"Tracing is cheating."

Every artist has heard this at some point in their career. 

I'm here to say, not true. Especially if what you really want to do is paint but feel your drawing skills are lacking. Don't let "art snobs" shame you into giving up on painting because you can't draw.  

I have news for you. Leonardo da Vinci was always looking for shortcuts and ways to make drawing easier and more accurate. He often used a camera obscura. A camera obscura is a device that acts as a type of projector that projected an image onto paper or canvas in order for the artist to trace it. This device allowed artists of the time to create perspective and scale correctly in drawings and paintings.

 Never once was it thought of as cheating. 

If something makes your task easier, then, by all means, use it. 

Here are a few tools to shorten the process of drawing an image so you can get to painting!

Lightbox or Light Pad- This is a shallow box or pad with a light inside and usually a glass top. To use it:

1. Turn on the light
2. Place the picture you wish to paint on top of the glass top and secure it with tape.
3. Place your watercolor paper (or whatever paper you're using to paint on) on top of the picture and secure it with tape.
4. The light allows you to see the image through the watercolor paper and allows you to trace it directly onto the watercolor paper.

Graphite Paper- This paper has a coating of graphite on the back allowing you to transfer drawings onto watercolor paper. To use:

1. Place the graphite paper onto your watercolor paper with the graphite coating toward the watercolor paper. 
2. Secure them so they don't slip.
3. Place the image you wish to paint on top of the graphite paper and trace the image. The graphite paper will transfer the image onto your paper. 
4. Be sure you get wax-free graphite paper. 

 Tracing Paper- This thin paper allows you to trace over an image you would like to paint. The real upside is you can trace one object from one picture and another object from a different picture to create a new composition. For instance, You may have a garden scene you'd like to paint but it looks empty. You decide to add a cat. You first trace the garden scene onto your tracing paper and then trace the cat from another photo into the garden scene on the same piece of tracing paper. 

1. Da Vinci Eye App- This app allows you to use your phone as a sort of projector to allow you to trace an image right onto your paper. Here is a video explaining how to use the app.