5 Helpful Videos for Starting your Journey with Coloured Pencils | Beginner Tips

If you’re at the start of your coloured pencil journey, it can seem daunting trying to wrap your head around all the different materials and figuring out where to start. To give you a helping hand, I have gathered some helpful videos together to get you feeling more confident in no time!

Surfaces, Pencils, Erasers and Sharpeners:

I get asked questions all the time about what materials I use and recommend most, and I get it! There are so many different ones out there. In this quick video, I run you through all the materials I couldn’t live without, why I like them, and how I use them. To see my recommendations give the video above a watch.

How to Choose a Surface for a Coloured Pencil Drawing:

Choosing what surface to use for a coloured pencil drawing can seem like a really big and important decision, and I get asked all the time what surface I would recommend using for a specific subject, but there isn’t always a definitive answer. I do, however, have a consistent thought process that can make choosing your surface easier.

This video shows you how I decide and will be helpful if you ever feel lost when knowing where to start in choosing what surface is right for you.

Preparing to Start a New Coloured Pencil Drawing:

There are numerous things I take into consideration before starting a new drawing, from how I edit the reference photo, to how I create and transfer the line art onto my surface. If you are new to creating and you don't yet have your own process, it can be nice to see what others do to prepare. You might notice a step you hadn't thought of.

In this video, I show you the processes I go through when preparing to start a new coloured pencil drawing, so to have a watch, click on the video above.

Getting to Know the Colour Wheel:

Understanding colour theory and what colours work well together is going to be really useful in ensuring you feel confident picking out the correct colours for your drawing. A colour wheel is a tool that I find really helpful when it comes to colour-picking and it's a really nice and simple tool to use.

If you find yourself drawing a blank when trying to select your colours, then this video will be a really helpful resource for you.

How to Create a Digital Viewfinder:

Colour theory is helpful in selecting the correct colours, but sometimes the problem lies in actually being able to see what colours are present in the first place. Creating a viewfinder is a really simple way to reveal the values in your reference photo, making colour-picking much easier. To see how I do this, click on the video above.

To learn even more and gain access to hundreds of hours of realtime tutorials, regular live sessions, become a part of a super supportive community and much, much more, join the Academy. I am welcoming new members from 3rd to 17th January 2023, and it would be fabulous to see some lovely new faces! To find out more about the Ignite Membership and how it can help you on your coloured pencil journey, click here.