How to Draw a Book

Чекор по чекор

1. Чекор 1

   Повлечи го 'рбетот како кратка линија по средината.

   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.

   Внимавај! Starting with a page and adding the spine afterwards.

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

2. Чекор 2

   Нацртај го горниот раб на секоја страница, наклонет малку еден кон друг.

   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.

   Внимавај! Drawing them parallel, or worse, diverging.

   Проверка Extended, the two lines should eventually meet.

3. Чекор 3

   Затворете ја секоја страница со надворешна страна која се враќа кон вас.

   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.

   Внимавај! Making one cover visibly longer than the other.

   Проверка Both outer edges should be about the same length.

4. Чекор 4

   Поврзи ги надворешните рабови назад на дното на рбетот.

   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.

   Внимавај! Stopping just short, leaving four small gaps.

   Проверка Every corner should be closed or slightly crossed.

5. Чекор 5

   Цртај ја дебелината: кратки линии од секој агол.

   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.

   Внимавај! Making the three drop lines different lengths.

   Проверка All three verticals should measure the same.

6. Чекор 6

   Приклучи се на дното на тие линии за да ја затвориш долната страна.

   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.

   Внимавај! Drawing these at a different angle from the edges above.

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

7. Чекор 7

   Додај го стекот на страницата како две или три кратки линии на секој раб.

   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.

   Внимавај! Drawing one hard line, which reads as solid wood.

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

8. Чекор 8

   Нацртај мала крива во секоја страница во близина на ’ рбетот.

   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.

   Внимавај! Leaving the pages perfectly flat.

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

9. Чекор 9

   Додади линии од текстот, следејќи го аголот на страницата.

   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.

   Внимавај! Drawing the text lines horizontally.

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

10. Чекор 10

    Засенчи ја страна на книгата од светлината.

    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.

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

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

11. Чекор 11

    Додај ја сенката на површината под него.

    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.

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

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

12. Чекор 12

    Оди преку линиите што сакаш да ги задржиш и изгуби ги водичите.

    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.

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

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