Feynman on Light

Like ripples in water, light vibrations radiate out from the source, bounce off objects, and travel into your eye. <br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/FjHJ7FmV0M4" width="480"></iframe><br />But light waves are also bouncing in all other directions too, allowing the person next to you to see. Not only that, longer, invisible wavelengths from all radio, TV (and cell phone) channels are also passing in all directions through the same space. Physicist and explainer Richard Feynman explains it all with clarity and enthusiasm.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjHJ7FmV0M4">Direct link to YouTube video</a><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Feynman">Richard Feynman on Wikipedia </a><br />Thanks, Dave!

Feynman on Light

Like ripples in water, light vibrations radiate out from the source, bounce off objects, and travel into your eye. But light waves are also ...

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Cure for Middle Value Mumbling

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEQmYX8v08OV1g8Pm1I8ByRz3NGsPJGmohgfG-tap9E6zEn43eQi9HiVJp6kVMmkdbgczQEFvxWneKES9ZxURBGV_eGyyGlhPD3N_zwRFlOf668j16FhY2aqWMzKOXgRkCs8aXQP469mo/s1600/IMG_2918.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEQmYX8v08OV1g8Pm1I8ByRz3NGsPJGmohgfG-tap9E6zEn43eQi9HiVJp6kVMmkdbgczQEFvxWneKES9ZxURBGV_eGyyGlhPD3N_zwRFlOf668j16FhY2aqWMzKOXgRkCs8aXQP469mo/s1600/IMG_2918.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEQmYX8v08OV1g8Pm1I8ByRz3NGsPJGmohgfG-tap9E6zEn43eQi9HiVJp6kVMmkdbgczQEFvxWneKES9ZxURBGV_eGyyGlhPD3N_zwRFlOf668j16FhY2aqWMzKOXgRkCs8aXQP469mo/s320/IMG_2918.JPG" width="221" /></a><br />If your work suffers from “middle value mumbling,*” here’s a cure.<br /><br />1. Bring your sketchbook to a restaurant, bus station, lecture hall, or waiting room. <br /><br />2. Draw the scene very lightly in pencil, just to work out the shapes. You’ll erase these lines later.<br /><br />3. Choose a drawing tool that only makes black shapes, such as a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Yasutomo-Calligraphy-Chisel-Tip-Markers/dp/B001DKLDL6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=arts-crafts&qid=1302709249&sr=1-2">wide calligraphy marker </a>or a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Yasutomo-KWB09-Niji-Waterbrush-Small/dp/B000KNNKKE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1302709204&sr=1-1-catcorr">water brush</a> filled with black ink. <br /><br />4. Define all the shapes as either white or black. If the scene is strongly lit, you can make the shadows totally black and the light areas white. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh587CxM5JpK9ceY3HTCp5QOexjC3A9AKszIluqVsEb1Wq_OWscG9xpyoeyZIldHdH2cHzllmlwkG3Yuj1nLxH8bRUTK9Hby1_Gj7ULO1iwrhqUsZ6HLLBhH2OD_WnxUULYfc4ErvpJrqk/s1600/Bar_Stools.sm.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh587CxM5JpK9ceY3HTCp5QOexjC3A9AKszIluqVsEb1Wq_OWscG9xpyoeyZIldHdH2cHzllmlwkG3Yuj1nLxH8bRUTK9Hby1_Gj7ULO1iwrhqUsZ6HLLBhH2OD_WnxUULYfc4ErvpJrqk/s400/Bar_Stools.sm.jpg" width="268" /></a><br />5. There are two rules: <br />    a. DON’T DRAW OUTLINES. Let one black area run into another. Let white areas merge together. Resist the temptation to draw boundaries. You can see I started to forget this rule and outlined the top of the head and the base of the stool at right.<br /><br />   b. The other rule is DON’T DRAW MIDDLE TONES. This is hard to do. I desperately wanted to put in halftones and transitions in the man’s back.<br /><br />5. Now erase the pencil lines. The result will probably look nothing like other drawings you’ve done. It might have a startling realism.<br /><br />The viewer will have no trouble understanding the scene. The mystery can work very much in your favor. It’s excellent practice if you’re learning to paint, because these grouping decisions are a key to good tonal composition. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyT0Hg7t4J7V2qwvig7YGdj0DY-GSt4P6dnGoSESS6oP74XS8oMfZo_eeY9OEMrqvpect2ln29WMXdwDDCXkgqd9gSu9QYMhkBrDt1_qm8GRQt7O-TGeIRdcw4_J1NH53URZHN2vePVMA/s1600/cornwell_Hearsts_International.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyT0Hg7t4J7V2qwvig7YGdj0DY-GSt4P6dnGoSESS6oP74XS8oMfZo_eeY9OEMrqvpect2ln29WMXdwDDCXkgqd9gSu9QYMhkBrDt1_qm8GRQt7O-TGeIRdcw4_J1NH53URZHN2vePVMA/s320/cornwell_Hearsts_International.jpg" width="295" /></a><br />It’s also wonderful for giving your work more punch or more mystery. Dean Cornwell (above) in his early career was very interested in this kind of thinking.<br /><br />*Middle value mumbling is the common tendency to mix all your colors in midrange tones, rather than pushing them to either the light or the dark. We all fall into this problem. It takes conscious effort to avoid it.<br /><br />Previously on GurneyJourney:<br /><a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2008/03/kryers-hip-hip-hurra.html">Krøyer's Hip Hip Hurra </a><br /><a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2007/10/high-contrast-shape-welding.html"> High Contrast Shape Welding</a><br /><a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2007/10/shape-welding.html">“Shape Welding”</a><br /><a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2009/04/concert-sketching.html">Concert Sketching</a><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://emptyeasel.com/2008/08/12/seeing-notan-how-to-make-stronger-compositions-using-lights-and-darks/">Related concept called "notan" explained at Empty Easel.com</a>

Cure for Middle Value Mumbling

If your work suffers from “middle value mumbling,*” here’s a cure. 1. Bring your sketchbook to a restaurant, bus station, lecture hall, or w...

