AboutElgin Bolling Expertise Can answer questions about basic sketching and drawing, caricature drawing, and cartoon character creation and techniques. I cannot answer questions concerning 3D character creation and modeling.
Experience Professional cartoonist, and caricature artist since 1990.
Organizations Member of the National Caricaturist Network
I've been into art for quite a while, and I absolutely love drawing. I'm 19 but i've never studied art or taken lessons. My problem is shading. I can draw okay, but when it comes to shading , I can't shade straight , its always messy, darker in some area's & lighter in some , even when its all supposed to be one tone.
Maybe it's because I hold the pencil wrong , but I can't do it any other way...
I would love any help or suggestions
You're experiencing a typical beginners mistake. Shading "everything" hoping it will turn out right and making a mess in the process. Your basic problem is OBSERVATION and TOO MUCH THINKING. drawing is challenging, but not impossible, it just takes a little more patience. Without developing this, you will never reach your full potential and will only become another frustrated artist that "used to draw, but wasnt very good". My advice is to RELAX and LOOK . part of the problem is that you are drawing what you THINK you see and not what is THERE. Do an experiment. take a simple shape like a ball. Put the ball on the table , and get yoursilf a flashlight. Shine it on the ball on the right side, left side and on top. Take time to LOOK at where the light source is and how much brighter the color of the ball is that is CLOSER to the light as opposed to being further away. Once you've made your overservation practice drawing that. Cover the entire ball lightly with a gray tone and gradually build up. It helps to use a blending stomp for subtle transitions. Pay attention to the SHAPE of the ball follow the contour of it. ( do the same expercise with other shapes. like rectangles squares and cylindars.)
Dont be in such a rush to get the drawing done. Stay with the process itself and remember this is PRACTICE. EVERY drawing you make doesnt and should not "have to be" a drawing you want to sell or display. I hate to say it but the only secret is practice, and with a lot of it you will get this. In your daily life, take careful NOTE of HOW LIGHT FALLS ON AN OBJECT whether it is a car, a building a kitchen counter, stairs, or a box of cereal. After a while of observation, you will get a feel for what looks correct. This type of practice is very valuable and you must study it well. I have included some of my pencil drawings of people as an example of being subtle in shading and following contour.
I hope that Ive answered your question. If not, ask again and I will see if I can do better.
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