There are a lot of basics you need to learn as an artist.
A fundamental aspect that you will constantly hear about is perspective. this defines how your drawings look from a certain point of view and applies to everything, whether you’re creating a character, an animal, or an entire environment.
You are reading: Best perspective drawing books
This topic is broad and very detailed. many artists study perspective for more than a year before it fully clicks. but with the right learning resources, you can reach proficient understanding much faster.
simplified perspective
Norling’s Perspective Made Easy is right at the top of this list for good reason. The is widely regarded as the best intro text for artists who want to master perspective.
It’s an easy read and also very affordable. the book has been around for decades and the teaching style is unparalleled. You will learn about the fundamentals of vanishing points and structuring a drawing based on perspective, and Norling teaches this through General Theory & practice paper.
In a total of 224 pages, you’ll walk away with a much deeper understanding of perspective. this book takes time and won’t make you an expert right away.
but if you need to learn perspective and have no idea where to go, I suggest you start here first.
the art of perspective: the definitive guide for artists of all media
The Art of Perspective is a much newer book that takes a different route on teaching perspective. Author Phil Metzger guides you through a series of mini-lessons and exercises teaching that perspective is really just how we see the world.
Most people think that perspective is just about vanishing points and how parallel lines seem to converge in the distance. but phil goes into an atmospheric perspective, like how objects appear smaller from above and how subtle colors for lighting can change depending on your point of view.
drawing a 2d artwork requires an eye that can see non-real 3d environments. this book teaches you how to create depth in a realistic way that adheres to the rules of perspective.
Each chapter covers a handful of exercises along with the theories behind them. I highly recommend this to beginning and intermediate artists who want a modern guide to perspective.
how to draw
I’m always recommending Scott Robertson’s books because they’re so unique compared to everything else available. Robertson currently teaches at the renowned ArtCenter in Pasadena which is one of the best colleges for studying concept art.
robertson’s book how to draw is a practical guide to see & construction of objects in perspective. but this is not a life drawing book. it is aimed solely at drawing from imagination where you need to invent perspective.
The first few chapters teach basic warm-up exercises taken from Scott’s lectures. Later chapters offer tips for creating naked-eye perspective grids, and in the final chapters you’ll follow exercises for drawing vehicles from scratch.
This is not an easy book and certainly not intended for complete beginners. You can learn this without prior knowledge, but you will have a hard time completing all the lessons without months of hard work.
But I still recommend this book to everyone because Scott teaches in such a unique way that you can’t find it anywhere else. And if you work hard at following the lessons in this book, I guarantee you’ll see improvements over time.
perspective drawing manual
At only 96 pages you may think this is nothing but a cursory read. But the Perspective Drawing Handbook is truly a great resource to have by your side while drawing.
The first few chapters introduce the basics like foreshortening, but you’ll quickly move on to exercises like drawing cubes & shading them correctly. It may not seem like shading is an important part of perspective, but the more you study all the fundamentals, the more you’ll see how they’re interconnected.
Along with the written lessons, you also get over 150 illustrations that explain each feature in vivid detail. When learning about eye level and convergence points, it’s helpful to study visual representations rather than just written ideas.
This book can be of value to any artist of any skill level. even the most advanced artists can refer to some of the diagrams for a quick overview.
Unfortunately, there isn’t much of an index, but the table of contents is easy enough to skim through and find exactly what you’re looking for.
drawing perspective: how to see it and how to apply it
As one of the newest books in this list, Drawing Perspective by Matthew Brehm offers a fresh take on classic perspective lessons. This book targets newer artists who want to learn perspective through rigorous repetition.
Over 144 pages, you’ll study a variety of exercises and quizzes live within the book. start with the basics and slowly work your way through topics like vanishing points and how they affect total points in a perspective grid.
My favorite exercises are the ones that require you to draw objects in perspective based on a particular scene. you’ll be given the perspective and then you’ll need to draw objects to fit within that space. sounds much easier than it is.
