103-L-15

LESSON 15 COMPUTER GENERATED LINE AND ART STRUCTURE 15.0

OBJECTIVES

15.1

INTRODUCTION

15.2

GOOD ART PRACTICE

15.3

SETTING UP FOR DIGITAL ART 15.3.1 15.3.2 15.3.3 15.3.4

15.4

NOW LET US DO SOME ART W ORK 15.4.1 15.4.2 15.4.3

15.5

DRAWING SHAPES SHAPE TOOL OVERVIEW OUTLINE SETTINGS

SMUDGING AND ROUGHENING 15.5.1 15.5.2

15.6

SOFTWARE HARDWARE PLANNING OF A DESIGN COMPOSITION OF DESIGN

SMUDGING BRUSH OBJECTS ROUGHENING OBJECTS

ASSIGNMENTS 15.5.1 15.5.2

CLASS ASSIGNMENT HOME ASSIGNMENT

15.7

SUMMING UP

15.8

POSSIBLE ANSWERS TO SELF-CHECK QUESTIONS

15.9

TERMINAL QUESTIONS

15.10

REFERENCES AND SUGGESTED FURTHER READING

15.11

GLOSSARY

1

15. COMPUTER GENERATED LINE AND ART This final lesson of the course extracts the learning from all the lessons of the previous units to create a desirable piece of art work through computer graphic software Corel Draw 11. In this lesson we are going to learn about different types of drawing and shaping tools from the toolkit of Corel draw Graphics. Also we are going to learn about adding a number of special and customized effects to the object created.

15.0 Objectives After going through this lesson, you will be able to •

Try your hand on almost any type of a drawing project using a computer with Corel Graphics.

•

Create an almost perfect digital artwork of your own.

15.1 Introduction Before starting with the main subject, let us first learn about the principles that apply to art work. There are various guidelines which help us in gaining an understanding of designing and drawing. These will give you an idea how artists develop and what frame of mind we should have before designing a pattern.

The art work done in the past inspires and teaches us a lot to learn. It shows that fundamentals, like composition, colours, edges etc. are the basis of all art. Earlier art work had a uniform composition, well defined edges and an appealing colour combination. All these make it an attractive piece of art work. To get such perfection in your art you should study old art works and apply them to your works. You can visit art galleries, read through books of great painters and their art work.

Observe Nature and surroundings to create natural effects and improve your imaginations. Even photographs and movies help in understanding creative art. You have to keep on experimenting with your work, and you will be able to create a masterpiece one-day. Practice makes perfect In this lesson, you will learn how CorelDraw graphics can be used to produce a work of art on computer.

15.2 Good Art Practice 2

Any creative art or activity requires training, regular practice, clear observation and identifying shortcomings and improving upon them. For perfection, you need to do practice and more practice. A good artist should always remember the following: •

Always start from the basics. It is important to understand the fundamentals like shapes (anatomy), colour (shades), perspective and composition before trying advanced techniques.

•

For creating any designs, first learn to draw. You can start by drawing shapes of simple objects like fruits, furniture, books etc. and then gradually start drawing complex ones like human body.

•

To improve your work you can draw sketches of your family, friends and pets in action or Draw from photographs.

•

Next in the art come shading, textures and edges, and adding light and shadow to the art work. It gives a wonderful effect. Let us understand what light and shadow means.

You might remember how in childhood we made different shapes on the walls, such as a turtle or a bird, with the shadow of our hands and fingers. They looked so attractive due to light and dark effect. The shading effects in a figure or an art work give a live effect in the art work. Textures are generally used to create background effect for the art work. So, start colouring only after you have learnt these techniques.

To draw live objects, study their anatomy, like muscles and physical structure, and understand it with respect to the art work. For example, if you plan to draw a butterfly, first have a picture of a butterfly in your mind. Think about the parts of its body, like main body, antenna and wings. Wings could be of different shapes, so imagine which shape you want to draw for a natural effect. Then plan the various colours you would like to fill in the Butterfly.

