When we learn, we tend to make mistakes right and left. It is these mistakes which educate us on our next steps. Fortunately for us artists, pencils have always been around. We can simply erase our mistakes out of existence. A pencil plays an essential role in any artist’s (whether a novice or seasoned professional) work. Therefore, finding the best drawing pencil is a laborious task. Only through a process of trial and error can you find the right pencil for the precision, shading, and overall quality of your drawings. This article serves as a guide to the infinite world of drawing pencils.
The Diversity in Pencils
When we think of pencils, we think of regular use of graphite pencils, which are easily available to us in our local stationery shops. But your world is about to be shaken for there are a plethora of pencils, all appropriate for different occasions.
Graphite Pencils
The Graphite Pencil is the most common stationary item and perhaps the most versatile. They have a humongous scale of hardness, ranging from 9B (the softest) to 9H (the hardest). The former’s softness assists in shading and drawing dark lines whereas the latter is ideal to craft ultra-fine lines and details. Most aspiring artists start with the F or HB pencils which like Hannah Montana give you the best of both worlds. Hence, graphite pencils are seldom considered the best pencils for drawing and shading.
Charcoal Pencils
If you wish to create bold abstracts to express your innermost self, then charcoal pencils are the best pencils for drawing. The lead in the pencils is made of compressed charcoal. This gives your paintings an intense black mark. If you wish to perfect your shading and broad strokes, you must invest in soft charcoal pencils. The harder pencils are more suitable for creating detailed lines. Charcoal pencils are the best drawing pencils for devising dynamic and dramatic sketches.
Coloured Pencils
Till now we have only discussed pencils with deep and rich black tones. But who doesn’t like a little colour in their lives? Come to their rescue, coloured pencils. They come in any shade that your imagination can ever concoct. They come in both hard and soft scales to achieve light shading or bold strokes. These are usually the best drawing pencils for professional artists who wish to enliven their detailed sketches with vibrant colours.
Mechanical Pencils
The best thing about mechanical pencils is that you would never need a sharpener or eraser again. They are known for their consistent precision. This makes them the best art drawing pencils. They have a humongous range, often used for both technical drawings and detailed portraits. However, you must be careful while selecting the lead thickness, which can alter the desired effect on lines and other intricacies.
Watercolor Pencils
Now you may experience the precision of pencils and the malleability of watercolors, at the same time. Enter the stage, with watercolour pencils! A mix between the two mediums may be used as traditional coloured pencils or as watercolours (simply add water to achieve the desired look). Watercolour pencils are often considered the best colour pencils for realistic drawings as they leave you with a multi-layered watercolour drawing erupting with colours.
Which ones are the BEST Drawing Pencils?
There are tons and tons (for emphasis even more tons) of pencil brands out there. If you are left baffled; we relate to the experience. In our experience, the following pencils have served us well over the years, and therefore we herald them as some of the best drawing pencils out there.
Faber-Castell 9000 Graphite Pencils
Renowned for their consistent quality, Faber-Castell is already renowned for their consistency in quality. The Faber-Castell 9000 pencils exhibit a ginormous range of hardness to imbue versatility and precision in your drawings. They are the best graphite pencils for drawing owing to the smoothness and consistency of the graphite lead.
Derwent Charcoal Pencils
Derwent Charcoal Pencils leave vivid deep black traces. The brand is known for its wide hardness range to ensure an even wider range of effects. You will enjoy the bold marks left by what we can attest are the best charcoal pencils for drawing and sketching.
Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils
Prismacolor Premier are the best colored pencils for drawing. They come in several colours and are smooth and highly pigmented. The pigments help you create layers, which you may choose to blend. Their cores are quite soft, so handle them carefully.
Pentel Twist Erase III Mechanical Pencil
The Pentel Twist Erase III mechanical pencil has a solid plastic exterior and a sturdy rubber grip. It will ensure that you don’t fumble while creating your artwork. It also has a firm metal tip, protecting the fine lead. It comes with a large twist-up eraser to rectify any mistakes that you may make along the way. Even if you drop it, you may rest assured that it won’t break. These qualities are all that we want in the best mechanical pencil for sketching.
Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle Watercolor Pencils
Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle is a must-have if you wish to lighten the load of carrying both coloured pencils and watercolours. They are often suggested to aspiring artists for their versatility which aids them in crafting detailed drawings with the vibrancy of watercolors. The colours are extremely water soluble and do not leave any chunky residue.
Photo Courtesy – Creative Art Courses
