Sketch it out

I’m a whiz at Photoshop and am getting to the expert level on Illustrator. But there is one skill that still eludes me: sketching. In digital image editing, you’ve got all the tools you need to basically cheat a drawing – filters, layers, rulers, grids, opacity. You need not ever learn how to wield an HB pencil to create, like me.

What happens when you only have a laptop and don’t have a tablet or even a mouse? Well, the digital mind has to dust-off those long neglected motor skills to learn how to draw.

In his book, “Sketching User Experience,” Bill Buxton talks extensively about being able to sketch out your plans for how a product is going to be used. Storyboarding is a skill that is especially useful. I do it a lot before every video I attempt to create. But it isn’t the sort of storyboarding you see on behind-the-scenes reels of movies and television shows. It’s all stick figures and barely recognizable objects.

Sketching is also universal. I mean that it’s accessible to everyone and requires only two things (pen and paper), so anyone can do it. Visually demonstrating an idea or process is also an excellent way of making those ideas clear in your mind thus clear to everyone else. It’s just too easy to neglect.

While sitting around pondering my next project, I realize that I should be able to draw it damnit, rather than rely on overlaying stock photos. Being able to draw means independence. It means challenging your mind creatively. It means opening whole new avenues of expression and communication. Drawing should be something we are all good at – like reading and writing.

Too much philosophy? Ok, but don’t take my word for it. Leonardo Da Vinci, prolific as he was, drew a lot of stuff. He pretty much drew every thought that came into his crammed mind.

Here’s a link to a website I’m learning from – Drawspace. If you have any other recommendations, please leave them in the comments.

Tags: da vinci, drawing, photoshop, sketching, skills