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Rocket Plume

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2kuAoCLh_AAtwPTaxLq1Qtk33mkYwWJM6cXCSZKVqk5A7GiabHquM4ei-WGzTGofUoJJY8VNGoKYN0JIpQnaHkOA7xgnCLgLGBbkV8kWTUa42hREgEyZeLMci8Q-zPGwAr9U2BvF4hog/s1600/Rocket_PLume.sm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a>This photograph shows the vapor plume from a space shuttle rising up into the evening sky. It illustrates several important points about the interaction of light and atmosphere.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2kuAoCLh_AAtwPTaxLq1Qtk33mkYwWJM6cXCSZKVqk5A7GiabHquM4ei-WGzTGofUoJJY8VNGoKYN0JIpQnaHkOA7xgnCLgLGBbkV8kWTUa42hREgEyZeLMci8Q-zPGwAr9U2BvF4hog/s1600/Rocket_PLume.sm.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2kuAoCLh_AAtwPTaxLq1Qtk33mkYwWJM6cXCSZKVqk5A7GiabHquM4ei-WGzTGofUoJJY8VNGoKYN0JIpQnaHkOA7xgnCLgLGBbkV8kWTUa42hREgEyZeLMci8Q-zPGwAr9U2BvF4hog/s400/Rocket_PLume.sm.jpg" width="290" /></a><br />The sun has just set behind us, and it’s six degrees below the horizon. Most of the plume is in the “earth shadow,” not touched by direct sunlight. As you follow the plume upward into the higher altitudes, it catches the light of the setting sun, first red, then orange, yellow, and finally white as you go miles above the earth. <br /><br />The red colors come from sunlight that has traveled through the longest stretch of the earth’s atmosphere. The color of the sun itself goes through a similar color progression as it sets. Sunlight traveling on a near tangent to the surface of the Earth has had the most blue light scattered or removed from each ray, leaving the red color. <br /><br />The moon is a few hours from full, and is therefore almost 180 degrees opposite the sun at the antisolar point. The plume is casting a <a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2009/12/shadowbeams.html">shadowbeam</a>  through the illuminated atmosphere. That shadow points directly toward the antisolar point. You can think of the dark line as a slice of unilluminated vapor seen edge-on. If that slice were completely unilluminated, we'd see stars through it.<br /><br />It’s a good reminder that the light blue color of the sky is merely “the blue dome of the sky itself is really a semitransparent film of air interposed over the blackness of space.” <br />------<br />(These points are further explained and illustrated in <a href="http://www.dinotopia.com/dinotopia-store.html"><i>Color and Light,</i></a> page 176, 180, and 190).<br />Image from <a href="http://www.atoptics.co.uk/atoptics/shuttle.htm"><i>Atmospheric Optics</i></a>.<br />Previously on GJ: <a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2009/12/shadowbeams.html">Shadowbeams</a>

Rocket Plume

This photograph shows the vapor plume from a space shuttle rising up into the evening sky. It illustrates several important points about the...

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Sky Conscious

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLVeSYaRuSsbPJhVEpB4qNm_kGhRtqe7G3qoQ0ZREw4y6IQikAAebea68SN1_03TStcHqk4pMthY5BwnKRXEFhV2y86rlEzbnLj161nQHxCboFp5_XFxvrzlX-JoLDE_aAVa7cQdGfMsc/s1600/Anderson_Susie.sm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a>Here’s a fine head painting by the American artist Harry Anderson, known for his illustration and gallery work in opaque watercolor, (also known as tempera or gouache).<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLVeSYaRuSsbPJhVEpB4qNm_kGhRtqe7G3qoQ0ZREw4y6IQikAAebea68SN1_03TStcHqk4pMthY5BwnKRXEFhV2y86rlEzbnLj161nQHxCboFp5_XFxvrzlX-JoLDE_aAVa7cQdGfMsc/s1600/Anderson_Susie.sm.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLVeSYaRuSsbPJhVEpB4qNm_kGhRtqe7G3qoQ0ZREw4y6IQikAAebea68SN1_03TStcHqk4pMthY5BwnKRXEFhV2y86rlEzbnLj161nQHxCboFp5_XFxvrzlX-JoLDE_aAVa7cQdGfMsc/s400/Anderson_Susie.sm.jpg" width="298" /></a><a class="cssButton" href="" id="publishButton" target=""><div class="cssButtonOuter"><div class="cssButtonMiddle"><div class="cssButtonInner">Publish Post</div></div></div></a><br />Rather than point out all the excellent handling of edges and drawing, I want to point out the sky behind the head. It’s a very pale, low-chroma blue, almost matching the value of the light side of the form. What’s wonderful about the sky is how it steps back and provides a setting for the interesting area of the picture.  <br /><br />Harry Anderson once said, “I imagine you might say that I am definitely sky conscious,” <br /><br />"I can’t tolerate skies that force themselves on the viewer’s attention. Ordinarily the sky should be a foil for the rest of the design. It must retire, but many artists fail to grasp this truth. The source of light is always the lightest area in a picture. On a bright day this is the sun itself, when a white expanse in full light might be lighter than the sky, but on a gray day the sky is the source of light, and in this instance, the sky will be the lightest note—lighter even than pure white objects.”<br />------<br />“Harry Anderson Discusses his Painting in Tempera,” American Artist, May, 1956<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/sets/1603970/">See more Anderson images at Leif Peng’s “Today’s Inspiration” Flickr Sets.</a>

Sky Conscious

Here’s a fine head painting by the American artist Harry Anderson, known for his illustration and gallery work in opaque watercolor, (also k...

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Blending Into the Background

Thin channels of snow linger in the tractor ruts on a clear March day.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8KTYxjuxuE_zMuZoSHexetjnWofnW_Xs8azuK62QFsyolUAwlw20Lx0noqC1tSzj2dVuxMlpVqFs1jJstk416K_QfN5SwK4GGJi523wCr2L6_ZQj8fRNI3q6TemO8n1r2mH6rTXQZRLI/s1600/Image-Reality.sm.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8KTYxjuxuE_zMuZoSHexetjnWofnW_Xs8azuK62QFsyolUAwlw20Lx0noqC1tSzj2dVuxMlpVqFs1jJstk416K_QfN5SwK4GGJi523wCr2L6_ZQj8fRNI3q6TemO8n1r2mH6rTXQZRLI/s400/Image-Reality.sm.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />After I painted the scene on location, I set up the painting in front of the scene itself, angling the painting to try to match the light levels. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie041gRgzqOCTZoqVjmYiBwxKWsXNzsmWG694u1BZE3-h8OgesTSlWDRnq797OL_ZQCtOnggW7KjsX2MQHGP6N9htXYEWHZ0uYRj2ipfOiDMteLPH6e1mHen8euj-pkWzMFfpiLUF_Rbc/s1600/Domela_Glass_Shot_Matte_Painting.sm.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie041gRgzqOCTZoqVjmYiBwxKWsXNzsmWG694u1BZE3-h8OgesTSlWDRnq797OL_ZQCtOnggW7KjsX2MQHGP6N9htXYEWHZ0uYRj2ipfOiDMteLPH6e1mHen8euj-pkWzMFfpiLUF_Rbc/s400/Domela_Glass_Shot_Matte_Painting.sm.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />Trying to match a painting up with a camera view was the challenge faced by pioneering movie matte painters. One early technique, called a “glass shot” involved painting part of a scene onto a pane of glass positioned vertically in front of a camera. That way you could place a castle or some other structure in the scene adjacent to the filmed action.<br /><br />If you want to play with this idea, it helps to have a panel that’s a little wider than the easel (in this case an 11x14 panel on an <a href="http://www.openboxm.com/">Open Box M </a>pochade easel). <br /><br />Also, the illumination on the painting has to be just right. My painting is shown in direct sunlight, but I often use a white umbrella to diffuse and control the light on the painting, especially when painting contre jour (facing the light source). In any kind of observational painting it really helps in color mixing if you can match illumination levels as much as possible.<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="290" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ve-3-yDYOuM" title="YouTube video player" width="480"></iframe><br />And speaking of blending in, check out how this Chinese artist does it.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie041gRgzqOCTZoqVjmYiBwxKWsXNzsmWG694u1BZE3-h8OgesTSlWDRnq797OL_ZQCtOnggW7KjsX2MQHGP6N9htXYEWHZ0uYRj2ipfOiDMteLPH6e1mHen8euj-pkWzMFfpiLUF_Rbc/s1600/Domela_Glass_Shot_Matte_Painting.sm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a>--------- <br />The second photo is of Paramount matte painting veteran Jan Domela setting up for a glass shot. You can read more about Domela at the blog<a href="http://nzpetesmatteshot.blogspot.com/2010/07/jan-domela-intimate-portrait-of.html"> Matte Shot </a><br /><br />Previously on GJ:<br /><a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2007/10/white-umbrellas.html">White Umbrellas</a><br /><a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2007/10/contre-jour-lighting.html">Contre Jour Lighting </a>

