What problems did you find in executing perspective drawings?
I found using one point/or parallel perspective really useful. I just relied on it and didn't need to think about the angles any more as I would have done had I not considered it. I also found using angular perspective very helpful in doing the particular drawing I did.
I think that if there is a subject where simple perspective rules can be used then its really helpful, but on many occasion I would look at a view and not be able to immediately work out how to apply the perspective rules. It was hard when a vanishing point was way off the paper. It also seemed hard to work out the perspective points in a busy scene, with lines going all sorts of ways and angles. As much as getting the perspective right could help the execution of a quick sketch, to get bogged down in getting the correct perspective could also inhibit. In a way, it can take away the natural instinct of using your eye to determine relationships between lines and angles in a less complicated composition.
The merits of using, or not using, rulers as a guide
As someone who finds it hard to draw a straight line, I think I am better off not using a ruler as a guide as then I find myself drawing lines with it, and I need to practice drawing lines without it! I think it helps to use a ruler as a guide when working out perspective particularly if there is a vanishing point off the paper. But its probably best to continue to try and manage without it.
