How to Make a Grid for Drawing and Enlarging a Still Life Photo

Scale a still life image to a larger size with the proper grid.

When it comes to creating an attractive drawing, artist often base their new work on a previous piece of work or a brilliantly captured image. An image of still life can be enlarged through drawing by creating a grid. A grid allows an artist to scale the image to a larger size precisely as to avoid skewing the image. Creating a grid to draw a larger image of a still life photo is a simple task any individual can perform with minor measuring skills.

Things You'll Need

• Straight edge
• Tape measure
• Pencil
• Masking tape
• Drawing paper, 12 inches by 18 inches
• Vellum, 12 inches by 18 inches

Instructions

1. Position the drawing paper vertically on a flat surface. Tape down each corner with a 1-inch section of masking tape.

2. Measure and mark every ½ inch around the perimeter of the paper. This creates a guide line for scaling the image to draw.

3. Place the straight edge horizontally across the paper and draw a line from the markings along the left side across to the markings along the right side of the paper.

4. Place the straight edge vertically across the paper. Draw a line from the markings along the top of the page to the bottom of the page. This will create a ½-inch square grid over the entire sheet of paper.

5. Place vellum over the paper grid and tape down the corners with masking tape. Draw the image onto the piece of vellum with a pencil as guided by the 1/2-inch grid. This enables you to create an image twice the size of the original.

References

• Keys to Drawing; Bert Dodson
• Drawing for the Absolute Beginner: A Clear and Easy Guide to Successful Drawing; Mark Willenbrink, et al.