So you can't draw a stick figure or a straight line? When you draw, does it look like a mentally deranged monkey made your pencil vomit on the page? Do you have to write what you're suppose to draw on DRAW SOMETHING? Do you want to hang your head in shame because the three year old sitting next to you is drawing circles around you?
Well you've come to the right place.
By the time you finish the lessons below, you will be able to draw appealing drawings and characters. You won't be Michelangelo (the artist not the turtle), but you're not trying to be.
You'll be able to draw for the first time ever! And that's all these lessons are here to teach you.
It's that three year old's turn to hang his head in shame! <= CLICK TO TWEET
So Let's Get Our Draw Fu On!
Click on the highlighted text below to go to the posts:
Choose Your Practice Weapons: What drawing equipment you need for now.
Lesson 1: How drawing is like writing - The A, B, Cs -Lines.
Lesson 2: How drawing is like writing - Sentences, Basic Shapes
Lesson 3: Basic design: Stick figures, with style!
Lesson 4: The Secret of Tracing like a Pro - Basic under drawing techniques.
Lesson 5: Design Simple Cartoon Characters from Flat Shapes
BONUS Lesson 6: Unicorn Style - How Simple Color Theory Helps Design.
BONUS Lesson 7: Designing Super Basic Composition
BONUS Lesson 8: Formulas - An Introduction to Drawing Shorthand
Get all this info and more in The Art of Draw Fu: Beginners Level digital book for FREE!
If you're ready to get started now, you may want to invest in the Draw Fu Beginner's bundles. Either the DELUXE BUNDLE or the REGULAR BUNDLE. Each Bundle comes with some very special UNIQUE items.
Resources/books:
- Book Review: Drawing with Children – A Creative Method for Adult Beginners, Too.
- Level 0 Recommended Reading
Questions?
I can't help you if you don't ask.
What's your burning drawing questions?
Is there something you've always wanted to know about drawing? Ask.
I'll give you my best answer and, who know, probably write a post about it.
Leave any comments and questions in the comments below.
Or better yet, sign up to receive more information via e-mail. You'll get extra tips and advice. You can ask me questions that way also.
Hello Luis,
I have just started reading around your page. It’s really great, your’s way of teaching is just perfect for me( I guess). I think I’ll start as soon as possible.
btw I wanted to ask you, how long should I stick with each lesson before moving on to the next
and how do I know if I’m good enough for the next lesson, I wonder if there’s some kind of criteria or something.
And lastly, Thank you for making such a great website. Have a nice day.
Hi ! I just discovered your website thank to your “What The Drawing Fundamentals Are” video ! I’m french so excuse me if my english isn’t that good xD (And I’m sorry if this isn’t the right place for my message but there wasn’t any box to leave a comment on your post about shapes).
I have a question. I draw since I’m a child but recently I chose to learn the fundamentals since I never learned them. The thing is that I understand them and I can draw the three types of lines or shapes but I don’t know how to incorporate them into my drawings. I always drew ‘naturaly’, without thinking about shapes or perspective and stuff so it’s pretty hard to think about it while drawing (especially shapes).
So my question is: how do you actually use shapes (and fundamentals in general) while drawing ?
Should I imagine my drawing with shapes before drawing it ?
It doesn’t feel intuitive to me..
I hope you understand my problem and I hope you can help me !
And thank you for your great website !
Hello Luis! A total beginner here. I tried getting involved with drawing many times over the course of a few years, but I get overwhelmed very easily by all the info needed to just start. That’s why I keep trying for a week, but then I just dump it all and forget about it. It doesn’t just apply to drawing, I tried a lot of things, like making music. And it’s a shame, because I really want a hobby, that I lack a bit. Do you by chance have any tips on how to develop perseverance and how not to, you know, be overwhelmed by learning? Thank you in advance.
I have 2 questions if you don’t mind. How often should I do these exercises to improve my draftsmanship? & Will any of the exercises help me design my own characters? Thank you :]
Hi Deesa Art,
You do the exercises until you think you’ve got it. It’s completely subjective. If you think you know what you’re doing then you move on the next exercise. It the exercise is giving you trouble, going forward won’t help.
