Q&A for How to Trace Using Only Tracing Paper and Pencil Lead for Visual Artists

Scan the image and increase its size, then reprint it. Then trace the bigger image.

Yes, you can. Parchment paper or baking paper also works like tracing paper.

If you follow these steps, it won't be mirrored. If you skipped the step where you coat the back side with graphite and used your first set of lines to trace over, it would be mirrored.

You can use a pen or pencil, but a pencil would be safer. You can always erase pencil marks when you make a mistake. If you make a mistake using pen on tracing paper, you have to start over.

Go back over the final results with a pencil or (preferably) a pen, then use an eraser to remove marks.

You can do that; however, not all tracing paper is made from graphite. It's best to use a water soluble tracing paper. The method you described is time-consuming and messy, because you would really have to coat it, and then it is going to smear all over everything.

This will be by using a similar technique but ensure that you don't press as hard or you will create an indent on the canvas.

You don't have to coat the whole page. You can coat the backside of the areas with lines, if you can see where all your lines are. Coating the whole thing goes pretty quickly, though.

You will want to trace your picture onto the smooth side, coating the charcoal onto the textured side. It makes it easier to transfer!

You probably skipped the step where you coat the other side of the tracing paper in graphite.

The softest pencil you can get is a 9B. However, the lead is so soft that it crumbles easily, and it is therefore very difficult to use.

Yes, as long as the photo is printed out and you have tracing paper, you can transfer the photo almost anywhere.

Yes. That paper is called "carbon tracing paper" or "graphite paper". To use that, simply tape the image you would like to copy on top of the transfer paper. After, place the two pieces on top of your canvas. Finally, trace over top the lines on the original image and remove the top two pieces of paper. Your image will be copied on to the canvas.