The Complete Beginner's Guide to Drawing Animals

More than 200 drawing techniques, tips & lessons for rendering lifelike animals in graphite and colored pencil

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• Publisher: Walter Foster Publishing
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN: 9781600581304, 9781633221925
• eBook ISBN: 9781633224032
• Topic: Art
• Subtopic: Art General

With helpful tips and easy to follow step-by-step lessons, The Complete Beginner's Guide to Drawing Animals is the perfect resource for artists looking to hone their drawing style and technique.

The Complete Beginner's Guide to Drawing Animals starts with a thorough introduction to the essential tools and materials artists need to get started, including different types of pencils, sketchbooks, papers, erasers, and more. This helpful resource features dozens of comprehensive drawing lessons designed to teach aspiring artists how to draw a variety of animals, from lifelike pet portraits to zoo and safari animals. Artists will discover the fundamentals of drawing and techniques for rendering realistic animal textures, such as fur, feathers, whiskers, manes, and hair; creating volume; shading; developing a composition; and mastering perspective, all with the goal of drawing dozens of lifelike animals in graphite and colored pencil.

OBSERVING & DRAWING ANIMALS

TOOLS & MATERIALS

Drawing is not only fun, it also is an important art form in itself. Even when you write or print your name, you are actually drawing! If you organize the lines, you can make shapes; and when you carry that a bit further and add dark and light shading, your drawings begin to take on a three-dimensional form and look more realistic. One of the great things about drawing is that you can do it anywhere, and the materials are very inexpensive. You do get what you pay for, though, so purchase the best you can afford at the time, and upgrade your supplies whenever possible. Although anything that will make a mark can be used for some type of drawing, you’ll want to make certain your magnificent efforts will last and not fade over time. Here are some materials that will get you off to a good start.

Work Station It is a good idea to set up a work area that has good lighting and enough room for you to work and lay out your tools. Of course, an entire room with track lighting, easel, and drawing table is ideal. But all you really need is a place by a window for natural lighting. When drawing at night, you can use a soft white light bulb and a cool white fluorescent light so that you have both warm (yellowish) and cool (bluish) light.

Sketch Pads Conveniently bound drawing pads come in a wide variety of sizes, textures, weights, and bindings. They are particularly handy for making quick sketches and when drawing outdoors. You can use a large sketchbook in the studio for laying out a painting, or take a small one with you for recording quick impressions when you travel. Smooth- to medium-grain paper texture (which is called the “tooth”) often is an ideal choice.

Charcoal Papers Charcoal paper and tablets also are available in a variety of textures. Some of the surface finishes are quite pronounced, and you can use them to enhance the texture in your drawings. These papers also come in a variety of colors, which can add depth and visual interest to your drawings.

Drawing Papers For finished works of art, using single sheets of drawing paper is best. They are available in a range of surface textures: smooth grain (plate and hot pressed), medium grain (cold pressed), and rough to very rough. The cold-pressed surface is the most versatile. It is of medium texture but it’s not totally smooth, so it makes a good surface for a variety of different drawing techniques.

GATHERING THE BASICS

One of the nicest things about drawing with pencil, charcoal or black wash is the fact that the materials are simple and very portable so they can be taken with you in the field. They ar...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Contents
• Observing & Drawing Animals
• Learning to See
• Animals of the World
• Wild Animals
• Pets
• Dogs
• Cats
• Horses
• Animal Portraits
• Cartoon Animals
• Drawing Animals In Colored Pencil
• Credits
• Copyright