Learn How to Draw It doesn't require much to find out if you enjoy drawing

July 21, 2025

Explore how to draw with our step by step guide whether you are a total beginner or confident sketcher.

Here’s a step-by-step plan to teach you how to draw—from total beginner to confident sketcher.

Step 1: Learn to See (Not Just Look)

Drawing is 90% observation, 10% pencil movement. Before anything else:

🔹 Exercise: Contour Drawing

• Pick an object (a mug, your hand, a shoe).

• Without lifting your pencil, draw its outline in one continuous line.

• Focus on looking at the object, not your paper.

• This trains your brain to see shapes, not symbols.

Step 2: Master Basic Shapes

Everything you’ll ever draw is built from these:
Circle, Square, Triangle, Cylinder, Cone, Sphere, Cube

🔹 Exercise: Shape Practice

• Draw 10 of each shape every day.

• Vary the size and angle.

• Practice turning circles into spheres (add shadows).

Why? A human head = sphere. Arm = cylinders. House = cubes. You’re building the toolbox.

Step 3: Understand Light and Shadow

Shading adds volume. No more flat doodles.

🔹 Exercise: Shading a Sphere

• Draw a circle.

• Pick a “light source” (top-left corner, for example).

• Shade the side opposite the light, leave a highlight, and add a cast shadow.

 Focus on smooth gradients. Use your pencil lightly and build up tone slowly.

Step 4: Draw From Life

Photos are fine, but real-world drawing trains your eyes and hands better.

🔹 Exercise: Still Life Sketches

• Set up 3 objects on a table (apple, book, bottle).

• Spend 10 minutes sketching them. Don’t erase—just keep going.

Tips:

• Start with big shapes.

• Then outline.

• Then details and shading.

Step 5: Practice Gesture Drawing (For People & Movement)

Gesture = the action, the flow, the energy.

🔹 Exercise: Quick Sketches

• Look up figure drawing references (e.g., “quickposes” website).

• Sketch a figure in 30–60 seconds. Use loose lines.

• Don’t aim for perfection—just capture the movement.

This helps your drawings feel alive, not stiff.

 Tools You Need (Simple & Cheap)

• HB, 2B, and 4B pencils

• Kneaded eraser

• Optional: Blending stump or tissue for shading

• Sketchbook (or printer paper!)

In our Books section we have some recommendations for Improving Your Drawing

Worth also visiting Line of Action to improve your technique.