How to draw with david nestler

1 How to Draw with Dave Nestler: Lesson Tweet Ever since I joined the tattoo convention circuit nearly three years ago, I¶ve made plenty of observations; none more obvious than the number of tattooists who are equally skilled in the area of fine arts Weekend after weekend, from city to city, I listen to tattoo artists ask me every question you can think of about drawing and painting But the common thread throughout all these inquiries is one thingȸthe desire to improve their skills The folks here at Skin&Ink have given me the opportunity to just that, a month-to-month column that addresses these inquiries one at a time In future issues, I¶ll be touching base on everything from materials to drawing techniques, all in the desire to assist you in improving your skills At least, those are my intentions Quite frankly, I can¶t teach anyone how to draw (I believe that is something that is inherently born to us), but whatever skills a person possesses can be directed, enhanced and steered towards the ultimate destination of becoming a better artist That being said, I suck at golf The reason is simple: I¶ve been so busy that I hardly ever get to play anymore This has been my biggest observation since arriving on the convention scene Not the fact that I can¶t control my slice, but the fact that it¶s hard to get better at anything when you only it twice a year It¶s a repeating story: ³I spend sixty hours a week in the tattoo studio and two or three hours here and there on my drawing and painting,´ Well, there you have it Practice, practice, practice I¶d love to have a better short iron game, but I¶ve got to make a living You¶d be amazed what you can accomplish in a few short hours, given the right instruction My intentions are to help you make better use of time All right, enough introductions Let¶s get started Your going to need pencil and paper, which most of you already have Know that the materials I choose to use are my personal preference, but there is a method to my madness, which I¶ll explain in a second Paper: Choose a big brand name like Grumbacher, Strathmore or Caslon A brand that will not be going out of business anytime soon Find a paper you like and STICK WITH IT Not all sketch papers are the same Different surfaces, different reactions to carious media, etc Stay with one paper and get comfortable with it When you are trying to further the development of your technique, the last thing you need is for your surface to constantly change The same thing applies to your pencil I prefer a ³lead holder,´ which is not to be confused with a mechanical pencil A lead holder is exactly that, a stationary barrel that allows varying degrees of lead sticks to be inserted and released with pushbutton advance These pencils incorporate the same 2mm lead that is found in most standard drawing pencils, as opposed to the small 03mm ȸ.09mm leads found in mechanical pencils I prefer H and 2H leads All can be found under the Sanford brand name A ³lead pointer´ is also needed for sharpening purposes My reasons for using this specific tool are the same as my papers: as you use and continually sharpen a regular drawing pencil, the size decreases As the size decreases, so does the weight and the balance These two factors will always remain the same in a lead holder Again, the comfort factor comes into play with a tool that remains constant I¶ve been using the exact same materials for my drawing and painting for over twenty-five years, so when I sit down to start a project, there is no mystery as to my tools and medium I¶ve become so comfortable with them that I can go right to my project without worry, allowing me to concentrate on my technique and not having to guess how it will react These little tips may seem a bit frivolous, but remember, familiarity breeds consistency I don¶t have to tell you what it¶s like to pick up a brand new tattoo machine Different weight, different balance, etc Taking the time to learn a new tool takes away from the time spent on technique You will also need tracing paper, and another great tool to have is a graphite brush, which eliminates you from having to dust off the lead particles from your sketch with your hands and smudging your work This should get us started Next up: choosing a proper photo reference, tracing versus free-hand (and it¶s benefits) and different pencil techniques Click to Lesson Remember, keep your pencils sharp and your paper dry ȸDave How to Draw with Dave Nestler: Lesson First, we need a subject to draw And we need a photo reference from which to draw Remember that all of my tips and techniques have a method and purpose to them It¶s that whole ³sum of the parts´ thing, and photo reference is just one of the parts When choosing a reference photo, find the highest quality availableȸmagazines, books, etc Stay away from low-res images downloaded