Week 2
Line, Shape, Form, Shading & Silhouettes
and Digital Drawing Basics
Embedded Files
Introduction
Introduction
This session aims to introduce the key concepts of Line, Shape, Form, Tone, Silhouette, Light & Shade and to finalise Milestone 1 of ANI170.1
Before Class
Before Class
The Elements of Art/Design, and the Principles of organizing these elements into a Design Composition.
The Elements of Art/Design, and the Principles of organizing these elements into a Design Composition.
Short discussion and overview.
It's somewhat like cooking. Elements are ingredients, while Principles are how you cook the ingredients, according to style.
Here are 2 examples of many expert understandings. There are also different terms; for example, Emphasis is also called Hierarchy, such as we have learned in Hierarchy of Contrast.
Students please investigate Elements and Principles of Art/Design on the internet, find an example you like, and paste/embed into your GDrive/Mahara with a reason for why you think it makes sense. 15-20 mins.
You can also choose the examples in this page, after spending a short time searching.
Elements and Principles of Art and Design - Cheat Sheet.pdfElements and Principles of Art and Design - ArtClassCurator.com Note: Composition can be argued to be a Principle of organization, not just an Element.
Watch the above video on shading techniques.
Practice Warming Up!
Project 1, Milestone 1 - Plan and concept for your main character & scene
Task 1 - 5 Character Descriptions - text
Task 2 - Short 30s scene - text
Task 3 - Sharing - Rehearse a spoken pitch, less than 1 minute, to be done in class. Projector assistance will be provided.
Upload pitch text with a few images of visual reference to your Google site before class, including visual reference. Use complete sentences. Early rough sketches are okay, but optional. Publish. Rehearse thoroughly.
Everyone will pitch ideas to the class for feedback, ready or not.
Bring drawing materials for every class! See Week 1 Basic Materials - Requirements. For this week especially, you will need:
Traditional: light blue and 2B pencil, transparent plastic ruler, sharpener, eraser, and artist quality drawing paper (visual diary).
Digital: a drawing device or tablet, Photoshop.
All David's students are to please complete digital drawing basics, using Photoshop. This is to please be done in Week 1 or 2 class, or in out-of-class time if you miss those classes. Save your brushes and settings to GDrive, so you can use them on different devices.
Practise good Digital Image Standards (for both Digital and Traditional) and uploading to your GDrive
Consider: How do we use shape to convey a character's identity and personality?
IN-CLASS: LECTURE VIEWING - WEEK 2
IN-CLASS: LECTURE VIEWING - WEEK 2
During Class
During Class
Drawing forms - doodling, contour lines, shapes, form construction, and shading techniques
Material/Medium Activity - Test out some different types of paper and materials, and/or special art brushes.
Story principles
Rough character construction with line of action and shapes. Optional: 5 shapes
Share your concepts in class today as informal presentations (optional either the whole class or a small group). Gather feedback from your supervisor and from peers, write the feedback down clearly, and set yourself a plan to refine your concept.
Consider the basic shapes your character is based on. Every shape has a distinct personality.
Please explore a variety of shapes and proportions.
Digital folks, please open the above link, for digital setups, warmups, and drills.
If the basics have already been covered, we'll just do a quick revision / warmup, save our brushes, then go to doodling, below.All David's students are required to learn Digital Drawing.
Return to this page after the Tone, Shading, Ellipses, Silhouettes exercises (traditional versions) below.
Warm-ups, Doodles, Scribbles, 2D Lines and Shapes
Warm-ups, Doodles, Scribbles, 2D Lines and Shapes
Traditional folks: go straight to doodling and 2D shapes. You may use the video tutorial below to get started!
Doodling
Doodling
Podcasts you can listen to while doodling:
Interview with Gabby Rivera the first queer lantina to write for Marvel Comics:
https://brenebrown.com/podcast/brene-with-gabby-rivera-on-superheroes-storytelling-and-joy-as-resistance/
Flex Mami is a cult Gen Z influencer on IG & TikTok https://open.spotify.com/episode/1gUI0TViqgzbQ8YcLXvVYM?si=9ZoTbI_GQqOGOIQhmnUSlQ&dl_branch=1
Or pick your favorite music to work to, and play!
2D Shapes and Lines have Personality
2D Shapes and Lines have Personality
How do we draw Straights? Curves? Thin and fat lines? Tapering lines? Wavy lines? Ellipses?
What happens when we put shapes next to each other? How does the relationship feel? What are the negative space shapes in-between?
Do margin frames help define negative spaces?
What happens when we make shapes non-parallel / non-symmetrical?
What happens when we change, split, or bend the shapes?
3D Shape Construction - Fundamentals
3D Shape Construction - Fundamentals
Following on from the previous shading activity, try to generate your own 3D forms using this process. Remember to work on your construction before you lock down with final marks shade.
Using this method, draw the lines of 4 basic 3D shapes, a cube, a cone, a sphere, and a cylinder.
Using this method, draw the lines of 4 basic 3D shapes, a cube, a cone, a sphere, and a cylinder.
Quick Roughs
Quick Roughs
3 minutes, full page: Quick blue roughs in a fast storyboarding style, with one tone of shade. Fill the page with various 3D shapes.
