How To Enlarge A Drawing

How to enlarge a drawing? Don’t panic, it’s easier and more entertaining than you think. We are looking to create a poster with a drawing that we already have, but since we don’t know how to enlarge a drawing, we discard it. This question is because many times, we have the perfect drawing but it is small compared to what we need.

There are many ways, when it comes to how to enlarge a drawing, to ensure that our creations do not lose quality. What we are looking for is that they can be enjoyed in a size more in line with our objectives. Make them bigger and, if we wonder how to enlarge a drawing, don’t be afraid to destroy our creation.

What techniques can we use if we don’t know how to enlarge a drawing?

We can find many different techniques that can make our drawings larger but with quality. Depending on the purpose of the image we want to use, we can use a technique that resembles us better. Perhaps you had never thought that you, with your hands and a little patience, could enlarge a drawing.

But you will be surprised how important you are in the process of how to enlarge a drawing. Perhaps the best-known technique is the widely used and creative grid magnification. It is a technique that allows us to reproduce our drawing, which is now “small”, at a larger size by playing with squares. It’s like a puzzle: what we see in frame 1 we just have to do the same, but bigger. It consists of playing with the proportions and making our drawing as big as we want or need.

What do you need to enlarge a drawing?

• An image or drawing that you want to enlarge.
• A paper already with the grid prepared or, failing that, a sheet of paper to which we will make the grid.
• A rule.
• A pencil, if possible with a soft line.
• An eraser, to solve any problem we have.
• A pen or marker to review the drawing when we have finished it.
• A computer if we prefer to perform the grid technique through a tablet connected to our computer.

Instructions to enlarge a drawing

1. Choose the image or drawing that you want to enlarge: it is essential to practice with a simpler drawing (for example, a cartoon) if it is the first time that we are going to use the grid technique. This way we will take a run and a lot of ease to be able to make more complicated drawings.
2. Choose an already squared or blank paper to be able to square: we must get a sheet of paper that has the same measurements as our original or reference drawing. If we want our drawing to increase in scale, the sheet must be twice as long and wide as the sheet on which the original drawing is located. For example, if our drawing is on a 20 cm x 28 cm sheet of paper, and we want to enlarge it, we will need a sheet of paper with measurements of 40 cm x 56 cm.
3. Mark the edges of the original drawing with squares of the same size: we can use an interval of, for example, 2.5 cm depending on the size of the paper we have. What we have to be sure of is that we must make the marks to create squares that occupy the entire space of the page that we will use to enlarge our drawing.
4. Let’s use the rule: it’s time to form all our squares, how? uniting all the marks that we have made in our original drawing and in the sheet that we will use as enlargement. This union will be to create a grid that we will use to enlarge our drawing.
5. Number all the boxes: one of the most important steps in this technique, and that will allow us to control the areas of the drawing, are the numbers that correspond to each square. The best way to number is from left to right and from the top corner to the bottom. The idea is not to press too much with the pencil to be able to erase the boxes and numbers later.
6. Let’s start drawing: it’s easy, you have to look at square number 2 of the original drawing, for example, and create, on the grid sheet of the enlargement, the same thing but with a larger size. It is best to use a pencil to be able to adjust everything we want and erase without a problem.
7. The details of the enlargement: once we complete the enlargement of, for example, a painting, we must apply all the details that we want because they will be more noticeable, such as the eyes, noses, etc. We can even include details that are not in the original drawing to make it more special.
8. Erase the grid and numbers: If we have finished our enlargement of the drawing, it is time to carefully go over our drawing with a pen or liner, and then erase everything that is in pencil so that we only have our enlargement of the drawing without pencil marks and a grid.

Tips for Enlarging a Drawing

• When we finish drawing a painting on a new sheet of paper, it is best to step back and look at the drawing with a certain perspective. This way we will know if we are doing the expansion well or not.
• We must use the yes or yes rule, since we cannot make the grid intuitively, since it will not fit us exactly or correctly.
• If we have to make more paintings than we originally needed, no problem: do them! The important thing is to be able to enlarge our drawing without losing any detail.
• We must pay close attention to where the lines begin and end in each frame.
• Take all the time you need and practice before doing it more seriously if it is the first time you are going to use this technique, to gain fluency.