15.3

Setting Up for Digital Art

Art work created on Computer is called Digital Art. It has two basic requirements: Software and Hardware.

15.3.1 Software As explained earlier, software is a program through which the worker convey his instructions to the computer. Most common software for digital Art to create textile designs on computer are Painter Classic, Adobe Photoshop and Corel Draw.

15.3.2 Hardware

3

Depending on the level of the software to be used and the work to be done one needs the desired type of computer and peripherals hardware. For example, moderate software may work and on a moderate computer in terms of speed, storage etc. Advanced software may require more powerful computers or specialized peripherals.

The computer software typically has a library with many pre-drawn figures, symbols like a tree, baby, fruit, clothes, flowers, furniture, house, pot and many more. You can choose any one of them as required. It saves your time.

If you want, you can create your own.

15.3.3 Planning a Design Once you have acquired the basic requirements, there are few other aspects one should learn. It is very essential to plan your design before you start creating. This requires: •

What you draw should communicate the correct and required message to the viewer. For this, plan the art work as a whole rather than a collection of objects. Think and decide what your designs should symbolize, analyze suitable colour combinations to be used, main area to be focused and importance of Filled and empty spaces.

•

If you plan to create a drawing, you have to have a picture in your mind that you want to show in your art work. For example, it may have objects like men, bicycle, a Christmas tree, etc. You can select these objects for reference and modify them as desired from software library

•

Decide the colour combination, like red for house, blue for sky, green for grass, etc, so as to have an attractive combination.

•

Then comes placing of the objects you plan in your artwork. These should be placed uniformly all over the texture to have a balanced view on your art.

15.3.4 Composition of a Design Now, if you have to make a pattern design, you must understand the composition of design, i.e. about elements of design. For this, it is good to first sketch your design on a plain paper, with a pencil. Then arrange the objects that you want to show in uniform manner all over. Arrange those areas that you want to show as attractive areas. Think of contrast and colour. Have a balanced display of light and dark areas, flat areas and texture and an asymmetrical composition.

The background colour affects the colours and contrast of your design.

Have a Grey or beige background. It presents the best interaction of colours in the final design. Do not have white background; the images do not appear to be natural. Lastly, errors should be corrected.

If you follow these steps, your design will become attractive and catch viewer's attention.

A design should always be viewed as a whole. All parts should be given attention and should look good, not just one or two.

4

If you need to do some design in a very short time you can trace it from a source (photographs, images, illustrations) and make changes according to your need.

Since you will be working on a computer, you should keep on saving the design after every few seconds. Always create a back-up of the file, i.e. a separate copy.

You must have found all these instructions very helpful. So, to create an attractive Design, you should: i) Plan your design with ideas to be depicted, colour combination to be used, important areas to be shown, and decide about empty and filled areas. ii) Think about composition of Design, i.e. arrangement of objects and contrast.

15.4 Now Let Us Do Some Art Work 15.4.1 Drawing shapes Corel Draw enables you to draw basic shapes, which you can modify using special effects and reshaping tools. i) Freehand Tool Fly-out Click on the triangle in the bottom right corner of the Freehand Tool to open the fly-out tool options. This presents other freehand tools, but all are outside the scope of this basic tutorial. ii)

Freehand Tool Properties

Right click on the Freehand Tool to open the Freehand/Bezier Options window. Most of these controls are for advanced features. The Auto-join can be increased if you would like Corel Draw to automatically join nodes that are further apart.

iii)

Drawing rectangles and square To draw a rectangle or a square do the following: •

Open the Rectangle flyout, and click the Rectangle tool. Drag in the drawing window until the rectangle is of the size you want.

5

•

To draw a square, hold down Ctrl Key and drag in the drawing window until the square is of the size you want.