from the Internet There¶s nothing worse than trying to figure out ³what¶s what´ from a small, fuzzy, pixilated image A good, clear, crisp photo eliminates the uncertainty Remember, you can only draw what you can see Now for our subject matter Whether it¶s a portrait or a ful-body shot, choose a photo with good contrast Lots of lights and darks to work with Also choose a photo with varying elements What I mean by this is, when you are still developing your technique STAY AWAY FROM NUDES There¶s nothing worse than trying to fill a large square area of space Choose a photo that breaks up space with clothing, shadows and other elements The next step is to get the image onto our drawing surface And here is where we delve into a touchy and time-honored argument: tracing versus freehand Is tracing cheating? Is freehand more artistic? I¶m here to tell you that there are benefits to both As a commercial illustration student, I was steered away from freehanding everything and was instructed to incorporate tracing into my process for two key reasons: time and recognition As I was developing my talents in the entertainment industry as a movie-poster and magazinecover artist, there were two factors that were sought after in an artist: The ability to capture likenesses and to meet deadlines Tracing assured that both criteria were met One of my biggest influences as an art student was celebrated movie poster and cover artist Richard Amsel From the original Raiders of the Lost Ark movie poster to dozens of covers for TV Guide, Richard had an uncanny ability to capture a person¶s likeness As an art student, I had the pleasure of meeting Richard at a Society of Illustrators show in New York and talked to him Not only was he eager to talk about his process, but he told me something I will never forget When I asked him about the subject of tracing, he said, ³No one will remember me for the pencil line that goes on the board They¶ll remember me for the paint that goes on top.´ That said, there are many benefits to tracing I¶ll bet that there are plenty of tattoo artists out there that can freehand a barbed-wire armband like nobody¶s business Why? Because they¶ve done it so many times Anatomy is no different You trace something enough times, you start to remember and retain elements of anatomy that stick with you Now you have choices to get your image on your drawing surface, either freehand or create a tracing by rubbing graphite on the back and tracing it onto your surface the old-school way But whatever way your choose, put the entire line image on your surface first Here¶s a great tip If you are still uncomfortable with the idea of tracing and would rather freehand but you are still not getting the anatomical image correctly on your surface, simply create a tracing first Then use that tracing as your reference and freehand that onto your surface When you use something you¶ve already drawn as your reference, that image is easier to follow, because you¶ve already drawn it Your brain remembers Blick Art Materials Before we talk about where to start, let¶s look at techniques Sketching or shading, both are equally good, but with completely different results Shading is great for pencil and charcoal nudes Very soft, very fine art But for me, I like to use the tip of my pencil as opposed to the side of it To achieve a level of sharp realism, while still retaining a great sense of style, nothing beats cross-hatching Cross hatching is a buildup of individual line strokes with different weight and density in a crisscross pattern that allows for the formation of shape and tone This technique allows you to achieve all levels of light and dark, soft and sharp, all using the same pencil lead And we¶ll follow this technique from start to finish as it applies from the beginning, to the completion of our first sketch Click to Lesson Next Lesson: The eyes are the window to the soul, and a great place to start Remember, keep your pencils sharp and your paper dry ȸDave WCItsagas@aol.com Lesson Tweet Enough talking; let¶s get ready to draw something But first, let¶s talk a little more about the lines we draw when working on a sketch (See« there¶s always more talking.) A line is not just a line, although in its simplest form it can be A line can take on character, define shape, even draw attention to certain areas of your sketch And all this is done by varying the ³weight´ of your line Let¶s look at a simple form such as a circle In Figure A the circle is one complete single weight line Okay, it¶s a circleȸpretty boring But take that same line and make it heavier on one side and lighter on the other and that same single line now takes on much more character, as in Figure B Figure A Figure B Figure C Figure D Figure E Now let¶s look at a couple of examples of how this applies to a finished sketch Here¶s the beautiful Jess in Figure C I¶ve noted four