Choosing Good Reference

What I Look for in Figure Drawing Reference

I wrote in this article below about the main differences between drawing from life and drawing from photo references. If you haven’t read it, I really recommend checking it out. It also gives good context for my entire approach of “drawing life” when drawing the figure, not simply focusing on drawing the figure as a bunch of shapes.

Let’s Talk About Photo Reference

Obviously the reality for most of us is that if we want a sustained and consistent drawing practice then we have to have photo reference to draw from. I personally only have limited access to life drawing, and so because I try to draw weekly, I use photo reference A LOT. Every drawing I make from photo is always “drawing” on my experience of working with a live model. And I suppose because of that I’m very, VERY particular about the kind of photo I choose to work with.

In today’s post I want to outline some things you should consider when choosing photo reference.

Just as there is a sea of content on Youtube for drawing tutorials, so too there is a minefield of resources for subject matter. By minefield I mean you can’t simply use google search, lol ! 🙈

Sometimes it’s ok to search on Pinterest for reference, if you type in “figure drawing reference” for example. There, you are not so likely to run into red-level images. Mostly all the photos are fine, and for the most part the models are semi-clothed/covered.

There are also some dedicated sites that provide artistic model reference images. In the past I have used Line-of-Action . com however I quickly moved away from it because I found the quality of images very poor - in terms of the manner of the photography, the poses and overall selection. I now tend to use either Grafit Studio (you can search for them on gum road.com) or I generally head over to the New Masters Academy YouTube channel and find their playlists of model poses. NMA provides many videos of various models, amounting to hundreds of poses to draw from.

The thing I like about New Masters Academy is the artistic quality of the posing and the lighting. The models are all posing in ways that suit drawing or painting. In other words, for the most part …yes, there are a couple of reels with costumed and circus performers in the mix… but for the most part, the models are just posing in the exact same way they would if they were in a life drawing session.

Natural Poses

I tend to avoid any pose where the model is in some sort of exaggerated action or acting. For me, and my purposes, that is not a relevant pose to draw. When it comes to drawing the figure, I am interested in making a drawing as an artwork, not so much interested in drawing for the purpose of animating, concept character design, or drawing a scene from a game or movie.

In other words, it’s down to personal taste and personal end-goals, but I am looking for realistic, natural and even neutral poses because I think they work better as finished drawings. Not to say that every time I draw the model I want to make a finished drawing, but I know that a natural, relaxed and neutral pose will ultimately make a more interesting and compelling piece of art as a final, finished drawing, if I do manage to end up with a decent drawing. A natural pose results, I think, in a drawing that offers far more for the viewer to appreciate, interpret and relate to, than a drawing of a person jumping off a rock wielding a sword and shield, stabbing something imaginary. It’s the same thing for portraits if you think about it - a neutral and relaxed face will make for a more interesting portrait than a face that is showing a lot of emotion, or grinning very widely (the caveat being if it’s an intentionally personalized portrait).

What are your thoughts on finding model poses to draw? Do you have a favorite go-to site to find images? Drop a comment below and let us know your approach to finding reference, or if you have any good resources to share here.

Continuing below, for the paid members, we dive a bit deeper into the set of criteria that I always tick off to ensure I’m getting the best photo reference.

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Wishing you a wonderful week and happy drawing!