Chapter 1.3 from the Sketchnote Journal »
Start off by training your hand-eye coordination and warming the muscles in your hand. The better each of them are in form, the easier it will be for you to draw. Interesting fact: even the pros do that for about 5 to 10 minutes before they start drawing.
VARieTY CReATeS EXCiTeMeNT
Draw lines from the bottom and the top, from right to left and across the page. Try to draw the lines quickly and without stopping. You drew over the edge? Never mind! The perfect lies in the imperfect. Draw the lines at approximately the same distance from each other, to train both your eye and your muscles.
When you draw rectangles and squares, always start at a different point and also vary their size and design. Draw the shape without lifting the pen from the paper or draw line by line. Go fast and slow.
NOW IT'S YOUR TURN:
It consists of 4 exercises in which you practice the basic shapes (line, square, circle, triangle). Feel free to try different pens or paper!
1. Take a blank sheet of paper, A4 or A5, depending on how much you want to practice.
2. Fill in the sheet with lines. Draw lines from the bottom, top, right to left, and across the page. Try to draw the lines quickly and without stopping. Did you paint over the edge? Doesn't matter! The perfect lies in the imperfect. Draw the lines at roughly the same distance from each other to give your eyes and muscles an additional workout.
3. Take a new piece of paper and fill it with rectangles. With rectangles and squares, always start at a different point and vary the size and shape here. Draw the shape in one piece or paint line by line. Sometimes slow, sometimes fast. The basic shapes may touch and/or overlap.
4. Take a new sheet of paper and fill it in entirely with circles.
By the way: There is no patent recipe for beautiful circles, rectangles, squares, and lines. The more you practice, the better you'll get. You'll surprise yourself with your progress. Promised!
5. Take a new piece of paper and fill it with rectangles.
The variation with the 4 individual leaves is not exciting enough? Just try a doodle like this one!
Do you want more? You can find these and other tips, tricks, instructions, and space to practice in our Sketchnote Journal, which we published together with Leuchtturm1917!
