Pen And Ink Tree Sketches
Objectives:
Create realistic looking trees in a pen and ink style, without using photorealistic / exacting detail. I wanted to utilize texture and form to create trees.
Background:
Pen and ink has been one of my favorite styles for years. Generally, I stuck to creating animal portraits and only occasionally delved into landscapes. My technique involved straight lines, cross hatching, and stippling, but I did not really do much in the realm of texture.
As such my trees always felt a little flat. While I was never particularly displeased with them, they lacked the oomph that I wanted. As well in order to get them to look really good, I would have to spend a lot of time with reference to get the detail just right.
Method:
This method is based off a YouTube video I came across. It used techniques I was already familiar with, just hadn't thought of combining. The key emphasis here is form, and texture. It also makes a point to avoid outlines, which can destroy the illusion of existing naturally.
I didn't want to get caught up reference for these images, so I chose a few general ideas in my head for what I knew about trees, but I let the rest just flow.
I began by sketching in pencil a general silhouette of the tree that I wanted to create. With the silhouette created, I then looked into the basic shapes I might see within the outline and roughly sketched the shapes in (lightly). I would use these basic shapes as guides for laying in my leaf bunches.
I placed my light source to the top left hand side of the paper and began drawing with pen. Most of my bunches of leaves were irregular spheres, so I shaded them as spheres. At the same time, I looked at the entire form, which was also an irregular sphere. The entire tree would steadily grow darker towards the bottom right, away from the light source.
The texture was also the key to getting the look right. The leave were made of little squiggly lines. I basically just bounced around the paper, not putting too much thought into each individual mark. I remained consistent however in the same and general design of the leaves. The trunk I constructed with long relatively straight lines to create the bark texture distinctly different.
Tree 1
For this tree, I went back to the methods I used for the first tree, but I really pushed the abstract form on it. I went with a more unique shape and varied up the sizes and shapes of the leaf clusters. As well, I gave the tree a splitting trunk for a bit more character. As I worked my way down, I made sure to leave spaces open for sky and branches to show through the leaf, to further sell the illusion of depth. For the trunk, I went more in depth, creating a twisting and more gnarled texture than I had before. Ultimately, this is my favorite piece.
Conclusion:
Success! This exercise was fun, and easy to do. It's a great tool to have for quick sketching, and while it does take a little bit of time and patience, it is still a very fast method for creating what looks to be realistic trees.
As I said earlier, I made these trees with absolutely no reference. So, in the future, I'd like to take these techniques and apply them to trees I see in real life. I look forward to capturing real trees, without struggling over the minute details.
Objectives:
Create realistic looking trees in a pen and ink style, without using photorealistic / exacting detail. I wanted to utilize texture and form to create trees.
Background:
Pen and ink has been one of my favorite styles for years. Generally, I stuck to creating animal portraits and only occasionally delved into landscapes. My technique involved straight lines, cross hatching, and stippling, but I did not really do much in the realm of texture.
As such my trees always felt a little flat. While I was never particularly displeased with them, they lacked the oomph that I wanted. As well in order to get them to look really good, I would have to spend a lot of time with reference to get the detail just right.
Method:
This method is based off a YouTube video I came across. It used techniques I was already familiar with, just hadn't thought of combining. The key emphasis here is form, and texture. It also makes a point to avoid outlines, which can destroy the illusion of existing naturally.
I didn't want to get caught up reference for these images, so I chose a few general ideas in my head for what I knew about trees, but I let the rest just flow.
I began by sketching in pencil a general silhouette of the tree that I wanted to create. With the silhouette created, I then looked into the basic shapes I might see within the outline and roughly sketched the shapes in (lightly). I would use these basic shapes as guides for laying in my leaf bunches.
I placed my light source to the top left hand side of the paper and began drawing with pen. Most of my bunches of leaves were irregular spheres, so I shaded them as spheres. At the same time, I looked at the entire form, which was also an irregular sphere. The entire tree would steadily grow darker towards the bottom right, away from the light source.
The texture was also the key to getting the look right. The leave were made of little squiggly lines. I basically just bounced around the paper, not putting too much thought into each individual mark. I remained consistent however in the same and general design of the leaves. The trunk I constructed with long relatively straight lines to create the bark texture distinctly different.
Tree 1
My first tree came out alight. The general outcome was quite pleasing. However, I did not feel that I captured the idea of branches very well. As well, I realized that my form was much too uniform throughout. I overcame this by darkening in some areas to break up the overly symmetrical layout of leaf clusters. As well, the trunk felt a little boring too me. But I was pleased with the result.
Tree 2
For this tree, I really wanted to go in a different direction. I really like weeping willows, so I decided to go with that. I changed up my forms to be very oblong ovals. As well, I changed the texture to being long hook shaped marks. The final result is quite pleasing, but I feel that there is something lacking to it's interior form. I would use this result in the background of a drawing, but not a centerpiece. I do like how dark the trunk is though, as it really sells that it is inside the leaves.
Tree 3
My third tree I went towards a pine tree. It is a tree I am very familiar with drawing, so I felt comfortable coming into this piece. I varied up the texture, by using squigglies, but made sure they all ultimately would point up, just like the needles of a pine. As well, I kept clear space so the trunk could show through the branches throughout. I was quite happy with this piece, and felt I was beginning to come into stride with the style. I do think that I should probably darken the bottom leaf cluster more though.
Tree 4
Conclusion:
Success! This exercise was fun, and easy to do. It's a great tool to have for quick sketching, and while it does take a little bit of time and patience, it is still a very fast method for creating what looks to be realistic trees.
As I said earlier, I made these trees with absolutely no reference. So, in the future, I'd like to take these techniques and apply them to trees I see in real life. I look forward to capturing real trees, without struggling over the minute details.
