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More Info On Draw Length:

Tips on Pencil Portrait Drawing - the Construct

Suppose that we have a profile where the head, arm, and fingers are visible and are in contact. Very often, the starting artist will endeavor to draw each of these elements individually. The approach will always lead to frustration and ultimately often to disappointment.

Instead of drawing each item individually, the first step in your drawing should be to draw the "entire" arabesque, i.e., the entire outline of the figure. The entire arabesque which includes parts other than the skull (in this case the skull, fingers, and arms) is called the "construct".

For the novice it is best to reduce the complete arabesque to its simplest shape thereby ignoring all the details such as the bumps in the fingers and the hair. With experience, you will be able to add all these bumps without much trouble as you go along.

A good construct (also known as a complete arabesque) also contains a singular gestural tempo that subordinates all details. In other words, this rhythmic gesture exists independent of the details.

When you are drawing a single entity or skull the checking of the height/width sizing is fairly straightforward. As a universal rule the width of the skull is checked against its length utilizing the base of the chin as the main landmark.

If, for some reason the chin is conceiled (e.g., behind the arm or fingers), an other landmark must be found. The arm, the jaw, or the lines of the fingers are excellent places to find a new landmark.

Once you have sketched a satisfactory construct it must be checked for accuracy. To do this, we can, for instance, look for vertical and/or horizontal distances that are supposed to be the same and see if they in fact are the same. Use all your gained knowledge of sighting. Also use your general knowledge of anatomical placing of the eyes, ears, etc.

Once you are happy that the construct is accurately sketched you can continue to block-in the main light/dark blueprint and take your first tentative stab at drawing the facial area, i.e., the placing of the brow, the eyes, the nose and the mouth. Again, if the usual landmarks for those elements can for some reason not be used you should be imaginative enough to determine appropriate substitutes.

Keep hatching-in all elements as soon as you draw them. This includes the fingers, arms, and hair if any of them are noticeable in the particular profile you are drawing. Remember to always work from the general to the specific.

Also, be sure to use a sharp pencil, take into account your knowledge of anatomy, and constantly look for errors and, of course, correct them.

Next, the pencil portrait drawing must now be worked-up tonally by cross-hatching with 8B, 2H, and 4H pencils, by blening the graphite with your fingers or a stump, and by using your kneaded eraser to characterize the lights. All this should be done in a painterly manner.

Lastly, you can choose how much details you want to put into your drawing or how unfinished you may leave the drawing. For instance, you can leave some parts of the fingers or the arm unfinished. Or, if you want to emphasize a certain part of the portrait, you can add detail in that part and leave the other regions somewhat unfinished.

These are several of many considerations that go into drawing a more complicated portrait that has a construct. One significant thing not to forget is to draw the construct first so you do not end up drawing one entity after another without maintaining unity. Following these rules will surely put you on the proper path of drawing more complicated portraits.

About the Author

Download my brand new free pencil portrait draw tutorial here: Pencil Portrait Sketching Tutorial . Remi Engels is a practicing pencil portrait artist and oil painter and skilled drawing instructor. See his work at Pencil Portraits by Remi: http://www.remipencilportraits.com

Importance of Draw Length?

If my bow is set 1/2 an inch over what it should be, will that effect my shooting very significantly or what? My draw length was measured to be 27.5 but my bow is set at 28".

It would be far better to have a draw length 1/2 inch shorter, but if you are target shooting it will not make a lot of difference, but on a cold weather deer hunt with extra clothes on, it make cost you a deer, due to the string slapping your forearm. The extra draw length will cause you to extend your left arm all the way out and lock it in, instead of having a slight bend in your elbow that will provide the extra clearance needed for your bow arm- I hunted with a bow for several years that had a draw length one inch too long- I killed several deer with it and had a few get away because of the draw length being too long, but I thought no big deal. Then 3 years ago, I had what I just knew would be the new state record bow killed deer walk within 25 yards broadside and stared straight ahead- a bush covered his vitals, but I took a neck shot- dead hit- square in the neck- 73 lb pull bow-the string slapped my forearm-took all the penetration away from the arrow, and the arrow fell out as the deer ran off- it stopped at the bone-just a little meat on the arrow and years of hunting for a record book buck went down the drain- a lesson well learned. Don't do as I did. If you hunt, make sure everything is correct!

Maryland rally subdues Clemson 88-79
COLLEGE PARK - Conclusions are difficult to draw in the Atlantic Coast Conference this season. As usual, Duke stands at the top of the heap. But, thanks in no small part to the shocking collapse of defending national champion North Carolina, this is generally considered a down year for the ACC.

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