Drawing with Charcoal & Graphite

What's the difference?

Drawing with Charcoal & Graphite

For 2 mediums that appear similar, I find there is actually quite a lot of difference between them when I’m using either to create a drawing.

Before I give away which is my favourite, i’ll give you a few reasons why they differ.

Let’s start with Charcoal….

Pro’s

  • Can cover large areas quickly
  • Comes in different types
  • Great for darks

Con’s

  • Can cover large areas quickly
  • Comes in different types
  • Great for dark areas, no shine
  • Smudges easily
Image courtesy of Jacksons Art Supplies

Types of Charcoal

  • Vine, Willow and Charcoal (both made by heating actual vines and pieces of willow in a kiln or chamber)
  • Charcoal Poweder (literally charcoal in powdered form)
  • Compressed Charcoal (made by combining charcoal powder with a gum binder and pressing it into sticks)
  • Charcoal Pencils (are made by putting compressed charcoal into a wooden jacket)

Charcoal is such a beautiful medium to work with but it can be unforgiving if your not sure how to handle it. It’s quite easy to use too much pressure when applying it to paper, and unintentionally leave marks that cannot be easily softened or erased.

Vine charcoal is probably the best to use to start with as it isn’t as densely compressed so can be easier to make lighter marks and easier to erase. Once you have your initial marks on paper and are happy with your composition etc, then it’s time to move onto the more compressed sticks and pencils.

With Charcoal it’s always best to work loose and light and then refine and darken.

So now onto Graphite….

Pro’s

  • Great for fine detail
  • Doesn’t smudge as easy as charcoal
  • Large range of pencil values available
  • Can erase quite easily
  • Very portable and clean

Con’s

  • Hard to get black dark’s
  • Dark’s have a shine to them
Photo courtesy of Jacksons Art Supplies

Types of Graphite

  • Graphite Pencils (are measured in hardness between high H’s the hardest and high B’s, the softest leads)
  • Graphite Blocks/Sticks (are not pure graphite, but a mixture of powdered graphite and clay that has been fired at a very high temperature.)
  • Graphite Powder (can be used similarly to charcoal powder and is ideal for backgrounds)

Graphite is definitely my go too medium if I just feel like drawing without any thought needed to set up. Also is the ideal medium to take away with me, so I know if I have time then I can do some sketch’s. I always make sure to pack a notebook and 3 graphite pencils (H, 2B & 8B).

It is also my favourite for fine details, I know I can’t achieve the lightness of touch and tiny details I like to achieve with any other medium. I also really love the grey look it gives especially when drawing elephants.

So now for my favourite….

Well I suppose you could of guessed already, I don’t actually have one 

 I love both of them for their own unique qualities. If I want to draw an animal quite loosely and on a larger scale, or with lots of dark’s, then I will go for the charcoal, but if I am drawing A3 or less in size and I want a lot of detail and a lighter piece, then I will go for the graphite.

All I can say is that both mediums are a cheap medium to get started in, so it’s best to just play and experiment yourself and find which you prefer yourself.

Kerri xx

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Kerri xx

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Categories: : beginner, charcoal, educational, graphite

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