Simply put, shadow is where the light does not reach. When adding shadow to your drawing, make sure that you "always use a gradient" (Harding 82). Unless there's a really specific use - like a dark background that needs to disappear into infinity - you never want to break this rule. As seen in the drawing of one of my favorite fictional characters, a shadow is formed on his neck starting from the left side and it gradually becomes lighter as you move right towards the light, following the rule stated above.
So, why is it that everything is gradient? Well, most things that we draw are going to have some curve to them. They're not flat objects. So as an object curves - it could be a cheek, a nose, an eyeball - it moves to an angle where the light can't shine on it as much. And as stated by J.D. Harding in the book I'm reading,"And the further it turns away, the darker it gets, causing a gradient change..." (Harding 85). For example, in my drawing, you can see a shadow on the nose, as it curves the shadow gets darker, going from light to dark, once again showing a gradient change in a shadow.
So what about those flat objects? Why aren't they all the same value since they're not curing away from the light? Well, that has to do with the fact that as you move further away from a light source, the "intensity of the light decreases causing it to get darker" (Harding 86). The slight curvature and ever-changing angles of a sphere are a prime example of this idea. On a finishing note, I would like to include that shadow, like light gives more "meaning" to a drawing and it also gives off a three dimensional vibe, expressing a feeling of realism.
Question: Do you have any other tips on how to incorporate or apply shadow to drawings? If not, how do you think shadows are useful in a sense of giving drawings more realism?
Harding, James Duffield. Harding's Lessons on Drawing: A Classic Approach. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 2007. Print.
Hey Rashid!
ReplyDeleteWow! Your picture is spot on. I really liked your post because I'm sort of doing the same topic. Instead of doing shadow like on my first one, I tried crosshatching which was a little difficult to get it the way I wanted, but It sort of worked out. That's one way to create a shadow in drawing, along with dark to light comparisons or just pencil shading. Just use different textures of gray in your gradient and it'll make your drawings more realistic.
Thanks Abdi! I appreciate that you liked my drawing. I'm also working on perfecting the crosshatching technique, which adds a new element to an illustration. Thanks for the tip, I will make sure to keep in mind what you have said next time I am creating a drawing to make it look more realistic.
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