Blending Into the Background

Thin channels of snow linger in the tractor ruts on a clear March day. After I painted the scene on location, I set up the painting in front...

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How to get a feeling of misty light

This painting from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dinotopia-Journey-Chandara-James-Gurney/dp/0740764314/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpi_4"><i>Dinotopia: Journey to Chandara</i></a> uses a simple device. The subject is placed in a high-key silhouette near the sun. The silhouette colors shift to warm hues as they approach the sun. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio6mgYDFQ_x8AN-_bAWvcSN89Hhk1AowG9fS2CUD63zNDoCT51npuomWfRsU97DEXRja52LkFZMRFsKXMMzgv9jTIReCDnBQA6DUE0wfVZKBhE8-zQJOeENNTCER9rN695vJzbzP4nRoo/s1600/FERRY+CROSSING.det.sm.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio6mgYDFQ_x8AN-_bAWvcSN89Hhk1AowG9fS2CUD63zNDoCT51npuomWfRsU97DEXRja52LkFZMRFsKXMMzgv9jTIReCDnBQA6DUE0wfVZKBhE8-zQJOeENNTCER9rN695vJzbzP4nRoo/s400/FERRY+CROSSING.det.sm.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />The color corona around the sun spills over and influences both the colors of the sky and the silhouette colors. The color mixtures are actually fairly low-chroma (not very saturated), but you can get a feeling of great brilliancy this way. This is very easy to do in digital, but it takes a bit of deliberate planning in paint.<br /><br />A silhouette treatment is good to use in a sequential work like an illustrated book, comic book, or animated film, especially if you want to give the viewer a break from looking at a lot of detail.<br /><br />Good rule of thumb: the most brilliant impressions of light are achieved in paintings when looking toward, not away from the light source.<br />----<br />Previously:<a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2008/03/color-corona.html"> Color Corona</a><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Color-Light-Guide-Realist-Painter/dp/0740797719/ref=pd_ts_b_16?ie=UTF8&s=books"><i>Color and Light, </i></a>page 166-167.<br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dinotopia-Journey-Chandara-James-Gurney/dp/0740764314/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpi_4"><i>Dinotopia: Journey to Chandara</i></a>

How to get a feeling of misty light

This painting from Dinotopia: Journey to Chandara uses a simple device. The subject is placed in a high-key silhouette near the sun. The si...

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Vertical Planes in Shadow

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHUoyVyXNMJ3OW5djbbg7QIQhNFUR08zia5QcgVWL60syjCLbAnSlBOoZ5aAWRM6PjVjqoZbSLaXUYvkjZuJZE_Cp4KvQ_6NWaBj_StsVlQZwjPlUZgYLwmNNyuW3agrMppCe7lvf4YnM/s1600/Reflected_Light.sm.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a>Here’s an illustration of the point, “On a sunny day, vertical surfaces in shadow usually receive two strong sources of illumination: warm ground light and blue sky light.”<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHUoyVyXNMJ3OW5djbbg7QIQhNFUR08zia5QcgVWL60syjCLbAnSlBOoZ5aAWRM6PjVjqoZbSLaXUYvkjZuJZE_Cp4KvQ_6NWaBj_StsVlQZwjPlUZgYLwmNNyuW3agrMppCe7lvf4YnM/s1600/Reflected_Light.sm.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHUoyVyXNMJ3OW5djbbg7QIQhNFUR08zia5QcgVWL60syjCLbAnSlBOoZ5aAWRM6PjVjqoZbSLaXUYvkjZuJZE_Cp4KvQ_6NWaBj_StsVlQZwjPlUZgYLwmNNyuW3agrMppCe7lvf4YnM/s400/Reflected_Light.sm.JPG" width="400" /></a><br />The shadow side of this pile of snow is distinctly blue on the top surface. The horizontal plane of the of cast shadow at right is also very blue from the sky above. But the vertical surface in shadow is receiving a combination of that blue skylight and a warmer light reflected from the illuminated surfaces of snow on the ground.<br /><br />Reflected light influences not just shadowed surfaces, but also illuminated surfaces. Just to the left of the base of the pile, the snow on the ground becomes very light where the reflected light is added to the direct illumination from the sun. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Color-Light-Guide-Realist-Painter/dp/0740797719/ref=pd_ts_b_?ie=UTF8&s=books">Color and Light, </a>page 67.

Vertical Planes in Shadow

Here’s an illustration of the point, “On a sunny day, vertical surfaces in shadow usually receive two strong sources of illumination: warm g...

