Updated on by Rita Moreira
This page collects the terms that come up again and again in realistic pencil drawing, each one explained in a few lines and with its practical use. They run alphabetically, from materials to techniques. If a word has stopped you in the middle of a tutorial, look it up here before carrying on.
Blending stump
A blending stump is a tightly rolled paper tool with two tapered points, used to spread graphite that is already on the paper. Blending softens the step between one tone and the next. Work lightly and follow the direction of the form, because a heavy stump flattens the tooth of the paper and kills the texture.
Catchlight
The catchlight is the small bright highlight where the light source reflects directly off the wet surface of the eye. It sits across the pupil and iris, and it is what makes a drawn eye look alive. Reserve it as bare white paper from the start, because a shaded catchlight never comes back.
Construction lines
Construction lines, also called guidelines, are the light auxiliary strokes that fix proportion, tilt and symmetry before any real drawing happens. They are made with a hard pencil and almost no pressure so they can be lifted later. Think of them as scaffolding: they hold the drawing up while you build it.
Cupid’s bow
Cupid’s bow is the double curve of the upper lip, with two peaks separated by a shallow dip in the centre. It governs the symmetry of the whole mouth, so an uneven pair of peaks twists the entire face. Place it with light guidelines and check it against the nose before shading.
Eraser pen
An eraser pen, or precision eraser, is a pen-shaped holder with a narrow rubber that advances as it wears down. It is a drawing tool rather than a correction tool: it cuts fine light back into a shaded area, such as a single pale hair, a lit lip edge or a highlight inside the iris.
Eyelashes
Eyelashes are the hairs growing from the rim of the eyelids, and they grow in clumps rather than evenly spaced. Draw them with a quick flicking stroke, thicker at the root and tapering at the tip, following the curve of the lid. Even, fan-shaped lashes are the commonest beginner mistake.
Graphite pencils
Graphite pencils are the core tool of realistic drawing, graded from hard H grades through HB to soft B grades. Hard grades hold a fine point and stay light; soft grades release more pigment and go darker but smudge easily. Most portraits need only three or four grades, not a full boxed set.
Iris
The iris is the coloured ring of the eye that surrounds the pupil and controls how much light enters. In a drawing it is never flat: it has radial fibres running out from the pupil, a darker outer ring called the limbal ring, and a shadow cast onto it by the upper lid.
Kneaded eraser
A kneaded eraser, known in Britain as a putty rubber, is a soft mouldable eraser that you shape with your fingers. It lifts graphite by contact instead of scrubbing, so it never tears the paper surface. Dab it to lighten a whole passage, or pull it to a point to reclaim a small highlight.
Light source
The light source is the position and direction the light comes from, and it decides every tone in the drawing. Fix it before the first shading stroke: one main direction, one set of cast shadows, one consistent side for the highlights. Conflicting light directions are what make a careful drawing look wrong.
Lip lines
Lip lines, also called lip wrinkles, are the fine vertical creases that give the lips their texture. They fan out from the central line and curve around the volume rather than running straight. Lift them out with a precision eraser after the shading is finished, and keep them shorter near the corners.
Pupil
The pupil is the opening at the centre of the iris and the darkest value in a portrait. It should be a clean circle, drawn dark and even, with the catchlight left as untouched paper across its edge. If the pupil is not the deepest black on the page, the whole face reads as grey.
Sclera
The sclera is the white of the eye, and drawing it as pure white paper is a classic error. It is a sphere, so it turns away from the light and carries soft grey tone at the corners, plus the shadow cast by the upper lid. Keep it lighter than the skin but never blank.
Shading
Shading is the tonal work that turns a flat outline into a form with volume. Build it in thin layers, starting from the mid tones and saving the darkest darks for last. The aim is not to make things dark but to put each value exactly where it belongs and to protect the white of the paper.
Sketch
A sketch is the fast, light opening stage of a drawing, where proportion and placement are settled before any detail. The structural version is called a block-in: large simple shapes, correct angles, no shading. Time spent here is cheaper than rescuing a finished portrait whose eyes sit at the wrong height.
Values
Values, or tonal values, are the steps of lightness and darkness in a drawing, independent of any colour. Realism depends far more on correct values than on detail: a portrait with accurate tones reads well even at thumbnail size. Squinting at the reference is the quickest way to judge them.