How To Draw Palm Trees

click the image to enlarge

click the image to enlarge

I would suggest starting to draw with a standard HB pencil. Begin from the ground. Sketch the stem (trunk). Hold your pencil tilted or loose grip.

Always remember, in the beginning draw only weak and gentle pencil lines so that you can erase them anytime later during the process.

First pencil lines are always only the guidelines. These basic rules or techniques apply not only when you draw palm trees but virtually for anything.

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When you have the trunk ready outline the branches. Try to sketch the branches possibly by one single pencil line each if you can. It’ll be a great exercise.

Observe carefully how each branch grows out from the top of the stem. This is a wild palm growing somewhere on a beach - not a palm in arboretum.

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Draw the leaves. Notice that every palm tree branch has green leaves on two opposite sides on each branch.

Sometimes you see all leaves and sometimes not. Sometimes the leaves cover each other or are broken, etc.

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Here is one useful tip when you draw palm trees:

Draw weak pencil contours of leafed-branches as if they were ready. This will give you an idea about the final shape of the branch when it is filled with leaves.

Click on the picture and see how I sketched the approximate outlines.

click the image to enlarge

Good. Now you should have a complete basic outline of a palm tree.

You can consider this as a kind of coloring page too because that is what we are going to do next.

We won’t erase pencil lines this time. Simply continue drawing by color pencils.

Color pencils will cover most of the initial graphite pencil guidelines.

click the image to enlarge

Notice that I made the stem slightly curved right under the top. Now, the coloring.

I used 3 different green color pencils, each with different color tone:

• Yellow Green
• Green
• Dark Olive Green

Experiment here a little with your own drawing. Play with it. Try new ideas.

click the image to enlarge

First, use the brightest one – Yellow Green and just gently draw the branches. You can also start to draw the leaves.

If you are not sure then by all means test your color pencils on a separate paper.

Just play with it and I can guarantee that you’ll get the best idea instantly.

When you draw palm trees it is good to have handy 3 different green color tone pencils.

click the image to enlarge

Gradually draw the leaves on every branch. Observe the spots where the leaves are brighter because of the direct daylight.

Usually the leaves in more dense and clustered areas appear to be darker.

In those areas use darker green color pencil.

click the image to enlarge

Shading the stem. Notice that there are ring-like broken circles around the stem.

Those are kind of residues from the branches that finally formed a hard stem as they grew.

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You can add some color to the ground too. The most suitable would be a beach sand color, what do you think?