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Texture on the Moon Man

When an object is lit by direct sunlight, the texture is not equally prominent throughout the form. The texture in the shadow should not just be a darker version of the texture in the light, because that’s not how the eye sees it. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Pc3fytw-CP8yhNFGb6Rv54R8YBaJB3HMB72_zcohdSg_T9kfUqM4YBZTytWa4ny_D9se7Kxbl-PA6axmv4Mj68b90WQGRhAQ5Sb64ioHutSMyDwswdLhvOLczVi4wdAWyZn14CkCoWCn/s1600/Texture_Halflight.sm.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="366" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Pc3fytw-CP8yhNFGb6Rv54R8YBaJB3HMB72_zcohdSg_T9kfUqM4YBZTytWa4ny_D9se7Kxbl-PA6axmv4Mj68b90WQGRhAQ5Sb64ioHutSMyDwswdLhvOLczVi4wdAWyZn14CkCoWCn/s400/Texture_Halflight.sm.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />This concrete moon-face is a good example. The texture is very difficult to see at all in the shadow region. It’s also not terribly prominent in the fully lit areas of lighter halftone, such as the forehead and the left hand edge of the form. <br /><br />What you tend to see in those light halftones are variations in local color--in other words, freckles rather than pores. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSk4nf9ApLu_JM13-403-W4R0vkvFzNy-7rsx1Gq7feptmfKc-bsQyBXG2KOril4KCcukNI5vtelRo6Osr8qaYxjWw1WUO0EQViAqf9SsJ_LPqgbEqNUPYVErMQ6KP6iS6UrVtZ0B1y3uz/s1600/Cheek_Closeup.sm.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSk4nf9ApLu_JM13-403-W4R0vkvFzNy-7rsx1Gq7feptmfKc-bsQyBXG2KOril4KCcukNI5vtelRo6Osr8qaYxjWw1WUO0EQViAqf9SsJ_LPqgbEqNUPYVErMQ6KP6iS6UrVtZ0B1y3uz/s320/Cheek_Closeup.sm.jpg" width="318" /></a><br />The place where you really see the texture is in the darker halftone, just before the terminator divides the light side from the shadow side.  In this moon man it appears in the cheeks, the tip of the nose, the lower lip, and the chin. This region is sometimes called the halflight, an area of raking light where any bumps in the surface stand out dramatically.<br />-------<br />This example amplifies the discussion on page 46 of the <i>Color and Light: A Guide for the Realist Painter.</i><br />Previous GJ Posts: <a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2007/11/texture-in-halflight.html">Texture in the Halflight </a>and <a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2010/02/light-and-form-part-1_15.html">Light and Form (The Form Principle)</a><br /><i>Color and Light</i> on Amazon internationally: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Color-Light-Guide-Realist-Painter/dp/0740797719/ref=pd_ts_b_?ie=UTF8&s=books">USA</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/0740797719?tag=parblo0c-20">CA</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0740797719?tag=parblo-21">UK</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.fr/gp/product/0740797719?tag=parblo08-21">FR</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/0740797719?tag=parblo01-21">DE</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/product/0740797719?tag=parkablogs-22">JP</a><br /><i>Color and Light </i>signed (and doodled in) by me, from<a href="http://www.dinotopia.com/dinotopia-store.html"> the Dinotopia Store</a>

Texture on the Moon Man

When an object is lit by direct sunlight, the texture is not equally prominent throughout the form. The texture in the shadow should not jus...

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Spotted Cats

Discovery News announced yesterday that the spotted patterns on woodland species of wild cats are tied to the patterns of dappled light in their forest environments.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidxpA4_e9KFHgVuEF6lPRDmoHh4FQZ3ijVWD_bLMo9eeY9cK4YtApvbBEnPTaw0z8xbMk0ImoQ048VWPkazp6WXqiXT6KRLkouZ4O3GdfLqk3qyF8v_9G8cyhLFfg4aUgIyz9gs2BZw_9Y/s1600/Dappled_Light_Spotted_Cats.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidxpA4_e9KFHgVuEF6lPRDmoHh4FQZ3ijVWD_bLMo9eeY9cK4YtApvbBEnPTaw0z8xbMk0ImoQ048VWPkazp6WXqiXT6KRLkouZ4O3GdfLqk3qyF8v_9G8cyhLFfg4aUgIyz9gs2BZw_9Y/s400/Dappled_Light_Spotted_Cats.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />Cats in open ranges, such as lions, tend to have plain coloration. Tiger stripes, according to the University of Bristol researcher William Allen, are still something of a mystery.<br /><br /><a href="http://news.discovery.com/animals/leopard-spots-cat-color.html#mkcpgn=rssnws1%20%20">Full article by Jennifer Viegas </a><br /><a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2008/03/dappled-light.html">Previous GurneyJourney post on Dappled Light </a> <br />Thanks, Libby!

Spotted Cats

Discovery News announced yesterday that the spotted patterns on woodland species of wild cats are tied to the patterns of dappled light in t...

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Chromatic Shadows, Part 2

As we saw yesterday, adjacent colored light sources result in overlapping colored shadows.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgTGMKYXeA-s424yqr5BiW6SURY-sgi-SxgdXgxK1MM1wXbUyK_qhXzrzxV3ACtc2BFzf9g5QYaLkK4NI_GDc_zzwTZ80oEXF5IrCmx1xgnzUV2rmgu7f8vVhmxwzfysJruUNHe6Vjlvqj/s1600/Chromatic_Shadows.2.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523154504721162274" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgTGMKYXeA-s424yqr5BiW6SURY-sgi-SxgdXgxK1MM1wXbUyK_qhXzrzxV3ACtc2BFzf9g5QYaLkK4NI_GDc_zzwTZ80oEXF5IrCmx1xgnzUV2rmgu7f8vVhmxwzfysJruUNHe6Vjlvqj/s400/Chromatic_Shadows.2.jpg" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 283px;" /></a>Here’s another rule of thumb: If you have two light sources of different colors shining on the same form, the cast shadow from each light source will be the color of the other source.<br /><br />That’s because each colored light shines into the shadow of the other. So when the amber light shines on the cylinder, it casts a shadow that is filled only by the blue light—hence the blue shadow.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHxSW27IZgFbL99D-pVtSHzYZuiT1EBQZIJs_AAOtiTDGoT1yUKw_7o5SzcZ826UYwXJatTX1pVgnkkHMHuJAgoyGKqF8xn6bn_VJDCtSFMPIy5lCwdcx35aYBqhcsL2XEU740z5Ay93Hm/s1600/Chromatic_Shadows.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><br /></a>Let’s make the scenario even more challenging: What happens to the shadows when you have three colored sources? Here’s the effect from blue, red, and green lights.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHxSW27IZgFbL99D-pVtSHzYZuiT1EBQZIJs_AAOtiTDGoT1yUKw_7o5SzcZ826UYwXJatTX1pVgnkkHMHuJAgoyGKqF8xn6bn_VJDCtSFMPIy5lCwdcx35aYBqhcsL2XEU740z5Ay93Hm/s1600/Chromatic_Shadows.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523154509780126626" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHxSW27IZgFbL99D-pVtSHzYZuiT1EBQZIJs_AAOtiTDGoT1yUKw_7o5SzcZ826UYwXJatTX1pVgnkkHMHuJAgoyGKqF8xn6bn_VJDCtSFMPIy5lCwdcx35aYBqhcsL2XEU740z5Ay93Hm/s400/Chromatic_Shadows.JPG" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 274px;" /></a>Note that the cast shadows behind my raised hand and my head are magenta, cyan, and yellow. The yellow shadow on the far right is cast by the blue light. It’s yellow because it is lit by a mixture of green and red. In the realm of light, as opposed to pigment, green and red mix to make yellow.<br /><br />The bright cyan shadow is cast by the central red light. It’s cyan because it contains the blend of blue and green light. Blue and green light mix to make cyan.<br /><br />If you’re intrigued by colored light interactions, I’d recommend going to the home improvement or theater lighting store and picking up red, green, and blue lightbulbs that you can put in three different light sockets. The best way to learn this stuff is to set them up and try all sorts of combinations. I took the photo in the <a href="http://www.nysci.org/">New York Hall of Science, </a>which has an interactive setup installed.<br />--------<br />Related GJ post:<br /><a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2008/04/mixing-of-colored-light.html">Colored Light and Form</a>

Chromatic Shadows, Part 2

As we saw yesterday, adjacent colored light sources result in overlapping colored shadows. Here’s another rule of thumb: If you have two lig...

