Reference question?

Question

What do you draw from - memory, a photo, or a simular picture? Is it easy for anyone to draw from memory? Do you have any tips on drawing from memory?

Answer 1

Painting from photos gives us good proportional information, but often we have to use some "artistic license" with the composition, colour and lighting. Greens are especially hard for to reproduce on photos. I will quite often use my own photos for reference after taking mental notes regarding lighting and colour, and maybe make a sketch and jot down some written notes.

But often we don't have a camera with us when we need it most. Drawing from memory requires constantly taking mental notes of proportion, perspective, light source, colour combinations & value shifts, composition and focal points, and many other variables. It's something you have to practice.

Some folks try to paint from memory but they end up making errors by drawing what they "think" they know instead of what they really saw. For example - when we're kids we draw trees with branches sticking out from the sides of the trunk. In fact, branches stick out from the front & back of the trunk as well - we just don't see them unless we look for them. Light sources are one of the hardest things to "invent", another is a believeable human form - unless we A: think of them analytically, and B: practice a lot.

So practice looking and really seeing - by first drawing what you see, then go home and draw it again without looking at your sketch. Compare the two and see what you've missed, and keep practicing! It took me years before I could faithfully reproduce a scene I had seen briefly.

Have fun

Answer 2

if i am drawing for a class or something, then it is usually from photo reference or a still life. if i am just sketching random doodles, then its created in my head, with some photo reference for things such as faces. it is easier for me to draw from memory because then there is no right or wrong, you are creating exactly what you want to see, not necessarily what you are looking at.

Answer 3

Try to visualize it in a quiet room like the library or your own room. Remember the incident and paint that picture in your mind.