Click here for a close-up of the sample board used in this section.

The "secret" to good wood burning is that it is the speed of the movement of the tool across the wood that creates the burn, not the pressure that is applied to the tool.  Very little, if any, pressure is used in burning.  You do not need to push or force the burner into the wood.

Light quick movement creates light fine lines or shadows.  Slow movement with the burner makes nice dark deep lines or shadows. The longer the tool rests upon an area the darker it will scorch the wood and the deeper it will burn down into the board.

This first series of strokes, fur detailing for wildlife, is done with the blade of the tool.  The blade creates a crisp fine line.  For fine fur let just the first quarter of the blade contact the pattern area, pull quickly to make the line soft golden brown.  On the second sample just a bit more of the blade is used.  By the last sample half of the blade is laid into the wood and the movement is fairly slow.

Except for the first sample you can see that each of these lines are curved.  This is done by rolling the tool at the shaft between the thumb and forefinger.  Curved lines add more interest that straight lines.  Also note that the strokes are all burnt in the same general direction within each sample.  In sample two, medium hair length, this gives a rolling or rounded effect to the area.

This next series of burning samples are strokes that will be useful as background and shading tones.  The first three, left to right, are done laying the tool toward the side from the blade edge.  How far over you lay the tool will determine how dark the shading becomes.

Graduated shading is done by starting with the blade along the pattern line then pulling away from that line.  As you pull, quicken your movement and slowly lift the tool from the wood.  This is an excellent shading stroke to emphasize the depth of the carving work.

The next two samples use the side of the tip's point.  Move the tool is a circular or swirling motion to create this curly shading.  Again. laying the tip point further on it's side will make the burning strokes wider, moving the tool slowly will darken the stroke.

The last sample is called cross hatching and is a wonderful shading for line designs.  Cross hatching is simply a series of overlapping lines.  The more lines you use and the wider you burn the lines the darker shaded that area will become.

Quick Note: I wrote in the tutorial on The Woodburning Tool 
the importance of having a smooth even surface on which 
to work.  Since I was burning a quick sample board for this 
section of the tutorial I promptly forgot my own advice and did 
not take time for a good sanding of the scrap board that I 
grabbed to use.  This shows clearly in the graduated shading 
sample.  You can see how the burner jumped across the 
roughness of the board.  Having seen my mistake I chose to
 leave it as is as an example of the need for a smooth working surface.

The tip's point makes great little triangle shapes for very dark shadow areas as inside an animal's ear or nose.  Lay the tool slightly to it's side allowing the tip and side to rest on the wood.  Using just the tip's point a dot pattern can be made.  Just like cross hatching the size and darkness of this dot pattern will create an effect of depth.

Feathers require three different series of burning strokes to create the effect of the feather curvature.  First, using  the blade pull in the two strokes that will become the shaft of the feather.  Second, working from the shaft line toward the outer edge of the feather pull a series of fine lines.  Note that these lines are darkest along the shaft and pale as they reach out to the feather's end.  Pull a third series of fine lines working this time from the outer edge back toward the shaft.  This double row of lines creates a graduated tonal value with the palest point being in the center of the feather area.

Woodburning 101
The Basic Woodburning Tool
Basic Woodburning Strokes and Textures
Woodburning Scene Samples 
Step by Step Instructions Project
Computer Laser Engraving