#greasepencil #blender3d #blendertutorial Learn Grease Pencil in blender 4.4 for complete beginners that are new to the software. By the end of this video you should be comfortable with the controls and how to draw within grease pencil. within the video I go through Learn Blender with my 4 course Blender Beginner Bundle only $30 (plus local taxes) https://bit.ly/BlenderBeginnerBundle My Website: https://ift.tt/6Ab9Wtg Discord: https://ift.tt/DFh1pRW Learn the basics of Blender 4: https://youtu.be/lLqep5Q4MiI Get good at blender series: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLn3ukorJv4vvv3ZpWJYvV5Tmvo7ISO-NN Learn Sculpting playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLn3ukorJv4vvJM7tvjet4PP-LVjJx13oB recommended graphics tablet: I use a graphics tablet to paint with and my recommendations are written below: Ultimate Buyers guide - https://youtu.be/IfC6mTMiaDA Display Tablet my choices:_ Display Tablet XP Pen 16 - 22 or Huion UK - https://amzn.to/4bIrFhw US - https://amzn.to/3V7D7vZ Graphics Tablet Wacom one UK - https://amzn.to/39drH1C US - https://amzn.to/3jrGGd2
What Is Grease Pencil Drawing in Blender?
Grease Pencil turns Blender into a 2D drawing program: strokes are real objects you can draw, erase, fill, and animate inside the 3D viewport. Because the strokes live in 3D space, a sketch can be rotated, duplicated, and combined with 3D models — something no flat drawing app offers (Blender Manual — Grease Pencil Introduction).
How Do You Draw Your First Strokes in Blender 4.4?
- Open the 2D Animation template (File > New > 2D Animation) — it loads a Grease Pencil object and drawing-friendly viewport.
- Enter Draw Mode and select the Draw brush from the toolbar.
- Left-click and drag in the viewport to draw; strokes appear as editable objects in the outliner.
- Hold E or pick the Erase brush to remove strokes; use Ctrl+Z as usual.
- Switch to the Fill brush and click inside a closed outline to add flat color.
The Draw Mode toolset — brushes, palettes, and stroke settings — is documented in the manual's Draw Mode introduction (Blender Manual — Draw Mode).
Which Drawing Tools Should Beginners Learn First?
| Tool | What It Does | Beginner Tip |
|---|---|---|
| Draw brush | Freehand strokes with pressure-sensitive width | Enable Active Smooth for steadier lines |
| Erase brush | Removes stroke points or whole strokes | Toggle between Dots and Stroke erase types |
| Fill brush | Fills closed outlines with the active material color | Keep outlines closed or the fill leaks |
| Cutter | Trims strokes where you drag across them | Faster than erasing long lines |
| Layers | Stack sketches, line work, and color separately | One layer per element keeps edits clean |
How Does Drawing in 3D Space Work?
Every stroke lands on a drawing plane: by default the plane facing your view, but you can lock strokes to the front, side, top, or a custom surface so sketches stay consistent as you orbit (Blender Manual — Drawing Planes). This is the core trick for storyboarding in perspective — draw background elements on a far plane and characters on a near plane, then rotate the view to check depth.
What Did the Video Cover?
The embedded tutorial is a complete-beginner walkthrough of Grease Pencil drawing controls in Blender 4.4: creating a Grease Pencil object, drawing and erasing strokes, using the basic brushes, and getting comfortable with the 2D Animation workspace. By the end you can sketch confidently and are ready for the animation-focused follow-up.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to know 3D modeling to use Grease Pencil?
No. Drawing needs zero modeling knowledge — Grease Pencil objects are created directly and drawn like in any 2D app.
Why do my strokes disappear when I rotate the view?
Strokes were drawn on the view-facing plane, so they become edge-on from other angles. Redraw with the drawing plane locked to Front or Side for view-independent sketches.
Can I use a mouse instead of a tablet?
Yes, but you lose pressure-based line width. Any standard pressure-sensitive tablet works — Blender reads pressure through the OS tablet API.
How do I organize a complex drawing?
Use layers: sketch on one, clean line work on another, colors on a third. Layers can be hidden, reordered, and opacity-adjusted independently.