Pencil Sketch of a Shed

 

For this week’s blog I wanted to do a quick drawing demonstration. My subject is a reference photo of the shed in my backyard. My goal is not to create an exact copy of the photo but to use the reference to get the basic shape of the tree and the shed. For the drawing I will be using H, 2B and 3B pencils and a kneadable eraser.

Pencil outline

I start by creating a simple outline of the shed and the tree using the H  pencil drawing very light. This way if I need to erase something, I can without damaging the surface of the paper. Once I am happy with the basic outline, still using the H pencil, I move on to the tree. I start with the tree because it is on the left side of the drawing and I am right-handed. This is important so I am not constantly dragging my hand across and smearing areas that I have already finished.  

Close up of Tree

For the tree, I simplify the foliage by using what I like to call a scribbling technique to build the values. What this means is I am taking the pencil and moving it in tight random loops and swirls while I vary the pressure. I use the H, 2B and 3B pencils to go between the light and shadows of the tree. It may be a little difficult to see in the image, but the goal is to get a texture that varies between light and dark to give the impression of leaves. This works well for foliage that is in the middle distance of a drawing. A tree in the foreground would require more detail and one further in the background would need less detail.

Pencil Drawing Shed

For the shed, I am going to change the horizontal vinyl siding to look like old wood boards running vertically. To me this give the drawing more interest and I like drawing old wood textures. That is the freedom of art, you can change anything you want. I start the shed by taking a 3B lead and blocking in the dark values on the left side under the leaves of the tree. Once I have the darkest values in, I take a kneadable eraser and lift some of the graphite back up. To do this I just tap the eraser to the paper and do not rub. The kneadable eraser will only pick up some of the graphite and what is left will have a grainy appearance. This works well for old wood textures. Then I go back and add some darker lines to define the separate boards.

Shading shed with 3B pencil 

Then I move to the front of the shed and do the same thing using a 2B Pencil and lighter pressure. Again, I will use the kneadable eraser to lift some of the graphite to get the wood texture. For the door and under the eaves of the shed I use the 3B pencil and press harder to get the darker value.  Once the shed is complete, I finish the drawing by adding more grass by using a short up and down pencil stroke varying pressure. Also, I add a couple of bushes using the same scribbling technique I used for the tree foliage. Finally, I go back over the edges of the drawing with a kneadable eraser to remove any smudges from my hand laying on the drawing and the drawing is finished. Total time for this sketch was about 45 minutes from start to finish.

At this time, I want to point something out. When I am working on a more detailed drawing, I will use a paper towel or another piece of paper to rest my hand on. Your hands have natural oils on them even when clean. These oils can be transferred to the paper and once that happens any graphite that gets mixed with the oil is very difficult to remove and can ruin the look of the drawing. That is why I never recommend using your finger by itself as a blending instrument.

Pencil Drawing of Shed Finished

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this quick sketch. I would love to hear from you, so please leave a comment.