The Truth About Expensive Pencils | Comics - Manga - Drawing - Professional Advice

Line and Color Quick Start Guide: www.thedrawingcodex.com/quick...
I've been searching for the best tools for my entire career. And I've found the best tools are ones you know how to use well.
A great new tool is only good once we become accustomed to it and know how to get the most from it. This becomes easier as we get more experience... but it still takes time to learn a new pencil well.
Switching can be hard, and it's important to understand what new tools and techniques are going to add to your process and style. It's not always a positive thing. The key is to find the right fit.
The fundamental take away from this video is that the pencil and paper interaction.. the pressure and the darkness you get from that pressure are critical components of the way you draw. It affects the energy and motion of the line you put down.
Some of the more expensive pencils like the Blackwings do a great job of putting down a nice dark line with minimal pressure. And they allow you to get really nice dark graphite on the paper easily. But this is only useful if this is a style and way of drawing which you are aiming at.
It's important to take into consideration the functionality and purpose of your lines. Do you need to scan them. Do you need to present the original as a work of art? Do you need to film it? (this is the reason I originally started using the Backwing Matte). Do you want to avoid smudging? Do you want to use a single piece of paper from start to finish... or multiple stages using a lightbox or scanning then printing?
And at the end of the day the most important thing is what you are drawing. The story and emotion behind the art. Viewers rarely care what pencil you use to get there :)
Pencils mentioned in the video:
Blackwing Matte (the black one...Darkest)
Blackwing Pearl (white one, Medium/Balanced lead, great for everything)
Blackwing 602 (Grey one, lighter, good for writing or when you don't need a dark line)
Tombow Mono 100 (All Grades, the one I used was a B. This is a great pencil, nice dark line, stays sharp)
Mitsubishi HI-UNI (all Grades, the one I used was a HB)
Staedtler Tradition HB (This is what I considered a normal decent pencil... these are ones you can buy in Australia at most office supply shops... it's not terrible, but not a premium artists pencil)
I don't do affiliate links. But you can search for where to get these in your area. I normally use Amazon or Jetpens... but keep in mind I am in Australia and the shipping can be significant, you might be able to find a better deal locally.
The best strategy is to buy one of each and see which you like the most... then buy a box or two of your favourite... that way it's a bit cheaper and you know you have a stash...
One of the big reasons I would tend to prefer the fancier brands as a professional artist is that often pencil and art supplies go out of existence and never come back. It's safer to go with what everyone else supports and uses. The more premium brands are also more likely to stick to their graphite formulas and maintain the feel of their product. Cheaper brands can be purchased and switch their manufacturing base... so it has the same name on it but is different. (Just a few things to consider).
Happy Drawing!
Tim Mcburnie
Learn Drawing and Illustration from me: www.thedrawingcodex.com
Portfolio: www.timmcburnie.com
www.artstation.com/tim-mcburnie
timmcburnie
timmcburnie

[@emilyn.p.kalhor]

Thank you so much mister Mcburnie , I'v recently found your channel and As a Fine Art student who newly discovered my true passion through character design and generally video game Art , although in my country there is almost no professional instruction through that specific field but your tutorials and advises are the closest thing to something like a life saver to me as a beginner....this channel is a hidden gem☺️ Wish you the best...❤️

[@LoveBystroem]

I love my blackwings. They’re wonderful, feel so smooth and work so consistently while looking so nice that it’s absolutely worth it for me

[@ignifero]

Totally agree. Is not about that tool, is about the tool that fits your style of working.

[@Cypekrown]

Your channel is awesome! The tutorials have really helped me a whole lot, I am so glad I discovered this channel and it’s basically everything I needed! Cheers Tim!

[@jimmyk7527]

Very good video explains a lot. Now I ordered some Blackwing pencils, great work

[@vivekjagtap5327]

As an artist we should understand the line weight of different objects and how they are separated from one another, it would be nice if you do a video about that too😊.

[@devanshi2193]

I like when the pencils are dark without being too soft, just as you mentioned, due to the smudging issues. A Basic HB from tombow 100 is dark enough

[@Thezellofamily]

I like regular mechanical pencils for the initial sketch and then charcoal pencils for shading. I also like woodless pencils because they seem to break less often and require less sharpening. But It feels like whatever pencil is closest to me at the time is what I use for sketching. THAT SAID, I cannot stand the erasers that come with cheap pencils. Good erasers are worth the $$. Thank you for the video. :)

[@SockMonkeyofcourse]

Faber-castel now has a line of matte pencils that you may want to check out.

[@TheDrawingCodex]

Awesome I'll check those out!

[@JH-pe3ro]

I've been examining pencils more, lately - I picked up a sampler Hi-Uni 10H and a Blackwing 602 the other day, and that actually made me get out the other art pencils I have to do a comparison - and there's a kind of correspondence between pencils and inks in that the tools support relatively looser or tighter approaches depending on how much they aim to be fast/smooth vs slow/precise - it's "brush" versus "crow quill". At either end of the scale the pencils become tough to manage as sketching instruments, because either they're so hard they cut grooves in the paper and you can't erase it, or they're so soft that they smudge if you look at them funny. So I'm gradually moving towards mixing things up to see if they can be worked in a different way - a hard pencil can be used on its side and the scratchy qualities used to make it controlled and keep the values light and even, while a soft one can help block in proportions by adding down some more dark areas. Mechanicals are the obvious go-to for adding precision to lines and I prefer harder lead for those. But I don't find the qualities of the more expensive pencils to be too outrageous. I can see myself being hooked on Blackwings since they basically work as a go-to for smooth lines, and the ferrule is nice - they gave it a worthwhile eraser. But they aren't going to be the only thing I use, and the Shenzhen-made "Nicole PRO" (now NicPro) wood pencils that I got over a decade ago also do the job. I've spent much more on Sharp Kerrys(I have three of them) and those justify the price by being one of the only capped mechanicals around, and one of the most reliable, time-tested designs.

