The Basics

Planes and Circles

  • In One Point Perspective, and only in One Point Perspective, can the viewer look directly at the plane. I drew a square that is equal on all sides, The sides could be any length, but I chose to draw a square because within this square I can draw a circle.

    First divide the square into triangles by connecting opposite corners with an X. Divide the square again once through the vertical, and again through the horizontal centers. This provides us with four points that are exactly centered and gives us with clues as to how to place the circle within the square.

    If I were to put this into perspective and lay this plane down, the square now appears to be moving away. The top of the square suddenly appears to be shorter than the bottom and our circle, which may still appear to look like a circle, is no longer a circle, but an ellipse.

    In One Point Perspective everything recedes towards a single point, so if I were to draw in a few more planes… it starts to resemble a 3D object.

  • In Two Point Perspective, individual planes do not differ all that much from One Point except for two things. One, the square can not be viewed from head on, and two, the Vanishing Points have moved. However, a single plane will still recede towards a single Vanishing Point.

    I can use the same technique as last time to evenly divide the square; one, draw an X from corner to corner and two, divide the vertical and horizontal centers.

    If I were to add more planes however, something different happens, as we start to switch between which Vanishing Point a plane recedes towards.

  • In Three Point Perspective, everything changes and the planes get more complicated. Planes must recede towards TWO Vanishing Points and this makes the square look odd in this perspective.

    I can still use the same technique to evenly divide the square though. By one, drawing an X from corner to corner to divide the box into triangles, and two, divide it using the appropriate Vanishing Points to locate the vertical and horizontal centers. Within this the circle can be drawn.

    This is where it gets even more complicated. One, the third Vanishing Point at the top is utilized to draw through each corner to establish what would other wise be our vertical parallel lines in One and Two Point Perspective. Two, the last plane will use the Vanishing Points on the Horizon Line to draw in the left, right, and bottom planes.

ASSIGNMENTS

ASSIGNMENT ONE

Drawing Planes and Circles in One Point

  1. Create a grid of squares that will allow you to practice drawing circles with this new structure.

  2. Divide the boxes diagonally with an X, and again with a straight line through the vertical and horizontal centers using the center of the X to place them.

  3. Focus your time on drawing the circles as perfectly as you can manage without obsession.

  4. Join the Draw Daily Discord to submit your work and to ask for feedback! 

ASSIGNMENT TWO

Drawing Planes and Ellipses in Two Point

  1. Establish the height for the boxes and add in the receding lines extending from them.

  2. Find the far end of the boxes, making sure that the distance between the two shrink as you move towards the Vanishing Point.

  3. Divide the boxes diagonally, vertically, and horizontally using the VP to establish horizontal centers.

  4. The process for drawing the circles is the same, however the final result is obviously not as wide.

  5. Join the Draw Daily Discord to submit your work and to ask for feedback! 

ASSIGNMENT THREE

Drawing Planes and Ellipses in Three Point

  1. Fill the page with squares that recede towards two different vanishing points, alternating between the three different VPs.

  2. Once the boxes are established, divide the boxes, using the appropriate VPS to add the vertical and horizontal centers. 

  3. Although the squares are oddly shaped, drawing the ellipses remains the same, even if the final result appears slightly skewed.  

  4. Join the Draw Daily Discord to submit your work and to ask for feedback! 

ASSIGNMENT FOUR

Set the previous assignments aside for a few days. It’s important that you don’t rush into this final assignment because you want to have, basically, a system reset within your own brain. When you first work on these assignments it is going to be a little hard to immediately see the mistakes you’ve made and the best way to fix this is by taking an extended break. Not twenty minutes, and not two or three hours, you have to give yourself at least two days. Once that time has elapsed, pull out those sheets and go over them again, correcting to the best of your abilities.

Join the Draw Daily Discord to submit your work and to ask for feedback!