The art of phill saunders

Conceptual Design: Understanding and Communicating Form

With the emergence of powerful next-generation platforms such as

PS2 and X-BOX, game artists have been given unprecedented power
to create realistic manifestations of their creative vision. No longer
do characters, vehicles and other game objects and environments
have to be represented by blocky, low-resolution geometric
parodies of the desired design. Ultra-high poly-counts and adaptive
tessellation of spline-based models allow for highly sophisticated
organic surfaces. Real-time reflection, specular and environment-
mapping allow light and reflection to perfectly describe every
subtlety of an object's shape. We are rapidly approaching the point
where sophistication of form won't be lost in the translation to real-
time models. Rather, the lack of subtlety in how form development
is approached will begin to mark the difference between good
design and bad, much as it does in the product and automotive
industries. More than ever before it behooves the designer to truly
understand the three-dimensional nature of the forms he or she is
creating, and to properly communicate to whomever may be
executing the design the important relationships, resolutions and
proportions of form that they are instinctively instilling into their
designs.

The goal of this paper is to give designers the ability to think of

organic three-dimensional shapes in a structured way, rather than
as abstract "blobby" form. As well, an understanding of how form
affects light and reflection, and how to apply that knowledge to
drawing, will be covered. Armed with this knowledge, artists should
be better equipped to control the forms in their designs, illustrate
them accurately from any number of angles, and communicate the
underlying structure (and thereby a way of approaching them) to
whomever (including themselves) may be tasked with making the
design 'real'.

To sum up, this article could be called: "Making rounded shiny

things that look good."
 The art of phill saunders

Form Glossary

For the most part, the glossary below consists of nouns to describe
some basic surfaces, as well as terms which describe what a surface
is doing. Often an adjective will lead to a verb or noun, or vice-
versa, as in a curve may have acceleration, or you can accelerate
the curvature and create an accelerated curve. As well, there are
odds and ends of terms that describe specific occurrences of form,
such as blister.

This is certainly not an exhaustive list, simply a starting point. You

should feel free to add your own terms to your personal vocabulary
as you begin to identify certain developments of form that occur in
your work. The important thing is to grow a vocabulary that can be
shared with the people you need to communicate your design with,
as well as an aid to your own visualization of form. As wizards and
scientists believe, once a thing is named, it can be more easily
identified, isolated, and controlled.

Keep in mind as well that these are not dictionary definitions, just
my own understanding of how the terms are used to describe form.

Acceleration of (Curvature) v: to increase the rate of curvature over

the length of a surface or line.

Acceleration of Curvature

Acceleration of the curvature of a surface is an important way to

control the composition of a form. Just as in drawing or painting,
composition and proportions are critical in surface development. In
two-dimensional art forms, composition is controlled through the
proportions and positioning of various graphic elements. A radial
 The art of phill saunders

curve is balanced along it's length. By accelerating the curvature of

a surface, you are placing the accent of that surface to one end or
the other. You are introducing tension and direction, much as you
might in an image by placing the focus off-center.

Acceleration becomes obvious on a shiny or reflective surface, as

highlights and reflections will appear to 'travel' quicker over the
more curved sections of the surface.

Arc n: A section of a circle. A curved line with a constant radius.

Bevel n: A flat surface formed by cutting off the edge where two
surfaces meet. v: To cut off the edge or corner of a surface.

Bevel Blister

Blister n: a distinct, convex surface emerging from a less rounded

surface, delineated with a hard intersection. Opposite of dimple. v:
to pull a crisply delineated area of deep convexity out of a less
rounded surface.

Bone n: The rounded intersection between two surfaces where

highlights gather. A tightening of curvature on a surface, forming
the appearance of skin stretched over a bone. Bulge n. a convex
surface emerging from a less rounded surface, delineated with a
very soft intersection. Also pooch. v: to pull a softly delineated area
of deep convexity out of a less rounded surface.

Chamfer v: To cut off the top of a protruding surface, creating a flat

plateau whose edge describes the cross-section of the surface.
 The art of phill saunders

Chamfer

Coke-bottle/ Wasp-waist n: A generally symmetrical, curved form

which narrows near the mid-point.

Concave a: Having negative (inward) curvature.

Concavity n: Negative (inward) curvature. A depression in a surface.

Cone v: To taper a surface by increasing the curvature of its cross-

section over its length.

Coning a: Describing the tapering of surface or highlights.

A Coning Surface

Coning allows a surface to transition smoothly from a tight cross-

section to a more relaxed one. Highlights will dissipate over the
surface toward the relaxed end, and gather toward the tight end,
giving tension and movement to the surface.

Convex a: Having positive (outward) curvature.

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Convexity n: Positive (outward) curvature. A bulge in a surface.

Crease n: A sharp, shallow edge where two surfaces meet.

Crown n: A shallow convexity of surface. v: To add convexity to a

surface.

Cut-line n: The break between two flush surfaces. A division

between two panels.

Dimple n: a distinct, concave surface depressed into a convex or

shallower concave surface, delineated with a hard intersection.
Opposite of blister. v: to depress a crisply delineated area of
concavity into a surface.

