How To Draw A Hand Holding A Pencil

How y'all hold a pencil to draw is different from how yous hold a pencil to write.

This mail service is for those who'd like to explore unlike ways of belongings a pencil and what each offers y'all. It shows you lot:

why different grips offer you more scope to draw in unlike ways
affect the range of movement that is possible from both your hand - and arm
enable you to move your pencil in different ways
offer y'all the telescopic to draw more effectively - in different means

Below I look at four different kinds of grips for drawing

the bones tripod grip
a basic drawing grip
the overhand/gesture grip
an extended underhand grip

How to hold a pencil to depict - four different ways

I'll be systematically showing you

what the grip looks like - in diagrams hand fatigued by me!
which fingers it uses
what information technology's useful for
what it limits
who it's recommended for

If you find it useful you lot might like to share it with your friends who also draw - or desire to learn how to draw.

Context - How nosotros learn to grip a pencil

It's oftentimes the case that those who have taught themselves to depict go on to use their familiar grip for property a pen or pencil - the i they've probably learned at schoolhouse when they learned how to write.

However this can cause problems and it also limits HOW you tin can utilise a pencil to draw.

Information technology'south likewise the instance that many people who are teaching people 'how to draw' haven't necessarily been taught to depict themselves and are still using the grip they learned when little.

For me, the essential thing is that people have the information to make a choice. After that, how we choose to employ a pencil is entirely upwardly to the individual.

There is no right or wrong style.
Your way is your mode.
Nevertheless experimentation tin atomic number 82 to expanding and improving your skills in unlike ways of drawing - and ultimately change

Different ways to grip

Study the ways the grips vary. Look at people you know who draw and lookout to see how their grip works. Enquire them why they use the grip and why they like information technology. Enquire them what they can do with it.

In detail note:

which parts of the mitt and arm are involved in the grip
what the role of the thumb is
where and how the pencil rests if non gripped tightly by the fingers
whether the mitt and/or the fingers move the pencil
what provides the pressure
what provides balance
whether control is exerted via pressure level or balance.

The basic traditional / tripod grip

This essentially is the grip that nosotros learn when very young and we learn how to write. Those who teach this grip tend to focus on better command over the the formation of letters.

It can be used for drawing - only it has distinct limitations - and that's entirely down to what the grip allows us to do.

The bones trip grip

Which fingers command the pencil: the pollex, forefinger and 2nd finger - placed close to the tip of your drawing implement

How the pencil touches the paper: Only the tip

What else touches the newspaper: very often the heel and side of the palm also balance on the paper

Useful for:

Limiting the stroke length;
Limiting gestural drawing;
improving command over the tip of the pencil and drawing very precisely

RECOMMENDED for: People working

in detail
in very small-scale sketchbooks or
on modest sheets of paper (less than A4)

In this position, the grip is said to be 'braced' and the grip tends to be tight. The angle tends to be 45 degrees merely tin can be much more vertical. It often involves pushing and pulling strokes.

This grip is also ofttimes used by artists who paint with very small, very controlled dots or strokes in i direction only.

NOTE: This grip can damage your hand if you use it continuously for too long. This is because of the strain it places on your tendons and the scope to inflame the synovial sheath past exerting tension all the time.

I speak as somebody who acquired tenosynovitis after writing continuously and intensively for ii weeks - and I tin can no longer grip tightly with my drawing manus and can experience intense hurting if I try using this grip for besides long. (For an equivalent, retrieve dorsum to the way your hands would often ache when you were doing exams and writing as much as you could in the time allowed)

I've also known quite a few artists who accept besides experienced the same when using this grip for as well long - to get a drawing or painting finished

Which is another skillful reason to explore other ways of belongings a pencil to depict!

If you lot use this grip and work intensively, you are well advised to

give yourself regular breaks and
notice ways to loosen your hand upward in between cartoon sessions.

Or else you'll be cartoon - and bracing using a mitt/wrist caryatid.....

A basic grip for drawing

If you lot hold the pencil farther away from the tip you open up the scope to move the pencil in unlike ways - because y'all enable more use of your whole arm

A basic drawing grip

Which fingers control the pencil: the thumb, forefinger and second finger - placed farther up the shaft of your drawing implement.

How the pencil touches the paper: But the tip

What else touches the paper: The heel of the hand is almost but does NOT touch the newspaper as that instantly limits wrist movement. As the space grows between the paper and the heel of the hand you open up telescopic to involve the wrist, elbow and shoulder in directing motion. Sometimes the pinkie touches the paper when boosted control and/or balance is needed using this grip

Useful for:

making a much wider range of marks eastward.g. longer, looser, larger strokes
hatching at speed
drawing at speed
maintaining control over smaller marks (once you are used to holding the pencil further from the tip)

RECOMMENDED for: People who want an efficient way to depict with freedom of movement to brand a bigger range of marks but telescopic to maintain command when required.

