A morning urban sketching people at cafes and a mobile screening unit in Tavira. Experimenting with different backgrounds and page layout compositions.

Urban sketch in ink and watercolour of some players taking part in a Pétanque match in the village. Also a couple of portrait sketches to finish of my latest A6 people sketching sketchbook.

This year’s One Week 100 People sketching challenge hosted by Marc Tarot Holmes and Urban Sketcher Liz Steel is starting on March 9th 2026.

Traveled to Ayamonte Spain for a day of urban sketching. I sketched people at the cafe, a few buildings and an iconic statue in the square in old town. My watercolour pencils saved the day, and I used this day trip to experiment with page layout ideas and using spot colour for areas of focal point.

We take a look at the different way Don Low sketches people using negative space, tonal shading, and high contrast in his comic book spreads. He creates impactful scenes with only a minimal use of spot colour. I evaluate how he uses these elements to lead the eye through the panels, and how he varies his panel layouts.

Urban Sketching at a local cafe at the end of the street. Combining people sitting in different parts of the cafe together at a table, and experimenting with compositions for a reportage post.

Sketching from photos to get a jolt of inspiration after hitting a creative lull. I used a different style for one sketch, and incorporated different art materials for the other. I also show how I created my watercolour pencil stubbies, so that they’re an ideal size to take urban sketching.

Urban Sketching afternoon at the Tavira Plaza to capture people in ink and watercolour. Experimented with a V-shaped Composition, tonal shading with a spot colour background, and creating depth with desaturated colours.

Day 66 of sketching people. Ink Sketches and tonal shading, with vivid spot colour added during the Pencils4tea speed sketching event on zoom, where every pose is the length of a music track.

We take a look at two different approaches that Santi Sallés uses when using a comic strip style layout. One to tell a story, and the other to connect different locations and capture small details. I evaluate how we could use these approaches when urban sketching people.

My triptych sketch series in a photo booth style is inspiring me to explore more options for using grids and comic book style page design that is easy to read and not confusing or overwhelming.

Not much time today, but enough time for a quick coffee at a local cafe and a quick sketch, about being in a foreign country but still able to order scones and clotted cream. This was an experiment in reportage and page composition.

An exploration of using distorted perspectives on my people sketches. I did Regina Spector’s Making Sketches Expressive through Proportions Tutorial, and here’s the exercises we did, and some examples of other sketches I’ve done with distorted proportions.

Kick in the Creatives is hosting a month-long challenge called February Faces, so I decided to do month of blind contour self portraits in ink, and then finish them off with watercolour. I’m using their daily prompt list to drive the poses I’m sketching.

A sunny day so I headed to the Algarve town of Olhão for a full day of urban sketching. I sketched on public transport there and back, and at the market, and a local cafe. There was also a surprise Carnaval parade that had taken place, and that greeted me when I arrived. Another interesting sketching opportunity.

Urban Sketching at a local cafe at the end of the street. Today the focus was just about sketching people, and I didn’t get too hung up on communicating a story. Although for the dapper gent in his sports coat, a story evolved as I sketched him.

An Urban Sketching trip to Tavira. Captured the Uber driver in a photo booth sketch series. Sketched in two cafes to finish one sketch. And drew a man in the park because I liked the way he posed his legs, but I ended up cutting his feet off.

Urban Sketching at a cafe, I used a comparison between objects to build a composition and plan the story I want my sketches to tell. Then Urban Sketching at a Pétanque game, where I had to rely on capturing a scene that developed organically into a pleasing composition. On this sketch I also used a collage element to fill some negative space.

An erratic collection of people sketching today, including speed portraits from the Drawing is Free zoom event online, with collage and using my photo booth format. A timed portrait from a YouTube video. And a sketch from a photo of a fellow sketcher, using a distorted perspective to make the sketch more dynamic.

A reportage sketch with a restaurant bill as some collage fodder, and a Valentine’s Day Poem to develop a story around a scene I only saw for a couple of minutes. Sometimes you need to invent your own story, when you have no idea what’s going on.

Day 58 of sketching people in ink and watercolour. A visit to the Tavira Municipal Museum with the Urban Sketchers Algarve chapter of the Urban Sketchers Org. A warm-up sketch of Tavira rooftops and washing line, and while other sketchers were sketching the Tile Exhibition, I focused on sketching my fellow sketchers.

Day 57 of sketching people. Pencil Sketches during the Pencils4tea speed sketching event on zoom, where every pose is the length of a music track.

Day 57 of sketching people. A visit to a local bar in Cabanas to sketch in the sunshine to sketch groups of people, to practice compositions with a group of people. And also try out a new sketchbook format in the shape of a photo booth strip of images.

Day 56 of sketching people, and today I attended the second half of the speed sketching portrait zoom event called Musink. Each pose is the length of a music track. I sketched in pencil for the big shapes and then sketched in ink.