LESSON 5

SKETCHING

TARGET
This lesson will be dealing with construction of common geometric shapes.

After going through this lesson, you should be able to:

1. Know and use the different techniques and important aspects in sketching.
2. Know and draw isometric view of an object.
3. Know and draw the six standard views.

REMEMBER
To make this module really help you, do not just read the lesson like reading a novel or
pocketbook. Reading alone will make you forget easily. Instead, draw by following the
step-by-step instruction in specially in tips in sketching and the like.

ANCHOR
You have learned from our previous lesson the different geometric shapes. These
shapes are essential in making or drawing sketches.

IGNITE

Important Aspects in Sketching

Analyzing Complex Objects

The ability to break down complex shapes into simpler geometric primitives is an
essential skill for sketching and modeling objects. Before you begin to draw the outline of
an object, consider its overall shape and the relationships between its parts. Construction
lines can help you preserve the overall dimensions of the object as you sketch. Bear in
mind that you should be thinking in terms of basic shapes whether you are sketching by
hand or using a CAD program. Because basic curves and straight lines are the basis of
many of the objects that people create, practice in creating the basic elements of a
drawing will help you sketch with ease.
Essential Shapes

Look for the essential shapes of objects. If you were to make a clay model of an
object, what basic shape would you start with? A ball? A box? Try squinting your eyes
and looking at familiar objects. Do you see their shape as a rectangle? A circle? What
other basic shapes do you notice when you look at objects this way? Think about breaking
down more complex objects into their simpler geometric shapes as shown in the figure
below. You can block in these shapes using construction lines to show their relationships
to one another. Then, add details, continuing to pay attention to the spatial relationships
between them. Essential shapes of the photo at the left are sketched at the right.

Construction Lines

Artists often begin a sketch by blocking in light guidelines to help them preserve
basic shapes and proportions. In technical drawing these are called construction lines.

It is often helpful to begin a sketch by describing the object’s main shapes with
construction lines, taking some care to accurately represent the relative size and
placement of features. Use the basic shapes as a guide to place key features, then use
those main features as a “reference map” to place smaller details. For example, the sixth
fret line is about halfway up the rectangular guitar neck.

Contours and Negative Space

The contours of an object are the main outlines that separate it from the
surrounding space. One way to think about the contours of objects is to look at the
contrast between the positive and negative space. Positive space is the space occupied
by the object. Negative space is the unoccupied space around it.

The space occupied by the contour of a pair of scissors is shown. Note how you
can identify specific shapes by looking at the negative space. The individual shapes that
make up the negative space are shown in different colors to make them easier for you to
see. Some people sketch more accurately when they try to draw the negative space that
surrounds the object.

Viewpoint

As you sketch objects, keep in mind that you want to maintain a consistent
viewpoint, as a camera does. This is easier when you are sketching a picture from a book,
because you can’t move around the object. When you move, you see a different view of
the object depending on where you stand. Sometimes people have difficulty sketching
because they want to show parts of the object that cannot really be seen from a single
viewpoint.
For example, knowing that the handle of the rubber stamp appears circular from the top,
you may be tempted to show it as round, even though it may appear elliptical from your
viewpoint. When you are sketching an object pictorially, temporarily set aside your
knowledge of the shapes the object is actually made of and carefully examine the shapes
you see from a single, static viewpoint. In this type of sketching, instead of trying to
envision the object as it is, try only to see it as it looks.

Shading/ Hatching/ Stippling

Adding shading to your sketch can give it a more realistic appearance because it
represents the way the actual object would reflect light. Shading doesn’t mean “coloring
in.” You may want to shade only the most prominently shadowed areas. First, identify the
darkest and lightest areas on an object. If you want, you can shade various middle tones,
placed exactly as they look on the object. In some ways, shading is like doing a drawing
within a drawing, because it is a matter of identifying shapes. When you are shading,
instead of identifying the shapes of the object’s contours, you are identifying the shape
and relative darkness of the shadows.

Hatching lines, shown in Figure 3.15, and stippling, shown in Figure 3.16, are
commonly used methods to add shading because they are easier to reproduce with a
photocopier than continuous-tone pencil shading. In the illustration you can see that
shadowed areas are darkened simply by adding more hatching lines or stippling dots. It
is not uncommon for people to draw outlines by hand and add digital shaded fills to a
scan of the outline. Another way to make a subject the clear focal point of a drawing is to
stylize the shadows. Industrial designers often use markers to add a stylized shadow to
their sketches. You can use a straight edge to protect the original sketch from the marker
and quickly sketch the shadow.

