• This topic has 62 replies, 44 voices, and was last updated 16 years, 7 months ago by rosemarie23.

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  • August 13, 2003 at 1:12 pm #983490

    I was wondering about what everyone uses to sketch with…..graphite, charcoal, ink……

    August 13, 2003 at 1:40 pm #1013806

    For my classical studies I am using a technique called "mass-drawing". This technique requires the use of charcoal and chalk on medium toned paper. I have used this method exclusively for my finished pieces…so I voted charcoal for me!

    Howard Roark laughed.
    Vincent -[latin]- Conqueror
    Dy`nam´ic - expressing action rather than a state of being.

    August 13, 2003 at 2:16 pm #1013808

    August 13, 2003 at 2:25 pm #1013809

    This is going to sound all "newbie," but….

    I'm using charcoal and man am I having a time with it. I really like strong lines and frequently doodle with ink, so I have been sketching with charcoal. Seems like the wrong medium for someone who likes detail, though.

    Maybe I need to work bigger to get what I want out of the ol' charred stick?

    Is it a matter of sharpening more, or is it a limit of the medium?

    August 13, 2003 at 2:50 pm #1013786

    all my sketches are now digital… pencil when my back hurts and i have to lie down and doodle… possum, may i suggest you mix media, and try soft charcoal, or some conte crayon… you might like the effects… also worth investing in a china marker or grease pencil, the kind that calls for the paper to be pulled to get more of the lead… i use a scratchboard to sharpen that…

    Bobby

    ...sometimes the Hamster's just gotta dance baby...

    August 13, 2003 at 3:07 pm #1013823

    for my quick sketches i use graphite and sometimes ink (i love bic pens). i like using charcoal for drawing but for sketches it gets too messy for me.

    August 13, 2003 at 3:44 pm #1013805

    i Use Charcoal, Pen and Ink, Brush and Ink, Pastel, an 8B Pencil, 0.5 pencil, also do digital sketches – fffun ! – like sketching !

    Maysun:)

    Ring the bells that still can ring
    Forget your perfect offering
    There is a crack in everything
    That's how the light gets in.

    - Leonard Cohen

    http://octobervine.blogspot.com

    August 13, 2003 at 4:16 pm #1013793

    I sketch with pencil. My finish work is in Pen&ink. I haven't tried Charcoal yet.

    Scott

    Scott

    August 13, 2003 at 4:18 pm #1013807

    Hey possum.

    Paper and sharpening have a lot to do with it. I dont use any blenders…instead I use a rough tooth paper that holds a lot of pigment. It allows me to slowly build up tone…I dont have to commit to anything early on. This also allows me to make educated observations from my set-up…its a slow process for me but I like it a lot.

    Take a look at some of my work…I LOVE DETAILS! I have found that working bigger does help because you have more area to draft over…making mistakes a little less noticable. Tight, small drawings…heck you need a needle to draw the details. Try working larger…its all good being a newbie! So am I.

    Howard Roark laughed.
    Vincent -[latin]- Conqueror
    Dy`nam´ic - expressing action rather than a state of being.

    August 13, 2003 at 4:59 pm #1013804

    For sketching in a book, I use a Pelikan. As a percursor to a painting, I use vine charcoal on canvas.

    I use compressed charcoal for completed works that I don't do preliminary sketching for. If I then later do a painting based on that drawing, I'll put vine charcoal on the canvas to get the layout right so I still wouldn't consider the compressed charcoal piece to be a sketch or even really a preliminary drawing.

    I've never understood how people can paint over a perfectly good charcoal drawing. For one, it's smudges something fierce.

    As for pencils… I only use those for sketching watercolour and ink drawings.

    Hmm… maybe my answer doesn't help, but in short – I use them all, depending on what the ultimate goal is.

    August 13, 2003 at 6:39 pm #1013802

    I mostly use graphite, and just lately I've been dabbling in pastel, but I LOVE charcoal. It was the first medium I ever used when I started drawing (well, when I started 'again' as an adult… you guys know what I mean, right? :D ) and I'm totally in love with it. I find it's better for large scale drawings though (for me, anyhoo).

    Cass.

    August 13, 2003 at 8:32 pm #1013799

    I use Conte black, white, sepia, and sanguine pencils on Mi-Teintes paper. I think it's the best medium overall for drawing.

    August 13, 2003 at 9:33 pm #1013796

    I use graphite and micron pen, but I prefer color pencil.

    Stoy Jones

    August 14, 2003 at 8:30 am #1013810

    Let's keep this poll going….anyone else have a vote or a medium to share?

    August 14, 2003 at 1:25 pm #1013811

    Used a 3B graphite pencil today at lunch. Seemed to be a nice alternative to charcoal and way better than a hard pencil….

    I got the softness I was looking for and it held it's sharpness for a while. Might go with a little harder graphite tomorrow and work real big for a few days. I do like that mechanical pencils "stay" sharp….but they're just too hard.

    I sat outside the post office today. Man, do people look at their feet alot when they're leaving that place. I think I'm going to start a new thread on where to go to find people sitting still.

    Thanks, again, for the feedback.

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