All the ideas here will help you design your own characters. Especially the theories on design in the Design Lessons.
sad that no shipping outside us i really need this bad enough to spend money on it via credit card
It’s available on Amazon.
thanks that makes it easier 🙂
awesome style and tutorial i will definitely keep coming back .. lovely teaching method
Wowwwwww this was awesome!
I feel slightly less inept at drawing now, thank you so sooo much for that!
Will you be continuing with the other lessons, or do you have a book or something that I could buy that contains the rest of the lessons?
I hope there’s more soon! These have helped me so much!
First of all, fuck you! How can u teach simply like this while my teacher always ask me to do that shading thing! HAHAH! Sorry to be rude, but thanks buddy, thanks a lot for doing this. I learn a lot from this Lvl. 0 and still doing those exercise.
KEEP DOING THE GREAT WORK BRO!
You help tons of people who give up on drawing especially me.
Have a great day! May god bless you.
Ha ha ha! Thanks Meen,
Shading is important, but not if you don’t have solid drawing principles first. And to be quite honest, I tend to have a bit of an anti-shading bias probably for the same reasons your upset at your teacher. Although, over the years I’ve learned to like it. And the way, later teachers taught me to approach it, has made it far more useful than the original way I was taught me.
I will eventually get to it though. In Level 2 lessons.
Firstly, god bless you for creating this site. It’s given me incentive to start drawing again. 😀 I just have a few questions: Is it possible to use these techniques to become good at drawing manga? Also what practicing methods could I use to draw in a more 3D perspective? Most of my drawing always end up flat with the character looking straight ahead. 😛
Hi Giselle,
Yes, it is possible to become good at drawing manga using these techniques. Think of it this way, drawing is like making a cake with icing. The cake is drawing principles. The icing is the type of drawing style you use. Western style cartoons or manga style will work as long as the principles are there.
I made two videos about manga style you might want to see:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WmDM3Tvi8L0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVSLHfg0ScU
And speaking of videos, I also made a video about creating 3D looking characters from flat drawings that might help you out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66A7hDEu2ko
Hope that helps,
Luis
Hey Luis, thanks for this resource, I’m finding it quite useful so far.
As a novice drawer I have a question that may seem silly:
I notice that when you draw there isn’t just one line made and you’re done, but several strokes to make a single piece.
Do you have more info on why you do this, and tips for how to use that method myself.
As someone whose never drawn I know nothing about making “rough drafts”
Hi Matt,
It’s not a silly question at all. In fact I wrote a whole lesson about it. You can find it here in Lvl 0 Lesson 4:
http://www.thedrawingwebsite.com/2012/10/24/the-secret-of-tracing-like-a-pro-basic-under-drawing-techniques/
I hope that helps.
Hello Luis,
located your website by doing a search on google.Very much looking forward to following your courses (and visiting your shop in the future).As a ‘weak’ drawer,I know becoming profficient will help me in my future studies especially with respect to sketch notes et al.
Kindest Regards,
Alex. (Italy)
Thanks Alex,
I really do hope what I’ve written helps.
Thank you so much for the help. You got me motivated to keep working on my art style. I’m trying to make my own animated cartoon.
You’re welcome. Good luck with your animated cartoon. Animation is awesome. It’s great to hear your doing it.
I downloaded your free book, but it cannot open, file may be damaged. Any suggestions?
Ooh, that’s not good. Do me a favor. Try downloading it one more time. If it still doesn’t open, then I’ll try emailing you a copy directly.
Thanks.
Oh, and I’m sure you may have already checked, but just make sure you have a working pdf reader.
Like many others have said, this is a great site! Thank you for thoughtfully putting this together. I find your information, lessons and all related material easy to follow. You certainly have teaching skill in addition to your artistry. I’m really looking forward to developing drawing ability! Thanks again
Thank you very much.
Hi
This is an amazing site. Thanks for sharing all this information.
Well, I intend to become a graphics designer. Mainly banners and company logos.
I’m currently studying adobe illustrator as suggested by my boss.
I need to learn some drawing basics so that I could get better at the colors and shapes.
Well, I have a question,
Can I use a laptop with a slim tablet as my drawing device?
I want to learn to draw on the computer.
Will the be applicable, or do I really need pen and paper?
