1. Study the natural scene or object in front of you and look for patterns. Notice the shapes of leaves and petals. Observe the underlying structure that supports them; how do they attach or arrange themselves on a branch or stem? How do they grow?

2. I notice that the oak leaf is symmetrical, with four notched lobes on each side and one at the end. Once you know how to draw one side, you can draw the whole thing.

3. In this cluster of leaves, some can be seen straight on and some from the side. I apply what I see to create the side view stamp.

4. Look for the underlying structure of your subject; this could be a flower petal formation or the curved stems of tall reeds. These leaves grow from a branch. If we imagine all the leaves falling away, it would look like this.

Once you understand the basic patterns and shapes, commit them to memory so that you can stamp, or repeat them, on the page. You can still look at your subject for reference as you work.

5. Add the repeating natural elements to your drawing using the memorized shape or pattern. It may help to first draw some of the underlying structure and then add your stamps. Or, you may prefer to stamp first and add the structure afterward.

I drew the branch first, as a sort of scaffolding. I added leaf stamps using a mix of front and side views and smaller and larger leaves. To fill in behind the larger leaves and add volume, I drew just the part of the leaf I could see.

1. Observe: Take a moment to observe and find the hidden order and repeating patterns. Think of your observations like you’re creating a recipe and create an ingredient list. I noticed that each flower is made of three simple elements: a central column, petals, and a stem.

2. Memorize: Memorize your observations so you can easily cook up your drawing in the next step. As you deepen your observation, think about what words come to mind and what stamp might represent them. I notice that the central columns of these flowers are lined with rows of thin filaments, the petals are paddle-shaped and the leaves grow in thin, arrow-shaped pairs.

3. Stamp: Assemble your ingredients to make the final dish and compose your image using your stamps.

I drew the flower stems first, creating the underlying structure for layering the flower stamps. Next, I built each flower by stamping the column, petals, and leaves. I added the cone’s finer details last. Working this way, I was able to look at my page more and have more creative control.

Even in quick sketches, you can create a sense of depth in scenes by distinguishing between foreground and background details. If you’re working in pen or other indelible media, create layers without crossing back over existing linework by first drawing what’s closest to you and then adding things in the background. You’ll naturally leave space for background details that fill in around foreground elements to create the illusion that things are resting on top of each other.

1. To draw a layered scene, block in the foreground shapes first and then work backward, away from you, blocking in the shapes of each receding layer. In this backyard scene, there are three layers: the leaves, the flower pot sitting on bricks, and the glass doors.

2. Draw the outline of the leaves in the foreground first and then tuck the outlines of each new layer behind the last. I outlined the flowerpot, roughed in the flowers, and sketched the frog. Finally, I added the outlines of the doors.

3. Once the overlapping shapes are blocked in, add finishing details, such as leaf veins, shadows, and textures. I added the veins on the leaves using the stamping technique, finished the flowers, marked the grooves of the bricks, added details to the toad’s face, colored in the large ceramic pot, and added emphasis to the areas of shadow.

1. Visualize the animal as a series of distinct sections and basic shapes. Though you won’t draw these on the page, this exercise will help you simplify and understand what you’re about to draw.

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2. Start drawing the head and work through each section, one at a time, using the contour line drawing technique (see here) to trace the outline. Depending on the animal’s pose, the top-most point may not be the crown of the head; it might be the nose or even the rump.

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3. Work each section to the same point of completion before you move onto the next. This helps to manage proportions and prevents overworking one section.

Use your line to not only to define each section’s outer perimeter, but also to suggest its texture. I vary my line so that it communicates more than just shape. For a scruffy dog, my lines are messy because that’s the texture of its fur. If I were drawing an eel, I’d make my line slippery and fluid.

Use as few lines as possible for each section. This maintains the flow of your drawing and connects each section to the next, so the animal feels alive, not disjointed. Refer to the blind-contour drawing exercise and let the topography of each section lead you to the next.

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4. Once the basic outline of each section is finished, determining the animal’s overall shape, add finer details. Try using the stamping technique for adding features (see here).

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A bird, with its sleeker shape, and seen from farther away, yields a simpler drawing, but the process is the same.

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This process is similar to drawing top-down, but you begin drawing with your hook instead of the animal’s top-most point. I use this method when some part of the animal catches my eye and I want to enter the drawing through that point, which could be a forelock, a curl of a tail, or a hunched shoulder.

Here my terrier’s pricked-up ears are the hook; they also vie with the nose for the top-most part.

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In this quick, 30-second sketch of a chicken, I drew the tail first, since the fin-like shape was the first thing that caught my eye on this fluffy-bottomed hen.

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