#EXAMPLES OF TRANSLUCENT OBJECTS FULL#

Show translucent forms as indistinct, with softly fading edges and vague contours. Translucence is the most complicated of these properties to draw. Light passes through them, but we can’t clearly see through to the other side. Translucent objects fall between opaque and transparent. That slight darkness indicates that the light did pass through something and was colored by the experience. The light within the shadow is not quite as bright as a highlight, so make the light within the shadow a little bit darker than, say, light shining directly onto a tabletop or wall. When you draw that light-filled shadow, draw just what you see.

#EXAMPLES OF TRANSLUCENT OBJECTS FULL#

The cast shadow of a transparent object is full of light, because light passes through the object and right into the shadow. The shadows they cast are slightly tricky to draw, but they are one of the most telling and descriptive features for indicating transparency. Transparent objects are usually shiny, so they often have sharp-edged highlights. The horizontal background line is visible through the glass object, although there’s even more distortion because the float has more curvature than the cylindrical water glass. We see another transparent object in Illustration 4, below: a Japanese glass fishing-net float. In Illustration 1, above, we see the striped background through the transparent glass of water, although there’s distortion from the curve of the glass. For example, in the case of a lake, you can show rocks under the surface. The most obvious way to indicate transparency is simply to draw something showing through from behind the object. TransparencyĪ transparent object is one that can be seen through clearly. I draw cast shadows soft around the edges, but I make the interior of the shadows plain and dark.

This results in solid cast shadows that have no interior light. Whether shiny or dull, all opaque forms block light from traveling through them. The stones in Illustration 3, at the beginning of this article, are examples of dull, opaque objects. But the highlight blends gradually into the surrounding tones, without discernable edges. The highlight on a dull object is still brighter than the values surrounding it. In Illustration 1, above, the straws and glass of milk are examples of shiny opaque objects.ĭull things are the opposite, with highlights that are soft and blurry around the edges. They look like white shapes surrounded by a much darker tone, with no gradation between the two. The highlights on shiny surfaces tend to be distinct shapes with sharp edges. Opaque objects can be shiny or dull, and the highlight is the the most direct way to convey these properties. We draw opaque subjects all the time: wooden furniture, pottery, walls, floors - the list goes on. It’s the easiest of the three categories to draw. An opaque object is one that cannot be seen through, whether solid or liquid.

Examples of translucent objects