Learn How to Draw - Graphite Pencil and Charcoal Tutorial

This drawing tutorial contains techniques to create realistic looking artwork to provide fellow charcoal and
graphite pencil artists insight into my methods. The first half of the page will explain the pencils and
blending tools I use to render both rough and smooth textures. Once you know how to create realistic
looking textures, you're on you way to creating much more realistic looking artwork. The second half of the
page shows a step by step tutorial of one of my latest drawings so scroll down to see images of the tutorial.
For more instruction, I also offer links on this page for my drawing technique book, pencil drawing
supplies and drawing workshops,

#1 Getting Started

Once you have decided on your subject, you need to decide on the best techniques and materials to use.
There are so many things to consider. Should the background stay white? Should you use a smooth paper or
rough? Should you use graphite, charcoal, or a maybe a combination of both. It's enough to make you take
up sculpting! Don't get discouraged. This tutorial will answer these questions and more.

The first thing you need to do is analyze the textures in all the areas of your subject. Decide which areas
would be considered rough and which are smooth. Notice where contrasting textures and values are
adjacent to each other.

Once you have identified the basic textures and values of your subject, you need to decide on the
appropriate techniques to use in each area.

#2 Using Charcoal and Graphite Pencil (why I use both in each drawing)

The individual granules of charcoal have an irregular shape. When light strikes a drawing containing these
particles, it bounces back in many different directions. That means when it is pushed to its darkest value,
charcoal doesn't have the reflective glare that is common with graphite. Usually the darkest values in
a drawing are shadows, and, if you are trying to render a subject as realistically as possible, the last thing
you want is a shadow that reflects more light than the subject. I use both charcoal and graphite pencil in
different areas of my drawings.

Subjects I typically render with charcoal pencils:

• Wood, Bark, fur, hair, eyelashes, pupil of the eye, dark line between the lips, nostrils, coarse fabrics,
- like denim, leather, cast shadows,

Subjects I typically render with graphite pencils:

• Skin tones, Shading in the white of the eye, Glass, Porcelain, Light values in shiny metal, Smooth
fabrics - like silk, Light shading on paper objects- like playing cards.

My favorite brands of charcoal and graphite, and carbon pencils: (links are below to order the
supplies directly from my web site.)
 • Graphite:
There are many artist grade graphite pencils to choose from these days. A 2B pencil of one brand
may be vastly different than the 2B of another brand. I currently use Kimberly drawing pencils
which are manufactured by the General Pencil Company. These premium graphite drawing pencils
are extra smooth artist quality hex shaped drawing pencils. Available in 20 degrees from 9H to
9xxB. The 9xxB is becoming one of my favorite graphite pencils. It is capable of extremely dark
values with little or no graphite shine.
• Charcoal:
Many people who are used to the feel of graphite effortlessly gliding across their paper find
charcoal too abrasive. Currently I use Primo Euro Blend charcoal pencils manufactured in the USA
by General Pencil Company. These are smoother than other charcoals I have tried. There are three
degrees of hardness ranging from HB (hardest) to 3B (softest). Along with the General's Primos, I
use their regular charcoals. The single most important pencil I use is the General's 2H Extra Hard
Charcoal. This pencil is hard enough to get an needle sharp point, yet since it is charcoal, it is
capable of very dark sharp lines. Obtaining clean sharp edges is very important in my work. All
charcoal smears easily so if you are not familiar with this medium you may consider reading the
chapter entitled Keeping Your Drawing Clean on page 18 of my technique book.
• Carbon Pencils:
Carbon pencils can be used in place of charcoal in areas to separate the subject from the
background. When carbon pencils are used in combination with charcoal and graphite, their
inherent characteristics make them ideal for separating subjects containing similar values.
Generally, I use charcoal for the background and carbon or graphite for the subjects. I currently use
the new General's Primo Elite Grande #5000 and Generals Carbon sketch pencil for this purpose.

#3 Blending

I use various tools to blend with also. Each creates a different texture and spreads each medium differently.
Using the right blending tool can mean the difference between using a few quick swipes to create the exact
look you want, or, re-working an area for hours (or until you rub a hole in the paper) and giving up in
frustration. These are some of my blending tools. They are all included in my Creating Contrast and
Texture Drawing Kit

