Can we talk about hand drafting vs full CAD for beginners?

I had a chat with a senior drafter at the shop about this. He said new guys who only learn CAD miss the feel of the drawing, like how lines connect and the scale. But I see most jobs now want 100% digital. Where do you land on this? Should someone learn to draft by hand first or jump straight into software?

2 comments

2 Comments

emery87920d ago

You said "miss the feel of the drawing" - can you give me an example of that "feel" actually mattering on a real job?

diana_king20d ago

Man, I had a client last year who wanted a logo for their coffee shop, and I sketched this rough idea on napkin paper that had the exact energy they wanted - warm, kinda messy, like you just drew it while sipping espresso. They saw that sketch and said "YES, that's it," but when I cleaned it up in vector form with perfect lines, it looked dead. Flat. Like a corporate knockoff of what they fell in love with. So I had to go back to the napkin scan, trace it with a stylus but keep all the wobbles, and that finished piece STILL had that rough edge that made them smile. The "feel" was basically the difference between a logo that looked like it belonged on a chalkboard in a cozy cafe versus something you'd see on a box of instant coffee at Walmart. If you're not selling cheap stuff, that feeling is the whole reason people pay you.