Colored Pencils
Colored pencils offer the same drawing characteristics as regular pencils but include the bonus of color. They’re produced in many shades because their colors cannot be mixed on a palette to produce different tints. Colored pencil strokes, however, can be overlaid on each other to achieve a myriad of effects. Some colored pencils are water-soluble. These pencils, when used with water, give the subtle effects of watercolor painting.
Charcoal
Charcoal is made from vine, willow or other twigs that have been charred for use as drawing material and it is superb for blending and creating gradations of black. Sold mainly in pencil and stick form, charcoal is available in soft, medium, hard and compressed versions. Soft charcoal is light and easily erasable but does not make a true black. Compressed charcoal makes thick heavy rich blacks. Although charcoal’s main advantage is that it is blend able, this also means it can be smudged easily. The use of a fixative is necessary when work is complete.
Markers
A marker is essentially a bigger, juicier pen. Most markers have a reservoir of soluble ink that is applied to a drawing though a felt or nylon tip. Markers come in several incarnations: art, studio or layout markers; marking pens; paint markers; calligraphy markers; etc. Most art markers consist of a broad nib on one end (excellent for filling in large areas) and a fine nib on the other (better for more precise work). Many also feature a third ultra-fine nib for tight detail work. Many times nibs are removable and replaceable in various shapes and sizes allowing the artist to create a range of markers.
Markers work a bit like watercolors. It’s best to start light and build up to your colors since it can be tough to lighten a color once you’ve gone too dark. You can use a colorless blender to blend and soften the edges of your work. Depending on the surface, makers tend to dry quickly so don’t plan on making color changes. Markers are appreciated for their immediate and colorful results, but the artwork is not intended to withstand the rigors of time.