Creating Depth in Your Drawings

When we draw, we are trying to fit a 3-dimensional world onto a 2-dimensional surface.  It's quite a trick when you think about it.

Here are a few tips to help create the magic of depth in your drawings.

Overlapping 

When one object overlaps another, it's obviously in front.  You can see that happening in the drawing of apples on a table above.

Relative Size

Notice how the closest apple appears much larger than the distant apples.  This works from still life drawings to landscapes.  You can check it by measuring the apparent width of the near apple and comparing that measurement with the width of one of the distant apples.

Softening Edges & Contrast

We see softer edges and less contrast in objects that are farther away.  Notice how the little shed has crisp edges and high contrast, but the more distant trees are really just shapes without much detail, and the far hill is reduced to a single tone.

The photograph of the scene shows this clearly, but we can also exaggerate the effect in our drawings if we want to create more depth.

Converging Lines

Notice how the little lane is quite wide at the bottom of the frame, and narrows until the sides seem to almost touch towards the top of the drawing.  Parallel lines converge as they move towards the horizon.

Here's the reference photo for this drawing.  You can also see how the little trees to the right of the lane get smaller and closer together as they get more distant.

You see more detail in the nearest part of the scene -- the weeds at the bottom right & the tree shadows over the lane, vs the single tone for the distant forest and the simplified trees near the top of the hill. 

Foreshortening

Foreshortening can be maddening at times.  

You see something coming towards you (or receding away from you), and your brain believes it knows how to draw that simple object.  Yet, when you draw what your brain tells you is right, it looks wrong!

You might be drawing a simple object, but from a complicated perspective.  It's important to trust your eyes.  Look carefully!

Remember that the closest parts of the object will appear much bigger than you expect.  I drew the close end of the baguette 2x the size of the distant end.  You can measure this with your pencil or other straightedge, even a ruler if you like.   Measure it yourself on the photo below.

 Here's a post from another artist about how artists measure the things they draw using the pencil & thumb method:

 https://blog.artlounge.in/blog/2024/2/22/how-to-sketch-using-pencil-and-thumb-method

Notice the way lines converge.  

You can hold your pencil in the air in front of you and rotate it like the hands of a clock to get the correct angle, then lay the pencil on your paper in that angle and make a quick line to help you see where the line you draw should really go.

Remember that the foreshortened view shows you a compressed view of something.  

For instance, long loaves of bread will appear much shorter than you expect. Measure the width of the broken end of bread. Now compare the width to the length of that loaf.  I find that the length of the bread is almost 2x the width of the bread -- much shorter than you'd expect.

Negative space shapes.

 We call the area around the subject the negative space.  When you look at the shadows and shapes around the object you're drawing, it helps you to see the true shape of the foreshortened object.  You can compare these negative space shapes with the corresponding shapes in your drawing to make sure you got the shape of the object right.  

For instance, notice the V-shape between the two baguettes in the photo above. Notice that I got the distant V-shape between the loaves right in my drawing, but not the V-shape closer to the front.  It's easy to make mistakes. Double checking the negative space shapes helps you make a more accurate final drawing.

These negative space shapes help you to see if you've drawn the foreshortened object right.  If you have the same shape in your drawing, it's right! 

Foreshortened objects look weird!

Remember, after you get done with your drawing, the foreshortened object may still look weird.  Foreshortened views look strange.  Do the best you can; then take a break!

Come back a little later, and your drawing may look more natural to your eye.

Remember that all of these techniques take time and practice.  The more you draw, the more you learn.  I hope these techniques help you to create a sense of depth in your drawings!

Happy Creating!