Try and remember to fit form to function. Look for lateral veins, and smaller veins coming off them. The shape of the leaf is done, now you can add detail. For more on variety in leaf margins check out my blog. Sometimes teeth are blunt, closely spaced, double-serrated… Take a close look and record what you see as accurately as possible. Leaf margins vary from species to species, so getting this right matters. This means looking at the margin of the leaf, and recording each individual tooth as accurately as possible. The places where the side lobes join the rest of the leaf line up, this is helpful. Figuring out the basic shape of these, and how they relate to each other means looking really hard at the specimen. Sycamore leaves have 5 lobes, each with a central vein. Again, this is really light pencil as I’ll be redrawing the veins in more detail a bit later on.įinding the edges of the leaf is the next challenge. Next I plot in the veins, working hard to get the angles correct. I’ve increased the contrast in the scan so you can actually see the pencil lines. This shape shows the form the leaf will fit into, and I find adding the central vein and stalk, even at this preliminary stage, helps. I use incredibly light pencil, and very little pressure. However, I think this only comes with lots of practise, so wanted to show how I’d tackle the leaf if I wasn’t feeling confident.įirst, I plot in a very basic shape. When I draw, I often just pick up a pencil and start making a line. They’re also really easy to get hold of! Sketch a basic shape I’m also fond of Sycamore leaves, there’s something very lovely about their palmate shape. I wanted to think about drawing and make a film, I’d had a separate commission to illustrate an autumn leaf, and FOR Sweden had commissioned me to do sketchbooks studies of, amongst other plants, the Sycamore.
This really was a case of killing three birds with one stone. I chose to illustrate a Sycamore leaf, in autumn colours. Recently, someone who subscribes to my Youtube Channel asked me to do a film on the subject “How to Draw”. You need to be able to record what you see accurately. Drawing is at the heart of being a botanical illustrator.
0 kommentar(er)