points of interest in this sketch As simple as some of these points are, it¶s the accumulation of all points that adds character to your sketch Take a look at point #1 The outline of the nose starts very dark at the top, becomes thinner and lighter along the bridge and goes back to a darker, thicker line underneath That one stroke of the pencil, with its subtle variations in weight and tone, now desig- nates highlight and shadow all in the same line A heavy dark line running along the bridge of the nose would only call attention to it, and it¶s her eyes and smile that I want to stand out In points #2 through #4, the same technique applies A thick to thin, and back to thick line has now determined where my highlights are along the perimeter of the sketch, all with one simple line Okay, NOW it¶s time to draw something, and the eyes are a great place to start No matter whether it¶s a sketch or a painting, I always start with the eyes, and I work them to completion Working with recognizable models or even portrait work on a girlfriend or family member, the eyes are the key You can mess up the hair, the clothing, even the overall structure of the face can be off, but if the eyes aren¶t correct, it throws off the whole piece That¶s why I like to start there To me, after the eyes are completed and I¶m satisfied with them, the rest is gravy There is no basic blueprint for drawing eyes There are way too many variations from person to person (unless, of course, you are drawing manga figures, where the males, females and even the animals have the same eyes Don¶t get me started here There are books out there on how to draw manga/anime What you need to know? Big eyes, pointy chin, DONE.) Sketch Sets Back to the eyes Although I¶ve told you there is no real basic design for drawing eyes, there is one thing I can tell you As in Figure D, these are not eyes! These are a couple of curved lines joined at the ends with a circle in the middle Not only should you not start your eyes this way, but if you meet a girl in a bar with this eye structure«RUN, because she probably has circles for nostrils and ³Chiclets´ teeth But we¶ll delve into more of what you are not supposed to draw at a later date Now in Figure E, these are the eyes of the girl you want to meet in a bar, or the grocery store, or the probation office You get the idea All right, we¶ve got a photo reference and a place to start Next issue I¶ll show you some tips on the best use of your pencil point (to sharpen or not to 10 sharpen), add some cross-hatching technique, and then we¶ll really get this party started Click to Lesson Remember, keep your pencils sharp and your paper dry ȸDave Lesson Tweet THE FAMOUS NESTLER PENCIL TWIRL For the past three issues, I¶ve offered up several small tips and suggestions Some of you might think of these as very helpful, while others might seem frivolous But it is the culmination of ALL these elements that leads to a more informed and controlled artist 22 Fig.A fig.B fig.C 23 fig.D fig.E ȸDave Next issue: Between a rock and a harder place Contact Dave at davedrawing101@aol.com 24 Lesson Tweet Textures Illustrating different kinds of textures doesn¶t have to be as difficult as it sounds In fact, working in a mixed media is relatively easy with all the tools currently available For example, an airbrush for chrome, sponges and dry brushes for stone and palette knives for different landscape applications But we¶re not working in mixed media, we are working in pencil You didn¶t think I¶d make this easy, did you? Okay, when we¶re talking about texture, where we begin? Do we start with stone? With wood? To be honest, there are too many textures to single out one, and too many varying techniques to apply to each individual texture, so I¶m going to sound like a broken record when I say it still comes down to your photo reference Since we are working in pencil, we need to look at our reference and break the textures down to their simplest forms What makes chrome ³chrome?´ 25 What makes wood ³wood?´ There is usually a single element that will designate the specific texture From there we simply adjust our technique as it applies to that one, single element Let¶s look at Fig 1, latex Like chrome, latex has one characteristic that makes it stand out« it¶s shiny! How we define shiny? By its highlights And how we illustrate shiny? By surrounding those highlights with sharp dark areas that isolate our white areas, making them stand out In other words, we don¶t draw ³shiny,´ we allow the negative space of the white areas to define it for us Now let¶s look at stone There are way too many variations to be able to focus on one certain technique that will allow you to draw stone; however, look at Fig 2, a distressed concrete wall There¶s not much to draw that designates it as concrete, so I steer my focus on the cracks in the wall A couple of simple