Learn how to draw portraits
Please Note: When learning to draw portraits, best practice is to use a real person as your model, rather than working from a photograph. You can either ask a friend or someone from your family to sit for you, or alternatively you can draw a self-portrait using a mirror.
Ability: Suitable for all
The minimum time required to watch and respond to the video content and complete the tasks is 6 hours. The tutor also recommends how you can develop your work further so that you can continue to use the skills acquired on this course for future projects.
Access: Six months of online access to all of the course content.
Getting started
- Health and safety, materials, equipment and set up requirements
- Making a first study – face on
- Exploring different poses
- Building up the features
- Focus on mark making and rendering tonality
- Finishing touches
Completion
- Additional notes and ideas
- Access to our Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) with course content
- A series of instructional videos to work through and repeat at your own pace
- Practical tasks to complete
- Helpful materials suppliers list
- Student online gallery where you can post images of your work for tutors to review and comment on
- Support from the college and tutors via email should you need it during the course
- Additional notes and ideas
- Pencils 2B & 4B Soft charcoal pencil
- White chalk pencil
- Thin willow charcoal
- Putty eraser
- Hard eraser
- Masking tape
- 3 sheets of A2 Cartridge paper – Arboreta paper or stone colour, medium grade
- 3 sheets of A2 Sugar paper
Equipment
- A2 size drawing board, if using sheets of paper, otherwise use the pad to support
- An easel - if you don’t have an easel at hand then work on a drawing board and rest it/ prop it up against a chair
- Clips to hold paper
- Blending tool
- Scalpel
- Pencil sharpener