How to Draw a Book

Βήμα προς βήμα

1. Βήμα 1

   Τράβα τη σπονδυλική στήλη σαν κοντή γραμμή στη μέση.

   Everything hangs off this. The spine is the hinge, and both page halves are measured from it - which is why drawing it first stops the book coming out bent.

   Πρόσεχε. Starting with a page and adding the spine afterwards.

   Έλεγχος It should be vertical and near the middle of your page.

2. Βήμα 2

   Σχεδίαση το πάνω άκρο της κάθε σελίδας, κλίνοντας ελαφρώς προς το άλλο.

   These are the edges going away from you, so they converge. Not dramatically - a few degrees is enough. This single detail is what separates a box from a folded rectangle.

   Πρόσεχε. Drawing them parallel, or worse, diverging.

   Έλεγχος Extended, the two lines should eventually meet.

3. Βήμα 3

   Κλείστε κάθε σελίδα με μια εξωτερική άκρη που έρχεται προς το μέρος σας.

   These are the short edges of the covers. Keep them roughly the same length as each other - the two halves of an open book are the same size, and any difference reads as a mistake rather than as perspective.

   Πρόσεχε. Making one cover visibly longer than the other.

   Έλεγχος Both outer edges should be about the same length.

4. Βήμα 4

   Ενώστε τις εξωτερικές άκρες πίσω στο κάτω μέρος της σπονδυλικής στήλης.

   This closes the two page shapes. Corners must actually meet - overshoot slightly and let the lines cross rather than aiming to stop exactly on the point, because a crossed corner reads as closed and a gap does not.

   Πρόσεχε. Stopping just short, leaving four small gaps.

   Έλεγχος Every corner should be closed or slightly crossed.

5. Βήμα 5

   Σχεδίαση του πάχους: κοντές γραμμές προς τα κάτω από κάθε εξωτερική γωνία.

   A book is a solid, not a sheet. These three short verticals turn the flat shape into a box, and they must all be the same length - unequal ones make the book look warped.

   Πρόσεχε. Making the three drop lines different lengths.

   Έλεγχος All three verticals should measure the same.

6. Βήμα 6

   Μπες στο κάτω μέρος αυτών των γραμμών για να κλείσεις την κάτω πλευρά.

   Now the box is complete. These lines run parallel to the edges directly above them - if they do not, the thickness of the book changes along its length, which is the classic wobbly-box look.

   Πρόσεχε. Drawing these at a different angle from the edges above.

   Έλεγχος Each bottom edge should run parallel to the one above it.

7. Βήμα 7

   Προσθέστε τη στοίβα σελίδας ως δύο ή τρεις γραμμές μικρού μήκους σε κάθε άκρη.

   Pages read as a stack, not a slab. Two or three lines following the cover edge is enough for the eye to fill in hundreds - drawing more just makes it look hatched.

   Πρόσεχε. Drawing one hard line, which reads as solid wood.

   Έλεγχος You should see distinct layers, not a filled band.

8. Βήμα 8

   Σχεδίαση μιας μικρής καμπύλης σε κάθε σελίδα κοντά στη σπονδυλική στήλη.

   Open pages are not flat - they dip toward the spine. Adding that curve is the difference between an open book and two flat cards taped together, and it takes one stroke each side.

   Πρόσεχε. Leaving the pages perfectly flat.

   Έλεγχος Each page should dip slightly as it approaches the spine.

9. Βήμα 9

   Προσθέστε γραμμές κειμένου, ακολουθώντας τη γωνία της σελίδας.

   Text lines run parallel to the top edge of the page they sit on, which means they are NOT horizontal - they lean with the perspective. Drawing them level is the fastest way to flatten a book you have just built.

   Πρόσεχε. Drawing the text lines horizontally.

   Έλεγχος The text lines should lean the same way as the page's top edge.

10. Βήμα 10

    Σκίσε την πλευρά του βιβλίου μακριά από το φως.

    Work in one direction rather than scrubbing back and forth. Scrubbing gives an even grey, which is exactly the thing that makes a drawing look flat, so lay the strokes the same way and build the darkness in passes.

    Πρόσεχε. Being too timid. Beginners routinely stop two or three steps short of dark enough.

    Έλεγχος The dark side should be clearly darker than the mid tone, not slightly.

11. Βήμα 11

    Προσθέστε τη σκιά στην επιφάνεια από κάτω.

    The cast shadow is darkest where it touches the book and softens as it moves away. It also anchors the object to a surface - without it the book floats, however well you have shaded it.

    Πρόσεχε. Drawing it as an even grey blob detached from the object.

    Έλεγχος It should touch the object and be darkest at that contact point.

12. Βήμα 12

    Πήγαινε πέρα από τις γραμμές που θέλεις να κρατήσεις και χάσε τους οδηγούς.

    This is the step that turns a construction drawing into a finished one, and it is the one most people skip. Press harder on the outline and the features; leave the small stuff light. That difference in weight is what makes a drawing look deliberate rather than traced, and it costs thirty seconds.

    Πρόσεχε. Going over everything at the same weight, which flattens the drawing back out.

    Έλεγχος The outline should be clearly darker than the smallest details.