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Chromatic Shadows, Part 1

The painting below shows a warrior standing on a ledge. He is lit by a slanting bar of light that shines from below.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhapu-tlAxTU2ZF3UMVK3GD1oDjWyM5BXyUPe55l14ofrvt4MDt4JSnbmUYXL8rKPlG2jJXu6ZFXQyHQpGBHIKDF3qGvunjxKv8N697GMApDDEJXEoNv2kt58W_Kn8fzZ1pjM4XQ6wnCq3Y/s1600/Warrior_On_Ledge.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522771465816340610" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhapu-tlAxTU2ZF3UMVK3GD1oDjWyM5BXyUPe55l14ofrvt4MDt4JSnbmUYXL8rKPlG2jJXu6ZFXQyHQpGBHIKDF3qGvunjxKv8N697GMApDDEJXEoNv2kt58W_Kn8fzZ1pjM4XQ6wnCq3Y/s400/Warrior_On_Ledge.jpg" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 305px; height: 400px;" /></a>Note that the cast shadow from his arm is red on the bottom and blue above.<br /><br />The colored shadows suggest that the scene is lit by two adjacent spotlights, a red one below and a blue one above. This is typical of theater lighting, where two or more colored spotlights cast shadows with chromatic edges.<br /><br />Tomorrow we’ll take a closer look at chromatic shadows.<br />-------<br />I painted the image for "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0886770327/stevensilvershomA/">Witches of Kregen</a>," 1985, Daw Books. The painting will also appear in <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Color-Light-Guide-Realist-Painter/dp/0740797719/ref=pd_ts_b_16?ie=UTF8&s=books">Color and Light.</a>

Chromatic Shadows, Part 1

The painting below shows a warrior standing on a ledge. He is lit by a slanting bar of light that shines from below. Note that the cast shad...

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Casting Long Shadows

Cast shadows can help show the surface changes in a landscape. In this small plein-air sketch, the tree shadows define the curve of the hills by wrapping around them.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb896PahE3b2Az-T7ThSydCuxUCWRrrWGvClwkqeqXZNtzlHOsSIdLiVuFnpEWgy-j8ANPPoPMSs-ueVL-GtlkNW-qHmQlZLcBLnYrVPRyb6JqmRJP9Kl8VmRzsXNojkQ83ws9sDcQ8dZ0/s1600/Cast.Shadows.sm.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513405474100720434" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb896PahE3b2Az-T7ThSydCuxUCWRrrWGvClwkqeqXZNtzlHOsSIdLiVuFnpEWgy-j8ANPPoPMSs-ueVL-GtlkNW-qHmQlZLcBLnYrVPRyb6JqmRJP9Kl8VmRzsXNojkQ83ws9sDcQ8dZ0/s400/Cast.Shadows.sm.jpg" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 238px;" /></a>The three shadows get progressively narrower as they go back, which helps suggest depth. Sunlit figures are arranged to stand out in front of the darker tones.<br /><br />Watch for these long cast shadows late in the afternoon or early in the morning. The shadows cast by trees and utility poles can really help you define the contours of roads, sidewalks, and buildings.

Casting Long Shadows

Cast shadows can help show the surface changes in a landscape. In this small plein-air sketch, the tree shadows define the curve of the hill...

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J. P. Wilson's Plein Air Oils

Michael Anderson of Yale's Peabody Museum is publishing a book online about the work of James Perry Wilson, who I believe to be one of the most resourceful landscape colorists of the 20th century.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2XzZUawOSGRExIyajtSDNlIODsgcajhyphenhyphenitVNymc6Af4fb5k67S5fisL9jU6riFsjy-N5VrpcBenOvcqAGKKzX_piIbssmkB6ar7oqco4jw15QtZDfoAywTdnvs_iRYCdr-VYIa56Fw_wy/s1600/Perry-Wilson_James_phillips_hill.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502401033287307938" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2XzZUawOSGRExIyajtSDNlIODsgcajhyphenhyphenitVNymc6Af4fb5k67S5fisL9jU6riFsjy-N5VrpcBenOvcqAGKKzX_piIbssmkB6ar7oqco4jw15QtZDfoAywTdnvs_iRYCdr-VYIa56Fw_wy/s400/Perry-Wilson_James_phillips_hill.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 291px;" /></a>Mr. Anderson writes:<br /><blockquote>"James Perry Wilson loved to paint. He loved to paint dioramas, architectural subjects, and more than anything else, he loved painting outdoors en plein air. <br /><br />"In sharp contrast to his diorama painting or architectural work however, Wilson painted other works in a single day on transportable 8"X10" mahogany panels or 12"X16" canvasboards. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7JSD-AyI_3QTq9D6TeTej9IjdQAtLTB2fHb4WutcvVPu3HbTnVP5URVYtl48VE093kyCyMua0CnnDLYhEwcZ_iK2tYJpES09lzDnVUtUQpT9ygnoG3po5graHH8hWPzsMT0XQffjBMVEj/s1600/Perry-Wilson_James_gull_cove.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502401027433420162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7JSD-AyI_3QTq9D6TeTej9IjdQAtLTB2fHb4WutcvVPu3HbTnVP5URVYtl48VE093kyCyMua0CnnDLYhEwcZ_iK2tYJpES09lzDnVUtUQpT9ygnoG3po5graHH8hWPzsMT0XQffjBMVEj/s400/Perry-Wilson_James_gull_cove.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 302px;" /></a>"These small works, done apparently for the sheer love and challenge of painting, reflect the same skill and intelligence seen in his diorama work with the addition of a working spontaneity. They guide us directly to the heart of James Perry Wilson and where his passion lay.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPtonVOuDBh6RJrw9RDrRB0FXSfpwunG2CJCv_yxNZaKmKXAqBfNF0aKmEXa4HlMj48taJvEo-gAcgiBv_wW94fYdllx8VzZLWfgKVadt9EkqNFvhu5vmNPqJguOXrguSnzgandoguZmfc/s1600/Perry+Wilson.Plein.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502399672833419090" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPtonVOuDBh6RJrw9RDrRB0FXSfpwunG2CJCv_yxNZaKmKXAqBfNF0aKmEXa4HlMj48taJvEo-gAcgiBv_wW94fYdllx8VzZLWfgKVadt9EkqNFvhu5vmNPqJguOXrguSnzgandoguZmfc/s400/Perry+Wilson.Plein.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 299px;" /></a>"There is a palpable quality of joy in Wilson’s paintings. He expresses his awe of nature through paint. This is a meticulously observed landscape that emanates his love of color in nature and his depiction of light and atmosphere."</blockquote><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie7C13uAPX570dx9h2fOZvPImZcJObgB5239bT66rkoSx0rgpqZ5cyi2FSdIVO622NHHlC2YXfVLH9aYmHpfiWvEkR2kQyc3lnBS2CQLE8ldOagtQWDf1oWnBasg3i3M_dyXBWiQF4aAF-/s1600/Perry_Wilson24x30.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502471245028502402" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie7C13uAPX570dx9h2fOZvPImZcJObgB5239bT66rkoSx0rgpqZ5cyi2FSdIVO622NHHlC2YXfVLH9aYmHpfiWvEkR2kQyc3lnBS2CQLE8ldOagtQWDf1oWnBasg3i3M_dyXBWiQF4aAF-/s400/Perry_Wilson24x30.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 318px;" /></a>For the full chapter, follow this link to <a href="http://www.peabody.yale.edu/james-perry-wilson/chapter4-en-plein-air-paintings.html">JPW's Plein-Air Painting.</a> I highly recommend this link, and be sure to scroll down a little past halfway to read JPW's notes on atmospheric colors. This is like a whole textbook on plein air practice by a painter who thought more probingly about light and color than almost anyone.<br />-------<br />Previous GJ posts about J.P. Wilson, <a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2009/01/james-perry-wilsons-dioramas-part-1.html">Part 1</a> and <a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2009/01/james-perry-wilsons-dioramas-part-2.html">Part 2</a>

