Caution:Artist at Play-Artwork by Shana Rowe Jackson

   1.   Start small! Start with an item and draw it everyday until you are confident. When you first do a full picture start with a small canvas so you do not feel overwhelmed.     2.   Break your piece down into individual sections, this will also help you “see” what you are drawing instead of what you think you should see.    3.   Realism is like a puzzle made up of small abstract shapes. Train your eye to look for those shapes.    4.   Do not be afraid to push your values! High contrast usually makes for a more interesting image!!    5.   When starting out, if you struggle with color, work in black and white to get a feel for detail and values. You can always glaze later if you want to.     6.   When working in color, use a view finder if you are having trouble figuring out what color you are trying to recreate. Take a white piece of paper, punch a hole in it and put it up to your reference, this will help you to identify the color more easily.  

 " Nature's Confetti " in Blick Studio Artists' Colored Pencils- "Nature's Confetti" 8"x10" Blick Studio Artist's and Black Derwent Drawing Colored Pencils on Canson Mi Teintes (Pearl) Paper. My own reference photo. © Shana L Rowe Jackson 2016 Before reading- please note that I am in no way sponsored by Blick, nor did they ask me to review their product. This is just my personal experience with these colored pencils. First Impressions: Pencils come in a tin case and are organized by color (They also offer a wooden cased set that costs a bit more.) Pencils have wood casing that are color coated to match lead Come pre-sharpened The butt end of the pencil is open which is great for checking if the lead is centered. Good range of blues, greens, grays and browns (These are the first colors I check for) Wax based 72 count set (largest set they offer at this time) From Blick’s Website- “Blick Artis