contrary to the discourse arguments, I fully believe that tracing is not inherently a problematic way to use a reference! you just have to learn how to trace things the right way, and how to reconfigure a sketch to the correct proportions of your characters and art style.

observational referencing is also a good skill to develop, which can be used alongside tracing to really use those references to their full potential.

here are some quick sketches to show how reference tracing can work (reference taken from adorka stock, a free resource for artists) @adorkastock

(image description: first image is a photo taken from Adorkastock, showing a woman sitting on a wooden bench and wearing a bodysuit with contour lines for art reference. She is leaning forward heavily, with one hand raised near her face as she looks towards something off screen.

second image shows four sketches of an elf character sitting on a bench in similar poses. The first sketch is drawn from memory, with a totally different angle, leg pose, and posture. The second sketch was done while observing the reference, so it gets closer to the correct angle and posture but is still a little different. Third sketch is a tight trace of the reference, with the only major difference being the face shape and the addition of a tail. The fourth sketch is a loose trace, which looks more lively and weighted than the tight trace, also giving the character a little more stylization and different proportions from the reference.

third image shows four different characters loosely traced on top of the reference image, each with their own body proportions. In order, they are a fat dwarven woman, a slender amphibious goblin, a pig-like gnome, and a humanoid bird person. end description)

loose tracing mixed with observation, memory, and imagination, will typically lead to better results than a tight detailed trace of a reference image, if your goal is just to use an image as a reference for something new.

If your goal is to recreate an image more directly, such as a master study of an art piece or photo you admire, or a screencap redraw from your favorite show, then some detail tracing will help you place things correctly while your own observational skills and knowledge of art techniques will allow you to add your own flair to the final art piece. a perfect one-to-one trace is generally not the best way to go, because you still want it to be a new piece of art! studies are how we learn, so it's important to make sure you really are focusing on at least one specific skill and not just copying without putting extra thought into your work.

and then, of course, if the reference image you're tracing is something you made yourself to begin with, you can do literally whatever you want with it. including a straight one-to-one copy, because it's your image anyway and there is absolutely no art theft happening there.

If you want to see how I made my “When One Door Closes” piece, there’s TONS of work-in-progress images in this post with some notes about how I got it all done:

Part one, making a new fantasy design. Someone suggested elves evolved from chalicotheres as a design to explore in this tutorial. So that's what I've got here. There will be two more parts for this series. One on how to utilize references for general human character design, and one touching on how to use references for characters that might fall under sensitive topics (for example, designing characters with certain health issues or who might fall a bit close to some stereotypes that make it hard to find useful references)

So here is my process for using references when I design new fantasy people or creatures.

(image description: four images of digital sketches with notes in various spots. The text reads "using references: creating new fantasy designs. Step one, brainstorm. Gather references." Near this text I have also written "chalicothere, elf, humanoid figure", and below this is a collage of images showing chalicotheres and some basic human anatomy.

The next bit of text says "Step two, study. Sketch over/recreate your references. Make notes for analysis!" The collage of images has been copied over and altered to have lower opacity. Loosely sketched simple shapes in bright colors over this show the basic structure of the chalicothere and human figure. Notes and smaller doodles nearby show and explain little details, like the unique anatomy of chalicotheres.

In the second image, the text says "Step 3, start sketching your new design. Just draw a lot. Make transition sketches. Pay attention to key details. Make notes! Analyze your work." The sketches here show transitionary drawings of the chalicothere skull being made humanoid, and a whole pile of sketches to test out the anatomy and proportions of a humanoid chalicothere elf. Notes on the sketches point out things I want to alter to improve the design, and ask questions about things like how to make the three-fingered hands work and whether I want to use horizontal or round pupils.

The third image shows low opacity images of people posing for art reference. Two photos of a man using a bow and arrow, and one photo of a woman standing with her hands on her hips. The text says "Step 4, study some poses." Over the faded photos, bright sketches show simplified traced shapes to copy the poses. The fourth image is just the same, but now very dark sketches have been created over the top to make the same poses with the very different proportions of a chalicothere elf. The text here now says "Try to redraw with your new design. Really think about the proportions. Loose Sketches! Redo this many times. Just get a feel for the design." end description.)

(image description: Labeled "Have fun!" this final image shows a few simple digital paintings of chalicothere elves with different skin tones, hair colors, clothing, and poses. There is a masculine chalicothere elf wearing a simple cloth around his waist, arm bracers, and red face and body paint, with tan skin and dark red hair clipped short like a horse mane. In the middle, a tall feminine chalicothere elf wearing a toga walks by two small children in colorful skirts, all with lighter tan skin and long dark brown hair. Finally, there is a very dark skinned chalicothere elf with pale hair, wearing a green skirt, stretching their arms over their head like someone who has recently woken up. end description.)

I hope that all makes sense and helps people visualize better how they can use references in their own designs. It is not so much about copying things carefully as it is about studying by loose tracing and then using those studies to do more freehand work. This is a skill that takes time to improve on, and can be helped by also doing more detailed observational art such as the still lifes and figure drawings you might do in a studio art class. The more time you spend finding methods of visual study that work for you, the easier it gets to freehand things, even totally new designs like this one.

Firstly, think of references more as study material. The goal in using references is not to create an exact copy of something, but to study them so you no longer have to look at them as frequently in the future.

There are two main ways to study references. There's the more intensive method you see in studio art classes; observational art. This is not generally referred to as "studying references", it's usually called "still life drawing/painting" or "studio figure art". But the same methods and skills you learn by creating detailed observational art can be utilized to study reference images in depth. This method of drawing what you see as accurately as possible will teach you how to see details and recreate them, how to measure the proportions of something, and how to work with light and shadows. It takes time, but it is a really useful skill set.

The second method is loose tracing. This is easier with digital art, but it can be done in traditional art as well. This is the method I use whenever I am creating a new fantasy race or creature, or working on a piece with a complicated pose. It involves locating and gathering together a bunch of visual references, and then loosely tracing over the main shapes of it just to get a feel for the anatomy and proportions of something. You don't need to worry about tracing precise details here. I like to put my reference images on a lower opacity and then trace them with a bright color like red, creating simple lines and shapes over the reference images that give me a good sense of important parts, like a ribcage and skull, where the joints of each limb are, etc. It's useful to study skeletons, muscle diagrams, and different poses and angles for any creature you are using as a reference. You can use this for anything though, not just character and creature design. Maybe you want to do some loose traces of cityscapes, flowers, or some other objects. I certainly have to use references for clothing and tools all the time, and this method in combination with observational drawing has allowed me to improve the way I draw those things.

How to Reference Part 1

By @artbyifer

Got distracted and made an update for the "How to Reference: The difference between Tracing, Copying and Referencing" guide I made a few years back. Please enjoy some new examples of tracing, copying and referencing in a variety of styles (still images available via the link above).

Also a new Photo Manipulation example.