco Raffine, are quite hard. The...