8 replies to this topic

[Steve Crow]

Frustrated with the results from generated shaded relief I decided to attempt it manually.

To get a feel for the light and shadows, my first attempt was in pencil.

 pencil.jpg   93.75K   130 downloads  board.jpg   44.67K   157 downloads

Apologies for the quality of the images - these were just quick snaps of the work in progress. I have finished this now - I need to scan it.


My next attempt was with the airbrush tool in photoshop. This was with a mouse - it took twice as long as the pencil version (I have just bought a Wacom tablet).

Here are both as a comparison.

 whole.jpg   131.24K   182 downloads  airbrush.gif   170.73K   162 downloads

Again, as an amateur I have been doing this in a vacuum - nobody has seen these before. I would welcome any criticism or observation.

Many thanks.

[rudy]

I'm impressed . . . doesn't look amateurish at all! No comments on the hillshade other than to ask - which process di you prefer?

[Agnar Renolen]

You've got talent!

[Charles Syrett]

You may consider yourself an amateur, but your work (both the relief and the topo map) looks far more professional than most of the stuff put out by those who do call themselves professional nowadays. You have that essential element: love of making maps. Many would consider the work that you put into this as being "tedious", but it's the careful attention to detail that gives it the shine of high quality work.

I'm curious about your method for the pencil shading. What material are you using? Is there a background tint, and if so how did you create it? How about highlights? I can't tell from the scan whether or not you've drawn highlights for the sunny sides of the relief.

Pre-digitally, I used to do this kind of work on drafting film. I would start with a background tint using airbrush, and then add details using pencil (shading) and eraser (highlights). I'd sharpen the eraser for fine details. Later, I switched to airbrush for all the details, using gouache paints. Since the arrival of DEMs and software, the demand for this kind of work has all but disappeared; with the exception of occasional hand-rendered relief images on National Geographic maps, it's hardly ever done any more.

Charles Syrett
Map Graphics
http://www.mapgraphics.com

[DaveB]

Wow, great work! I really like the analog pencil version, but the digital airbrush version is good, too.

[SaultDon]

My next attempt was with the airbrush tool in photoshop. This was with a mouse - it took twice as long as the pencil version (I have just bought a Wacom tablet).

Good job, these are superb.

Doing it with a mouse... sounds painful, good to hear you got the tablet now!

[David Deis]

Really nice work here - thanks for sharing!

[Steve Crow]

Thank you for your encouraging words Charles.

I'm curious about your method for the pencil shading. What material are you using? Is there a background tint, and if so how did you create it? How about highlights? I can't tell from the scan whether or not you've drawn highlights for the sunny sides of the relief.

Basically, I took all my advice regarding method from Imhof's "Cartographic Relief Presentation"

I used the smoothest, whitest paper I could find. It is quite thick, almost card (200gsm).

There is no background tint.

I used carefully sharpened pencils from grade 9H to 2B. Flat, even areas were shaded with 2H and highlights were built up using harder, lighter grades, shadows with softer. The brightest highlights are untouched white paper.

While drawing, I used clear film to protect the image from smudging, except for the small area where I was working.

The most difficult thing was keeping all the pencils sharp and everything clean. If the pencil point is not kept in the right profile it "scratches" the paper making it impossible to maintain a flat, even tone.
 pencil_detail.jpg   34.32K   31 downloads

I found the whole experience rewarding and the process of drawing itself very relaxing. I'm going to use a Wacom on my next project but intend to go back to the pencil in the future.

Steve

[Charles Syrett]

Thanks for the description, Steve. I have fond memories of pencil work, as well as airbrush. Working with DEMs can also be very enjoyable in a different way: How to use digital data to achieve the kinds of effects that are done very simply with pencil and paint! Including, of course, using a Wacom to edit relief imagery produced from the DEM.

Charles Syrett
Map Graphics
http://www.mapgraphics.com