The Urban Sketching Handbook 101 Sketching Tips

Master the challenges of drawing on location with this collection of insider know-how and expert tips and techniques. Illustrator, architect, and international workshop instructor and Urban Sketcher Stephanie Bower has collected 101 of her best insider drawing tips, hacks, and techniques and shares them in this fully illustrated, portable book. Learn shortcuts to getting your perspective right, determining your composition, and balancing your light and shadow. This book collects many basic drawing techniques into one handy volume:- How to draw a great line- Using ellipses to draw arches- How towers are like wedding cakes- The importance of your eye level line in sketching- and 97 things more!The book also features beautiful example illustrations from Urban Sketchers around the globe! Whether you are new to sketching or are an experienced artist, this book is chock-full of useful, practical, and clever tips to take your drawing to the next level. The Urban Sketching Handbook series offers location artists expert instruction on creative techniques, on-location tips and advice, and an abundance of visual inspiration. These handy references come in a compact, easy-to-carry format—perfect to toss in your backpack or artist’s tote.

Stephanie Bower worked as a licensed Architect in New York City before gravitating to professional architectural illustration and concept design. She taught the how-to’s of architectural location sketching for over twenty-five years in New York City at Parsons and in Seattle at the University of Washington and Cornish College of the Arts. She has two online sketching classes at Craftsy.com, and she travels and teaches perspective and watercolor workshops internationally, including at six Urban Sketchers symposiums. People around the world follow her sketches online via Instagram @stephanieabower and Facebook, and she is an international blog correspondent for Urban Sketchers. Stephanie is a signature member of the Northwest Watercolor Society. She is the author of The Urban Sketching Handbook: Understanding Perspective (2016) and The Urban Sketching Handbook: 101 Sketching Tips (2019), and co-author of The Urban Sketching Art Pack (2017) and The Complete Urban Sketching Companion (2020), all published by Quarry Books. Visit her website stephaniebower.com, blog drawingperspectives.com, and Instagram account @stephaniebower. She lives in Seattle, Washington.

CONTENTS About This Series 4 Introduction 7   KEYS On Your Mark, Get Set. 9 It All Starts with a Good Line 7 The Values of Tone 31 Compelling Compositions 41 Good Bones. 55 It’s All About Your Eye Level 65 Towers Are Like Wedding Cakes (& Other Ah-Ha Moments)  77 C’mon in, the Water Is Fine 91   Challenges 110 Contributors 111 Acknowledgments 112 About the Author 112