How To Shade

How To Shade

a quick tutorial on shading (with graphite) by yours truly. this is the process I use for shading, and there are tons more out there if this one doesn’t work for you.

MATERIALS USED

1 HB graphite pencil

1 2B graphite pencil

1 4B graphite pencil

1 blending stub (the bigger the better)

1 plastic eraser (white)

1 kneaded eraser (grey)

now why do I use two erasers? well, they’re very different from one another, and each serves their own purpose.

the plastic eraser is harder, and when it erases, it erases everything. the kneaded eraser is soft, and it doesn’t completely erase everything all at once. you can use it to pick up some of the graphite and leave some behind, lightening (but not totally erasing) your shading. plus, the kneaded eraser is so soft you can mold it, and it doesn’t leave pencil shavings. if one end gets too used, you can just stretch it out, and it’s as good as new.

REFERENCE USED

now lets get this started, shall we?

STEP ONE

scribble lightly over your drawing with either an HB (aka a regular #2 pencil) or 2B pencil. you don’t have to be extremely neat, but do it light and nice enough so it can still be erased/you can still see the original lines underneath.

STEP TWO

take your blending stub (the wider the better, and if you don’t have one, use a tissue) and rub in the opposite direction of the scribbling. don’t press too hard, because it might streak/not work if you do.

STEP THREE

erase the extra shading around the edges (using the plastic eraser.).

STEP FOUR

roughly add your darks

STEP FIVE

roughly add your lights by erasing with the kneaded eraser

STEP SIX

add your finishing touches (secondary shadows, background, etc)

(I reshaped the sides, added more lights, and added the background shadow)

and voila! you just did some shading!