Regardless of how you apply shading, darken the outline to define the shape
clearly and boldly. Remember that when you are communicating by using a sketch, its
subject should
be clear.
Freehand Sketching
Freehand sketches are a helpful way to organize your thoughts and record ideas.
They provide a quick, low-cost way to explore various solutions to design problems so
that the best choices can be made. Investing too much time in creating a detailed layout
before exploring your options through sketches can be costly. The degree of precision
needed in a given sketch depends on its use. Quick sketches to supplement verbal
descriptions may be rough and incomplete. Sketches can be used to convey important
and precise information when they are clearly drawn and annotated. Freehand sketching
requires only pencil, paper, and eraser. Mastering the techniques in this chapter for
showing quick single-view, oblique, perspective, and isometric drawings using good
freehand line technique will give you a valuable tool for communicating your ideas.

The term freehand sketch does not mean a sloppy drawing.

 Freehand sketch shows attention to proportion, clarity, and correct line widths as
shown above. Sketches are also used to clarify information about changes in design or
to provide information on repairing existing equipment.
Technique of Lines
The chief difference between a drawing and a freehand sketch lies in the character
or technique of the lines. A good freehand line is not expected to be as rigidly straight or
exactly uniform. A good freehand line shows freedom and variety, whereas a line drawn
using CAD or instruments should be exact. Still, it is important to distinguish between line
patterns to make your drawing legible.

Freehand Alphabet of Lines

Good and bad Freehand Lines

Tips in Sketching
Isometric Drawings

When you make a drawing using foreshortened measurements, or when the object
is actually projected on a plane of projection, it is called an isometric projection (Figure
a). When you make a drawing using the full-length measurements of the actual object, it
is an isometric sketch or isometric drawing (Figure b) to indicate that it lacks
foreshortening.
The isometric drawing is about 25% larger than the isometric projection, but the
pictorial value is obviously the same in both. Because isometric sketches are quicker
(because you can use the actual measurements), they are much more commonly drawn.

Making an Isometric Drawing

Rectangular objects are easy to draw using box construction, which consists of
imagining the object enclosed in a rectangular box whose sides coincide with the main
faces of the object. For example, imagine the object shown in the two views in the Step
by Step feature below in a construction box, then locate the features along the edges of
the box as shown.

The Step by Step feature below shows how to construct an isometric drawing of
an object composed of all “normal” surfaces. Normal is used technically to mean “at right
angles.” A normal surface is any surface that is parallel to the sides of the box. Notice
that all measurements are made parallel to the main edges of the enclosing box—that is,
parallel to the isometric axes. No measurement along a nonisometric line can be
measured directly with the scale, as these lines are not foreshortened equally to the
normal lines. Start at any one of the corners of the bounding box and draw along the
isometric axis directions.
Hidden Lines and Center Lines

Hidden lines in a drawing represent the edges where surfaces meet but are not
directly visible. Hidden lines are omitted from pictorial drawings unless they are needed
to make the drawing clear.

Figure above shows a case in which hidden lines are needed because a projecting
part cannot be clearly shown without them. Sometimes it is better to include an isometric
view from another direction than to try to show hidden features with hidden lines. Draw
centerlines locating the center of a hole only if they are needed to indicate symmetry or
for dimensioning. In general, use centerlines sparingly in isometric drawings. If in doubt,
leave them out, as too many centerlines will look confusing.
Curves in Isometric

You can draw curves in isometric using a series of offset measurements. Select
any desired number of points at random along the curve in the given top view, such as
points A, B, and C in Figure below. Choose enough points to accurately locate the path
of the curve (the more points, the greater the accuracy). Draw offset grid lines from each
point parallel to the isometric axes and use them to locate each point in the isometric
drawing as in the example shown.
Standard Views
Any object can be viewed from six mutually perpendicular directions, as shown.
 These are called the six principal views. You can think of the six views as what an
observer would see by moving around the object.

As shown above the observer can walk around a house and view its front, sides,
and rear. You can imagine the top view as seen by an observer from an airplane and the
bottom, or worm’s-eye view, as seen from underneath. The term plan may also be used
for the top view. The term elevation is used for all views showing the height of the building.
These terms are regularly used in architectural drawing and occasionally in other fields.
To make drawings easier to read, the views are arranged on the paper in a standard way.
The views in above show the American National Standard arrangement. The top, front,
and bottom views align vertically. The rear, leftside, front, and right-side views align
horizontally. To draw a view out of place is a serious error and is generally regarded as
one of the worst mistakes in drawing.