Thank you Amira. What you’re doing sounds exciting, and thanks for your question.
The answer is, yes. Heck, you can use a crayon if you want. Anything will do.
That said, using a tablet with a laptop is trickier to use than a regular pencil. There a slight disconnect when drawing something on the tablet and seeing the results on the screen. BUT, that doesn’t mean you don’t get used to it and it can become second nature. There are plenty of digital artist who can draw circles around me using a tablet set up like you described. So go for it.
I’d still try to learn on paper though, if only because you may not always have a device handy.
Hope that helps.
Hello
Thank you, thank you, thank you for this wonderful website! Maybe i’ll be finally able to draw something more than orcs and space marines 😀
Cartoon drawing can surely be fun. But the most important lesson You’ve taught is that I need to draw a lot and don’t expect miracles. Since I was a child I drew only mentioned characters, thou I could draw them very well I was just stucked in the void, I tried to draw something else and I ended up throwing the folded sheet to the recycle bin, dissapointed of the drawing.
Here are my drawings, I made this afternoon, http://i.imgur.com/xes6x9q.jpg http://i.imgur.com/I47j6Of.jpg http://i.imgur.com/tFk1BgT.jpg ….aaaaand of course, I couldn’t help myself and drew the orc at the end 😛 http://i.imgur.com/SCF0Yqb.jpg (I’m sick of them, orcs, yet, they are the only thing I drew for years)
I have one question, do You recommend drawing on a paper or on a graphic tablet? Which medium is better to start with? I was always astonished by the digital works, but I guess, I need to start with the most basic paper and pencil, don’t I?
thank you so much
Marek
Looking great Marek. Thanks for sharing your work. Keep it up.
To answer your question, the answer is, what you will draw on. If you can draw on paper it’s easier since you don’t have to learn the quirks of a program and it makes you more versatile in the long run. It’s also cheaper since you don’t have to buy some fancy tablet.
On the other hand, if you already own a tablet and if you find that you draw more on it, then by all means use it. The point is to draw and get better.
I use both a sketchbook and a tablet. I love the tactility of drawing on paper and having a piece of work in the end. I like drawing on my tablet because I can adjust and edit easier on it and I don’t have to carry drawing supplies.
Hi everyone! Just wanted to say IT WOOORKS! I can’t believe it, but after spending one afternoon ( Lesson 4 so far ).
I made this:http://i.imgur.com/hv6zuop.jpg! I’m so grateful to you for this website! Ah, this emotions came from the fact I’m 19 and thought I won’t pick up drawing again. ( tried a bunch of times before, but up to no succes ).
Congrats! Wat to go! Great drawing.
How often do you update these lessons. i like how you teach these skills and i would hate to reach then end and hit a skill cap ten have to learn another way from someone else >.<
I’m new to this site and I don’t know if your still responding to comments but I’m going to ask anyways and hopefully you respond.
I drew a dragon head but I didn’t get it out of my mind. Instead I got it off of Google Images. The dragon head came out perfect. Great details and structure. I didn’t trace it, I looked at the picture and just started drawing. Does this mean I can draw or am I just good at copying pictures.
Both. It means you can draw BY copying. You’ve got good observational skills. This is a good thing.
You may or may not be able to draw from your imagination as well, but that requires a different set of skills.
I downloaded the digital version of your book, but I can’t open it! any suggestion?
You’re the first person to ask this question so I’m assuming that you don’t have a pdf reader installed on you’re computer.
So, simply download one and the file should open. You download a free one by clicking the link below:
https://get.adobe.com/reader/
i just put in drawing sites and got this site and i think this site will let me become a good drawer like my sister chastity
That’s great! Im looking really forward to them! =D
Found you through the Man vs Art podcast! Awesome website, I am hooked!
GREAT! Glad you like it. I hope you get a lot out of it.
You are amazing. Thanks for the help =)
why’d you drop this project though? =( I was hoping for more levels…
Thank you so much!
The answer is, I haven’t. The Lvl 1 posts are coming. I’m working on them now, actually. The approach I’m taking for does posts are a bit more complicated than the lvl 0 posts. So they’re going to take longer to do. But it will be worth it.
Hi Luis mind helping with drawing
How so?