J. P. Wilson's Plein Air Oils

Michael Anderson of Yale's Peabody Museum is publishing a book online about the work of James Perry Wilson, who I believe to be one of t...

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Ciseri’s Light Interactions

The religious painting “Ecce Homo” of Antonio Ciseri has a startling realism that comes in part from his sensitivity to light interactions.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9SUBHfpXHKNmUn_xCGU2lk94N1O5SG-XTyAVAJQ5nVkaB1yyI0D84IZbnyfspehAjBMTxcqcN9cD64c9VhiJzOYH5JpcKVcln397-aEosecS7z2cVVUlNChNn2t0oqNeU7va0S51o4Ude/s1600/Ciseri_Ecce_Homo_1880.sm.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5501260774826057650" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9SUBHfpXHKNmUn_xCGU2lk94N1O5SG-XTyAVAJQ5nVkaB1yyI0D84IZbnyfspehAjBMTxcqcN9cD64c9VhiJzOYH5JpcKVcln397-aEosecS7z2cVVUlNChNn2t0oqNeU7va0S51o4Ude/s400/Ciseri_Ecce_Homo_1880.sm.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 258px;" /></a>Ciseri was born in Switzerland in 1821 and studied in at the Accademia di Belle Arti in Florence under Florence under Niccola Benvenuti. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaqQpTJvcki9L5u-x5jeUdZ_IMBg51ioMR0zdtpv-uXnUuafozo6_Fl4iF5vTEs1ww7bE3vnzZBjc0D81wFmtAFYU2eCigAOeyhMbxsCEyss0p98bTP3w0RTbp9Tmf6yUiniOkqwzCgrHr/s1600/Ciseri_Ecce_Homo_detail.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5501260785953137778" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaqQpTJvcki9L5u-x5jeUdZ_IMBg51ioMR0zdtpv-uXnUuafozo6_Fl4iF5vTEs1ww7bE3vnzZBjc0D81wFmtAFYU2eCigAOeyhMbxsCEyss0p98bTP3w0RTbp9Tmf6yUiniOkqwzCgrHr/s400/Ciseri_Ecce_Homo_detail.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 320px;" /></a><br />Note the soft edges in the hand in shadow at (1). Crisp edges should be reserved for elements in full illumination. At (2), look at the warm reflected light on the arm of the figure in this grouping. <br /><br />At (3), check out the contre-jour handling of Christ’s figure. The top and side planes of Christ’s figure are raised in value so that they almost blend with the sky—a device that James Bama used almost a century later on Bantam paperback covers.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2uSF_wqH_jychKvN-BSueUCsciRq2hjtxX6d-YrCV8JcgTNtoJIH-6Fdp96q0vePYF6tewk71_b6Vef8UkAJ7ZSRhEoX8QFpD1yZgNOQnUMnR7jEMfpWJvpNdk8EARbz9GX5rnSH8OZaZ/s1600/Ciseri_Ecce_Homo.det2.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5501260795294399458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2uSF_wqH_jychKvN-BSueUCsciRq2hjtxX6d-YrCV8JcgTNtoJIH-6Fdp96q0vePYF6tewk71_b6Vef8UkAJ7ZSRhEoX8QFpD1yZgNOQnUMnR7jEMfpWJvpNdk8EARbz9GX5rnSH8OZaZ/s400/Ciseri_Ecce_Homo.det2.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 257px; height: 400px;" /></a><br />Pilate’s draped figure is rendered with extreme attention to transmitted light through various layers of fabric. This might have been aided by photography (the painting is from 1880, when many artists were using photographs). <br /><br />But I would bet he also did charcoal studies of the nude model first and that he also set up a draped lay figure in a doorway. I’ll talk about lay figures on a future post.<br />----<br />Thanks, Keita!<br />Wikipedia on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonio_Ciseri">Antonio Ciseri</a><br /><a href="http://www.artrenewal.org/pages/artist.php?artistid=2748">Ciseri on Art Renewal</a><br />Previous GJ Posts on <a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2007/10/transmitted-light.html">transmitted light</a>, <a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2007/10/contre-jour-lighting.html">contre-jour lighting</a>, and <a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2008/07/croquet-balls.html">reflected light (croquet balls)</a>.

Ciseri’s Light Interactions

The religious painting “Ecce Homo” of Antonio Ciseri has a startling realism that comes in part from his sensitivity to light interactions....

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Nephroid Caustics

Oh, I forgot to mention…there’s another kind of caustic reflection that’s as near to you as your coffee mug: a nephroid caustic. That’s the name for the little shape that forms when sunlight slants into an empty cup or bowl.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb-hV5fVqbGINVHPHVjToQKf3ZHiQDRW5T5_aOLWDPE-uV7JScPFyZZiDc5nUT3X15x3k-ovivb9nhwy39bvjGIfNQwIS6it6eAKH8d8eJfzTsYBb3xW8xrgkk8ddBHsc8G2tKHfcH_s83/s1600/Nephroid.Caustics.sm.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5496755688965510338" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb-hV5fVqbGINVHPHVjToQKf3ZHiQDRW5T5_aOLWDPE-uV7JScPFyZZiDc5nUT3X15x3k-ovivb9nhwy39bvjGIfNQwIS6it6eAKH8d8eJfzTsYBb3xW8xrgkk8ddBHsc8G2tKHfcH_s83/s400/Nephroid.Caustics.sm.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 356px;" /></a>These mathematical figures are called “nephroid curves” because they sometimes have a kidney-like shape, and they’re called “caustics” because they’re focused rays, so they could potentially burn something (but dang, the won’t keep my coffee hot).<br /><br />Note that in the photo there’s also a caustic halo bouncing off the outside of the mug, too. Any time you’ve got glass or metal objects in direct sunlight, there will be lots of caustic effects all over the place. <br /><br />The giveaway that it’s a caustic effect (as opposed to plain old reflected light or highlights) is that the light is focused into a definite shape with a bright line or edge around it. <br /><br />And now you have a topic that you can try out at the coffee machine to find out who are your kindred visual geeks.<br />----<br />Previously on GurneyJourney: <a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2008/06/caustics.html">Caustics</a>, <a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2010/07/caustic-reflections.html">Caustic Reflections</a><br />Wikipedia on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caustic_%28optics%29">optical caustic effects</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nephroid">nephroid geometry</a>.<br /><a href="http://en.9jcg.com/comm_pages/blog_content-art-24.htm">CG Caustic rendering tutorial<br /></a>

Nephroid Caustics

Oh, I forgot to mention…there’s another kind of caustic reflection that’s as near to you as your coffee mug: a nephroid caustic. That’s the ...

