11+ inspiring things to draw with pencils (with photos) | Pencil Drawing Ideas

If you've already googled drawing ideas you probably came across sites that only listed some ideas... When I'm looking for drawing ideas I want to see photos! Photo's are way more inspiring when it comes to looking for drawing ideas. So I made you a list of inspiring drawing ideas with plenty of photos!

What to draw?

1. Misty forest

Is it just me or does mist make everything look better? The very dark and detailed trees in the foreground are perfectly complemented by the lighter blurry trees in the background, which results in a very dynamic drawing with lots of easily created depth.

2. Horse piercing through the mist

More mist! This is kind of the same as the first one; something covered in mist but also partly not in the mist. Making a drawing like this doesn't only give a really cool effect, but it also saves a lot of time as you don't really have to draw anything that's covered by the mist.

3. Water droplets

Water drops are always fun to draw. When drawn right they can look very 3D and very real as if you can touch them. When you just have a few minutes to draw or you want to make a quick drawing, this might be the one for you. 

4. Everyday objects

I really like this one as your drawing subjects are everywhere you look: a pencil, your phone, the chair you sit on, the vase with flowers, an apple, etc. 

It's supposed to be really good for your drawing skills to draw real life objects instead of photos. Just pick the first object you see and start sketching. It doesn't have to be super realistic, just a simple sketch with simple shading.

5. Glass objects

I love reflections. They so fun to draw. And what reflects more than glass?! Well, yeah, a mirror... But glass is often shaped in round forms or with some relief. The reflections follow those curves and indents and make everything that reflects in the glass look very distorted. Glass also reflrcts differently when there's water in it. Suddenly all reflections are flipped. I can go on for much longer, but that'll probably be boring to read...

6. Ripped paper

When I saw this I knew this should be in this list. It isn't your conventional pencil drawing idea. It's more like an experiment or texture drawing rather than drawing an object. 

And you don't have to stick to just ripped paper. You can get a little creative with those tears in the paper. In the image below for example there are hands coming through those tears making it looks a lot more interesting and artsy.

7. Hand pressing through the paper

This one is also more of a texture things rather than drawing objects. Making it look like something is indenting the paper gives it a really cool look and it doesn't have to take much time at all. Of course you can make it as diffcult as you like, like the image below. Or you just stick to a simple shade indenting the paper.

8. Scribbled dog

When I first saw this drawing I was so impressed by the way they used just seemingly random scribbles to make a drawing. The scribbles perfectly mimic the fur of the dog. 

9. Saturn of course!

I couldn't not include drawing a planet. I really like planets and all those lines and cloud spiralling shapes they have on their surface. 

10. Yes, a portrait

I wasn't going to add portraits to the list because it's so cliché, but when I saw this more impresionistic drawing of a prortrait I could help it. I really like the large motions used to make the illusion of hair and the simple shapes that build up the face.

11. Fall leafs

Fall has just begone which means many trees will drop their leafs. Leafs of every color: red, yellow, brown. I love looking at those leafs, especially the ones that have multiple colors. There is no better time to draw a leave than during fall.

12. Mountain view

Mountains! I really like mountains. Rocky cliffs, a small water stream at the top, hard wind blowing through the few trees that grow there, following a narrow path along the edge, very steap slopes.

Luuk Minkman

Full-Time Artist Specialized in Automotive Art

I'm an artist and I draw realistic cars with alcohol markers and colored pencils. I have been doing so for a decade. I'm sharing everything I know about drawing on this blog. On here, you can find all you need to know to learn how you can draw realistic cars and other subjects yourself. Stay updated by following me on Instagram.