“Evening Sketch” Cedar Park, 2018
こんばんは。How’s it going?
This evening I worked on this sketch, which was based on a photo I found on Flickr. The first sketch I did was not very good, so I got a little bit discouraged and went straight into Illustrator to trace over the photo. I know that eventually, this will become a digital drawing, so I thought “Why not cheat a bit and get the proportions perfect?” But, the lines I drew looked even worse than the pencil sketch! 😭
So I went back to my original sketch and used my favorite tool, the mighty eraser. 😄 After drawing, erasing, drawing, erasing, etc. I finally finished with what you see in the photo above. I know it will need more adjustment in Illustrator, but I’m pleased that I have a good base to work with.
A came up with a couple of takeaways from this simple experience.
First, when I get stuck on a sketch, I should not be afraid to erase and redo certain parts. In my mind, it has always seemed like a waste in that I spent effort on the first attempt, and that erasing it would remove it forever. But if I think objectively, then why shouldn’t I erase/delete the parts that are not good enough? It’s all part of the longer process to get to a better place. I should really keep that in mind. The eraser is my friend!
I also learned that the pencil sketch is necessary for any new project of mine. It’s fast, and feedback is immediate. The “shortcut” straight to digital is not a shortcut at all (for me at least). It was good to give it a try, though, and see how awful it turned out for me. I know other people can go straight to the computer, but it’s not something I can do. Good to know!
Finally, the experience reinforced the idea that it’s necessary to step back from a sketch, take a little breather, and then continue with some fresh eyes. And also, looking at the same sketch from a different perspective, angle, or even distance/size can help pinpoint problem areas. For instance, I took a photo of the sketch when I thought it was done, but then looking on the small camera display, it didn’t look right. So I worked on it some more until it was good enough for this step in the process.
Anyways, I am planning to work on this some more on the computer this weekend, but I think I have a good basis to start!
To see all the sketches I’ve been working on, you can check out the Flickr album <a href=”https://www.flickr.com/photos/barron/albums/72157684772726464″ target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>”My Sketching Journey”</a>, or my Instagram account <a href=”https://www.instagram.com/barron.sketches/” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>barron.sketches</a> which I created just for posting sketches, watercolors, and stationery items.
I hope you had a nice Friday!
またね～
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