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Fall-Off

The brightness of any point-source illumination diminishes rapidly with distance. This weakening of light is called fall-off. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMVyVArxMUs_JqzgAOSWeyLn7Poc8R8AVEVIF1ZqEN3TTisN68rPxhGV0O6SnTdZWJjtX6XjqPQHkNcQKTkHuIrgJhSRer0GvEzJ9CXzyaHFc7mn8YnmjK0y8O0z99HCvliuBHNJMtxV-b/s1600/Inverse.Square.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481817872401237282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMVyVArxMUs_JqzgAOSWeyLn7Poc8R8AVEVIF1ZqEN3TTisN68rPxhGV0O6SnTdZWJjtX6XjqPQHkNcQKTkHuIrgJhSRer0GvEzJ9CXzyaHFc7mn8YnmjK0y8O0z99HCvliuBHNJMtxV-b/s400/Inverse.Square.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 318px;" /></a>It diminishes according to the inverse square law, which states that the effect of a light shining on a surface weakens at a rate comparable to the square of the distance between source and surface. <br /><br />As the diagram above demonstrates, at twice the distance, the light is only one fourth as bright because the same rays must cover four times the area. At three times the distance, it drops to one ninth as bright.

Fall-Off

The brightness of any point-source illumination diminishes rapidly with distance. This weakening of light is called fall-off. It diminishes ...

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Portrait Lighting: Split Lighting

Light that comes straight from the side is known as split lighting. The dividing line or terminator between light and shadow runs right along the center line of the face.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr4Xvf2LGA8l_zAtcmzc1-D_hrEnGaMVUDYNJCIGSWxALjmgUVLzMwtwQ_9rZs_0GCfh-gAn3iqu-iJEsp-igu5qS0phbXCIU1GJGmYrVANA6Ci8AFIW2iqBffd7zUEZla-JMiN6QzvPQB/s1600/Split.sm.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5476384354569204898" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr4Xvf2LGA8l_zAtcmzc1-D_hrEnGaMVUDYNJCIGSWxALjmgUVLzMwtwQ_9rZs_0GCfh-gAn3iqu-iJEsp-igu5qS0phbXCIU1GJGmYrVANA6Ci8AFIW2iqBffd7zUEZla-JMiN6QzvPQB/s400/Split.sm.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 323px; height: 400px;" /></a>It’s not a light arrangement that you see too often, but it has its purpose, especially in film and comics. Because it places equal importance on the light side and the shadow side, it can convey the sense that the subject is a doppelganger, a person whose soul is a battleground of equal and opposing forces.<br /><br />Like this fellow, for instance. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-w4YBLhHijQXRxoergSxM5-ly5R88dbrSvjh6bmXmy5pcVp2cqNBh2T3Ei4tpPA72-hcekyZ6eoJWUfynokDflnAd8bZ8_TduP6FSKdhQZjd51gfdbEshZFYiaZ0OmajpvlHE9JeR4BFA/s1600/Split.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5476384347391011266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-w4YBLhHijQXRxoergSxM5-ly5R88dbrSvjh6bmXmy5pcVp2cqNBh2T3Ei4tpPA72-hcekyZ6eoJWUfynokDflnAd8bZ8_TduP6FSKdhQZjd51gfdbEshZFYiaZ0OmajpvlHE9JeR4BFA/s400/Split.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 296px;" /></a>One thing you get with split lighting is reflected light bouncing back into the nasolabial furrow (the smile crease). This bounced light is very warm because it comes off the nose, so the N.L. furrow will likely be the warmest skin tone in the face.

Portrait Lighting: Split Lighting

Light that comes straight from the side is known as split lighting. The dividing line or terminator between light and shadow runs right alon...

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Portrait Lighting: Underlighting

Strong light doesn’t usually come from below a face, so when you see it, it grabs your attention. We tend to associate it with firelight or theatrical footlights, which can suggest a magical, sinister, or dramatic feeling.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB_XTmPYNw0RSYdk_rR0N0TEYb8IgAvb0kWmlIsPW0FnEEqryeR49QcCO7Ka9-9aWcUTcayA9RcWCOrcxNHG7AJLx4V-2nwSg_HU_9jd6cHweO3WrEi5YL7QpTKW8mzcSqdA8MDXzXxrHd/s1600/Below.sm.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5475607340807495634" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB_XTmPYNw0RSYdk_rR0N0TEYb8IgAvb0kWmlIsPW0FnEEqryeR49QcCO7Ka9-9aWcUTcayA9RcWCOrcxNHG7AJLx4V-2nwSg_HU_9jd6cHweO3WrEi5YL7QpTKW8mzcSqdA8MDXzXxrHd/s400/Below.sm.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 299px; height: 400px;" /></a>We hardly recognize family, friends, and celebrities when we see them with the light shining upward on their features.<br /><br />Sources of light that shine upward are often strongly colored, either with the warm orange glow of firelight, or with the blue flicker of a computer screen. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz5AtPdF86HuKr-KnV9SWyi7EOrcotP5S7uzkgewOoXXf9QDn_UialvaGs_nnPPSXnoNOipi1OlYmABYoIjPcGaCJ0L5YHw_jF_jflMDoHlaCXUa6WCG-dv5TBF4e-7emqPbTx7jiuq3ot/s1600/Gurney.CrabbTriumphant.sm.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5475607345080537682" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz5AtPdF86HuKr-KnV9SWyi7EOrcotP5S7uzkgewOoXXf9QDn_UialvaGs_nnPPSXnoNOipi1OlYmABYoIjPcGaCJ0L5YHw_jF_jflMDoHlaCXUa6WCG-dv5TBF4e-7emqPbTx7jiuq3ot/s400/Gurney.CrabbTriumphant.sm.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 365px;" /></a>The portrait of the character Lee Crabb from Dinotopia, below, shows him at a dramatic moment when he wants to take control of a powerful glowing sunstone. The ruby-colored light from the sunstone gives him a threatening, power-mad look. The underlighting is combined with a strong, cool edge light from the right.<br /><br />Not all upward light arrangements suggest drama or evil. A person relaxing with a sun-flooded book might have her face lit mainly by the reflected light, which would have positive connotations.

