Keep drawing by hand.

One of the most important lessons I’ve learnt in recent years is that you can never trade digital art for real-life sketching. The muscle training, the fine touch, the detailed work — it all comes out of having a physical medium to apply yourself to.

Digital artwork is great, don’t get me wrong. I was a very vocal advocate of it all through college. There are wonderful things you can do with a digital medium. But you cannot sacrifice the experience of working with a real medium just because you want to be digital.

Even if 90% of your finished work is done on a computer, sketches are an inherent building block of one’s talents. There is something to be said for digital sketching — it can serve a similar function. But in my own experience, it cannot replace the actual piece of paper and pencil. Something is always lost when you abandon these.

The “easy” way out is usually the wrong way when it comes to art. I know many artists who use SMS’s Poser as a means of replacing live models or gestural work. What does that say about their talents? Either they lack experience with life drawing, or they’re letting what experience they have go to waste. That’s what that says to me.

For basic poses, everyone uses reference. Make no bones about it; reference is key. But tracing or mimicking without any real understanding of fundamental principles is going to get you nowhere. Everyone knows you took shortcuts; everyone knows your work is lacking. Is it worth it just to make a buck? Not in my world.

If you’re starting out or just looking for advice, here’s mine: Do things right. Take the time, learn the fundamentals, and don’t cut corners unnecessarily. Good work can always be appreciated, and if you dedicate yourself, your talent will shine through.