Edge n: The corner formed by two surfaces meeting at a positive

angle without a transitional surface.

Extrusion n: A shape with a constant cross-section. (also known as

a Drag Section)

Fillet n: A concave surface which acts as a tangential transition

between two intersecting surfaces. v: To smoothly transition two or
more surfaces which meet at a negative angle.

Flush a: Describing two or more unconnected surfaces that share

the same plane.

Hollow a: To have shallow concavity; or, in the case of a convex

surface, to appear, in the context of the surrounding shapes, to
have concavity.

Lathe n: A shape with a radially constant cross-section. Also

revolve.

Oh-gee n: An 'S'-shaped switchback curve in a line or reflection,

often caused by a blistered surface.
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A Surface with Oh-Gee

Pooched [surface] a: An area of surface that has an increase of

convex curvature from the surface around it. (kind of like a beer-
belly) Also bulged.

Radius n: A line segment extending from the center of a circle to its

circumference. b: A curve defined by a given radius. c: A transitional
surface between two or more adjacent surfaces which is
characterized by a constant circular cross-section. v: To round out
an edge between two surfaces by using transitional surface with a
radial cross-section.

Sheer a: Having very little crown, or convex curvature. Almost flat.

Taut a: Having the appearance of tension.

Seeing Organic Form

One of the principles that designers have observed over the years is
that we don't really see form, what we see is the way in which form
manipulates light before it is reflected back into our eyes. This may
seem like an esoteric piece of semantics, but embracing it is
fundamental to understanding how to manipulate the graphic
nature of three-dimensional form. This means how to properly
illustrate it, yes, but also how to truly design it with control over
how it will appear from various angles and in different lighting.

Designing surface is really about designing highlights and

reflections.
 The art of phill saunders

Shiny or metallic surfaces reflect differently as you observe them

from different angles. It is the movement of reflections and
highlights across those surfaces that describes to our eye the forms
they are enveloping. What's more, subtleties of surface curvature
can drastically affect how and where a reflection or highlight falls,
as well as the speed at which it crosses a given area of surface
when either our eye, or the object, or whatever is being reflected is
moving. This significantly alters our perception of the underlying
shape.

Differences in surface properties also affect our perception of form,

as does color. Metallic surfaces will gather diffuse highlights
anywhere where a surface is 'bending' or changing direction,
lending graphic strength to the intersections of surfaces. As well,
they tend to get 'toned' by the colors around them, allowing
contrasts of warm and cool colors to indicate the direction of
surfaces. Glossy materials will pick up distinct reflections which can
delineate the cross-section of a form through the way they fall and
the degree to which they are distorted by the surface. All of these
are thankfully governed by observable physical principles which,
when understood, can be applied to our rendering.

Understanding how surface manipulates light can begin by

observing the simple cylinder. By simplifying to an object with
curvature in a single direction, one can isolate the different effects
of horizontal and vertical curvature, and then extrapolate the
results on any compound surface with a greater degree of
understanding.

Let's start out by looking at the physics of it. Light reflects off of a
flat surface at an angle exactly opposite to the angle it came in at.
Seen another way, it is "mirrored" across the axis of a line
perpendicular to the surface, otherwise known as the surface
normal. To figure out where a reflection will fall on this surface, you
mentally trace the path between the source of the reflection and the
"eye", ensuring that the path passes through the proper angle of
reflection on the surface. That point is where the reflection will be
seen on the surface. The same is true of highlights, tracing the path
from the light source, through reflection, to the eye.
 The art of phill saunders

Mirror Reflection

Tracing reflections on a curved surface is simply a matter of finding

the perpendicular to that surface at any given point, in other words,
the surface normal. Just think of a curved surface as an infinite
number of flat mirrors linked along a curve (like a disco ball). For all
intents and purposes, the surface at that infinitesimal point where a
ray of light hits can be considered 'flat' and the process is the same.

Cylindrical Reflection

The way in which I try to plot reflections is to find the most

contrasting edge in whatever is being reflected, as this will end up
being the strongest graphic element on the surface. Then I figure
out where this will land across my surface. For the purposes of
illustrating the form a 'horizon line' is ideal. It provides a clear
 The art of phill saunders

delineation between elements reflecting above and below eye level,

and generally provides warm ground tones and cool sky tones to
further emphasize the changes in curvature. Basically, it makes very
clear what part of the surface is facing 'down' and what part is
facing 'up'.

Plotting the 'Horizon Line' on a complex form

A good tool for observation is a flexible sheet of glossy or reflective

material, such as Mylar. You can also spray a sheet of glossy paper
or thin plastic with silver spray paint. If you spray a sheet of
transparent plastic, such as acetate with silver paint, you will have
created a flexible mirror for observing reflections on one side, and a
silver sheet for reflecting highlights on the other.

By bending your mirror in various directions, you can observe how it

is distorting the world around you. Ideally, you should find an
environment that has a distinct horizon, 'sky' and 'ground' to
simplify your observation. Try going outside.

