To draw the grid lines on canvas or wood, I would suggest using a thin piece of sharpened charcoal. Be sure to draw the grid very lightly, so that you can easily erase it when you are finished.

To draw the grid lines on paper, I would recommend using a mechanical pencil, so that you can get a thin, precise line. You will also need a work surface upon which you will be transferring the photo, such as paper, canvas, wood panel, etc. To use the grid method, you need to have a ruler, a paper copy of your reference image, and a pencil to draw lines on the image. Once you're finished, you simply erase or paint over the grid lines, and start working on your painting, which will be now be in perfect proportion! Yay.

Then you draw the image on your canvas, focusing on one square at a time, until the entire image has been transferred. In a nutshell, the grid method involves drawing a grid over your reference photo, and then drawing a grid of equal ratio on your work surface (paper, canvas, wood panel, etc). While the process is not as quick as using a projector or transfer paper, it does have the added benefit of helping to improve your drawing and observational skills. The grid method can be a fairly time-intensive process, depending on how large and detailed your painting will be. The grid method is an inexpensive, low-tech way to reproduce and/or enlarge an image that you want to paint or draw. The Grid Method how to use the grid method to enlarge or transfer an image

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