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TOP 10 Sketching Challenges To Overcome To S e e T h e L i n e s and Become A Super Sketcher Learn exactly what people just like you are struggling with when it comes to sketching and how you can overcome these obstacles with intuitive understanding.

I struggle to finish a sketch because I overthink it, how do I simplify sketching and finish it?

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Commonly we obsessive types can get fixated on one object before moving on to the next fixation. This can cause our sketches to take a long time and end up never finishing them because you used up all your creative juice too early on. Try working through your sketch in “layers of depth”.

In 4-5 passes. Start with a larger scale and work your way to micro scale with each pass through the entire sketch. Do a scanning method working from one side of the page to the other. If you’re right handed, from left to right, and vice-versa.

How do I strengthen my ability to SEE and produce detail?

Sketching detail could be represented in a number of ways. If there are a lot of detailed elements in your scene, you could choose to focus on one part and do it well with finite detail, and the rest would be suggestive/ loose. Consider holding your pen with a different grip in the lesser detailed areas. A loose grip, gracefully laying in your hand - this grip will translate into your sketch as a confident relaxed sketch.

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I am very shy to be watched urban sketching…

I would rather be the one watching

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Being an introverted urban sketcher can have it’s fears with being seen and observed whilst sketching. Here are a few ways to help this: 1. Make a game out of it by assuming an alter ego when sketching, i.e. envision yourself as a superhero sketcher, dress differently, even with a “sketching name”.

2.Situate yourself with your back against a wall so you see who is near/ no one can peek or look from over your shoulder.

3. Wear headphones And lastly, maybe this fear is actually a sign for you that it could be the very thing that you’ll love when you accomplish it.

I get anxious sketching trees and plants, how do I sketch trees not too detailed or too cartoonish?

This is commonly a challenge. We tend to want to sketch every single leaf or even that classic cartoon tree. One suggestion for this is to bring select leaves to focus, defined, then the rest as suggestive. In real life our eyes don’t see every single leaf in its detail all at once, we see by focusing on one thing after the other. There are quite a bit of dark values and shadows in trees/plants, so it’s okay to darken those tones with either a solid brush stroke or pen hatching.

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How do I capture the best light and shadow?

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The best times of day to capture a dramatic shadow is early in the morning and later in the day near sunset hour because this is when the sun is closer to the horizon. This will cast long shadows and interesting details to enhance in your sketch. When finding your scene whether from a photo or on-location it’s important to be aware of where the light source is coming from and that most of the building faces you sketch are in the sunlight.

Sketching most of the building in shade can tend to be a challenge and is considered an expert level representation.

Drawing people is a challenge, how do I overcome this difficulty?

When urban sketching, people are just a figure for scale. They’re suggestive rather than super realistic - but it all depends on the style you’re going for. If you want emphasis on the architecture and scene then it’s okay to let the people in the sketch be back drop drawings. I recommend looking at these examples for people sketches: @jrsketchbook; @marekbad64

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Drawing perspective is a challenge, how do I sketch confidently from any viewing angle?

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There is a simple rule of thumb when it comes to understanding perspective: as long as you apply these principles intuitively you will consistently create eye-catching sketches.

1. Find your eye level on the page.

2. Whatever is above the eye level line is going to be drawn down towards it, think of this bar as a magnet. The higher the view, the sharper the angle the line is drawn DOWN. 3. Now that you know where all lines vanish towards, you know that any line below the eye level magnet is going to be drawn UP towards it.

4. Rule of thumb: “Whatever is up is down, and whatever is down is up.

I have a hard time fitting my view onto the page, how do I make sure the sketch fits?

First create a grid on your paper with your pencil as a grid square dimension. This will be your ruler and boundary. If you stick to your pencil sighting tool as a guide throughout the first step of capturing your scene you will be set for the rest of the sketch. For example, a door can be half a pencil height (grid) tall, and from there on forth you can connect proportions like a puzzle.

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I struggle with being present and rush myself through the process while urban sketching...

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First, you have the right intention knowing that sketching is about living in the moment. This can be difficult when we don’t have it as a natural habit, being pulled left and right by distractions. The best ways to increase your experience of true appreciation, it is suggested to do the following: 1. Upon the arrival of discovering your scene to sketch before doing anything, stop and close your eyes and take three deep breaths. With your eyes continued closed, process in your mind your experience of arriving to where you are now. How did you get there? By car, train, or walking?

How did that feel? Did you graze your fingers along the brick wall or feel the leaves of that tree as you passed by? What is the scent in the air? The feeling of the sunlight on your neck? This is a mini meditation to practice appreciation of the moment and to truly get you to imbue your sense of place in your sketch. If you are sketching at home from a photo reference you could use your imagination to visualize - go wild, envision your dream reality and open your eyes and experience the sketch you are about to create.

Lack of Confidence & Finding the Time to Sketch Try the “7 minute Super Sketch” exercise. Fast in the moment, capturing the energy of the space and drawn in color pencil so you can’t erase. This sketch is supposed to “fail”. It’s meant for you to get it out of your system and all on the page. That way when you tackle the more polished sketch you’ll have a strong sense of what you are sketching in a mind/body muscle memory kind-of-way. This exercise also can be used to do several times over and over. They will eventually be the sketch you really look forward to doing because there is no pressure at all for it to be a failed one or not. This helps with building confidence and speed!

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