Apply Pressure Fearlessly with Natalia Tomás Segovia
"Our drawings don't look contrasted enough because we are afraid to apply pressure. We need to let go of that fear."
The secret to a powerful portrait isn’t rendering hyper-precise detail. It’s learning how to capture big shapes of light and shadow, let go of the fear of going dark, and trust the evolutionary journey of your sketch.
In this lesson (45 mins), Spanish artist Natalia Tomás Segovia guides you through a tactile approach to sketching using watercolor pencils, a touch of blending, and a final wash of water and gouache.
By shifting your focus from rigid precision to the underlying structural planes of the face, you’ll discover how to sculpt dimension and capture an authentic, dramatic sense of life.
What You’ll Discover in This Lesson:
- Conquering the Fear of Contrast: Learn why leaning into deep, rich values is essential for creating true depth, and how to stop holding back from making your darks dark enough.
- The Power of Structural Shading: Discover the benefits of starting with broad, flat pencil strokes to build a cohesive hierarchy of tones before moving into finer details.
- Dynamic Pencil Mechanics: Explore how changing your grip—holding the pencil far back for swift, structural auxiliary lines versus close to the tip for detail work—drastically impacts your line quality.
- Working In Tandem: Master the habit of drawing features, like the eyes, simultaneously so your portrait remains integrated rather than detached.
- Blending and Layering Mediums: See how to safely incorporate a paper stump, water washes, and white gouache highlights to turn a simple pencil line drawing into a textured, multi-dimensional study.
"Our drawings don't look contrasted enough because we are afraid to apply pressure," says Natalia. "We need to let go of that fear."
Natalia reminds us that there is an unmatched freshness in a fast, expressive sketch that captures the vibrant velocity of the process itself. Let's get started!