Principal Dimensions

The three principal dimensions of an object are width, height, and depth (Figure
6.5). In technical drawing, these fixed terms are used for dimensions shown in certain
views, regardless of the shape of the object. The terms length and thickness are not used
because they may be misleading.
Projection Method
Figure 6.6 illustrates the front view of an object drawn using an orthographic
projection. Imagine a sheet of glass parallel to the front surfaces of the object. This
represents the plane of projection. The outline on the plane of projection shows how the
object appears to the observer. In orthographic projection, rays (or projectors) from all
points on the edges or contours of the object extend parallel to each other and
perpendicular to the plane of projection. The word orthographic means “at right angles.”
Examples of top and side views are shown in Figure 6.7. Specific names are given to the
planes of projection. The front view is projected to the frontal plane. The top view is
projected to the horizontal plane. The side view is projected to the profile plane.
The Glass Box
One way to understand the standard arrangement of views on the sheet of paper
is to envision a glass box. If planes of projection were placed parallel to each principal
face of the object, they would form a box, as shown in Figure 6.8. The outside observer
would see six standard views (front, rear, top, bottom, right side, left side) of the object
through the sides of this imaginary glass box.
Transferring Depth Dimensions

First and Third Angle Projection As you saw earlier in this chapter, you can imagine
projecting views as unfolding a glass box made from the viewing planes. There are two
main systems used for projecting and unfolding the views: third-angle projection, which
is used in the United States, Canada, and some other countries, and first-angle projection,
which is used primarily in Europe and Asia. Difficulty in interpreting the drawing and
manufacturing errors can result when a first-angle drawing is confused with a third-angle
drawing. Philippines uses third-angle projection.

Third- Angle Projection

Figure 6.22a shows the concept of third-angle orthographic projection. To avoid
misunderstanding, international projection symbols have been developed to distinguish
between first angle and third-angle projections on drawings. The symbol in Figure 6.22b
shows two views of a truncated cone. You can examine the arrangement of the views in
the symbol to determine whether first- or third-angle projection was used. On international
drawings you should be sure to include this symbol. To understand the two systems, think
of the vertical and horizontal planes of projection, shown in Figure 6.22a, as indefinite in
extent and intersecting at 90° with each other; the four angles produced are called the
first, second, third, and fourth angles (similar to naming quadrants on a graph.) If the
object to be drawn is placed below the horizontal plane and behind the vertical plane, as
in the glass box you saw earlier, the object is said to be in the third angle. In third-angle
projection, the views are produced as if the observer is outside, looking in.
First Angle Projection
If the object is placed above the horizontal plane and in front of the vertical plane,
the object is in the first angle. In first-angle projection the observer looks through the
object to the planes of projection. The right-side view is still obtained by looking toward
the right side of the object, the front by looking toward the front, and the top by looking
down toward the top; but the views are projected from the object onto a plane behind the
object in each case. The biggest difference between third-angle projection and first-angle
projection is how the planes of the glass box are unfolded, as shown in Figure 6.24. In
first-angle projection, the right-side view is to the left of the front view, and the top view is
below the front view, as shown. You should understand the difference between the two
systems and know the symbol that is placed on drawings to indicate which has been
used.
 EXPLORE

Activity 6
Do not perform activity 6 if you have not read and done with the “ignite” part. Use hard
pencil for construction lines and medium pencil for final object. DO NOT ERASE
CONSTRUCTION LINES.

1. Select any three-dimensional object inside your house. (as much as possible
object with few curves)
2. Position the selected object so as you can see front view, top view and right-side
view.
3. Show / pm the picture to your professor, if approve, proceed to number 4.
4. Sketch/ draw the object on a long coupon bond. Use pencil only. Apply the
techniques that you have learned in sketching.

Note: Submit your drawings for Activity 6 together with your plate 10.

IN A NUTSHELL

Sketching is a quick way of visualizing and solving a drawing problem. It is an effective

way of communicating with all members of the design team.

• There are special techniques for sketching lines, circles, and arcs. These techniques
should be practiced so they become second nature.

• Using a grid makes sketching in proportion an easy task.

• Circles can be sketched by constructing a square and locating the four tangent points
where the circle touches the square.

• Freehand sketches are made to proportion, but not necessarily to a particular scale.

• Sketching is one of the most important skills for accurately recording ideas.
• Philippines uses Third angle projection
• Orthographic drawings are the result of projecting the image of a 3D object onto one of
six standard planes of projection. The six standard views are often thought of as an
unfolded glass box. The arrangement of the views in relation to one another is important.
Views must lineup with adjacent views, so that any point in one view projects to line up
with that same point in the adjacent view. The standard arrangement of views shows the
top, front, and right side of the object.

• Visualization is an important skill. You can build your visual abilities through practice
and through understanding terms describing objects. Normal surfaces appear true size in
one principal view and as an edge in the other two principal views. Inclined surfaces
appear as an edge in one of the three principal views. Oblique surfaces do not appear
as an edge in any of the principal views.