The Urban Sketching Handbook: 101 Sketching Tips by Stephanie Bower is one of the more useful urban sketching books I own when I want practical advice without working through a full course. It isn’t a step-by-step beginner manual. Instead, it gives you short ideas about perspective, composition, values, linework and observation that you can apply directly to your next sketch.
I’ve actually carried 101 Sketching Tips in my sketching bag while traveling. On a trip to Mexico, I’d sometimes open it before drawing, read one or two tips, and then head out with that idea in mind. That’s where I think this book works best: not necessarily read cover to cover once, but revisited whenever your sketching starts feeling stale or overcomplicated.
My short verdict: I think it’s best for someone who already sketches and wants a compact reference for improving how they see and simplify a scene. If you’ve never done any urban sketching before, I’d start with a more structured introduction first.
You can also compare it with the other titles I use in my guide to the best urban sketching books.
101 Sketching Tips at a Glance
| Best for | Sketchers who already know the basics and want practical ways to improve |
| Format | Short illustrated tips rather than a linear course |
| Strongest topics for me | Perspective, composition, simplification and seeing large shapes |
| Less ideal for | Someone who wants a complete step-by-step introduction to drawing |
| How I use it | As a quick reference before or during sketching sessions |
What The Urban Sketching Handbook: 101 Sketching Tips Actually Is
The title describes the format pretty well. Instead of long chapters that build toward one finished project, Stephanie Bower organizes the book around short pieces of advice supported by drawings and examples.
The tips cover a broad range of urban sketching problems, including perspective, values, composition, line, architecture and ways of simplifying a complicated scene.
That makes it easy to open the book for five minutes and come away with one thing to concentrate on. I don’t always want to sit down and work through a complete drawing lesson before going outside. Sometimes I just need a reminder to watch my eye level, simplify a composition or establish the largest shapes before getting distracted by details.
If you’re still figuring out what the practice involves in the first place, my guide to what urban sketching is gives you the broader context.
The Perspective Advice Was the Most Useful Part for Me
Perspective is one of those subjects I can understand in theory and still occasionally make a mess of when I’m standing on a street trying to draw quickly.
Some of my favorite material in 101 Sketching Tips deals with simplifying perspective into ideas that are easy to remember while you’re actually sketching.
One reminder that stuck with me is how important the eye-level line is. When a group of windows, roofs or street elements starts looking strange, checking everything against that basic reference can often show me where the drawing went wrong.
That sounds simple, but those are exactly the kinds of reminders I want from a field book. I don’t need to relearn perspective from scratch every time I draw. I need an idea I can remember while looking at the scene.
Starting With Big Shapes Changed How I Build a Sketch
Another idea that reinforced a better habit for me was establishing the largest shapes before getting interested in the small ones.
I used to see an interesting window, sign or architectural detail and start there. Then I’d discover that the overall building was too narrow, the proportions were off, or I’d used most of the page before understanding the composition.
Thinking first about the major masses helps me avoid that. I can decide where the building sits, where the largest areas of light and dark fall, and how much space I want around the subject before committing to the smaller information.
That principle now shows up in a lot of my urban sketching exercises because it’s useful well beyond architecture.
Bower’s Visual Analogies Are Easy to Remember Outside
One thing I particularly like about Bower’s teaching is the use of simple visual comparisons to explain forms.
The example I still remember most is thinking of a tower as a series of stacked, changing forms, almost like the tiers of a cake. It’s a much easier image to recall while standing in front of a complicated church or tower than a paragraph of architectural terminology.
That’s one of the book’s strengths. A good tip isn’t useful because it sounds sophisticated. It’s useful because you can remember it ten minutes later when you actually need it.
This Is a Reference Book More Than a Course
I think expectations matter with The Urban Sketching Handbook: 101 Sketching Tips.
If you’re looking for a book that begins with lesson one, gives you an assignment, and gradually moves you through a complete drawing program, this isn’t really structured that way.
I find it more useful as a reference. I can open it to almost any section, find an idea that relates to something I’m struggling with, and then go draw.
That’s also why I think it becomes more valuable after you’ve already filled a few sketchbook pages. Once you’ve experienced problems such as crooked buildings, flat compositions or drawings overloaded with detail, the advice has something concrete to attach itself to.
How I Use 101 Sketching Tips in Practice
I don’t sit down and reread the entire book before sketching. I use it in small doses.
Before going out, I might flip through several pages and choose one thing to pay attention to for that session. It could be simplifying the composition, establishing the darkest values earlier or being more deliberate about perspective.
I’ve found this more useful than trying to remember twenty ideas at once. One clear constraint gives me something specific to practice while still letting the drawing remain observational.
You can do the same thing at home using urban sketching reference photos, especially if you want to work on perspective or composition without dealing with a changing scene.
Is 101 Sketching Tips Good for Beginners?
I wouldn’t make it my first and only urban sketching book if I’d never sketched before.
The advice is understandable, but the book assumes that you’re ready to take individual ideas and apply them yourself. Someone who wants a clear sequence from choosing materials through completing a first sketch may find the format scattered.
If you’re completely new, I’d start with my easy urban sketching for beginners guide, get comfortable making a few drawings, and then use this book to troubleshoot and improve them.
For an adventurous beginner who is already filling a sketchbook, though, there’s plenty here to use.
Who Will Get the Most From This Book?
- Urban sketchers who already understand the basics but keep running into the same drawing problems
- Artists who struggle with perspective in streets and architecture
- Sketchers who tend to add details before establishing the overall composition
- People who prefer short, practical ideas over long sequential lessons
- Travel sketchers who want a compact book they can actually carry with them
Where I Think the Book Is Weaker
The same format that makes 101 Sketching Tips convenient is also its biggest limitation.
The book covers a lot of subjects, but it doesn’t have room to turn every one of them into a deep lesson. If a particular tip exposes a larger weakness in your drawing, you’ll probably need another resource or dedicated practice to work through it.
It can also feel less cohesive than a book built around one artist taking you through one complete process. There are many examples and ideas rather than a single method you’re expected to follow from beginning to end.
I don’t see that as a major flaw because I use the book as a reference. But it’s worth knowing before buying it.
How It Compares With Other Urban Sketching Books
101 Sketching Tips occupies a different place on my shelf from a book that concentrates on one medium or one complete drawing process.
I reach for it when I want a quick reminder or a new way of looking at a problem. If I’m specifically working on watercolor, people or another narrow subject, I’d rather use something devoted to that topic.
That makes it a useful companion book rather than the only urban sketching book you need. You can compare the different approaches in my urban sketching books guide.
Is The Urban Sketching Handbook: 101 Sketching Tips Worth It?
For me, yes. What has made 101 Sketching Tips useful isn’t that every tip was completely new to me. It’s that the book repeatedly reminds me of things I know but don’t always remember when I’m standing in front of a complicated scene.
Perspective, large shapes, values and composition are easy concepts to understand in isolation. Applying all of them while drawing on location is harder. Having a compact book that reduces those problems to memorable ideas is why I’ve continued using it.
I especially recommend it if you’ve already been urban sketching for a while and feel like your drawings have plateaued. Instead of asking you to adopt one rigid style, it gives you a collection of small adjustments you can test in your own work.
You can see The Urban Sketching Handbook: 101 Sketching Tips here, or browse my complete urban sketching books guide to compare it with other titles.