When I begin a sketching program I almost always start by drawing only in side views. The point of early sketch work is for the designer to 'find' many ideas in a short space of time. By sketching in side view (and usually reasonably small) I can generate many pages of ideas very quickly. This is mostly down to the fact that you need to think about perspective very little, and can therefore concentrate on thinking about ideas. Almost the only element of perspective visible in these drawings is the way that you can see the far side wheels. This is due to the fact that in 1-point perspective the only convergence lines that actually converge are those moving towards or away from the viewer.

Stage 1

You can see here that I have started by gently roughing in a ground line and two wheel positions. I have also lined in a shoulder height for the vehicle. The important thing to remember here is to keep your line work fast and light. This way you can change and move things around as the sketch progresses. A common mistake when learning to sketch is starting a new drawing when you realise something is out of place. Don't! Continue with the drawing, using the mistake as a guide to amending the problem, increasing the darkness of your lines as you refine the sketch.

Stage 2

Here I have lightly marked in the rough proportions of the vehicle, using a centre line and the window opening. When putting in the centre line try to avoid the temptation to shorten the overhangs too much by bringing the front and the rear very close to the wheels. Look at a photograph of a car in side view and you will see that the corner of the vehicle falls somewhere in the space you are leaving. If your vehicle has a lot of plan shape at the front or the rear then you will have to leave even more space.

Stage 3

I have now defined the top edge of the bodywork from the rear window, over the roof and down to the front bumper. Remember when drawing this line that it denotes the curvature over the roof and through the two screens (when looking directly from in front or behind the vehicle). For instance you can see that the rear screen has a little curvature, which flattens out into the roof (although not completely flat) and then as the corner surface travels into the windscreen the curvature increases. You can see that the closer the edge line is to the centre line, the less curvature is implied for the surface between.

Stage 4

Once you are happy with the general shape and proportion you can begin to firm up some of the details (remembering of course that it is only a sketch). I have added some light reflection lines in the side window and down the body side. I have also defined the front corner. Again the same rule applies here as when drawing the roof. The further the corner is from the centre line of the front end, the more curvature you are giving the front bumper in plan view (veiwing from above).

Stage 5

This is the final stage before applying colour. Here you can see I have firmed up all the details I am happy with and added some detail to the wheels. It is always worth putting a little bit of effort into getting the spacing reasonably correct on the wheel details since it will lift the look of your sketch a lot. Also important to note is that the sketch is still very loose and fast in its line work. This will only come through perseverance and practice.

Stage 6

Once you are happy with the general design and proportions you can begin to add colour. Here I have simply shaded the windows and wheels using a dark grey marker five or six. Note that this does not have to be super accurate. I have then further darkened the lower area of the windows and the front wheels, by letting the marker dry and going over the area again. The reason I have only darkened the front wheels further, and not the rears, is to help give the drawing a sense of movement. If you give all areas of your sketch the same weight and level of work then the final result can look very flat on the page.

Stage 7

This is the stage where you will have to force yourself to not become 'precious' about your sketch. Hopefully you will now have a nice drawing on the paper, and to attack it in a loose and fast manner with a marker pen is not easy. These lines represent the scenery reflecting in the body side. You can see that I have continued the reflection in the window onto the bodywork and darkened down just beneath the shoulder. The area I have lightly markered half way up the body side actually represents the horizon line, which is reflecting from behind the viewer. The important thing here is to be very loose and to keep your choice of marker very light.

Stage 8

This is probably the simplest part of the drawing, yet the one where you really see your sketch coming to life. Just choose a colour of pastel similar in colour to the previous marker work and apply it along the length of the bodywork, centering just beneath the shoulder line. Do not worry about going over the edges of the drawing.

Stage 9

You are now in the final stage of the sketch and really just finishing off. Using an eraser and gently rubbing out all the areas the pastel has fallen on upwards facing surfaces of the car, you can really bring out the 3D form of your vehicle.

This is the point you could actually stop. The drawing is now complete enough that anybody can look at it and get a good idea of the 3D form you are trying to describe. For a little bit of extra sparkle to the drawing however you will probably want to add the smallest hint of highlights.

Stage 10

By using an airbrush (if you are lucky enough this is easiest to do in Photoshop) you can brush a very quick faint line down through the bodywork. Then on all the upward facing surfaces it falls on, you can spray a light halo of white. Remember to be subtle here since you don't want to lose the definition of your surfaces, you only want to add that final bit of sparkle.

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