Tip: You can draw a rectangle from its center outward by holding down Shift Key as you drag. You can also draw a square from its center outward by holding down Shift + Ctrl Key as you drag.

You can draw a rectangle that covers the drawing page by doubleclicking the Rectangle tool. iv)

To draw a rectangle by specifying height and width •

Open the Rectangle flyout, and click the 3-point rectangle tool.

•

In the drawing window point to where you want to start the rectangle, drag to draw the width, and release the mouse button.

•

Move the mouse perpendicularly to the first line to draw the height, and click.

•

To adjust the size of the rectangle, type values in the Object(s) size boxes on the property bar.

Tip: Hold down Ctrl Key as you drag to constrain the angle of the baseline to 15 degree increments.

This tool lets you draw rectangles and squares. You can draw a rectangle or square by dragging diagonally or draw a rectangle by specifying the width and height.

After you have drawn a rectangle or square, you can reshape it by rounding one or more of its corners. v) To round the corners of a rectangle or a square •

Click a rectangle or a square.

•

Type values in the corner roundness areas on the property bar.

Tip: To apply the same roundness to all corners, click the Round corners together button on the property bar.

15.4.2 Shape tool overview i) Choose the Shape Tool and Click on the Shape Tool in the Toolbox. ii) Shape Tool with Text Select the Text Tool.

6

Type "Move." Select the Shape Tool. Select the "e" by clicking in the square to the lower left of the letter. The square will now be filled with black. Click and drag on the square to move the letter.

You can use the CTRL key as you move to constrain the move along the text baseline. You can also change the size, colour and many other properties of individual letters by selecting with the Shape Tool. iii) To draw ellipses, circles, arcs, and wedges

7

You can draw an ellipse or circle by dragging diagonally or you can draw an ellipse by specifying its width and height. You can draw an ellipse or circle and change the shape into an arc or wedge. iv) To draw an ellipse or a circle by dragging diagonally Open the Ellipse flyout, and click the Ellipse tool. Drag in the drawing window until the ellipse or a Circle is the shape you want.

Tip: You can draw an ellipse or a circle from its center outward by holding down Shift Key as you drag. v) To draw an ellipse by specifying width and height Open the Ellipse flyout, and click the 3-point ellipse tool.

Click in the drawing window, drag to draw the centerline of the ellipse, and release the mouse button.

The centerline runs through the center of the ellipse and determines its width.

Move the mouse perpendicularly to the first line to define the height of the ellipse, and click. vi) To draw an arc or a wedge To draw an arc, open the Ellipse flyout and click the Ellipse tool. Click the Arc button on the property bar. Drag in the drawing window until the arc is the shape you want.

To Draw A wedge Open the Ellipse flyout and click the Ellipse tool. Click the Wedge button on the property bar. Drag in the drawing window until the wedge is the shape you want.

8

Tips: You can change the direction of a selected arc or a wedge by clicking the Clockwise/counterclockwise arcs or pies button on the property bar.

You can constrain the movement of the node to 15-degree increments by holding down Ctrl Key as you drag. vii) To draw a polygon or a star Open the Object flyout, click the Polygon tool, and drag in the drawing window until the polygon is of the size you want. viii) To draw a star Open the Object flyout, click the Polygon tool, drag in the drawing window until the polygon is of the size you want, and click the Star button on the property bar.

Tips: You can draw a polygon or a star from its center by holding down Shift Key as you drag.

You can draw a symmetrical polygon or a star by holding down Ctrl Key as you drag. ix) To reshape a polygon or a star Select a polygon or a star, and click the Polygon button or the Star button on the property bar.

Click the Shape tool and click a node on the object. Drag the node to change the object's shape. x) To change the number of sides of a polygon or number of points on a star.

Select a polygon or a star, type a value in the Number of points on polygon box on the property bar, and press Enter. xi) To Sharpen a star's points Select a star, and move the Sharpness slider on the property bar.