• Blending Stump: These are tightly wound paper sticks with points on both ends. They are available
in several diameters. Use them to blend large areas of the medium and also to apply the medium
directly to the paper for softer effects.
• Tortillon: These are generally smaller and not wrapped as tightly as blending stumps. They are not
as solid as blending stomps and they create a slightly different texture.
• Felt pad: Purchase 1' x 1' white squares at a craft store. Creates random textural effects for a variety
of natural looking textures.
• Facial Tissue: Good for blurring the edge of shadows and softening unwanted pencil strokes. Paper
towels are another choice if you don't want to lighten the area as much.
• Paper: Blending with paper brings out the texture of the drawing paper. The paper you use to blend
with makes a big difference in the texture created. Try wrapping notebook paper around you finger
to start with. Good for separating two objects that have similar values by using only textures.
• Chamois: To imitate smooth textures like skin tones and reflective surfaces like glass. Also use it
like an eraser to lighten large masses of dark charcoal or graphite. Creates an extremely smooth
texture.
• NOT FINGERS: I know some people don't have a problem with it but it can be a nightmare. I
suggest you even be careful touching important areas of the paper with your bare hands. Your
fingertips can transfer oil to the paper. This oil becomes apparent if it is in light areas of blended
charcoal or graphite. Graphite and charcoal work exactly like finger print dusting powder, leaving
the incriminating imprints of the person responsible for groping your paper. (Probably you, but you
 can yell at the kids if it makes you feel better.) It is impossible to make a smooth, even tone with
charcoal or graphite powder in areas with fingerprints.
• Experiment: Put those creative thinking caps on! You never know when you might come across
something that will produce the perfect texture you are looking for. Try different fabrics - smooth
and rough. Just make sure the materials are clean and the color from dyes won't rub off on your
paper.
• One Last Tip: These are some of the materials and techniques I use. I offer these methods as a
starting point, to help you achieve a style all your own. I believe there are as many techniques on
how to draw as there are people. Never let any instructor or book make you believe that their way
is the ONLY way. My theory is - if it works, use it. We all need to keep growing and experiment
but keep true to your own vision
• ork In Progress
•
Title: "Inner Beauty"
Size: 18" x 14"
Medium: Charcoal, Graphite, Carbon on White Paper
• Step One:
I am using charcoal for the background and graphite for the subject. I'm using Arches 140 lbs hot press
watercolor paper for this drawing. This is one of my favorite papers. It has enough tooth to create dark
values yet is smooth enough for very delicate textures. In this first step, I have cut out the shape of my
subject(s) in frisket film and applied it to the paper. Then, I applied 3b soft charcoal to the background
to begin creating a wood texture.

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•
• If you are unfamiliar with the use of frisket film, here's a video that will explain it for you:
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• Step Two:
Next, I blended the charcoal with a piece of felt and added the beginnings of wood grain. I repeated this
several times to build up a solid tone. After pulling out some highlights with a clic eraser, I used a sharp
hard charcoal pencil to create shadows to help create slivers and chips in the wood. I also applied
masking tape at this point. I will be drawing masking tape in these areas later. Some of the wood texture
will show through from the previous step and give my drawn masking tape a little more transparency.

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• Step Three:
Then, I sprayed the drawing with fixative, Peeled off the frisket and began rendering the subjects. I used
a 6h graphite pencil to add tone to the paper and blended with a chamois. In some areas, I applied the
graphite with the chamois. For those of you that haven’t tried blending with a chamois, it can produce
incredibly subtle tones – almost like an air brush. I use a kneaded eraser to pull out the crinkles in the
paper. I am using the same technique to render the rose, applying graphite from dark to light and
blending.
• The tape on the right shows what it looking like after I removed the real masking tape. I have begun
rendering the tape on the right with a General's carbon sketch pencil and blending with a tortillon.
Using carbon here for the tape will help separate it from the wood and the paper.
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• Step Four:
I have started adding the holes and lines of the notebook paper. In case you are wondering, I didn’t
darken the background in this step, I had to turn up the contrast on this a bit to show the lines on the
paper.

I used charcoal for the holes to match the background. Adding charcoal at this stage always makes me
nervous since it isn’t fixed and can easily smear. I also continued to add shading to the rose and added
the line drawing of the stem.

The lines on the paper were produced with a .3 mechanical pencil to keep them as sharp and clean as
possible. I used a French Curve instead of a ruler because the lines had to follow the bends and crinkles
in the paper to keep the perspective correct. The best way to describe a French curve is it’s a bendable
rubber straight edge
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Close-up

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• Step Five:
Here’s the final. I had a real tough time taking photos of this one. I couldn’t get a picture of the softness
of the paper shading without compromising the darker background detail. The original has more punch.

I’ve included some close-ups to give you a little better Idea of the detail. In the original drawing the tape
is approximately 3/4" wide. It may appear larger than I drew it on your screen.
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Pencil Shading Exercises - Graduated Tone

Graduated Tone - Exercise 1

The pencil shading exercise explored on this page is called 'graduated tone'. It is a drawing technique which can
be used to create a strong sense of space and form. It is a very useful skill to develop for both pencil and color
pencil drawings.

1. Use a darker grade (B or 2B) of pencil for your shading. Lighter grades (H, 2H etc.) will not give enough depth to
your darkest tones.
2. Just start by shading the area you wish to be dark and slowly build up the tone. As you work towards the light,
gradually ease the pressure on your pencil until you can no longer see the mark it makes.
3. You then patiently repeat this process several times, building up a depth to the shading, adjusting any irregular
areas and trying to keep the tonal changes as smooth as possible until you achieve the variation and intensity of
tone that you desire.

Below are some more exercises with various degrees of difficulty which will test your shading skills to the
limit.

At the bottom of the page you will find a link to a template with outlines of all these exercises which you may
copy and print to practice your graduated shading technique.
Graduated Tone - Exercise 2

In this exercise the graduated tone starts at either side of the drawing and meets in the middle of the page.

Graduated Tone - Exercise 3

Here the direction of the tone moves from left to right to create a subtle graduated effect.
Graduated Tone - Exercise 4

In this exercise the direction of the graduated tones switch to create a counterchange between alternate squares.

Graduated Tone - Exercise 5

Here the direction of the tone moves from 'left to right' in the background but switches to 'right to left' in the
circles.
Graduated Tone - Exercise 6

In this exercise the direction of the graduated tones switch to create a counterchange between alternate circles.

Graduated Tone - Exercise 7

In this exercise the graduated tone moves from 'left to right' in the background but changes its direction in the
circle to create a spherical form.
Graduated Tone - Exercise 8

In this final exercise the graduated tone in the background moves from 'left to right' at a 45° angle but changes
its direction in the circles to create two 3-dimensional spheres.

Pencil Shading Exercise Sheet