If you roll the sheet into a horizontal cylinder, you can see that the
reflections are compressed vertically, and begin to appear long and
thin. Roll the sheet into your hand to form a hollow half-cylinder.
The reflections have compressed in the same manner, but now
reversed, with the 'sky' reflected in the lower half, and the 'ground'
in the upper.
 The art of phill saunders

Now turn your original cylinder vertically. You will notice that any
roughly horizontal line below your eye level in the environment will
appear to 'climb' or bend upward in its reflection as it goes away
from you, and hence toward the vanishing point on the horizon. The
opposite is true of lines above your eye level. As well, any subtle
variations in the height of what is being reflected around you
become drastically exaggerated as they are compressed by the
curvature of your cylinder.

These simple observations are the foundation of understanding how

complex rounded surfaces distort reflections, and, more
importantly, how form can be described by the application of these
phenomena to your drawing.

Now take out your 'diffuse' sheet, and bend it into a positive
horizontal half-cylinder. Rather than making it perfectly cylindrical,
however, pinch it more toward the center so that it forms more of a
loose bend through the middle, like a 'v' section on it's side with a
rounded point.

You will notice that the area where the sheet is bending brightens
up, as the metal-flake in the paint gathers diffused light. You have
created what is called a 'bone' in the surface. This phenomena is a
very powerful graphic effect, and can serve as strongly as a line to
control the balance of your form.
 The art of phill saunders

Coning Reflections

Keeping the "pinch" at one end, let your sheet unroll into more of a
regular cylinder at the other end. Notice how the highlight 'flares'
out and diffuses as the curvature of the bone lessens. You have just
created a 'coning' bone in your surface. Coning is also a very
powerful tool in surface development, and can be thought of as the
three-dimensional equivalent of varying your line weights in a
drawing.
 The art of phill saunders

Designing to Control Reflections and Highlights

Once you begin to understand the powerful graphic effect of

reflections and highlights on surface, the object is to control that
effect. It is not enough to have a reflection fall just perfectly from a
particular angle, only to fall off or distort in an unattractive way as
the view is changed.

A key to controlling light is in the intersections of surfaces, and the

creation of 'bones' at those intersections. As described in the
glossary, a 'bone' in a surface is a localized area of increased
curvature. Go back to your flexible 'highlight' mirror, and form a
bone in the surface as described above. Move the surface around,
and change your vantage point. You will notice that from just about
any angle, that 'bend' will still be picking up highlights and
consequently is well-defined. This is because unlike a flat surface,
which will only pick up glare from a light at the exact right angle,
the amount of curvature gathered in the narrow area of the bone
will always have some part of its surface facing the light source
and, in fact, probably several light sources within the environment.
This allows it to always be concentrating highlights along its length.
This allows a great deal of control over the graphic effect of
highlights on the surface.

For example, compare a radiused cross-section to a 'boned' section

covering the same area and depth. If you watch the highlights and
reflections on the rounded surface, they will move up and down the
surface depending on your point of view. Because the 'boned'
surface concentrates most of the change in curvature to a narrow
section, the essential graphic quality of the highlight is unchanged,
even as the highlights crawl across the surface. Essentially you have
constrained the effect within the transition from one surface to
another. The tighter the bone, the stronger the highlight and the
more it is constrained.

As well, the reflections have been concentrated by the localized

change in surface. Instead of having one continual rounded surface
where the demarcation between reflecting 'ground' and 'sky'
depends on your viewpoint, the boned surface divides the section
into two more shear surfaces which are distinctly oriented toward
different reflections, with the bone controlling where the transition
edge (or horizon line) will fall. It creates the same effect as having
two planes in terms of defining the surface, but the soft transition
between them allows the reflection to 'complete' itself within the
 The art of phill saunders

curvature rather than getting truncated by a hard edge. By

softening the tightness of the bone and the crown of the upper and
lower surfaces, you can get the appearance of a very rounded
section, if that is what you are after, while still maintaining some
degree of control over your reflections and highlights.

Designing with Transitions

Once you've recognized how transition areas can be used to control

the graphic appearance of your form, the next step is to incorporate
it into your design thinking.

Visualize your object as a flow of graphic elements in three-

dimensional space, wrapping around the various views of your
object. Design your primary transitions first as a series of edges
between surfaces. The surfaces necessary to create those areas of
focus will naturally fall into place. Secondary transition areas will
naturally occur. As a surface follows an edge around a corner, for
example, the change in direction creates another transition which is
likely to pick up highlights and distort your reflections. You can
control the tension between those areas and your primary transition
areas by balancing the tightness of them. The tighter the transition,
the stronger the highlights will read, creating a hierarchy of
compositional elements in your three-dimensional form.

You can control the amount of 'movement' over surfaces and the
contrast between adjacent surfaces by adjusting the amount of
crown in each surface and therefore the steepness of the transition
between them. Keep in mind that it doesn't take a great change in
the angle of a surface before it picks up a significantly different
character of light and reflection from the world around it. Then you
can control the softness of the transition by increasing or
decreasing the tightness of the bone, or choosing to use an edge,
radius or a bevel.

In the end, the primary character of your design will be consistent

regardless of the view or viewing conditions. You will be able to
control the graphic flow of your forms, as well as how and where
reflections and highlights fall across your surfaces to define their
shapes.