Drawing from photographs

[Shapes]

Sup,

Iwould like toknow if drawing from photographs is as/almost as useful as figure drawing. I know ppl will say go out and draw there are models all around youbut I can't exactly do that for nudes. Currently my only source of nudes is The Atlas of Perspective 2nd Edition and I'mdoing some quick sketces etc from there. I was just wondering if this is useful or if I'm wasting my time. Oh and I have zero access to a live nude model.

Thanks

[Ilja Murometz]

Drawing from photograph is the only choice you have, if you arent able to go to life classes. I myself copied much stuff from finished drawings, which is also helpful to improve your eye but does not really help you to learn how to render. At the moment, i am drawing from photographs in an anatomy book. (Bammes)
Would be nice if you would visit my DSbook and give me some crits.

[nafa]

Drawing from photo would be beneficial as long as you try your best to relate the highlights/shadows to the actual contours of the subject. If you just copy the various colors, than it is just a kid's coloring exercise and your drawing skill will not improve.

[MisterJC]

Drawing from photo's is perfectly fine to start out with. They are essential as reference when drawing things in detail, or not. Drawing from photo's helps to build your basic observational skills, like negative space, form, shadow, ect. But once you get these things down, start moving into observational drawings.

Photo's help you understand what to look for while drawing from life. And I find that i am starting to see the real world much like a photograph... thats kinda weird... but its kind of like im in "drawing mode" all the time.

Also, using photo's and copying master drawings are a great learning tool. like i said before, they help you understand what to look for when drawing, how to render (copying masters) and a bunch of other stuff.