Breaking Down the Process • Portrait Quick Sketch

In this video I tried to break down the stages of my sketching process with a few notes on what I find important at each stage of the drawing. I generally find it difficult to do this because I tend to jump around quite a bit, but I thought this sketch followed a fairly straightforward progression.
If you find this content worthwhile, please consider leaving a comment and a 'like'. It really helps the video to get seen for a small channel like mine. This sketch took about 20 minutes in real time and is shown here as a time-lapse. I hope you enjoy it! If you have any questions, just leave them in the comments and I will do my best to answer them. Thanks for watching!
Much more of my work can be seen on:
Website:
www.jeffhainesart.com
KZbin Channel:
kzbin.info
Patreon:
www.patreon.com/jeffhaines
Instagram:
jeff.haines
Facebook:
jeff.haines.555
Materials:
Soft Vine Charcoal, kneaded eraser, stump and brush on 80lb drawing paper.

[@kristrappeniers]

It’s what you do during the first few seconds, that takes a decade to learn, isn’t it? It’s so difficult to loosen up and not make a total charcoal mess every time. Thanks for sharing all these insights into your creative process 👍🏼

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thanks Kris, I think the beginning gestural part takes along time to develop, so yes. A lot of it comes from a familiarity and comfort with the subject matter and it’s a gradual process.

[@incognito3620]

You’ve been doing this for some time. Yes? Your skill and ease with the medium is obvious. What is interesting and something your viewers should be aware is the finished drawing is not a replica or ‘exact’ copy. It is an interpretation. An artists rendition. It is not a photographic copy. And it is not meant to be. What is most important to know is perfection is not the aim. If you will, John S. Sargent had this ability. His drawings were more paintings in charcoal while remaining a drawing. An astonishing ability I have never been able to duplicate. Or come close to achieving. Of course, personality and aim has a great deal to do with it. Thank you for sharing you skill and ability with us.

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thanks for commenting, I agree. I think a certain amount of life or energy is lost when you chase a perfect likeness. I think the interpretation is more important. And to answer your question, yes, I’ve been drawing forever, but primarily with charcoal for 7 or 8 years now.

[@hedleysnyman8868]

cool man thanks for the vid

[@random_youtuber8095]

Incredible!

[@michaelmeng8629]

beautiful

[@xzfr5846]

I follow your inspiring works. This is pure art. Thanks for sharing.

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thanks! Happy that you like it.

[@monicaemme1]

Thank you from Italy for sharing your wonderful artistic process. It's gorgeous!

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thank you Monica!

[@lilaccilla]

Awesome ❤

[@manpotrait]

Thank friend for sharing you skill.. ❤❤❤❤

[@jizhang2407]

Amazing. Thanks for sharing.

[@OniEdItS-]

Hello thanks for the process video ☺️☺️

[@KillerTacos54]

Incredible! So happy I found your channel

[@JeffHainesArt]

Me too! Welcome!

[@gato3937]

👏👏👏👏👏 espectacular

[@silvermaran2813]

Spectacular 👌😄

[@JeffHainesArt]

Glad you liked it!

[@siskfjkfkk]

Beautiful Sir!

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thanks so much!

[@peterdomnic9452]

Awesome it's an artistic way I love the way u sketch it

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thanks Peter!

[@Zero24249]

Only 20 minutes? Wow, that's impressive

[@tess1193]

❤❤❤

[@abatosart2163]

MAESTRO, SOY SU FAN DESDE PERÚ

[@javiermartin685]

Hola Jeff solo decirte que me encanta ver cómo realizas los trabajos.una maravilla.un saludo.chao

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thanks Javier! Glad that you liked it.

[@sssssunyy]

really nice!! im a teenager and i used to draw lots of realism for school credits but after a while i got bored and started drawing more semi-realism to anime art so i forgot most my skills

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thanks! There's nothing wrong with a less realistic style and the skills you develop will compliment a more realistic approach if you decide to go that way even though it may not seem like it. Best of luck!

[@Stash_Studio]

brilliant sketc jeff

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thanks Stash!

[@meemaism]

Fantastic process! Appreciate the way you feel out the form. Thanks for the inspiring demo. One thing I see on the photo is that the lips are slightly pursed, which affects the curve of the line under the top lip.

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thank you! Glad that you enjoyed it.

