how to draw customized cars

Customized cars come in all shapes and sizes.

One of the most rewarding aspects of drawing is the ability to create objects that don’t exist in everyday life. For the car enthusiast, this means drawing a souped-up fantasy car. Drawing this kind of car requires the same basic skills that any other kind of drawing does. It’s the way the artist uses those skills that allows him to put the fantasy car he has in his head down on paper.

Difficulty:

Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Drawing supplies
• Reference photos
• Textual references

1. • 1
     Look at customized cars for inspiration. Often by looking at other examples, you’ll get inspired. Take along your sketchbook. This allows you to record details that you liked on certain cars. It also strengthens your drawing and observation skills.You can also take pictures, but don’t skimp on the drawing step.
   • 2
     Gather reference photos of different cars. Some of the photos you’ll already have from your excursion, but also get photos of normal cars. These will become the visual building blocks to which you'll add your own ideas as you draw.
   • 3
     Remember to scout out unusual items for visual references as well. For example, different kinds of bugs or animals may provide you with just the feature that you need to make your customized car. Collect photos of these as well.
   • 4
     Look to textual references for inspiration. If that cool car is something you’ve read about in a novel, you may try your hand at illustrating it. Also look at the work of other illustrators who create fantasy cars and objects. Links to a few of them are below.

     James Gurney: Pellucidar

     jamesgurney.com/pellucidar.html

     Deviant Art: Sketch a Fantasy Car by Toonrama

     fc03.deviantart.com/fs30/f/2008/096/d/0/Sketch___A_Fantasy_Car_by_toonrama.jpg

     Comic Book Bin: Secret Origins of the Batmobile

     comicbookbin.com/bubble120.html
   • 5
     Make rough concept sketches of your ideas. Don’t be afraid to use up the pages of your sketchbook.
   • 6
     Draw the cars in basic geometric shapes first. This helps you ensure that you’ll have proper placement on the page. It allows you to work out proportion. Use a grid in your drawings if you need extra help. All drawing uses the same basic skills, just in different measure.
   • 7
     Refine your lines and erase the extra lines that come from this phase.
   • 8
     Begin your drawing. Be sure that you have all of your visual references, and refer to them often as you draw

Tips & Warnings

• Most artists creating new objects rely heavily on the concept sketches phase. This is the time for you to figure out if your ideas, like the bug legs, will work visually on the body of your car.
• Don’t skip the concept drawing phase. This allows you to work out visual problems on your car before you begin drawing the final version of it. Even though you make up these cars from your imagination, they still need to make visual sense. For example, think about the Transformers, and the way that that they fit together. Because you see things like wheels on them even when they are transformed, they make sense. Your designs should have the same kind of logic.