Examples of Assignments #3 and #4

Okay, let's start with the first example of the 2-pt interior, Assignment#3. This one has the advantage of having "rotated objects," i.e., using more than one pair of VPs. It has the disadvantages of some sloppy linework and flat drawing and being, I think, overly photo-dependent and lacking much visual interest. The most serious issue is that it is not a 2 pt setup. Look at that back wall facing directly at us. It's a one point scene with rotated objects. Those being the farther counter, part of the ceiling structure. I think I gave this one a C.

The next is a redo. It has neater drawing, a more interesting--though far from lively-- scene. On the downside, the artist hasn't figured out what happens at the tops of the columns. Where do they contact and support the canopy? Where that happens, we should see the front line of an ellipse. The nearest column to the viewer magically shares floor space with the structure behind it (To check this, look at the base of the column and mentally complete the ellipse.) The stairway is poorly drafted, ignoring the right VP. The canopy over the far structure seems mysteriously to overlap the near one. This at least indicates that this is not a trace job (or perhaps that the original photo had a foreground column covering this area). On a good, compassionate day, I might just have given this one a B-, but it really should be C+.

For a better example refer to the last example below, which I don't have a copy of in its pre-toned state.

Next is the toned version of the redone interior. Whatever its other virtues, this one would rate a C-, as there is no real shadow plotting (and no overlay). The issue has been ducked by making every shadow soft-edged, and very likely just placing them wherever they were in the original photo. The original photo seems to have contributed positively to the rendering of the columns, at any rate.

Finally we have an A-plus example, which is not only ambitious (huge complexity) and attractive but largely successful. There is a second lightsource, the lamp at the right, whose influence has been drastically overplayed on the rounded chair and the woman in the center. The shadow of the wall of windows seems to have not taken into account the 3D depth of that wall; the cast shadows of the horizontal members seem too narrow (See carpet, tops of bookshelves). The artist should have plotted the shadows of the upper inner edge and the lower outer edge of the horizontal members. It appears he only plotted from the inner face of the wall.

(To determine which edges matter, put yourself, imaginatively, in the sun's place, looking down from on high. For you, Sunny, the contour, or silhouette, of a horizontal structure is defined by the far upper edge and the near lower edge. That's what makes the outline of the shadow. You never once get to see a shadow you've made, by the way. That seems unfair. Plus you feel hot all the time. Better lie down.)

Still, the diligence and detail shown, plus the nice balance of tones and the pleasing, convincing overall effect far outweigh the negatives.

JH