A masterclass in producing lifelike animals with coloured pencils.

Domestic animals are an eternally popular subject for art, and present unique challenges to the artist. Lisa Ann Watkins has made a career of teaching her coloured pencil techniques to capture character and realism in her art.

• A section on materials covers coloured pencils, watercolour pencils (wet and dry), and PanPastels.
• A chapter on character shows how to capture the best reference photographs to work from; information on anatomy eyes, bone structure, fur direction and notes on tools/apps that can be used to help with tonal values.
• Clear simple techniques are then presented through short exercises that focus on a particular technique or effect selected by the author from her experience teaching, such as a cat’s eye.
• Answers to common technical questions from students/followers that cover unique aspects of the medium, such as the amount of pressure to use.
• A series of step-by-step projects then follows, including a cat, dog, donkey and a baby animal.