I recommend this book to anyone who wants practical live exercises to study perspective. and since this is a newer book, you’ll get a much more elevated and colloquial writing style.
perspective! for comic artists
When drawing from imagination you need to “see” the artwork on your paper first. Some artists dive in and create while they draw, and this is totally fine. But studying perspective allows you to pre-plan your ideas before putting them on paper.
perspective! For Comic Artists by David Chelsea is a fairly old book, first published in 1997. But as with most art fundamentals, the topics never go out of style and there’s no wrong way to learn.
This book teaches you how to draw in perspective from a comic book artist’s point of view. You will learn about characters, landscapes, animals and construction techniques to draw what you want in a realistic perspective.
I don’t recommend it for beginners without previous knowledge. the information is accurate, but it’s also hard to understand if you’ve never tried to draw before.
take this once you know you’re ready to jump into comics. you don’t need to be a skilled artist by any means. but it helps to have a little experience with the basics of perspective before reading this book.
perspective of artists
Many older perspective books have been republished by Dover and they’re excellent resources for studying on a budget. Perspective for Artists spans 288 pages with over 400 illustrations & diagrams scattered throughout the book.
Each chapter covers a different area of perspective with accompanying text and exercises. but this book can double as a study guide with diagrams to guide you along the way.
and since this book is so thick, it works great for any skill level. however, the language may seem outdated as the original text was published nearly 100 years ago.
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however, it’s still a fantastic reference guide and much more technical than you’d expect. I would recommend it more for intermediate to advanced artists as it requires a higher level of reading to understand the writing style.
painless perspective
Earlier in this post I recommended one of Phil Metzger’s newer books on perspective. But he actually has a couple out there and Perspective Without Pain is one of his best works.
With this book you will learn to create perspective without tools. perspective has specific rules, but if you learn to observe these rules, you’ll find it much easier to put pen to paper.
You will learn about the different points of view and the decrease of objects as they move away. But Phil also shares tips for critiquing her own artwork and solving problems with her perspective. why does your cube look jagged? or why does your landscape look crooked in one section?
With phil’s tips, you’ll learn how to safely diagnose and fix problems.
Absolute beginners should consider getting a copy of this book. it is used in college classrooms even beyond fine arts for students of architecture & interior design. Phil’s teaching style gets right to the core of perspective as she ignores complex calculations and math that really don’t matter that much.
creative perspective for artists and illustrators
I really love this book and how it teaches perspective to artists. But I want to clarify that you absolutely need a fundamental knowledge of true perspective before reading this book.
Animators, illustrators and cartoonists exaggerate perspective in their art. Creative Perspective for Artists and Illustrators teaches you how to do this correctly while following the rules of perspective to a degree.
Author Ernest Watson taught at Pratt for 20 years and knows how to reach students with a clear writing style.
In this book, you’ll learn techniques for manipulating perspective while still appearing precise in your work. There’s no single right or wrong way to learn illustration, and since everyone has their own style, it’s hard to criticize accurately.
The goal is not to tell you how to draw. instead, it’s for you to think about how you want to draw and how you want to exaggerate.
This book is packed with diagrams and actual illustrations by talented artists to help you understand every point made along the way. amazing book for anyone who wants to go beyond life drawing and venture into the world of caricature/illustration.
basic perspective drawing: a visual approach
Now in it’s 6th edition, this book is one of the most detailed guides for learning artistic perspective. Basic Perspective Drawing: A Visual Approach by John Montague teaches the basics of perspective drawing through live examples.
You’ll find plenty of illustrations and links to online video tutorials that complement the written content. the first few chapters start with the basics of convergence, foreshortening, and just seeing the world in the right perspective.
later chapters deal with shapes and how to render entire room interiors in perspective. the latter exercises can be frustrating for younger artists with less experience. this is where the supplemental materials can help you understand a little more.
However, I really recommend this book to anyone who is up for a challenge. It is not a book for beginners and it is not a book for experts either. the materials are intended for anyone who just needs to solidify their understanding of the perspective through actual practice.
Honestly, all the books in this publication can be of value to entertainers. even books that teach how to distort perspective make you think about perspective rules and how they affect your own personal style.
but always start small and work your way up. I recommend Perspective Made Easy as the first book to study. from there, you just need to work, and over time these basics will make a lot more sense.
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