Lines of Continuity

What if the same line that describes this cheek...


...also described this shoulder blade?


What if this breast didn't end here...


...but here?


What if this...


...connected to this?


We might refer to such imaginary connections between unrelated body parts as "lines of continuity."



These lines help us in our observational work, to maintain proportion and achieve unity. Where one thing leaves off, another may pick up along the same, or similar, path.


Lines of continuity will vary depending on viewing angle and personal interpretation.


They can be used on a micro level, to link parts which are nearby...


...or on a macro level, between figures.


What lines of continuity can you find in this image?


Don't draw parts in isolation.  Relate them to other parts.  Find lines of continuity!


Babe Lab Disclaimer : Non-proprietary photos and illustrations featured on Babe Lab appear for the sole purpose of review.

2 Figure Composition Randomizer

The following tutorial incorporates three previous Babe Lab tutorials.

- More or Less?
- The Canopy Effect
- Greater Than, Less Than, Equal To

 

In 2 figure compositions, one figure is seen more (dominant), the other less.  Abstract compositions built from angular "canopies" divide space, creating limitations which aid in design.  By altering the camera angle, there is no end to what you can get from one abstract!

This method works well as an idea generator.  Not all experiments will be successful, but there will be many unexpected results which can be revised and re-cropped into new compositions.  

Imaginary Underwear

It's true that knowing the nude helps in drawing clothing, but sometimes, knowing clothing helps in drawing the nude.  Introducing : Imaginary Underwear!

Brassiers fasten beneath the shoulder blades, and wrap around the ribcage to support the bosom.
              

Panties ride on the hips, filling a gap beneath the abdomen.  When removed, we can see a 'ghost outline' of the space this garment was designed to fit.

Drawing "imaginary underwear" onto the nude helps locate important anatomical landmarks, and creates surface lines which aid in understanding the body in three dimensions.

     

Re-crop

Working from a photo?  Try to recompose and re-crop the image to your liking, rather than merely replicating the shot.  All elements can be played with.

In this Photoshopped treatment, we've left-justified the figure, which gives more "headroom" for her look, reinforced further by a diagonal spotlight.  The lines of her dragging garment can also be manipulated to point the viewer to a desired location.  This is just one of many possible solutions!

Original photo by Marcus Ranum.

More or Less? - Mons Pubis

Women aren't Barbie dolls down there!  The mons pubis is a subtle rise that has curvature, and thus is especially prone to the "more or less" spatial division discussed in our previous tutorial.  Though symmetrical, there is rarely a mirrored repetition in its halves.

Note how, when tilted away from us, or when the legs cross, the center split is pushed more to one side, or becomes partially enveloped by the fatty tissues acting against it.     

Pure Vs. Impure

Compare these three images. What do they have in common?

The anteater, the man at the bar and the long piece of fabric are simple on one side...


...and complex on the other!


The simple sides could be said to be "pure" because of their lack of abrupt changes.  They form smooth curves and straights.
The complex sides could be said to be "impure" because of their many lumps and corners.


Seeing "pure" and "impure" sides can aid us in our depiction of women (both observed and imagined), for once one has been identified, the other is never far away!  First, look for the "pure" sides.  Because of their relative simplicity, they usually stand out.


Next, find the "impure" sides.  When combined, their contrasts create immediate impact!


Reasons for purity :
-extension (stretch)
-anatomy (spine)
-resting on a surface (floor, wall)
-gravity flattening out the top of something
-gravity forcing something directly down
-streamlining/aerodynamics
-momentum being gained

Reasons for impurity :
-compression (squash)
-objects pushed upward by surface impact
-gravity drooping fat/muscle down
-momentum being lost

This happens on a micro level as well as a macro level.  Look for the "pure" and "impure" sides of limbs, necks, fingers and toes.



How many "pure" and "impure" sides can you spot in these images?


Not everything about drawing women should be complex.  Seek "purity." The rest will take care of itself, resulting in a more pleasing, balanced design. It's everywhere!

Babe Lab Disclaimer : Non-proprietary photos and illustrations featured on Babe Lab appear for the sole purpose of review.

Normal Nachos

You don't know it yet, but this nacho chip is going to help you draw better arms and legs.

