Architectural drawing is one of the most fundamental parts of the architecture career path. Like any other skill, architectural drafting comes down to practice and repetition. It’s best to find an architect or studio that teaches professional level drawing, then hone your skills by practicing as much as possible!

In this article we will go over some basics of architectural drawing including proportions, notes, and styles. We will also take a look at how to draw buildings from real life examples!

If you are already familiar with basic drawing like proportion, symmetry, and lines, then you can start looking into more advanced concepts like those mentioned above.

Drawing conventions

When it comes to drawing architecture, there are some basic rules that you must be familiar with. One of these is the use of lines and shapes. There are several types of drawings that require different levels of skill depending on what kind of shape or line you are looking at.

Architectural drawings include both vertical and horizontal sections as well as three-dimensional views. They can also contain mathematical formulas for calculations. All of this requires proper understanding of how to draw lines and shapes in various dimensions.

There are many ways to learn how to draw architectural diagrams. You do not have to study them all, but it is important to know the basics before moving onto more difficult styles and concepts. This article will talk about one of the most fundamental parts of an architect’s design toolbox: drawing conventions.

Drawing perspectives

A drawing perspective is like an angle that you make your picture or diagram go in. There are five common types of drawings that require different levels of expertise for completion. It is very important to be familiar with them, as they play a significant role in how well you understand architecture.

The first type of perspective is parallel. This is when your drawing surface is perpendicular to the viewer. An example of this would be a floor plan where there is a wall at one end and a window at the other.

The second type of perspective is half-parallel. This is when the drawing surface and the viewer’s line of sight are both not fully lined up. An example of this would be a ceiling plan where there is a hole in the middle representing a beam.

The third type of perspective is converging. In this case, the drawing surface and the viewer's line of sight converge towards each other. An example of this would be a roof plan where the top edge gets lower and lower until it meets the ground.

The fourth type of perspective is diverging. This is exactly the opposite of converging. In this case, the lines separate from each other instead of coming together. An example of this would be a vertical section through a house, where the walls get higher and higher.

And lastly, we have some special ones.

Drawing plans

When drawing an architectural plan, there are two main parts that make up the majority of your diagram. These are the floor plate and the sketch. The floor plate is what covers most of the area of the diagram, while the sketch is typically much smaller than the floor plate.

When creating a new diagram, you should always start with the sketch before moving onto the floor plate. This way you can add more detail to your diagram as needed without having to redraw anything else!

When organizing all of your materials, remember that everything except for the sketches go in a portfolio sleeve or bag. You may also want to put some dividers in between groups to keep them separate.

Once you have organized all of your material, then you can organize your computer by doing something like using the free Microsoft Office Productivity Tools app which has a notebook feature where you can group similar apps into categories. Then you can easily access each one from here!

Another tip if you find yourself running out of space in your bookmarks folder is to use either the MacOS ‘Finder’ tool or Windows Explorer to create a shortcut directly to your Bookmark Manager section.

Organizing your work space

One of the most important things to have when starting out as an architecture student is a comfortable working environment. This includes having enough space to spread out, easy access to resources like software or pencils, and clear view of your designs.

If you are looking for some tips on how to make yourself a better architect, then this article will help! We will go over different ways to organize and prepare your workspace to ensure that you can always find what you need easily.

Most students start off using computerized drawing programs such as Sketch-up or Photoshop. By practicing good architectural drawing with these tools, you will learn how to draw basic shapes and forms correctly.

But now that you are trying to become more professional, it is very important to be able to take your drawings one step further. You want to be able to manipulate and design your layouts in both 2D and 3D.

The best way to do this is by learning how to use Adobe Illustrator. This program allows you to create vector graphics which also scale well due to their mathematical properties.

Vector graphics are perfect for laying out concepts and ideas onto other materials like paper or cardboard.

Drawing shapes

The first step in learning how to architecture drawing is figuring out how to draw basic shape- it is important to be able to identify, understand, and create some pretty fundamental geometric figures. These are called shapes.

Shapes can be thought of as objects that have dimensions. For example, a circle has a diameter which is its length (dimension) and an area determined by this radius. A rectangle has longer lengths and widths, making it a more complex shape than a square or line.

A triangle is one of the most common shapes in nature. They come in many different sizes and patterns, but all triangles have at least two angles and a base. An angle is formed when two lines meet at a specific degree. A 90˚angle is a right angle while a less acute angle is something like a 70°angle. A base refers to what part of the triangle you choose to look at.

The basics of architectural drawing include knowing how to draw simple shapes such as squares, rectangles, and circles. Beyond that, however, architects must learn how to draw using proportions, determine scale, and recognize pattern as integral parts of design.

Drawing surfaces

An architectural drawing is, at its core, a diagram of spaces or shapes. These shapes are referred to as “surfaces” in graphic design and architecture. A surface can be categorized as either an area or a shape (geometric figure), for example, a rectangle, triangle, circle, pentagon, etc.

The proportions and overall size of these surfaces determine what kind of composition the drawing will have. For instance, if a drawing has very thin rectangles, it will look like a row of boxes with nothing between them. If the rectangles are thick, then there is more space inbetween each box.

Surface proportion also affect how well the drawing reads. Rectangle diagrams usually use large areas for dimensions, circles tend to be tighter than other types of shapes, and triangles can quickly get lost in small areas.

When teaching students how to draw houses, one of the first things I do is teach them how to create basic room layouts using squares, rectangles, and half-rectangular rooms.

Drawing materials

Now that you have done some drawing, your next step is to get yourself some drawing supplies! You can use any number of mediums to create drawings, but most architects use either pencil, pen, or brush as their main tool.

Most artists begin with very simple tools such as a 1B lead (ballpoint) pencil which they then progress onto 2B, 3B, and so on. The same goes for architecture students. They start out using 0-1B lineweights and then move up from there.

But what about technical terms?

You will find that most architectural fields require lots of abbreviations and technical jargon. These are usually noted in an appendix or glossary at the back of the book you purchase them from. This way you do not need to look them up separately.

However, these notes may also include other important information like defining certain parts of the drawing or terminology related to styles.

Estimating the size of your project

It is very important to know how much space you have for your project before you even pick a style or approach. If you do not, then you could end up choosing something that does not fit into your allotted time and area!

You should always check out the ceilings, walls, and floors in your design space to see what kind of areas you have available to use. A common trick is to go outside or another room in the house to determine this information.

If possible, it is best to work during off-hours so that there are no people around who may influence your decisions.