Note: The Sharpness slider displays only if the star you select has at least seven points. The sensitivity of the slider increases with the number of points.

Tip: You can change a polygon to a star by selecting the polygon, clicking a node on one of the sides, and dragging toward the center of the polygon. xii) Formatting lines and outline (Outline is the line that defines the shape of an object).

You can change the appearance of both lines and outlines. For example, you can specify their colour, width, style, corner shape, and cap style. You can also remove a line or outline, and create your own line or outline style by adjusting the distance between segments in the line.

9

You can copy the colour of an outline to other objects, convert outlines to objects so that you can apply a fill to them, and create calligraphic outlines.

You can add arrowheads to lines and curves. You can create new arrowhead and edit current or new ones.

Setting the miter limit for outlines lets you specify at what angle a sharp corner is either mitered (pointed) or beveled (squared-off) you need.

15.4.3 Outline settings i) To specify line and outline settings •

Select an object.

•

Open the Outline tool flyout, and click the Outline pen dialog button.

•

Specify the settings you want.

•

You can also create a line style by Clicking on Edit style, and move the slider in the Edit line style dialog box. By clicking the boxes to the left of the slider, you can specify the placement and frequency of the dots in the new line style you create.

•

Edit a line style, choose a line style from the Style list box, and click Edit style. Create a line style in the Edit line style dialog box, and click Replace.

Tip: You can change the outline colour of a selected object by choosing a colour from the colour picker in the Outline pen dialog box. ii) To copy outline colour to another object •

Open the Eyedropper flyout, and click the Eyedropper tool.

•

Click the Eyedropper fill/outline button on the property bar.

•

Click the edge of the object whose outline you want to copy.

•

Open the Eyedropper flyout, and click the Paint bucket tool.

•

Click the edge of the object to which you want to copy the outline.

Notes: The colour of copied outlines may not exactly match the colour of the original outline. In some cases, the closest equivalent RGB colour displays and the outline's thickness is not copied. iii) To convert an outline to an object •

Select an object.

•

Click Arrange Convert outline to object.

iv) To create a calligraphic outline 10

•

Select an object.

•

Open the Outline tool flyout, and click the Outline pen dialog button.

•

In the Corners area, enable a corner style option.

•

Type a value in the Stretch box.

•

Type a value in the Angle box.

v) To remove an object's outline •

Select and object.

•

Open the Outline tool flyout and click No Outline.

Tip: You can also remove an object's outline by selecting the object and rightclicking, No colour on the colour palette. vi) To add an arrowhead

15.5

•

Select a line or curve.

•

Open the Outline tool flyout, and click the Outline pen dialog button.

•

In the Arrows area, open the Start Arrowhead picker, and click a lineending shape.

•

Open the End Arrowhead picker, and click a line-ending shape.

Smudging and Roughening

15.5.1 Smudging brush objects Smudging allows you to distort an object by dragging along its outline.

When applying smudging to an object, you can control the extent and shape of the distortion whether you activate the controls for the graphics tablet stylus or use the settings that apply to a mouse.

The smudging effect responds to both the angle of rotation or bearing and the tilt angle of a graphics tablet stylus. Rotating the stylus changes the angle of the smudging effect and tilting the stylus flattens the brush tip and changes the shape of the smudging. If you are using a mouse, you can simulate the bearing and tilt of the stylus by specifying values. Increasing the bearing angle from 0° to 359° changes the angle of the brush stroke. As you decrease the tilt angle from 90° to 1°, you change the smudging shape by flattening the brush tip.

Smudging can respond to the pressure of a stylus on a tablet where the smudging widens with more pressure and narrows with less. If you are using a mouse or want to override stylus pressure, you can enter real values to simulate the pressure of a stylus on a graphics tablet. Negative values to -10 create a narrowing distortion, 0 maintains an even stroke width, and positive values to 10 create an expanding distortion.

11

Whether you are using a stylus or a mouse, you must specify the nib size.

