I used to doodle all the time when I was a kid - I never thought of myself as a particularly good artist although if I set my mind to it I could render a black and white photo in pencil with some success. But I never pursued drawing because I didn't really have the confidence in my ability, and eventually I stopped doodling as well. 
 
I don't know what came over me recently but I decided that learning how to draw would be a good idea. I've been having trouble being creative recently and it felt like a good way to give my right brain a kick up the ass. For so long my only creative outlet has been music and going into an art shop to purchase sketch pads, pencils, erasers, tortillions, ink pens and the like feels so novel, I love it. 
 
Turns out I'm not a bad sketcher when I set my mind to it (i.e. don't think too much). I also realized that I never held the pencil correctly for sketching - holding it loosely almost halfway up has improved my lines and curves immensely. I bought a couple of drawing books including the excellent "Drawing On The Right Side Of The Brain" by Betty Edwards, who believes that drawing unlocks the mind and facilitates thinking and learning in all other areas too. 
 
There's also been some research into how doodling facilitates the thought process, and I think it's totally true. I watch a lot of video tutorial courses and I find that if I doodle as I'm watching them, far from distracting me from the subject matter it actually improves my attention and retention. And the thought process and problem solving involved in sketching really seems to fire my creative neurons - I feel completely differently about projects when I load them up in Sonar and it's helping me get back into the creative swing of things. Try it! Here's my first attempt at a sketch, of a photo I took of a frisky Great Dane that pinned me to the ground recently. It's not great and TBH I'm pretty terrible at shading but it's good enough to get me thinking about what I could achieve if I keep up the practice. 
 

 
 

I always remember to wipe and flush after I doodle. 
 
(Damn nice job on that dog!)

Nice work sharke, seriously 
 
I wish I could draw like that... Like you, in my teens I used to sketch stuff, in pencil or even a biro, but it was always abstract stuff. As soon as I tried to draw anything proper it just looked flat, with no depth at all. So eventually I gave up. It wasn't a concious decision to top doodling... I just didn't bother any more, and I can't even remember the last time I deliberately sat down to draw something.
 
Well, outside of work anyway... I'm a mechanical designer (specialising in chemical plant piping) and there's always times when it's sometimes quicker to sketch an outline idea on a bit of paper, but everything else is done on CAD software. And those sketches, although enough to convey an idea, are bloomin terrible.
 
 

Hi,
 
Next to Picasso's "blank", I'm not sure that I need to add something, other than the Leunig cartoon from Australia ... the dad is proud of his painting and is showing it to his child, and to the left is a window and it has exactly the same scene as the painting.
 
The only time, I feel ... empty ... or not able to write anything/something, is when things are changing so fast that I do not know how to "color" them, or even to "describe" them. 15 years ago, I was writing 100 poems a year. And at least 45 foreign film reviews a year. Then I had my first right eye surgery, and "focus" was a bit of a problem as it was fuzzy, and sometimes you saw double when you were tired (still an issue even at work!), and have to stop or headaches get in the way. Two more eye surgeries and I had to stop writing a few things. It's weird to think that bad eye sight interfered with poetry, but it did ... I found that the words I was writing were not what I was seeing and I could not figure out if it was bad sight or just bad "translation", and had to stop. The "visions" all of a sudden no longer influenced me, or were as "often", as they used to be ... but my "dreams" got longer and those I could see real good!
 
I think that "talent" is ALL ... about ADJUSTMENTS. Not necessarily simply learn one thing and think that is the end all be all ... you adjust and change as needed, which really is no different than changing some sox or underwear ... it's STILL the same person!
 
Stop fussing ... start enjoying!

synkrotron
Nice work sharke, seriously 
 
I wish I could draw like that... Like you, in my teens I used to sketch stuff, in pencil or even a biro, but it was always abstract stuff. As soon as I tried to draw anything proper it just looked flat, with no depth at all. So eventually I gave up. It wasn't a concious decision to top doodling... I just didn't bother any more, and I can't even remember the last time I deliberately sat down to draw something.
 
