Someone asked me what pencils I am using to create this drawing.....................Hopefully I won't bore anyone with my rather lengthy response.
I love to share tips and techniques. I don't mind divulging all my methods so feel free to ask away! So here is the answer to that question. First, I'd like to say that there are a ton of different artist pencils on the market, the ones I am about to mention are the ones I personally chose to work with, other artists might have other opinions on what works best for them. It's a personal preference thing. The tools don't make the artist but with that said, I DO try to buy good quality supplies.
I'm picky. I am a pencil snob. There, I said it, or rather, I wrote it. See, the first step in accepting that you have a problem is, admitting to it. I feel better already!
I own lots of pencils but my go-to's are my lead holders. Lead holders are kinda sorta like mechanical pencils with a few inherent differences. The main difference is the lead diameter. The lead is thicker than a typical mechanical pencil lead by quite a bit. Some of my lead holders, my most widely used ones, Have a 2mm lead which is about the size of an ordinary wood pencil. Just like an ordinary wood pencil, 2mm leads come in a variety of pencil grades ranging from 5H to 4B. For those who don't know, pencils come in grades from hard, and the lightest, being your H"s..... to B's being the softest and also darkest of the leads. You can see the difference in the photo below. The pencil on top is a GraphGear 500 mechanical with .09 lead which as far as I know, is the largest diameter mechanical lead available. The pencil on the bottom is a Staedtler 925-25-20 automatic lead holder with 4B, 2mm sized lead. For drawing purposes, I do prefer the larger lead size but I do also use my mechanical pencils.
I also own this bad boy............This is a Creatacolor Ecologic wood lead holder made in Austria, that holds a whopping 5.6mm lead. I love this thing! It's great for laying down large areas of graphite at a time but it will still hold a fine point for detail as well. It will also hold different mediums such as charcoal,sanguine and sepia sticks, keeping your fingers nice and clean.
I am only using three of my lead holders to draw the "Tree Hugger" drawing. One of the things I like best about the lead holders I have chosen is their weight. I like my lead holders and my mechanical pencils too to be VERY heavy. For that reason, I always try to buy solid metal lead holders as opposed to plastic. That's where the "me being picky" part, really, comes in to play.
Heavy weight pencils, the heavier, the better, give me better balance and control when I'm drawing. I have a light hand when I draw and the weight of the pencil does most of the work for me, especially in the beginning, laying down that first layer of graphite. Now, I wouldn't recommend something this heavy for writing or school work as you would probably get major hand fatigue fast. Also, if you have a hand or wrist, medical issue, these probably might not be a good idea for you. Being that these are sold as drafting pencils, most people won't be purchasing them for everyday writing, they are pretty much a dedicated, artist pencil. Below is a photo of the one's I am using for this drawing.. Two Staedtler 9225-25-20's and one super heavy, all metal Koh-I-Nor, drop clutch lead holder.
The drop clutch just means that instead of dispensing the lead, a little at a time, with a touch of the button, like an automatic lead holder, the lead just drops as you press the button and ends up on the floor, broken, if your not careful. Been there, done that. I do like the drop clutches though as you can dispense the lead, any length you want with just one touch. I like to leave my leads really long.
There you have it. The lowdown on what I like to use. Like I said, I have a lot of other pencils that I use as well. I could be here all day, writing about them but then I wouldn't get anything else done. If anyone else has any questions about my drawing process or, what tools and supplies I use. Please don't hesitate to ask. Catch y'all later!
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