Alright, so I decided to try my hand at drawing Max Verstappen today. Been watching a lot of F1 lately, and his intensity is just something else. Thought it would be fun to capture that on paper.
Getting Started
First thing, I gathered my stuff. Just the usual suspects: my sketchbook, a few pencils – HB for sketching, maybe a 2B and 4B for darker bits. Found a picture online that I liked, one where he’s got that focused look in his helmet. Didn’t want anything too complicated, just a solid portrait.
The Process
I started by lightly sketching the basic shape of the helmet and head. Getting the proportions right is always the first hurdle, you know? Just trying to place where the visor would sit, the curve of the helmet. Didn’t press too hard with the pencil, keeping it loose.
Once the basic outline felt okay, I began adding more details. Worked on the visor shape, the vents on the helmet, and those little aero bits. Sponsor logos are always a challenge, so I just hinted at them rather than getting bogged down in perfect replication. Then I roughed in the top part of his race suit peeking out at the bottom.
Adding Depth
Next came the shading. This is usually my favorite part, where it starts to look less like a flat outline. I used the softer pencils to build up shadows, especially under the brim of the helmet, inside the visor reflection (tried to give it that glossy look), and around the contours to give it some volume. Didn’t go for photorealism, just aimed for a decent representation with some depth.
- Focused on shadows under the helmet edges.
- Tried to make the visor look reflective.
- Added some darker tones to make it pop.
Finishing Up
I kept stepping back to look at it from a distance. Helps spot weird proportions or areas that need more work. Made a few adjustments here and there, darkened some lines, maybe softened others with a finger (yeah, I know, not professional, but it works for me). Cleaned up some stray pencil marks with an eraser.
And that was pretty much it. Spent a good couple of hours on it, just zoning out and drawing. It’s not a masterpiece or anything, but it was good practice, and I kinda like how it turned out. Captures a bit of that Max energy, I think. Job done for today.
