Shading - tip or side? (or both?)

[Jason Rainville]

I've been getting a few crits about my shading that I'm not so sure about, so I hope we can have a bit of discussion about it.

I purchased a mechanical pencil a while back and love it. Easy to get cleaner lines, no need for sharpening, overall more portable, clean & efficient. I had to switch up my shading style though - instead of using the broad side of a wood pencil, I had to use hatching to build up value (which I instantly found easier to control and cleaner).

Andrew Loomis says it's a nono to use small strokes for shading, but many pros use such an approach to great effect. My technique I'm trying to develop is mainly building up values by hatching with increasingly softer pencils, then going over it all with the broad side of a wooden H pencil to somewhat smudge and even out the values.

So my question is, is shading with the tip the same as drawing with a mouse (IE a technique I should grow out of as quickly as possible) or rather is it a skill that simply needs to be developed in order to gain maximum effect? Is broadside shading 'better' or is it all in the hands of the artist?

[Brendan N]

It really all depends on what you want to achieve. A dirty, grainy look could be achieved with the side because of paper texture and smudging by the pencil wood itself. If you want something cleaner, go with the tip - it also helps to describe form easier and you are able to unify line and value in a more seamless fashion. You also get less grain because paper texture has far less of an effect. On a side note, I think avoiding softer leads is also something to try. Of course it depends, but I find mixing leads make the drawing dirty and results in a lot of gloss. Besides that you can get a really really good value range out of an HB or a B.

Judging from what you say you're aiming for I'd say go with solid hatching. I think most of the old masters used more or less this technique, where is Loomis coming from? ;)

[Sady]

I was going to post that very same question but found this, so I will bump this thread instead. 8D

Probably there´s no better way in general. It all depends on personal preference and the kind of work.

But we can discuss the advantages and disadvanges of each.

I´m more familiar with Loomis method, and for me the greatest advantage is that generally I can get good enough shading with half the time, or less, using the side of the pencil than I would using the tip.

Also, shading with the side of the pencil looks better on textured paper. I´m not sure about shading with the tip but it seems to look better on smooth paper.

[Lohan]

at jacob collins school i believe they put in a basic value quickly with some fast hatching, then go in with the tip and perfect it. they make some nice pencil drawings too, so this technique seems pretty good although it may take longer than some other ways.

[dose]

Both. Just different tools for different situations.

Do yourself a favor and personally figure out the difference between the two. Get a couple different pencils of different grades and a couple different papers with different grain & softness. Make about a million different marks using the the different pencils in different ways on the different paper, and really watch what happens. Don't draw anything, just make marks of different pressures and different lenghts and try to witness firsthand how the graphite goes onto the paper. Try to answer these questions firsthand:

- Does the mark sit on top of the grain?
- Does it go in between the grain?
- Both?
- Does it cut the grain? Crush the grain?
- What's the difference between using the same pencil with a lighter pressure versus using a harder pencil with the same pressure?
- What happens if there's little to no grain on the paper? What about tons of grain?
- How does the graphite go on differently using the same pencil on different paper?
- Is there a difference between two different brands of the same grade lead?
- What's the difference between the point on a mechanical pencil versus the point on a regular pencil or lead holder?

etc. etc.

Most of us take an awful lot for granted about how the materials of art work. Move pencil = make line. But how? We don't need special techniques or methods, we just need a clear, personal, and experiential understanding of what physically happens when we put x on y.

But maybe that's just me...

[Justin.]

no offense to anyone, but I hate shading with the broad side. for me it's overall messier and flatter, you can't get the same transitions as you can with the tip. I enjoy what I call smooth hatching, which is following the forms very lightly, creating a very evenly valued 'veil', which I can use to push and pull the forms.

[Brendan N]

no offense to anyone, but I hate shading with the broad side. for me it's overall messier and flatter, you can't get the same transitions as you can with the tip. I enjoy what I call smooth hatching, which is following the forms very lightly, creating a very evenly valued 'veil', which I can use to push and pull the forms.

ditto... last time I used the side it ended up looking pretty amateurish. Personally I would advise against it.

[asoir]

sometimes (http://characterdesigns.com/bandaid/content/tutorials/237/300/kevin_Chen_Head_Studies_063.jpg)it (http://characterdesigns.com/bandaid/content/tutorials/237/277/kevin_Chen_Head_Studies_040.jpg)works (http://characterdesigns.com/bandaid/content/tutorials/237/269/kevin_Chen_Head_Studies_032.jpg)well (http://characterdesigns.com/bandaid/content/tutorials/237/293/kevin_Chen_Head_Studies_056.jpg)
;)

[panchosimpson]

you can get very smooth shading using the broad side, and it's only messy if you're not holding your pencil or charcoal right, otherwise it's not any messier than hatching...i use both depending on the situation

[Bowlin]

I believe the reason Loomis wants us to use the side and use big broad strokes is the similarity to painting. Your using flats and filberts to lay down big broad strokes of paints around the form. In other words, when you use the side of a pencil, you use it to follow the form... same with a paint brush.

Plus, I assume this is the same reason that Rockwell (http://www.amazon.com/Rockwell-How-I-Make-Picture/dp/082302380X/ref=sr_1_1/002-2736456-2563261?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1184336662&sr=8-1) used vine charcoal in his drawings before he prepared a painting. (also, as a side note, not only did he paint from photographs a lot, but he often used a projector!)