How To Draw Trees, Foliage And Forests |
If you want to learn how to draw trees, begin your drawing with a basic sketch of branches, trunks (internal structure), and leaves (external structure).
When you draw trees, the single most important factor is lighting. Study the direction of the light and quality of shadows in the tree you are drawing and begin a steady pattern of shading the leafy areas.
When drawing, shadowed areas will be darker and will require heavier lines; partly shaded areas require a slightly lighter hand; and areas left white reveal highlighted leaves.
Remember to use negative space (the sections between branches where there are no leaves) to help accent the leafy areas. Gradually deepen the shadowed areas and adjust shading to produce the illusion of individual leaves and the lifelike quality of the tree.
Using the flat side of a pencil to make broader strokes of varying darkness is another technique used to create trees and leaves. This method produces a less definite leaf pattern.
Emphasize areas by using an eraser to create areas of light. You may also choose to use a random scribble process, making squiggly lines of different thicknesses to construct a less defined tree.
Keep in mind that all of these techniques rely on using shadows and light to reveal the impression of clusters of leaves.
How to draw complete forests of treesDrawing a complete forest of trees is a little bit more complicated, as you don't want to draw each tree individually, but to much uniformity will also be bad for the drawing.
The problem: We may perceive trees of similar type as nearly identical but this is not the case. While alike, they are all unique and should be viewed and drawn in a way that shows this.
Again studying the direction and quality of the light and how it gives character to each tree is the starting point. Even in a crowded forest, single trees can be distinguished. This is the quality that you must translate into your drawing.
The easiest way to reveal single trees is to use texture. Consider that each variety of tree has different kinds of leaves as well as assorted ways that the leaves fill the tree (in bundles or in groupings). As you draw, use different pencil strokes for each type of tree/leaf bundle to give it a unique look.
Again, don’t forget to take your light source into account and shade accordingly. Think about the placement of the trees in your overall landscape. Trees in the foreground should contain more detail than those in the middle or background as they are more visible to the viewer.
These instructions should help you to draw trees - be it complete forests or single trees.
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