[@rdtx2049]

First like and first comment. Hehe Very beautiful portrait btw.

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thanks for checking it out!

[@annamariavonschalien9346]

💖

[@shuvoDhar.5537]

❤❤❤❤❤

[@shuvoDhar.5537]

❤❤❤❤

[@artistb2]

❤❤

[@artwithNaveen92]

Beautiful work

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thank you Naveen! Yeah, fixatives will usually darken the drawing a bit. Some brands less so than others but it’s necessary with soft charcoal and some other dry media. A few light layers usually isn’t too detrimental.

[@user-wc8oc1xs1r]

my teacher thank you

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thank you for watching!

[@jamesrautha162]

Hey - thank you so much for sharing! Do you use the same process with different mediums IE mechanical pencil/ball point? I never considered a portrait as 'gestural' but hoping that helps me - at the moment I can't capture any likeness at all and you do that beautifully.

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thank you! I use the same process with paint because charcoal and paint are both so 'moveable'. I would use this process for graphite but probably not with ink. I hope that helps!

[@chielhuijskes-ld5dd]

Very instructive to see this and the oil painting version on your Patreon page! It is wonderful to see how much the proces is much the same. Maybe I even get enough courage to also try an oil version myself.

[@JeffHainesArt]

You should Chiel! Thanks for the comment!

[@maxkoch3232]

Is this natural or compressed charcoal? Great drawing!

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thanks Max! This one is all done with natural (vine) charcoal.

[@callmedeno]

Any time I've tried to work with vine charcoal I can never get darker values, and when I finish it will all just smudge if it touches anything else. Is this just the nature of vine charcoal? I really like the ease of blocking in areas fast with it, but it is so hard to get the right values because it's so easily disturbed.

[@JeffHainesArt]

Willow charcoal will give you a bit denser value than vine, but don’t usually have an issue with darker values. I agree that the fragile nature of it can be hard to deal with until it’s sprayed. I’ll often start with vine and switch to charcoal pencils if it’s something a bit more developed. You might also try a textured paper that will hang on to the softer charcoal a little better. Thanks for the comment!

[@callmedeno]

@@JeffHainesArt Oh thanks for the quick reply, I hadn't tried willow charcoal, I will try the textured paper and spray too. I really like sketching and value studies, I am just too lazy to pencil everything in, like the boldness/ easy coverage of charcoal so I will give it another go! All the best

[@10hp88]

Smile and right cheekbone 🙁

[@Valerie-lu3rz]

When you use your stump, it seems to be always clean. You seem to bring back light in the drawing. But when I use mine, it’s always so dirty. Is there a tip you could share to be able to do it your way ?

[@JeffHainesArt]

Are you using vine (natural) charcoal? The stump has a very different effect on compressed charcoal & charcoal pencils. Sometimes I use both vine and compressed charcoal in a drawing and I can't use the stump like an eraser quite so much. The amount of work and layering of material might be a factor too. I do wipe the stump on a rag fairly often, but nothing other than that. Thanks for watching Valerie!

[@Valerie-lu3rz]

@@JeffHainesArt It’s the first time I use charcoal. I bought Charcoal Pencil General’s 557-2B. Maybe I should try something else ?

[@JeffHainesArt]

@@Valerie-lu3rz What I'm using is vine charcoal (or willow), sometimes just called natural charcoal. The charcoal you're using is compressed. It hangs on to the paper much more than vine. Vine charcoal takes some getting used to, but you may like it!

[@Valerie-lu3rz]

@@JeffHainesArt Thank you so much for your explanation !

[@staceygrimes4107]

Beautiful drawing!!! Do you have a brand preference for the vine charcoal ?

[@JeffHainesArt]

Thank you! I use Coates willow charcoal and I use Blick's brand for vine. I use willow more often.

[@nn_dn]

Where can I get the tools you use?

[@JeffHainesArt]

Most art supply stores and certainly on-line retailers should have all of it. It's pretty ordinary stuff.

[@artistaasthajain4815]

How much time it took to complete this

[@JeffHainesArt]

About 20 minutes in real time. Thanks for watching!

[@user-yo7ei7gk8e]

А где ухмылка?

[@microzaz]

очень круто, как всегда❤

[@user-tm9ch4xs1v]

What tools do you use