Easy Way To Draw Background
How to Draw a Background for Beginners: A Step-by-Step Guide
Drawing a background can make your artwork take on a whole new aspect, placing your characters and scenes in a sense of place and atmosphere. The following guide will take you through how to draw an awesome background, step by step, whether you are creating landscapes, cityscapes, or interior settings.
Step 1: Gather Your Tools
Get ready by having the following:
- Pencil and eraser
- Paper or sketchbook
- Ruler (for straight lines and perspective grids)
- Colored pencils, markers, or digital tools (optional)
Step 2: Choose Your Background Type
Decide what kind of background you want to draw. Some popular options include:
- Nature: Forests, mountains, beaches, or fields.
- Cityscapes: Skyscrapers, streets, or bustling markets.
Interior: Cozy rooms, futuristic spaces, or abandoned buildings. 3
Having an idea in your head helps you to plan your composition.
Step 3: Draw the Horizon Line and Vanishing Point
The horizon line is where the sky meets the ground; it helps you start thinking about perspective.
Draw a horizontal line across your paper. That will set the horizon.
Add one or more vanishing points along the line. These guide how objects shrink into the distance.
Step 4: Block Out Basic Shapes
Using simple shapes, sketch the main elements of your background:
- Nature Scenes: Start with ovals and triangles for trees, rectangles for rocks, and wavy lines for hills.
- Cityscapes: Sketch the basic structure of buildings, windows, and streets using rectangles and squares.
- Interiors: Draw the walls, tables, and furniture using rectangles, keeping in mind that lines should conform to the vanishing point.
Step 5: Add Details and Texture
Begin to define the shapes into identifiable objects:
- Nature: Put leaves on the trees, ripples in the water, and texture on the rocks.
- Cityscapes: Put in windows, doors, and streetlights. Add texture to bricks and rooftops.
- Interiors: Add details of furniture, patterns on rugs, or other items such as books and plants.
Step 6: Apply Perspective for Depth
Perspective helps give your background a realistic effect:
- Linear Perspective: Ensure lines converge into the vanishing point on roads, buildings, and pathways.
- Overlapping Elements: Allow closer objects to overlap distant ones in order to show depth.
- Size Variation: Objects should be drawn smaller the farther away they are from the foreground.
Step 7: Add Shadows and Lighting
Shading and light add emotion and depth to your background:
- Define where the source of light is coming from. Anything can be the source of light, from the sun to a lamp.
- Create shadows on all the areas opposite the source of light. Use soft shadows for natural light and hard shadows for artificial.
Step 8: Add Color and Texture (Optional)
If coloring your background, consider the following:
- Nature: Gradient colors for the sky, earth colors for the ground, and bright green for trees.
- Cityscapes: Balance building tones with neutral and pops of color for signs and lights.
- Interiors: Add color warmth to spaces or cool tones to give them a modern feel.
You can also use textures like wood grain, brick patterns, or clouds to add some dynamism to your background.
Step 9: Final Touches
- Add small details: birds in the sky, people in the distance, or cracks on a wall.
- Smoothen the shading and highlights to give it a finished look.
- Check the composition for balance and clarity.
Tips for Inspiration
- Look at photos or observe real settings for understanding of perspective and detail.
- Take references for specific textures or architectural styles.
Cut through a simple background to work up to complex scenarios.
Conclusion
Drawing backgrounds brings depth, adds context to an artwork, making it more dynamic and complete; this is sure through practicing the steps set out, one will surely turn out eye-catching backgrounds in drawing scenes of reality.
Now, reach out for an armament, pick a scenario, and present the most appealing backdrop – beginning today!