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THE
GRIDDING METHOD 
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| Don't
let anyone tell you, that using a grid to create
an accurate reproduction of a subject is somehow
wrong or a form of cheating. It is a very basic
but extremely effective tool and eliminates many
of the basic problems encountered in drawing such
as: perspective, proportion and relationship. Leonardo
da Vinci and other great masters used this same
method and it was even regarded, at one time, as
a trade secret. Using nothing more than a pencil
and a plastic 12" ruler, an accurate linear
drawing can be produced with very little practise.
It is this accuracy that is essential when drawing
lifelike portraits! |
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To
create a grid, simply apply accurate, vertical
and horizontal lines to the photo or picture
that you're going to draw. The grid can be drawn
directly onto the original photograph or onto
a good photocopied reproduction. I actually
drew my grid of half inch squares, using 'Paint
Shop Pro' for accuracy, onto an A4 sheet of
paper and then photocopied this onto clear acetate.
This is then clipped over the original subject
and fixed securely to prevent movement.
This method prevents marking and damaging of
the original picture... very important if working
from a customer's cherished photograph.
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As
a beginner and taking the cartoon of 'Oliver Hardy'
as a whole, the prospect of drawing an accurate
copy probably seems rather daunting... but the
grid, placed over it, has divided everything into
a collection of fairly simple shapes. If you progress
square by square and simply draw the contents
of each one, you'll find that you should be able
to draw very accurately. Your first couple of
attempts may not be perfect, of course, but with
just a little practise, this method will be an
invaluable tool to aid you in producing lifelike
portraits. |
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Lightly
draw a corresponding grid onto your drawing or
layout paper. At this stage you can actually enlarge
your copy by increasing the size of the squares...
if the original grid was half an inch, you can
double the copy size by drawing 1" squares...
or 12" squares if you wish to draw a mural
on the side of your house.
Taking one square at a time... find exactly what
is contained within it... decide where each line
begins and ends within that square... is it straight
or does it curve slightly? You should end up with
something like the image on the right... |
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Et
voila!... the finished inked, drawing.
Not bad considering the only tools we used were
a cheap plastic ruler and a pencil.
In this particular case, I inked in the drawing
using the original picture as reference before
erasing the pencil grid. With my pencil portraits,
I usually erase around the subject and simply
blend any remaining pencil lines into the shading.
Hopefully, this page demonstrates that the gridding
method does actually produce a faithful reproduction
of just about any subject you wish to draw:
automobiles, flowers, animals... and of course
portraits.
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