Tools of the Trade

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People often ask me about how I do my work. What supplies do I use? Do I use the computer or do I scan my art? What’s the best way to do it? How did you get this or that look? How did you get so darned handsome and how can I be more like you?

Well, those of you who listen to my podcast or have been following my tutorials already know that I do almost all of my color on the computer. It’s quick and efficient.  You can imitate almost any traditional look in about half the time and with a much truer color reproduction.

When I first started my career computers were slow, never had enough memory and were a joke when it came to any kind of finished art.  Almost every artist I knew produced their art by hand. Even as computers got better I can remember an old friend telling me, “Don’t worry Bob. They will never be able to imitate what you do on a computer”.

The computer has come a long way since then and there are fewer and fewer commercial artists who work traditionally. Sometimes I really miss the craftsmanship of those days which is why I still do all my sketching with a pencil and paper. As great as computers have become they still haven’t been able to match the feel of pencil to paper for me.

Here is a list of my favorites tools along with a few pluses and minuses.

Paper: I love Strathmore and Bienfang drawing and sketch pads. The paper has a good tooth, it’s strong and can stand up to heavy hands and a lot erasing. These two are the best of the best. When I travel I always have either a Bienfang or Strathmore sketch pad with me. When I’m at home and working in the office though, I work with regular old copy paper. It’s cheap, doesn’t cost a lot and it’s cheap. I do a TON of sketches for every project I work on. Unfortunately if I did it all on the good stuff I’d be out of business in a week. So for top quality I recommend Strathmore and or Bienfang drawing paper, for day to day… good ol copy paper works just fine.

Pencils: I prefer mechanical pencils. I have about a million of them. I’ve tried almost everyone I can get my hands on. I’m sure there a few I’ve missed but my favorites are:

.5mm Staedtler 9505. This thing is brilliant. It has a double clutch inside that allows you to use almost the entire lead with very little waste. It’s fantastic and I can’t recommend it highly enough. The only draw backs that I can think of are that I’ve only been able to find it in .5mm. If it came in .7mm or .9mm then that would make my day.

.7mm Penmate Dou Expert: I really like this pencil for one reason only… the grip. It’s the best. It never slips, even if I’m eating a stack of greasy potato chips this thing stays put and giving me the complete control I need.

2mm lead holder: I have no idea who makes this thing (see photo) although I think it might be a company called Anchor? Not sure, but I’ll update this post when I find out. I bought it quite a few years back and it’s a true favorite. Unlike other lead holders this one has a clutch that allows me to advance the lead like a mech pencil. Pretty groovy if you ask me. If you can’t find one like this Staedtler is your next best bet. Alvin also makes a pretty good 2mm lead holder.

Leads:

Pentel .5mm red Why Pentel? One reason alone, convenience. This lead is stocked in almost any store that sells mech pencils. There is nothing truly spectacular about this brand I find .5mm a little too thin, it breaks easily and it goes on pretty lightly. The main appeal for me is that I prefer to do my base sketches in red and this lead is super easy to find. I know I could find thicker leads by mail order or on line but I’m just not big on ordering this kind of stuff by delivery. Maybe someday… but not today.

Pentel .7mm B or 2B: This is what I use to do my tight sketches. Not too thick. Not too thin. Kind of hard to find though. In fact anything other then HB is pretty tough to find so if you happen to stumble on B or 2B grab as many as you can… chances are you won’t see them any place else.

Sanford 2mm Red Drawing leads: This stuff is the cat’s meow. I love it. Not that easy to find though. If you do happen to stumble accross this stuff make sure you pick yourself up a pack. It’s strong, marks well and is a joy to work with. If you don’t draw with a 2mm lead holder your missing out. The only drawback I can think of for the 2mm is the sharpeners. They can get a little messy, especially if you want to travel with them.

* Hint- It’s a good idea to empty your sharpener before you travel, then stick it in a sealed plastic sandwich bag. If you don’t you’re likely to find everything in your bag covered with graphite dust and that’s no fun.

Sanford 2mm 3B drawing lead Same as above only this is a graphite 3b pencil lead.Good stuff, get some.

If you are unfamiliar with how the numbers work here is the breakdown
Hard leads are are basically labeled with an H. The number in front indicates the hardness of the graphite. The higher the number the harder the lead. Hard leads are good for light lines but be careful too hard can dent the paper as you draw making them difficult to erase.
Medium – The middle range leads are – F, HB and H. HB is basically the same as a #2

Soft – Soft leads are marked with a B. Like the hard leads the higher the number the softer the lead. I prefer to stay in the B to 4B range. Soft leads are good for darker lines. They can be messy though as they tend to smudge. Very soft leads can also be difficult and messy to erase.

Non-photo Blue. If you choose to use non-photo blue stay away from the 2mm lead refill. The 2mm non photo blue is not a good lead for drawing. I tend to be heavy handed when I draw and the 2mm is WAY too fragile for hands like mine. It marks very lightly, crumbles and does not hold a point. If you’re like me but want to use non-photo blue try it in a wooden pencil I think you’ll be much happier. I used the prismacolor non-photo blue for years before I started working digitally.

Erasers:

When it comes to erasers there is only one company…General’s. Get yourself a General’s gum eraser, kneaded eraser and the best, of the best, of the best a General’s Factis Black 18, you won’t be sorry. Buy a bunch.

Ink

I’ve recently gotten back into inking by hand a little bit and when I do I like to use a brush pen by either Faber Castell or Prismacolor. Both are good. Faber Castell has a little stiffer nib then the Prismacolor. They both give a really nice organic line.

For more on my illustration techniques please check out this tutorial