![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/littleviews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/tennis-player.jpeg\")
<\/a>Unlike sketching architecture, where the subject, such as a house, is immobile and constructed from a repeatable plan, active people have wildly different physical features and no shared postures.<\/p>\nAlthough we can imagine how someone kicks a soccer ball or jumps a hurdle, the only way to accurately draw this behavior is by viewing it as a frozen image through a photograph or stop-frame video.<\/p>\n
Learning anatomy helps you understand how physical postures might look when in motion, but it does not inform you about specific postures that take place. Consequently, anatomy lessons are not included in this tutorial as they are too general.<\/p>\n
Keep in mind, however, that this method is about sketching<\/em>, not developing illustrations for art galleries. By using it, you’ll produce very satisfying sketches, and hopefully, you’ll be pleased enough with your results to want to further your skills and encourage others to join you.<\/p>\n The preliminary image is your exploratory drawing<\/em>. It is here where you observe your subject and strive to sketch him or her proportionately, without distortion.<\/p>\n The preliminary image helps you organize what you see, with your final composition demonstrating what you learned.<\/p>\n The grid is made up of guidelines that mark the top, bottom, middle and center of the \u00a0subject, such as clearly depicted in the diagram below.<\/p>\n Crucial to the diagram is the Center Point, which falls between the high and low point on the perpendicular line between them.\u00a0 Measurement units, such as inches or centimeters, are not important.<\/p>\n Before starting to sketch, note the location of the center point on your subject. This point will match the grid’s Center Point.\u00a0 As you go forward, start sketching at the center<\/strong><\/em>, not on the top or bottom. Sketch what falls within each quadrant and how those things relate to one another. Do not focus on the image as a whole.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n By working in small, highly-focused areas, you will be less likely to introduce position distortion into your overall sketch.<\/p>\n To demonstrate, below is my preliminary sketch superimposed on the diagram.<\/p>\n In this example, part of the face, a shoulder, and hip are in the top, left quadrant. The back of the head, a shoulder, and two arms are in the top right. Each leg is in its own quadrant, but such even distribution is not always the case.<\/p>\n Starting at the Center Point, rapidly sketch what you see, going in any direction you please, but focus on what falls within<\/strong> <\/em>each quadrant, not the whole image. Consider such things as:<\/p>\n Again, measurement increments are not important. Use what you learned when doing your preliminary as a guide for developing your final.<\/p>\n In the following example, my preliminary sketch helped me form my final and while constructing my final, I made corrections that I did not initially see and improved upon its overall look.<\/p>\n Even if you do not understand anatomy, the grid forces you to focus on positional relationships, enabling you to sketch the final with more confidence and fewer distortions.<\/p>\n Date your final sketches and keep all of them.<\/strong><\/p>\n Refer back to your sketch library to see your own growth, identify areas you’d like to improve, and\/or use poses for future projects.<\/p>\n Photo and Illustration References<\/strong><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n The photo used in this article is by Bogdan Glisik\u00a0as originally posted on Pixel.com<\/a>. <\/strong><\/p>\n Illustrations by Karen Little.<\/p>\n This article was written and illustrated by Karen Little as part of an ongoing series of blogs on Action Sketching. Published on Littleviews.com. January 4, 2020.<\/p>\n Reproduction of this article is free for non-commercial websites (or other media) with permission and attributes to Littleviews.com and the article\u2019s author.<\/p>\n All material on Littleviews (with noted exceptions) is copyrighted on the date of publication.<\/p>\n Questions? Ask Karen Little at karen@littleviews.com.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\nMaterials and Tools<\/span><\/h3>\n
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Preliminary Image<\/span><\/h3>\n
<\/a>Your next step is to create a preliminary image<\/em> like the one on the right, drawn in under 4 minutes. This is the first of two images you’ll quickly sketch, from the preliminary to the final.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\nRapid Sketching<\/span><\/h3>\n
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Final Sketching<\/span><\/h3>\n
<\/a>After completing your preliminary sketch, draw the grid for your final work on a second piece of paper.<\/p>\n<\/a>Yes, there is more to learn about sketching than what you see here. Even studying anatomy is very helpful. Most important with this technique, however, is that you learn how to quickly and accurately plan and sketch relationships between body parts in action.<\/p>\nLinks<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
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Author<\/span><\/h3>\n
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