[@scribblesticks2865]

I would like to find art pencils that don’t break when you sharpen them. I get so tired of loosing most of my pencil to the sharpener instead of the paper!

[@puppygxd4116]

I just really like pencils so I collect them

[@pythonicentertainment6280]

hey tim can u do a video on form and shadow

[@artwhat..]

Codex,thanks..

[@devanshi2193]

Honestly i feel that the tombow mono 100 are really underrated, i have seen everyone mention blackwing but not this.

[@gnomoarts1]

❤muito bom

[@fuggleeartshow]

I think overall I prefer mechanical pencils. They're easier to carry and I don't need a sharpener. I have recently been using some of the harder pencils I have at home to do my under drawing because I like it to be super light. I used to not like them much, but I decided I need to start using up all these pencils I have laying around and now I find them kind of useful

[@TheDrawingCodex]

100% agree on mech pencils being way more practical. I also like how consistent they are for drawing. Super easy to use anywhere any time. I still use them when I'm on the go (I just don't sketch out of the house much at the moment!)

[@greekveteran2715]

For line work, the best pencil is the Pentel Graphgear 500 in 0.5mm Ain Stein (2b my favoritfavorit).For drawing though, you also need a thicker lead and the best I've used so far, are the Faber Castell TK 4600/9400. As also the Faber Castell 9000 and their jumbo versions,are in my humble opinion the best and the most versatie and robust pencis you can get. PS for writing/edc Pentel Kerry and for Classic sketching Kohinoor 5.6 Red Chalk.Dark Sepia as also their wooden pencil versions,are a no brainer!!!

[@randominternetuser2]

I liked your thoughts on this, I'm gonna have to try the Blackwing. Do you have any thoughts on drawing in a sketchbook with pencil and having a lot of smudging in the older drawings over time? How to deal with that?

[@TheDrawingCodex]

Oh yeah that subtle page smudging is a problem. I haven’t ever tried to solve it. When I’m travelling I use a .5mm b lead in a mechanic pencil. Because it’s more convenient. And they tend not to smudge as much. Hard bound sketchbooks are a bit better I imagine. If you’re putting down a lot of dark lead… You could use a lead or graphite fixative. The ones that come in a spray can and will fix the graphite so it doesn’t move or smudge. You might only have to do it every week to the last set of pages you worked on. But not sure! Just some suggestions. Let me know if you find any good solutions :-)

[@randominternetuser2]

@@TheDrawingCodex Thanks Tim I'll try the mechanical pencil. I'm really enjoying your channel.

[@Joombajuice]

I use a 4 dollar pentel, I bought 30 dollar lead holders (rotring), black wing pencils, they were garbage compared to my pentel P205. Guess what? The pencil I use the pentel P205 was the last pencil I bought and I love it. Sadly I had to use a lot of over priced "crap" to find my forever pencil. The pencils don't matter at all, the skill does, which takes hard work, practice, and most importantly time. For my "real" pencil I use a Uni Mitsubshi, they're a bit pricey but no where near as expensive as Black Wing and it works beautifully. Neal Adams used a Ticonderoga #2.

[@TheDrawingCodex]

Hey Jeremy! Yeah Pentel 205 is awesome. I used one for most of my work for a long time. Need to do one of these for mechanical pencils :) Thanks so much for your thoughts and specific advice.

[@Joombajuice]

@@TheDrawingCodex :) Well thank you for the wonderful content I love your videos and tutorials. You give away gold for free... and I must say the info that you give out is so useful for artists of all skill levels.

[@ChrisBrown-pw2lb]

I GIVE YOU ONE GUESS AS TO WHERE YOU CAN SHOVE THAT PENCIL

[@THOMPSONSART]

You look like Russell Crowe in the Gladiator

[@Ayatron34]

Blackwing Pearl is overrated. Trying one now for my comic and I won't be getting them back in.

[@SiliconRiot]

Blackwings are most famous for being a favorite with the traditional Disney Animators

[@LazyStory]

But that was the Eberhard Faber blackwings. They have not been made in many years. A new compagny - Palamino - no makes pencils called Blackwing, but not the same. It is just marketing.

[@angryozziebogan3046]

To me the Mitsubishi Hi-Uni 2B feel very similar to the Blackwings, a smooth line with little pressure, plus I'm bias, I love the look and feel of the Hi-Unis, what do you think?

[@tristarsilver6052]

I used to think that the better the pencil, the better I draw. Sounds stupid, I know=) As a result, I settled on faber-castell mechanical pencils 2mm (HB and 3B). Because I like green. P.s. I would like more videos about the environment. Thank you.

[@greekveteran2715]

Tk4600/9400 are the best pencils for drawing and yes,quality and performance of a pencil, with the added precision depth and everything else it offers, makes you both draw better and drawings look way better too.

[@ArabKatib]

.. \:^r Blackwing is a 2B pencil..