Portrait Lighting: Underlighting

Strong light doesn’t usually come from below a face, so when you see it, it grabs your attention. We tend to associate it with firelight or ...

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Portrait Lighting: Frontal and Contre Jour

In frontal lighting, the light comes straight toward the form, so the planes get darker as they turn away. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Hrmz4zababwC8uB1cbK8NXh2IJ7fjYBkZ4VUoK9cfwTCWzmBSSh-YjSuboXPofakZTPoHRYERwXWkxare3cTAeq1QTrvscV-cjHlVUqEk-niiOuFdyQFZAm4rvKlmm2Z0ZdJi_c3kQIX/s1600/Abe.Frontal.Contre.sm.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5475217741073310674" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Hrmz4zababwC8uB1cbK8NXh2IJ7fjYBkZ4VUoK9cfwTCWzmBSSh-YjSuboXPofakZTPoHRYERwXWkxare3cTAeq1QTrvscV-cjHlVUqEk-niiOuFdyQFZAm4rvKlmm2Z0ZdJi_c3kQIX/s400/Abe.Frontal.Contre.sm.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 262px;" /></a>Contre-jour lighting is the opposite: The head is seen against a field of light, which spills over the edges of the form.<br /><br />The planes that are darker in one are lighter than the other.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUphGv8Ig93rDqUfUbWrZBGJbNmlCtxbkVW7TKAGOwG_eayizUb9z5EfUjLKaFN59vpsXLtCLbQ1PxkEbaPvtRobq-vF-2w03nUm4orXnrNxA0_mWWvTtsH_RvDCXl60FE1zu14VP_eQ8z/s1600/Frontal.Studies.sm.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5475217739765262818" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUphGv8Ig93rDqUfUbWrZBGJbNmlCtxbkVW7TKAGOwG_eayizUb9z5EfUjLKaFN59vpsXLtCLbQ1PxkEbaPvtRobq-vF-2w03nUm4orXnrNxA0_mWWvTtsH_RvDCXl60FE1zu14VP_eQ8z/s400/Frontal.Studies.sm.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" /></a>Here are some charcoal studies using frontal lighting that I did as reference for a portrait of a spaceman on a paperback book cover (below, left). <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB7e6A88oTPkf1LrUSS1wLmFT4oEPljh09uiqqnerGWFGj5L-1LOo73sRLJzQViI25T5Rawt-kMWcZRFuDkbxtX_hT9xmUej4YLURJEnzkz21cgjsIHalIpAAnz-ccERflvSrSkAHAc7D4/s1600/Spacemen.Gurney.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5475219154022371602" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB7e6A88oTPkf1LrUSS1wLmFT4oEPljh09uiqqnerGWFGj5L-1LOo73sRLJzQViI25T5Rawt-kMWcZRFuDkbxtX_hT9xmUej4YLURJEnzkz21cgjsIHalIpAAnz-ccERflvSrSkAHAc7D4/s400/Spacemen.Gurney.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 351px; height: 287px;" /></a> I used contre jour lighting for the Asteroid Miner painting, right, which I did as a portfolio sample. I later sold the rights for a paperback cover, but the black type behind him sort of killed the effect. <br /><br />Both frontal and contre jour lighting are a bit unusual, and can be used for dramatic or poetic effect.<br />-----<br />Previously: <a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2007/10/contre-jour-lighting.html">Contre Jour Lighting</a><br /><a href="http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2008/02/frontal-lighting.html">Frontal Lighting</a><br /><a href="http://jamesgurney.com/asteroidminer.html">Asteroid Miner</a> (without the type)

Portrait Lighting: Frontal and Contre Jour

In frontal lighting, the light comes straight toward the form, so the planes get darker as they turn away. Contre-jour lighting is the oppos...

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Portrait Lighting: Top

In top lighting, the light comes straight down onto the head. It occurs often under a streetlight, a hallway light, or a noonday sun. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL7VTfivCItAh28aJlgD6ERQ9Qm7nV7D-rIiedqEooCnfbZeYGNFybbNaOEWGc_z5yNTFB8yxnBCKel02lQqwFWzKSwZQ44sRlchmdRNNhNCYABpIa42lUX_nPf2dg1-ulSH4h32qvlK8r/s1600/Top.sm.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474892321500276834" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL7VTfivCItAh28aJlgD6ERQ9Qm7nV7D-rIiedqEooCnfbZeYGNFybbNaOEWGc_z5yNTFB8yxnBCKel02lQqwFWzKSwZQ44sRlchmdRNNhNCYABpIa42lUX_nPf2dg1-ulSH4h32qvlK8r/s400/Top.sm.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 319px; height: 400px;" /></a><br />The forehead and the nose intercept most of the light. These parts of the face carry relatively little expression. The mouth and eyes, the chief agents of sympathy, are lost in shadow. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV4zrV0ulG1mllxMFAQyPg6ChVkaFTOT4-4JLEgoOiAQBtiOKgISpXfobB5hCKTyWbyr20oVGAx2WJKsXaTanc5S-F8EXpzktCUZ2QBocxpJvTrKR_Y6fyjgE9jlJxPo8aCSWxJWoA-6qK/s1600/WyethOnTheIslandofEarraid.sm.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474893215864662050" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV4zrV0ulG1mllxMFAQyPg6ChVkaFTOT4-4JLEgoOiAQBtiOKgISpXfobB5hCKTyWbyr20oVGAx2WJKsXaTanc5S-F8EXpzktCUZ2QBocxpJvTrKR_Y6fyjgE9jlJxPo8aCSWxJWoA-6qK/s400/WyethOnTheIslandofEarraid.sm.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 327px; height: 400px;" /></a>As a result, the subject’s emotion is masked. The effect can be threatening, mysterious, or inscrutable. Above: N.C. Wyeth, from Kidnapped.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi8YMbuj_PB7R3fpu6WMgdxNkUynkfzTVT1w0FczN-LFOksZPQNBDteGvztlh8pAKkRxdyH4zdkUCpKtfKlhsnTpQYawaaye5JHWkCqNKtUU7uN6amGx-_IZYbC7YjekfPbDNunxaql28s/s1600/Cornwell.top.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474892314136114354" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi8YMbuj_PB7R3fpu6WMgdxNkUynkfzTVT1w0FczN-LFOksZPQNBDteGvztlh8pAKkRxdyH4zdkUCpKtfKlhsnTpQYawaaye5JHWkCqNKtUU7uN6amGx-_IZYbC7YjekfPbDNunxaql28s/s400/Cornwell.top.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 398px; height: 400px;" /></a>You probably wouldn’t want to use this lighting arrangement for portraits, but it can yield powerful effects for a dramatic entrance of a dangerous character, or for conveying a feeling of cool detachment. Above: Dean Cornwell.

Portrait Lighting: Top

In top lighting, the light comes straight down onto the head. It occurs often under a streetlight, a hallway light, or a noonday sun. The fo...

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