Materials Needed

Prior to getting into the exercises within this book, you will need to obtain drawing materials. Below is a list of the minimal materials needed to complete the exercises. It contains a brief description of what to look for when obtaining the materials. A detailed explanation of additional drawing materials is listed within the “Mediums and Supports” chapter, however, we will only use a few of them in this introduction to drawing. Gather the materials below before beginning exercise 1.1.

1. Large drawing pad – 18 inches x 24 inches  with 20 – 50 pages
   • not newsprint
   • size may vary slightly, give or take an inch in either dimension
   • if it says drawing pad or sketch pad, it will likely work
   • drawing paper is usually around 80lbs. and sketching paper is usually around 60lbs.. The higher weight designation means the heavier each sheet will weigh, which translates to thicker paper.
2.  Pencils –
   • one 4B
   • one 4H
   • one HB; also known as #2
   • one solid woodless drawing pencil in any B grade. This is a solid stick of graphite that has no wood wrapped around it.
3. White eraser –
   • any white eraser will do
   • they are usually rectangular
   • pink may work, but is more likely to leave residue
   • watch out for old erasers. Old ones may be too hard and damage the paper.
4. Gray eraser –
   • malleable
5. Stump –
   • size 3 or 4; 1/4 inch or 3/8 inch diameter
6. Pencil sharpener –
   • a basic pencil sharpener will work
   • a sharp knife can work, also, just be careful
7. Viewfinder –
   • window size about 3×4 to 5×7 inches; it doesn’t have to be large
   • A viewfinder can:
     • be purchased, or
     • made yourself, by using one of two possible methods:
       • 1 – use a mat board picture frame that usually comes wrapped in plastic shipping material that you can draw on directly.
       • 2 – create a simple viewfinder out of a transparency sheet taped to a piece of cardboard. The image below is of a 8.5 x 11 inch transparency taped to a piece of cardboard with a 5 x7 inch window cut out of it.                                
8. Fine tip erasable marker
   • this is used to draw on your viewfinder and then wiped off
   • wet or dry erase
   • can be in any color that will show up well
   • not a permanent marker