Well, outside of work anyway... I'm a mechanical designer (specialising in chemical plant piping) and there's always times when it's sometimes quicker to sketch an outline idea on a bit of paper, but everything else is done on CAD software. And those sketches, although enough to convey an idea, are bloomin terrible.
 
 

I think one of the keys to drawing is to completely detach yourself from the subject and see it as nothing more than a collection of lines and shapes. Sounds obvious but it makes all the difference to think like this, and when you do, the subject matter becomes irrelevant. You could be drawing a battleship, a dog, a hand whisk or a fire hydrant - to the artist it's just a bunch of lines and tones. Draw exactly what you see, look for "negative space" in between things and draw those. The key to reproducing depth is to squint the eyes, it allows you to see shapes in the shading which are like territories on a map. Part of the trick with any kind of art is in knowing what to leave out, and this is what separates the beginner from the master. I really bit off more than I could chew with that dog drawing because I was trying to put too much detail into the shading - a master could take that same photo and convey a much more believable sense of depth and shape with just a few scribbles. This is what really amazes me about great artists, that they can convey so much with so little. I try doing the same thing and fail miserably, this what I'm going to try and improve. And there are tricks and techniques to it, as I'm finding out from books. 
 
Starting to draw has made me appreciate the art of the masters so much more. I've been blown away by the drawings of Edgar Degas, and also of Kathe Kollwitz, whose drawings are extremely miserable and depressing but at the same time insanely beautiful. 
 
Watching masters at work is a great inspiration and we are so lucky to have access to so many excellent YouTube videos of artists at work. I love this guy's YouTube channel: 
 
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaapxaQKJFJ6XC56CHgeTzw
 
He's like the Mexican Bob Ross, his videos are a delight to watch and he's funny too. Really great to see such incredible pieces of art come together in front of you. 

sharke that's a pretty great sketch. Well done! I admire your talent.

I'm so envious of people that can draw or paint. I can barely scribble my name. The computer age saved me and gave me the ability to write and keep legible notes, albeit with typos.

You've got some mad skills there sharke.

Hi,
There is an analogy that has been told a thousand times, but is not something that we take a look at, because our minds do not allow us the intuition/attitude/ability ... to try different things.
 
You guys are all musicians ... but suggesting a try on this and that ... won't go anywhere, because none of you will stand up, try it (with honest intents) and come back and say ... this is what I felt ... even if it was stupid ... which would tell you your concentration is not on what you are doing, but comparing it to what you know ... you're making an assumption that you know it all with the notes and chords and music!
 
It went like this ... a guy was playing one note, and within a few minutes he started jumping for joy while playing and saying ... I got it ... I got it ... I got it. You and I sat there, looked at each other and said ... what? ... but he said he had it.
In many ways, ALL of the electronic music since the mid 60's has been a learning process about playing that one note, and how to maneuver it ... and many folks said ... it's washing machine music. It's not rock'n'roll! (duhhhhhh!!!!!) ... and pretty soon you get a Neu, Kraftwerk, and the one note/knob players (as I call them) ... and all they are doing is telling you ... STOP!
 
STOP!
 
Get rid of the ideas!
 
This is what "noodling" and "doodling" is! Basically, asking you to stop thinking and let something else flow ... regardless of what it is. (I'm reading "On the Road" and that is noodling for me!!!)
 
Now go get your instrument and get stuck on one thing and one thing only ... and if you don't learn something new within a period of time, you are not listening and you are complaining about being bored!
 
Where do you want to take your truth?
 
I have to do the same thing with writing once in a while, and you find that you have 15 different little pieces that don't amount to anything. You know what? The minute I throw them away, they transform into the next piece ... and it kinda tells me that I wanted to bring this to form, but the thinking and process and time was different!
 
Where do you want to be?
 
I'm just not as "mecahnical" as others ... I learned how to do this in theater, by rehearsing properly and I took that to the next level! Very simple!

I guess that means you could draw a straight banana, if you wanted to...