This is a variation and extended version of the traditional tripod grip. The big difference is that the concur is much higher up the shaft of the pencil - meaning that smaller movements of the fingers reach larger movements of the pencil tip.

You only demand to grip every bit much every bit you demand for the cartoon implement to do what you want it to. You do non need to grip tightly or risk dissentious your hand.

This is a video of me using this grip to sketch trees and their shapes in pen and ink (i.e. no running out!) in a fairly precise way. My wrist does non touch the paper. My pinkie provides the balance. I'yard holding the pen a little further down the butt - because this is a quite precise phase of the sketch. Still it allows me to depict at speed - the video is not speeded up.

I'm using a Pilot G-Tec-C4 pen and a Stillman and Birn Epsilon sketchbook - designed for line drawings

The overhand / gesture grip

This is the grip which many students get taught in art schools which teach drawing. It has a number of advantages over the ii grips identified above

This one feels really, actually weird when yous try it for the beginning fourth dimension. You take to persevere to understand why it tin can be very useful grip to know and apply - in specific circumstances.

The overhand / gesture grip

Which fingers control the pencil: all of them, the index finger and arm control management. The thumb and other three fingers contain and support. The pollex can be used to exert pressure level to emphasise mark-making.

How the pencil touches the paper: The sides of your cartoon implement - and the tip when required

What else touches the paper: naught; your mitt AND ARM are completely gratis to move anyway you cull

Useful for:

drawing using the whole arm all the fourth dimension
drawing vertically - at an easel;
cartoon on large sheets of paper;
filling large areas with cartoon medium very quickly
free flowing lines - involving the whole arm
gestural marks
working with charcoal or pastels on big sheets

RECOMMENDED for: people who like the freedom of being able to utilise their whole arm when drawing and/or want to stand up to draw and/or liking working big with large gesture strokes and/or working loose and from big shapes earlier they refine their drawings

A variation on this grip is to create a very long implement to hold your drawing tool (eg charcoal). Yous can and then move in very large arcs.

I've often noticed that those working with charcoal or pastel ofttimes don't get the signal of how yous tin use these media until they start to explore this grip.

The extended underhand grip

This is a modification of both the basic drawing grip and the overhand grip.

Fingers are straighter
the play a joke on is to get the pencil to rest and residuum in a controlled manner without a tight grip.
"Extended" means the grip is abroad from the tip and nearer the top of the pencil.

I'1000 unable to grip a pencil tightly due to tenosynovitis - due to overuse of the basic tripod grip for interviewing people!

Hence I need a grip which is both loose and relaxed but where I can control what I do while just belongings the pencil very lightly.

This is the grip I use by choice. It allows me to practice 95% of what I want to do when cartoon. Nevertheless

I don't typically draw continuing up or on huge sheets of paper; and
I'thousand very happy using it on paper sized (say) upto A3. (xx+ inches) e.chiliad. double folio spread of an A4 sketchbook (meet video below) - and tin can also piece of work on larger sheets using this grip.

The extended underhand grip

Which fingers command the pencil: the forefinger and second finger move the pencil. The thumb holds it lightly to provide a pin point. The grip need not be tight and tin be very low-cal.

How the pencil touches the newspaper: The sides of your cartoon implement - and the tip when required

What else touches the newspaper: nothing; your paw and wrist are free to movement anyway you choose. The little finger might bear on down occasionally to assist with residual.

Useful for:

looser marks - using the side of the cartoon material rather than the tip
roofing large areas with colour quickly
working on larger sheets
hatching - loosely or precisely
quite precise marks

RECOMMENDED for: people who want to (or need to) loosen up their drawing / sketching - AND their grip - but yet like to retain some control.

I can utilize this grip and hatch very precisely and at speed using this grip - essentially because the grip loose rather than tight and it allows me to employ my wrist to help with the drawing movement.
This is a video of me sketching using coloured pencils. Note in item:

where I concord the coloured pencil is entirely down to the length of the pencil! I typically hold it loosely halfway down the pencil length.
how much of the drawing uses the shaft of the coloured pencil cadre to fill space with colour.
The pencil is resting between the outset (index) and 2nd (heart) fingers during fast hatching. The fingers move the pencil and the thumb provides a very light touch to hold information technology in place

The very short version is in my volume!

The VERY condensed version of this is contained in my book. It'south really nice be able to write the long version of how to concord a pencil!

UK: Sketching 365: Build your confidence and skills with a tip a day - published by Quarto (Apple Press)
United states: Cartoon 365: Tips and Techniques to Build Your Confidence and Skills
- published past North Light Books (i January 2022)