Drawing Caricatures using an iPad - why do it?

Why draw a caricature? Why not just take a photo?

1Because you can draw on an iPad and your subject might think you are writing a text message, whilst they would either get annoyed or pose un-naturally if they thought you were taking a photo.
2 Because your subject is photo shy.
3 Because they would be flattered and intrigued to have a caricature. They may have had lots of photos but never have had a caricature.
4 Because it is more creative.
5 Because you can sell it. People can take their now photos as selfies but they mostly cannot draw a caricature.
6 You edit out the unnecessary and capture the essence of the person.
7 Because you are proud of your artistic skills. It's fun, creative.
8 Because the sitter has to keep still and talk to you whilst you are drawing, creating rapport and a friendship more than spending two seconds taking photos.
9 Because you have no chance of winning a photography competition but think your original drawings might win a drawing competition.
10 Because somebody asked you to do it. To raise money for charity at an event.

Angela Lansbury

Drawing whilst travelling - using an iPad

Why do you need to draw rather than taking a photo?

1 Sometimes people who don't want a photo taken. They might say, "I don't look good in photos," or, "I have enough photos," or, "It's company policy - no photos".

2 If you photograph them at work apparently sitting around and not on the job at work they might get into trouble. However, draw them in a bikini on a beach, or dancing, or playing golf, change their name to a nickname, then their boss won't recognize them or be bothered that the hotel or restaurant chain is being brought into disrepute.

3 They might be intrigued by being drawn. Many young people have never had their photo drawn.

4 Drawings can disguise faults. The crossed or gap teeth which are so obvious to you might be the feature they hate showing. You could correct the teeth, or show them with a closed mouth and exaggerate the lovely eyes, and they would be flattered.
5 Drawings can accentuate the features which define them. Maybe they are very proud of the Afro hairdo, the giant moustache, the heavy brows, the ten rings on their right hand, the huge pendant, the giant ear-rings, the jaunty hat. A photo might show them just looking distinctive or odd but all their photos show the same. The drawing exaggerates that feature and is flattering to them.

6 Surprise.
Potential sitters know more or less what a photo will look like. They can see themselves in a mirror or reflected in a shop glass or the waters of the lake. They don't know how you see them or how you will present them.

7 You can ask them what they want. Some people love being photographed. Others are impatient.

8 Getting out a camera can annoy people. The person being photographed. Others at the same table. People nearby. Restaurant owner. However, with a pencil and paper you may appear to be taking notes on a meeting. You can even put a piece of lined paper over the bottom of the drawing page and makes notes such as straight nose, almond eyes, curly hair, bald patch, bright red streak in hair, silver necklace, blue shirt, black watch, shoes with big laces. It looks as if you are taking notes, and you are.
You can note their name and the date, and add these to the drawing later, or when you lower the sketch pad or drawing pad. Or go to the toilets and adjust the sketch, add their name and date and your signature, then come back and show them the finished result.

9 I sometimes travel with a sketchpad and pencils ranging from HB to heavier for shading, coloured pencils which can be made into colour wash by adding water. I have miniature set which I travelled with but never used. I take a set on holiday but often leave it behind.If I take a sketch pad, I often carry A6, diary size.

10 A4 pads are too large, You need a tote bag. Family and friends ask why I am carrying such a large bag to a nice restaurant. Or I have to lug heavy stuff around all day and I'm tired before I arrive.

I recently went into an Apple store and tried out their device with the pen. I wanted to photograph a member of staff with a beard who had just met a customer with the identical beard. They looked like twins. The member of staff would not let me take a photo. I don't take photos if asked not to. No point. I am trying to ingratiate myself and please people.

So I found a bystander and added the Apple green shirt as a reminder of the location.

This was the result.

I was really pleased with the results. 

How does the iPad work? It is one of the top of the range models. I was surprised to see that the smallest iPad mini is less costly than I expected, under £500. 

However, the drawing feature is only with the large size iPad Pro which is more expensive.

How does it work? You need to practise a bit but a demonstrator in store will show you. You need the special pen which goes with the device. You can choose from many colours by tapping on them

Glossary

Bust - sculpture of head and often shoulders, often displayed in galleries sitting on top of an oblong upright so the head is on level with yours

Caricature - exaggerated drawing of a person, body may be in miniature to fit into the page 

Portrait - picture of a face, usually just the head and shoulders, like a bust in @ dimensions or personality - that's to say the whole body

Sitter - person who sits still for an artist.

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, portrait painter, caricaturist.

Turning Your Travels Into Photos and Drawings

Why bother to do a drawing when you can take a photo? Why bother to take a photo if you prefer to do drawings? How can you turn a photo into a drawing?

Why Take A Photo
Often you see a place which is pretty but don't have time to draw or don't have sketching stuff with you. You can take a photo and draw later, in the evening, in daylight, or when you get home from a holiday or day trip.

Moving objects such as animals are best captured in photos. You can tell a bird in a tree to sit and wait while I draw you.

Why Draw Rather Than Photo?
You might want a drawing instead or in addition to add a personal touch, to add to a birthday card, to a collection of drawings on a wall, because you can sell a drawing for more than a mere photo.Just because you enjoy drawing.

Just as you can crop a photo, you can make a drawing from a small part of a cropped photo. Or you can add items, for example a point of interest, a human, a dog, a transplanted tree, in a landscape with an empty centre or lacking human interest. You can juggle elements of one photo, do a montage of different places in a city or resort, add missing members of a family to a group portrait, or combine two photos (even a bride and groom where the best photos of each are in different photos.

Why take your own photo? I like to take a photo of myself with a celebrity, not just be sent a stock photo. It proves I have met the person. A picture adds credibility to my text. It brings back memories of the event. I can sell a photo which I have taken, not somebody else's photo. An editor won't want a stock photo used before by other people.

Even a drawing from somebody else's photo can involve you in copyright photos. One way round this is to take elements from Wikipedia, those photos which allow you to adapt them in any way, and not in copyright or requiring any acknowledgement because they are in public domain, for example taken many years ago so copyright has expired.

Once you have found or created a photo, you create a grid and copy small sections at a time. This makes it easy to retain the proportions. You don't end up with a Picasso type drawing with floating eyes.

Doing small sections also gets you over the fear of starting a major project, and being overwhelmed by the enormity of it, or not knowing where to start. Some people like to start a portrait with the eyes. Or start in the middle. A scientific minded person might start top right and move along horizontally, line by line.

You break the whole task into tiny sections and just complete one at a time. Having started one small section you are then inclined to finish the lot. But, if you prefer, you can come back to it.

An excellent video on this subject is provided free as a taster end tempter and try out for a downloadable drawing course.

If you still have the scene or person you have photographed, and then drawn from the photograph, you can finish your set of pictures by photographing the drawing with the photograph or the sitter with the drawing.

http://thesecretstodrawing.com/about-the-secrets-to-drawing/

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, caricaturist.