lines and we now know what we¶re looking at In Fig 3, I wanted a block wall behind my model, Shelli, but I also did not want it to be the main feature of the drawing, so I indicated the block with very little detail Even with the mortar joints falling out as negative space, we still get the impression, with very little effort on our part, that it¶s a block wall Single out the most prominent part of your texture and let it designate itself And finally, for something a little easier« wood Check out Fig This is a no-brainer You could add grain and a couple of knots to a refrigerator door and it would come across as wood You get the point 26 Drawing different types of textures largely depends on your ability to single out the one element that defines that texture, and all you have to is exploit that element in your sketch 27 Next issue: ³It¶s All About the Composition.´ (Apologies to P-Diddy.) ²Dave Next issue: Between a rock and a harder place HOW TO DRAW WITH DAVID NESTLERȸLESSON 10 28 Fig TO BALANCE OR NOT TO BALANCE There¶s a reason I¶m writing a column about art instead of my original career path of architecture and mechanical engineering I was too stupid in MATH! Oh, I know my Gazintas I know a real six-pack has nothing to with your stomach, and 36-24-36 adds up to a lot more than 96 But when it came time to understanding calculus and trigonometry, let¶s just say that I¶d have an easier time deciphering Lil Wayne¶s ³Crunk´ lyrics However, my brief time studying mechanical drawing and pre-engineering did teach me something It taught me balance, and it taught me symmetry And it taught me that these are just fancy words for ³composition,´ which is nothing more than positioning your elements on a page Personally, I like everything centered and balanced Let¶s look at Fig 1, a single subject that is centered, and fills the page nicely Fig has the same figure skewed from center and smaller Now, is there anything wrong with this? Not really, but number is obviously more satisfying to the eye If the background does not play an important part in the scheme of your drawing, why show so much of it? Simply fill your space up with your main element Now, let¶s look at a more extreme view of this same drawing In version 3, I have the same element cut in half to the far right of center In no way is this even close to being balanced But because of the more abstract nature of its placement, it¶s still more pleasing than 2, which just looks wrong Bottom line, there is no single ³right way´ to define composition But there is a ³wrong´ way Now let¶s talk about multiple elements in composition Fig is an example of complete balance and symmetry All four quadrants are equal in position and weight From top to bottom, or from top left to bottom right, this sketch is equal all around But in we have two main elements that are not equal in size, nor are they centered But by adding the circular graphic behind them, it ties the entire sketch together and still gives you the impression that the entire image is centered 29 Fig Fig Composition is not an exact science Because of the way my brain is wired, I like everything to be balanced It isn¶t in my nature to progress with a piece like Fig But that doesn¶t mean there¶s anything wrong with it, or that my way is the best way When people look at one of my drawings or paintings, I want their eye to see the figure, how well it has been rendered, etc What I 30 don¶t want them to is cock their head like a confused puppy, because their eye tells them something is wrong And that usually comes down to design and composition There are a lot of ways to direct someone¶s attention to certain parts of your drawing or painting We¶ll go over some of them next time Fig 31 LESSON 10ʊTO BALANCE OR NOT TO BALANCE There¶s a reason I¶m writing a column about art instead of my original career path of architecture and mechanical engineering I was too stupid in MATH! Oh, I know my Gazintas I know a real six-pack has nothing to with your stomach, and 36-24-36 adds up to a lot more than 96 But when it came time to understanding calculus and trigonometry, let¶s just say that I¶d have an easier time deciphering Lil Wayne¶s ³Crunk´ lyrics However, my brief time studying mechanical drawing and pre-engineering did teach me something It taught me balance, and it taught me symmetry And it taught me that these are just fancy words for ³composition,´ which is nothing more than positioning your elements on a page Personally, I like everything centered and balanced Let¶s look at Fig 1, a single subject that is centered, and fills the page nicely Fig has the same figure skewed from center and smaller Now, is there anything wrong with this? Not really, but number is obviously more satisfying to the eye If the background does not play an important part in the scheme of your drawing, why show so much of it? Simply fill your space