Smooth Shading & Blending

by Akash
(Punjab,India)

Many artists agreed that a 0.5mm mechanical pencil is best for smooth shading and blending.
So, I also used this pencil to create a smooth texture required strictly in realistic portrait or other features like sky.


Materials required-

1)Drawing sheet
2)0.5mm mechanical pencil
3)Cotton wool
4)Soft tissue


First, Lay three layers of graphite using cross-hatch.The first layer is placed horizontal on the surface, the next two layers are diagonal.

Now take a piece of cotton wool and rolling with your hands to make a cotton wool ball.
Then wrap the cotton wool ball by a piece of soft tissue like circular candy which is wrapped by aluminium foil.

Avoid touching the surface of the paper with your hands, blend the graphite smooth using this tool.

Both the pictures show the layers of graphite blended by this tool with slightly different tone.