Thursday
Jun232011
Hard and Soft Shadow Edges
Thursday, June 23, 2011 at 10:06AM Note: It's not clearly mentioned in the video, but this technique is only relevant in the case of strong directional lighting. If you were looking at an object on a cloudy day, this principle would not apply.
Reader Comments (14)
Hi and thanks for the videos. We really appreciate the time you spent, and the courtesy by sharing them without expecting something in exchange.
I have two questions, at the moment you are applying the shadows... Are you doing it under your line art or over it? Now, if you paint below lines, when do you know it is time to cover them?
Again, thank you very much for what you are doing (sorry for my english).
Hey Matt, great post. I'm not sure if this question is directly related with soft and hard shadows but, in traditional oil painting, would it be a smart move to begin painting tones as if they didn't softly blend with each other (like how you started out your apple in the previous video) then later creating that soft transition (as in your last video) last? Is this also how you paint digitally?
Hi matt, when you say this technique is only relevant in the case of strong directional lighting, do you mean its only good for using the brushes when looking ata cast with direct lighting? If i was doing it say looking at something my my room, with nothing but the natural light would it still be relevant. When rdo you mean the use of the brushes?. Thanks.
Hey Gats,
As Matt mentioned when it's cloudy (not enough light to create those hard edges) you can't really see the shadows as sharp as you do when there's stronger and more direct lightsource.
Just compare these two pictures:
http://i1.trekearth.com/photos/47331/david20te.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/Greek_Marble_Statue_of_Aphrodite_Anadyomene_%28Hair-Binding%29.jpg
See the difference?
oh right so, well directed light creates hard edges? So the guy holding the torch basiclly its soft edges everywhere?
Sweet video. I'm still amazed by the realization that value makes up so much of how we see in this world. Shape, Form, Volume, all defined by varying levels of value. Such a cool concept once your get your head wrapped around it.
My Shuttle Pro V2 comes in today; can't wait to do some form value painting with it.
Hey Matt! No source file for this video? *elbow nudge & look of expectation*
I tend to think about the following things when determining shadow edges:
The proximity of your subject to a light source and the intensity of the source are what you need to think about when determining the hardness or softness of edges. The closer the object is to the light source, the harder the edges will generally be.
The same with intensity. A brighter light creates harsher edges in the transition, particularly when combined with close proximity to the subject.
Lastly the shape of your subject will also play a role. Something with soft flowing form allows for more gradual transition of shadow than something more with more rigid structure.
@Gats
Natural light comes in many forms. Abz used an example of diffused light, like the type you would get on a cloudy day or as a result of using something to diffuse your light source (like those screens you will see photographers set up in front of their lights) and contrasted it with strong directional light.
Natural light comes in similar varieties as well. If you're talking about a subject sitting at a window in DIRECT sunlight, you will observe very hard edges. In diffuse light, where the sun is not shining directly on your subject, then the transitions will be somewhat softer.
Great posts as always Matt.
HI Matt,
Just a quick line to say how great and handy your tutorials are. Congrats for the good work!!!
I look forward to seeing more of your works.
Robson Vieira.
Thanks, Matt.
Say, have you tried to leave a brush pallette open with a selection of brushes to make it easier to shift between one and the other? I think it would be much better for you.
Hi Matt,
awesome work =) And I kinda have a request/idea for a topic. It seems like many of your videos focus on rendering, and I find my self to bee watching through all of them. They are really good, but I cannot apply them simply because I'm still "stuck" in the first phase, the drawing beneath all of the rendering.
In short, I'd like to see some more tips and exercises regarding making of the basic motive, before rendering it.
hi
great tutorials you've got, its really a big help, thank you for sharing.
U ARE GOD!
This video helped me.
Thank you
p.s.
some of the led reading lamps at IKEA are great for point source lighting for crisp shadows.
Hey Matt,
These are really helpfull tutorials, I have learned tons in one day already, especially the temp layer tutorial and how to add texture tutorial were helpful. However, in this tutorial I have a question that has been bothering me for some time. Sometimes it seems as if shadow is darker between an area where light and dark come together, such as you can see at the edge of the jaw in your video. Sometimes I also see it when I watch a photograph of a human face, but I cannot grap when it does not happen and when it does, can you explain a little about this? Thanks a lot!
Maximus