After years of traveling on tours with my history buff husband, I finally discovered it wasn’t so bad. I used to just tag along, hoping for a few quiet moments to rest my weary feet during those many historical tours. I often sat on the bus when the tour director warned us that the trek up the hill to see a historical landmark might be challenging. Now, I actually look forward to these trips as they give me the unique opportunity to sketch scenes I don’t see back at home.
Benefits of Sketching
A sketch is a preliminary drawing, usually intended for a final drawing or painting. This is how artists can record information. Even people naturally gifted in drawing can improve their skills by regularly sketching objects they see every day.
Sketching helps to sharpen observation skills and focus on tiny details of a subject. It also improves a person’s ability to draw freehand.
Sketching Tips
Before you even take your trip, practice sketching houses, churches and other buildings in your neighborhood. First, find a subject to sketch such as a house across the street. After studying it, ask yourself questions. What area of the subject is the brightest? Note any sunlit areas or shadows, determining the light source. Count the windows, porch steps and other items.
Then, take a pencil and draw the shapes that you see. This doesn’t have to be an exact copy of the building, although you can probably capture the subject’s essence. Next, use a straight-edge to straighten lines and make corrections. If there are some imperfections, realize that imperfections depict character if your house is old.
Materials for Ink Sketching
- Pencils – Either graphic or mechanical pens will work. Simple student pencil pouches are ideal for housing pens, pencils, erasers and other small items. If you have more than one pouch, metal rings can help keep the pouches together.
- Pens – Just about any type of pen can be used for sketching. My favorite pens for sketching are the Micron felt-tipped pens. For the final drawing, c pens work well. If you plan to apply watercolors, be sure your pens are waterproof.
- Pocket sketch pads – small sketch pads, only 3.5” by 5”, are compact and can fit inside a school pouch. Ensure the paper can hold ink so it doesn’t spread.
- Colored pencils or watercolors – Use a small watercolor palette or just a few Verithin colored pencils, which are good for sketches and can easily fit into a pencil pouch. Include a paper towel for watercolors, along with a few watercolor brushes. For water, use a water bottle that you'd use, anyway, for sipping water on a tour.
Ink Sketching Tips
Begin by making a simple pencil drawing, depicting basic shapes. Draw your penciled sketch very lightly because it may be erased. Ensure the sketch is pleasing to the eye, appears somewhat accurate and isn’t too confused or cluttered.
Next, make corrections, but don’t be too fussy as sketches aren’t indented to be architectural renderings. Use rulers to correct drooping lines, although when you go over your pencil sketch with pen and ink, do so freehand.
Finally, start shading your initial sketch. Do foreground items first because it's easier to shade around them than getting rid of background lines. Be sure to vary the width of your lines and types of strokes used to make your drawing more interesting.
Sketching at the Airport and During the Flight
Sketching at the airport not only gives you practice in drawing people, but also helps wile away the time while waiting for a flight. People from all walks of life, ranging from babies to seniors, are at airports.
The first step when sketching people, or any other subject, is to study the basic shapes of your subject’s body parts. Is the face round, square or oval? What about posture? Look for any distinguishing characteristics that would set your subject off from other people.
Once aboard your flight, continue to make quick sketches. Sketching on an airplane is an excellent way to combat boredom, especially during those long flights overseas.
Don’t be afraid to let other see you draw. You just may discover there are other artists on the tour who’ve thought of sketching but were too shy to do it. What’s more, you can feel proud of your skills, besides having some recorded fresh memories from your trip to take home.
Venice Kichura - Venice Kichura is a freelance writer who writes on a variety of subjects. She holds a special passion for topics relating to art and ...
