© Shutterstock

Getting started -

First, you have to have a good setup. Make sure you have a set of pencils ranging from sizes 9H to 2B. A sharpener is also integral, or a sharpening knife.

© Shutterstock

Artist's eraser -

The eraser is the artist's best friend. There are many kinds of erasers, but the best ones are made from putty.

© Shutterstock

Paper -

It won't really do to use just normal printing paper. Go to your local art shop and get proper drawing paper because it makes a difference when you start making textures and shadows.

© Shutterstock

Your desk -

It's important to have a desk that's comfortable and a place you want to come back to each day. Pay particular attention to the table height, as it will influence how you hold your arm and pencil.

© Shutterstock

Object -

Choose your object to practice on and set it up on a simple background with the light coming from one direction. This way you can study drawing shadows too. Pieces of fruit work well.

© Shutterstock

"The rule of thirds" -

If your scene has many objects in it, use "the rule of thirds" for a neat composition. Place the focal points of the scene where the lines intersect on the nine-square grid.

© Shutterstock

Reference sketches -

It helps to turn to the masters when starting out. Try and find artists' sketches of the same object and imitate their style to understand their method.

© Shutterstock

Know your tools -

On a scrap piece of paper, play around with your pencils to see what different textures and strokes you can make. When you draw an object, you can use this experimental texture piece as a reference.

© Shutterstock

Holding position -

Holding a pencil is different for everyone. Generally, if you hold it closer to the nip you have more control and heavier strokes. If you hold the pencil further away from the nip, your strokes are lighter.

© Shutterstock

The big picture -

When you have completed the preparatory tasks, take a look at your object. It is important that you try and see the bigger picture rather than the small details of the item.

© Shutterstock

Drawing -

A key concept in sketching is perspective. When things are closer to you, they appear larger and when they are further away, they are smaller.

© Shutterstock

Perspective -

In order to illustrate this, choose a focus point in the distance of the scene you want to draw. From it, use straight lines to determine the size of objects in relation to the distance you are from them.

© Shutterstock

Perspective contrast -

A general rule of thumb is that if an object is further away, it is lighter in color, but if it is closer, it is darker.

© Shutterstock

Abstract shapes -

An easy way to get perspective on your item is to imagine every part of the object as an individual shape. Start by just drawing the abstract shapes with no detail.

© Shutterstock

Start slow -

When drawing the foundation of the object try and use very light lines. This way you can erase things easily and fill in more detail later on without the sketch getting too messy.

© Shutterstock

The 70/30 rule -

When you have done the first layer of shapes, you can start adding in some more detail. To help give the picture nice proportions, use the 70/30 rule. This is where you put most of the detail in 30% of the drawing and leave 70% as a light sketch.

© Shutterstock

Experiment with textures -

Go back to the texture piece you made before and experiment on your drawing to achieve different effects.

© Shutterstock

Smudging -

Smudging is a great technique to create shadows. Get your hands on a smudging stub and play around.

© Shutterstock

Dark before the light -

Start by filling in the darkest parts of your scene first. Light objects rarely have defined lines, but are just in contrast to shadows.

© Shutterstock

Erase! -

An artist should erase as much as they draw. To create light and outlines, use the eraser as a tool rather than a fixer.

© Shutterstock

Specific tip -

An example of where light and dark create the shape rather than an outline is the lips. The top lip is always darker. It is not necessary to draw the outline of the lips, just the shading.

© Shutterstock

Visual library -

Draw lots of different things as well as the same thing from many different angles. This way you can build up a visual library and learn from artistically studying the objects.

© Shutterstock

Squint -

Sometimes you can get caught up in tiny details and forget the overall composition of a drawing. Standing back and squinting helps to see issues in the bigger picture.

© Shutterstock

Trace and check -

If the proportions are off, it is difficult to see after working on the same sketch for hours. Use tracing paper to flip your drawing to give a fresh perspective on what might be going wrong.

© Shutterstock

Practice! -

Just like anything, you have to practice drawing every day to build up your muscle memory and skill. Try and set yourself a daily goal.

© Shutterstock

Let go -

Many people worry that their drawings are no good. No one is good when getting started, but that doesn't mean you're not learning and adding to your skill set. Let go of any expectations you have.

© Shutterstock

Crumple it up -

A trick to let go of art expectations is to crumple up every drawing after you do it so you don't get stuck on little problems. Learn from, but don't get hung up on, details.

© Shutterstock

Take a break -

Art is mentally tiring, so don't overdo it. It's important to go for a walk and get some fresh air and new inspiration.

© Shutterstock

Have fun! -

Art is fun, so make sure it doesn't get too serious. Just play around and don't worry about anything!

Sources: (Creative Bloq) (Büken Art) (Invaluable)

See also: The forgotten art of calligraphy

© Shutterstock