If we think of a nacho as a flat, 3 sided polygon, the direction its top is pointed is referred to as its 'normal.'  [facing up here]


Tilt the nacho, and its normal points in another direction. [facing down here]


Now, imagine that nachos came in all different triangular shapes, some lopsided, others razor-thin.


What happens when we map nachos to the triangular shapes of the arms and legs?  What are the sizes and shapes of these nachos?  In which directions are their normals pointing?


Knowing 'the normal of a nacho' will help you determine which planes of a limb are top planes, and which are side planes.  The axis of the elbow/knee runs parallel to the direction of the normal.


Knowing the size/shape of a nacho will help you determine how much a limb is foreshortened.  An 'equilateral' nacho, for instance, will be less foreshortened than an 'isosceles' nacho. [pictured below]


Note the variety of nachos and normals present in most poses.


Also note that, while the nachos are composed of straight lines, the arms and legs they represent also contain curves.  Use the 'normal nacho' method to establish proportion and better understand form, not as a means of rigid construction.


¡Vaya con nachos!

Babe Lab Disclaimer : Non-proprietary photos and illustrations featured on Babe Lab appear for the sole purpose of review.

Cornered

Take a look at Rodin's "The Thinker" -- his elbow on his knee, his wrist on his jaw.  All of these are corner points of the body.



Babe Lab would like to suggest that these corners are where parts of our bodies naturally go to be at rest.  The bone is closest to the skin at these points, giving us someplace sturdy to apply weight, or hook ourselves around.  There is nowhere we can slip.  

[below] A cross-armed girl's hands settle snugly to the inner elbows (corners).



[above] A hand planted on the corner of the hip...

[below] ...or a foot nestled just above the ankle of the opposite leg...



[below] ...or in the hollow of the knee convey security and stability.



Watch your own posture when you settle.  Are you currently at rest on any of your body's corner points?

Sequence of Invention : The Magic Bean

When a model isn't present to capture a gesture from, and we don't have the clearest mental image or intent, how can we go about drawing a girl from scratch?  Babe Lab would like to suggest a logical sequence of invention.

In a previous tutorial, a proportional tool was introduced : two crosshairs (indicating the direction of the neck root and the thigh root) connected by a bent, bisected wire represent the torso.  We can see this tool in white below.



If this visualization is too abstract, think first of a bean, curved on one side and bent on the other.



In all but the most rigid postures we can see some bean-like deformation in the torso, so (1) draw a few random beans from various angles.  One or two strokes for each.



(2) Apply the crosshair/wire tool to them.  There will be more than one way to do this with each bean, so don't think about it too hard.  The torso is where all other parts of the body branch from, so it's a sensible place to start.  With us so far?



(3) Now determine which ends you'd like to make the neck roots, where the heads will sprout from, but don't actually draw them yet.



4) On the opposite ends will be the thigh roots.  Drop the legs here.  Legs/buttocks are usually what's in contact with the ground, and act as resting places for hands and elbows.



(5) Arms and hands come next in the logical sequence.  Had we drawn these earlier, we wouldn't have had leg geometry to work with or around.



(6) Block in the heads next.  Play with their tilts, keeping gravity and direction in mind.  Heads are very seldom centered!



(7) Now that we have a better idea of what the legs, arms and heads are doing, we can begin to define what's happening around the busts and waistlines.  Maintain the curved/bent relationship from your original beans, but don't keep to their outlines.  You're not drawing vegetables anymore; you're drawing anatomy.  Locate the corners of the hips.  Are there twists?  How are the breasts reacting to the geometry around them, and to gravity?  Ask yourself these questions at this stage.



(8) Without the preceding geometry built, it would be folly to draw hair.  But we have built it, so go nuts!  Think of things like hair and breasts as dessert, to be saved until after you've had your beans!



(9) Now's a good time to remind ourselves where the facial features might go...



10) ...and to tweak the overall graphic shapes of the poses we've created.



(11) From here, we can finish out the drawings as we see fit, adding clothing (optional) and making corrections.  The important, underpinning construction is all done, so we're free to play with subtleties.  As we can see below, not all bean-powered poses will be 100% successful.      

What can you do with a magic bean?