Volume of drawn object.. how?

[Acolyte]

Hey all,
haven't posted in a while, but hey, I'm only a beginner. :)
When I draw simple things like cans, bottles (with content and without) - how do I make it look like it have volume? I know about contour lines, but they aren't really that good (or maybe I am :) )

Thanks.

[Ian Mack]

Value and Perspective.

You use Perspective to make it LOOK natural from whatever angle you're drawing it in. And Value gives it the realism as if we were looking @ it. By value, I mean adding realistic shading.

[Acolyte]

Thanks for the reply, otherside.
I was also thinking of shading, but I'm kinda new to it. I'll give it a try this week. :)

Thanks again.

[Lost Dragon]

If you are new to the concept of values, start with a simple exercise - a value chart. To make one, draw a series of 9 square boxes that are about one inch in size. Put them next to each other on the paper horizontally so that they make a long row (use a ruler). On the top of the boxes, label them 1 through 9.

Now shade with your pencil(s). Start with the lightest value (the white of the paper - so your first box is done for you) and then make each box darker until you have a good black for box #9. You will have to tweak your values as you go - especially if you get too dark too soon.

You will notice as you shade that the exercise isn't as simple as it seems. If you do it properly, though, you will get a good transition from light to dark.

Practice it many times until you've got it. Be aware that their are infinite shades of gray inbetween white and black (you could make a value chart of 100 boxes if you like). What this exercise helps you do is to understand the basics of getting values (lights and darks) on paper.

When you can do that you will be ready to shade basic geometric shapes - cone, cylinder, pyramid, sphere, and cube with a single light source.

This is not very exciting, but it is good to know and will help you a great deal later.

[Acolyte]

I'm surely going to do that, Lost Dragon. Thanks a lot for a great advice.

[dbclemons]

Practise making gradiations also. Draw a dark shade to a lighter shade. Charcoal blends more easily than pencil marks, so you might try that as an alternative.

When you're drawing an object, pay attention to its form so that your marks follow the shape of the object. You can accent your drawing by setting up the lighting to give you contrast from the side or slightly behind.

This page has some well written exercises:

http://www.portrait-artist.org/basics/shading.html

-David

[Acolyte]

Basically, I draw only with pencil (since I am a begginer and a freelancer - no class taken), but I think I'm doing ok for the start. Sometimes it basically comes into my mind how to correctly shade some part of my drawing so that it will look realistic enough..


Thanks.

[togusa]

you can also use varying line weights. look at master figure drawings, they do everything that u need to know about creating volume

[behemot5]

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7548 http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7134