How to draw an ellipse freehand | Product design sketching

Take a ballpoint pen, some paper, and let’s start drawing the 10000 ellipses together! :))
If you are a beginner, drawing the basic forms is difficult.
You lack confidence, and no matter how much you try, you fail at drawing freehand ellipses.
Don't worry,
it is actually simple when you know the tricks.
I start by showing the 5 common beginner mistakes. Then I will give you 8 techniques for you to succeed your ellipses by today!
Get the full article on the blog: www.thedesignsketchbook.com/h...
01:01 MISTAKE #1 PANCAKE ELLIPSE
The most common mistake is the ellipse that looks flat at the bottom. You try to draw many of them, but this flat surface keeps coming back.
01:23 MISTAKE #2 POINTY ELLIPSE
You don’t succeed in making your ellipse symmetrical. The shape of the ellipse becomes an “egg”.
01:58 MISTAKE #3 FURRY ELLIPSE
Lacking confidence, you try to make a perfect ellipse conscientiously. You trace many small lines one after another. But the outcome looks amateur and hesitant.
02:27 MISTAKE #4 SHAKY ELLIPSE
Same as previous. By lacking confidence, your hand is shaking. You feel a bit of fear when you draw.
02:35 MISTAKE #5 OVERCONFIDENT ELLIPSE
At the opposite, you imitate the professional design sketchers. You draw fast and your lines express speed. Ok but… you can’t achieve drawing an ellipse properly.
By drawing with overconfidence, it is like trying to drive a sports car that is too fast for you. You need training on the basics first.
03:25 HOW TO SOLVE THE 5 MISTAKES
We saw the 5 beginner common mistakes.
Now let’s see the 8 complementary techniques to master freehand ellipses with confidence!
03:41 SOLUTION #1 GHOST DRAWING
If you want to learn how to draw like the professionals, this technique is the most important to master early (for drawing “perfect” lines, circles, and curves)
Simulate the movement before tracing your ellipse helps you better visualize the outcome.
Don’t stop at the first ellipse loop. Draw adding 3 to 4 loops on your ellipse to gain momentum and precision.
5:00 SOLUTION #2 DRAW GENTLE
If you have a heavy wrist, it is time to be gentle with your pen. Use the ghost drawing, and progressively let your ballpoint pen nib touch the surface of the paper. Then bold along the way if needed.
05:53 SOLUTION #3 REGULAR SPEED
If you start sketching, avoid making acceleration to show fluidity. You also don’t need speed to draw dynamic lines. Take your time. What matters is the momentum you create during the ghost drawing, not the speed.
06:30 SOLUTION #4 ITERATE
If you feel that you start drawing a bad ellipse, don’t stop! Continue and iterate on top of it. If it is not satisfying yet, draw another one!
08:52 SOLUTION #5 WHOLE ARM DRAWING
Do you draw with your elbow resting on the table?
If yes, get ready to make big progress by starting drawing with your whole arm.
11:04 SOLUTION #6 GOOD SUPPORT
To draw with precision, you need stability.
You use below fingertip to “hold your pen like a tripod”.
So when you draw, your fingertips slide on the paper surface with sketching control and stability.
12:18 SOLUTION #7 SYMMETRY
A beautiful ellipse is symmetrical.
To start this exercise, we draw a series of the minor axis in any directions.
16:23 SOLUTION #8 FOCUS
It is easy to get overwhelmed with so many ellipses on your paper. Your vision gets blurred, and your ellipses get slanted. Visualize the angle of your minor axis before tracing your ellipses.
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I'm Chou-Tac, I am a Product Designer from France.
To get started in design sketching with confidence, I created the Designer Starter Kit for you to download: www.thedesignsketchbook.com/s...
BLOG: www.thedesignsketchbook.com
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INSTAGRAM: / thedesignsketchbook
What the Designer Starter Kit book will teach you.
The Book includes 4 simple guides I made for True-beginner designers.
With this step-by-step method, you will prove to yourself that you can sketch. Some techniques may appear simple. Do not underestimate them, as a designer you will use them every day.