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Airbrushing and light source and creating the illusion of depth by Tom Banks
Lightsource: Creating the Illusion of Depth
by Tom Banks
sponsored by Airbrush Technique Magazine
Light source: Creating the Illusion of Depth through using Highlights and Shadows.
Choosing a light source, and understanding how it works is a basic fundamental to custom painting. When working with any scheme that has layers or depth, this must be one of the first things that you must determine.
To paint an image that looks 3-dimensional (having depth) we use highlights and shadows. In order to have a highlight or shadow present, there must be a light source (otherwise, you are sitting in a dark room, and can't see anything).
Typically, for flat panel art (something that will hang on a wall, or easel) you will choose a single light source. Most commonly located from the Top Left, or Top Right of the painting. To help remind myself where my light is coming from, I will mark my painting with a LS (light source) as a constant reminder.
Now, imagine I put a light bulb in the top corner, and I turn that light bulb on. The light will radiate outwards in all the directions of my arrows.
When I paint any 3-dimensional object in the center, you can see how all my highlights and shadows make sense to that single light source.
It is very important to remember that once you choose a light source, EVERYTHING that you do from that point on ALL makes sense to that Light Source! If not, then the illusion will not work as well, as our minds subconsciously already know what it should look like.
We have seen Highlights and Shadows every of our lives, since the day we were born. Ask yourself this......when was the last time you EVER said, "Hey, look at that highlight. Look at those shadows. Look at how they interact with each other." Chances are, you have never done it unless you were in an art class.
This is exactly why highlights and shadows are so difficult to paint. Our minds already know EXACTLY what they are supposed to look like. If what we paint does not fit our subconscious, pre-conceived notion of what it's supposed to be, then the illusion fails.
What are highlights? What are shadows? What do they look like? How do they behave and interact? What do they actually signify? These are all questions that you must ask yourself and consciously understand the answers.
Tom Banks:
Big Daddy Customs is located about an hour north of Pittsburgh, PA. In addition to operating his own private custom paint shop, Thomas “Big Daddy” Banks works as the demonstration artist for Ohio Technical College’s Custom Paint & Graphics Program. To see more of Big D’s work and information about free custom paint demonstrations, go to www.BigDaddyCustoms.net
Copyrights :Airhead Airbrush.Com , Inc. Reserved No part of this tutorial may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical or otherwise, without prior permission in writing from Airhead Airbrush. Com , Inc.
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