up with your main element Now, let¶s look at a more extreme view of this same drawing In version 3, I have the same element cut in half to the far right of center In no way is this even close to being balanced But because of the more abstract nature of its 32 placement, it¶s still more pleasing than 2, which just looks wrong Bottom line, there is no single ³right way´ to define composition But there is a ³wrong´ way «more Fig Next issue: Contrast²it¶s not just a dark/light thing ²Dave Contact Dave at davedrawing101@aol.com Cretacolor Basic Drawing Set Cretacolor Silver Box Graphite Drawing Set Spiral Ankh Tattoo The Egyptian symbol for eternal life, filled with the beauty of interlocking spirals, like the waves in constant motion in the primordial sea from which all life began 33 34 35 36 [...]... where do we begin? Do we start with stone? With wood? To be honest, there are too many textures to single out one, and too many varying techniques to apply to each individual texture, so I¶m going to sound like a broken record when I say it still comes down to your photo reference Since we are working in pencil, we need to look at our reference and break the textures down to their simplest forms What... take a real close look at your photo reference With blondes, there is not enough to draw With black hair, there¶s too much to draw How do we find a common denominator between the two? It¶s called exaggeration, and I¶ll explain this as we go First, we¶re going to have to get away from the cross-hatching technique that I¶ve talked about so much in previous issues We have to go more ³directional´ for our... place HOW TO DRAW WITH DAVID NESTLER LESSON 10 28 Fig 1 TO BALANCE OR NOT TO BALANCE There¶s a reason I¶m writing a column about art instead of my original career path of architecture and mechanical engineering I was too stupid in MATH! Oh, I know my Gazintas I know a real six-pack has nothing to do with your stomach, and 36-24-36 adds up to a lot more than 96 But when it came time to understanding... don¶t draw ³shiny,´ we allow the negative space of the white areas to define it for us Now let¶s look at stone There are way too many variations to be able to focus on one certain technique that will allow you to draw stone; however, look at Fig 2, a distressed concrete wall There¶s not much to draw that designates it as concrete, so I steer my focus on the cracks in the wall A couple of simple lines... is it necessary to draw each one? No But with a simple line or two and some subtle grays in the right place, we can give her a winning smile without keying in on each incisor, molar and bicuspid 17 Remember, it¶s just as effective to indicate a shape with tone and hard lines as to outline everything Keep your outlines and hard edges to a minimum, in the beginning If it¶s not enough to define a shape,... likeness and an anatomy for me to follow One more important tip before we get started: Let¶s talk about your pencil as it applies to the beginning of a sketch When we first sharpen our pencil, it provides us with the sharpest point and the darkest tone possible So, in the beginning (Fig C), I start with my sharpest, darkest lines and solid areas of dark tone Remember, as I con- 12 tinue to draw, that point... ³painting´) a drawing You wouldn¶t use a dull, soft pencil to work your dark areas or a sharp, fine point to you get the idea Remember, this is about developing your technique, and all these little tips will help in that development Once your technique is solid, it can be applied to all areas of your drawing or painting It¶s not just about how to draw teeth, or noses (although we will touch on those... sketch And all this info applies just as 15 much to tattooing as it does to drawing, because portrait tattoos are an enormous part of a tattoo artist¶s daily workload And this month¶s column, more than the previous ones, offers tips that will help you avoid common mistakes Back in column number two, I had a saying that related to photo reference: ³I can only draw what I can see.´ Well, here¶s another saying:... shadow on the right that defines its shape A hard line traveling from top to bottom would only call attention to an even harder, unnecessary edge This is what I like to call ³indicating a shape.´ Just because there is a hard line in my photo reference indicating the side of the nose doesn¶t mean I have to draw it that way This goes back to the beginning, where I stated, ³Just because you can, doesn¶t mean... knots to a refrigerator door and it would come across as wood You get the point 26 Drawing different types of textures largely depends on your ability to single out the one element that defines that texture, and all you have to do is exploit that element in your sketch 27 Next issue: ³It¶s All About the Composition.´ (Apologies to P-Diddy.) ²Dave Next issue: Between a rock and a harder place HOW TO DRAW