Precise Shapes
Precise Shapes
25 minutes, full page: Precise, technically accurate shapes. Use a sharp tip, light blue pencil, a ruler, and straight line technique. Construct ellipses inside box grids, and smooth the arcs by rotating the drawing, with multiple revision strokes. Keep going until construction is millimeter accurate. Then draw over, with sharp 0.5 mm cleanup lines, in 2B black pencil.
Precise Shapes
Using light blue pencil, 2B pencil, straight line technique, ellipse-in-box technique, and rulers only.
Form and Tone Shading
Form and Tone Shading
Fast and Loose style - 1 tone of shading
Good for quick storyboarding Fast and Loose style - 1 tone of shading
Shade some of your rough shapes this way.
Smoothed and Polished Shading with at least 4 tones
Notice the slight amount of "kick" light on the shaded side edge! Realistic, detailed shading usually does not extend all the way to the dark side edge. In real life, the environment/atmosphere has a small amount of diffused, rebounding light. Smoothed and Polished Shading with at least 4 tones
Tone, Shading, Ellipses, Silhouettes - TUTORIAL EXERCISES
Tone, Shading, Ellipses, Silhouettes - TUTORIAL EXERCISES
Pop out this PDF, or slide through the pages, and do all exercises -
Smooth tone shading of your basic 3d forms, using at least 4 tones.
Use multiple hatching strokes to build-up the desired tones.
Digital: Using opacity build-up is recommended, rather than solid paint tones.
Drawing many ellipses, inside rectangles
Use a low-opacity construction color, and a sharp point / small brush.
Sculpt the ellipses using multiple long strokes, to slowly build up nice curves. Rotate the page as you work.
Traditional: use rulers and math sets, as per Week 1 materials and equipment.
Digital: use Photoshop's vector Shape Tools to make ellipses, and trace over them with smooth, hand-drawn strokes.
Character shape thumbnails/roughs for Project 1.
Traditional: You can use a fat, blobby artistic brush, or wide chalk/dry media, to get random shapes. If using a pencil, draw with the side of the pencil, and your whole arm, for wide, loose, random shapes.
Digital: fat, artistic brushes can be found under Topics > Photoshop > Brushes or Sydney > Digital Drawing > Brushes.
Optional: 5 Shapes
Complete any unfinished exercises in post-class time this week.
ANI170_Tutorial_02_19T1.pdfIf you have completed
If you have completed
Return to this page and continue below. Otherwise, if you haven't done it, you must please schedule it in your Google Calendar now, follow the video tutorial in your outside-class-hours, save evidence and show it in your GDrive and Mahara, before the end of Week 2. All David's students learn Digital Drawing.
Use your Mahara.
See the Project 1 Detail Brief to prepare your concept pitch for Project 1
- Please kindly estimate the likely content/age rating of your scene idea, and your likely target audience demographic. To compare your scene idea to the age ratings for well-known shows, here is example1, example2, or find examples in your medium. You may be asked at any time about this, so prepare your answer. Please add a content warning for any content which may be confrontational or difficult for anyone.
Show your reference and early rough sketches.
Rehearse, breathe, and speak loudly, from the belly. Take feedback and support from the class. Everyone pitches, ready or not.
Write feedback clearly in your Mahara, publish, and submit, today, whether finished or not.
All students must do pitch sharing, peer and facilitator and feedback. If you haven't done it, schedule it in your Google Calendar now (with other students and facilitator), do it, document it (with attribution to the participants), and email your facilitator the link to the feedback in your project, when it's done.
After Class
After Class
Weekly outside-class-time is 6 hours per week.
Use a calendar and schedule your recurring time, with access to tools, software and equipment.Please do any in-class exercises and Project work due, whether you attended or not.
- Digitize any traditional work.
Save all files/images to
GDrive > My SAE Studies > Trimesters > [Tri] > [Unit]
- Students are responsible for keeping their data safe and accessible in an agreed, shared location.
Insert/embed images for web display
- Ensure your GDrive link is well-displayed in your unit home page.
Publish your web pages
- Whenever work-in-progress changes, finished or not.
Post more drawings to the class Padlet wall (optional activity, if requested by facilitator)
Project 1, Milestone 1 (planning and conceptualising your character)
Project 1, Milestone 2 - Detail Brief
Develop visuals: Character Rough Design Variation sheets: 24+ rough shape explorations in your blocking, of at least one character, using radically different shape ideas.
Advanced students especially: Jump ahead to Week 3 and use the Character Design Resources, such as the 5 Shapes Method. Use a variety of shape creation methods, including those shown in class.
Apply feedback revisions to your early rough shape ideas, such as more size variation, exaggeration, silhouette improvement, and selection of ideas to develop further.
Shape variations must be of the basic character shape, body and face proportions, not just props, costumes, hair or accessories. Be bold and adventurous! Explore multiple styles, body types, species mixes, and target audience ages!
No masks, unless they come off quickly, or are transparent. Facial expressions and poses must please be completely visible. Use of reference or tracing is fine if you need it.
Purchase drawing materials required for every class. See Week 1 Materials - Requirements.
All students are to please complete digital drawing basics, using Photoshop. This is to please be done in Week 1 or 2 class, or in out-of-class time if you miss those classes. Save your brushes and settings to GDrive, so you can use them on different devices.
Practise good Digital Image Standards (for both Digital and Traditional) and uploading to your GDrive.
Everyone - Check this site's Topics pages for self-directed learning
Find and use step-by-step measurement and construction reference
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