If you want to draw lifelike portraiture, knowing how to draw facial features is essential. Below, artist and instructor Lee Hammond shares tips and techniques for drawing realistic faces with graphite pencil, excerpted from her book, Lee Hammond's All New Big Book of Drawing..

An object is almost never in simply light and shade. Rather, it is usually in an environment in which light is bouncing around in several directions. For this reason, it is important for beginners to understand the nature of shadows and light.

There is a sweet and simple science to positioning your subject matter on your paper or canvas. No matter what type of portraiture that interests you — whether it be portrait drawings or portrait painting — the Golden Ratio, the Eye of God and certain other “sweet spots” are good to know about.