The nib size determines the width of the smudging applied to an object.

You can apply the smudging effect to the inside and outside of an object. _______________________________________________________________________

Activity 1.

Draw an object with freehand tool. Now select the object using the Pick tool apply a smudging effect on it by following the steps given below

•

Open the Shape edit flyout, and click the Smudge brush tool.

•

Drag around the outline to distort it and see the effect.

•

You can also Change the size of the brush nib on the property bar.

•

Type a value in the Size of the nib box.

•

Change the size of the brush nib when using the graphics stylus:

•

Click the Use stylus pressure button on the property bar and apply pressure to the stylus.

•

Widen or narrow the smudging

•

Type a value between -10 and 10 in the Add dry out to the effect box on the property bar.

•

Specify the shape of the smudging.

•

Type a value between 1 and 90 in the Enter a fixed value for tilt settings box on the property bar.

12

•

Change the shape of the smudging when using the graphics stylus

•

Click the Use stylus tilt button on the property bar.

•

Specify the angle of the nib shape for smudging.

•

Type a value between 0 and 359 in the Enter a fixed value for bearing settings box on the property bar.

•

Change the angle of the nib shape for smudging when using the graphics stylus.

•

Click the Use stylus-bearing button on the property bar.

•

Smudge the inside of an object

•

Click the outside of an object and drag inwards.

•

Smudge the outside of an object

•

Click the inside of an object and drag outwards.

Tips: To make the tilt angle, bearing angle and pressure sensitivity respond to the graphics tablet stylus, right-click on the smudged object, and click a command in the submenu.

To get the minimum and maximum values for the smudging controls, rightclick on the property bar and click Settings. _______________________________________________________________________

13

15.5.2 Roughening objects The roughening effect lets you apply a jagged or spiked edge to objects, including lines, curves, and text. You can control the size, angle, direction, and number of the indentations whether you activate the graphics tablet stylus or apply settings to a mouse.

The roughening effect is determined either by movements of a graphics tablet stylus, by fixed settings, or by automatically applying perpendicular spikes to the line. Tilting the stylus toward and away from the tablet's surface increases and decreases the size of the spikes. If you are using a mouse, you can specify the tilt angle from 1째 - 90째. You can determine the direction of the spikes by changing the angle of rotation (or bearing) of the stylus as you apply the roughening effect to an object. When you are using a mouse, you can set the bearing angle from 0째 - 359째. You can also increase or decrease the number of spikes that are applied as you drag.

The roughening effect also responds to the pressure of the stylus on the tablet. The more pressure you apply, the more spikes are created in the roughened area. If you are using a mouse, you can specify values to simulate the stylus pressure. You can also change the brush nib size. _______________________________________________________________________

Activity 2.

Draw any geometrical shape and apply the roughening effect to its outline by the following steps.

14

To roughen an object: •

Select the object using the Pick tool.

•

Open the Shape edit flyout, and click the Roughen brush tool.

•

Point to the area on the outline you want to roughen, and drag the outline to distort it. You can also do the following.

•

Specify the size of the roughening spikes.

•

Type a value from .01" to 2" in the Size of the nib box on the property bar.

•

Change the number of spikes in a roughened area.

•

Type a value between 1 and 10 in and then Enter a value for frequency of spikes box on the property bar.

•

Change the number of spikes in a roughened area when using a graphics stylus.

•

Click the Use stylus pressure button on the property bar.

•

Specify the height of the roughening spikes.

•

Type a value between 1 and 90 in the Enter a fixed value for tilt settings box on the property bar.

•

Increase the number of roughening spikes as you drag.

•

Type a value between -10 and 10 in the Add dry out to the effect box on the property bar.

•

Change the height of the roughening spikes when using a graphics stylus.

•

Click the Use stylus tilt button on the property bar.

•

Specify the direction of the roughening spikes

•

Choose Fixed direction from the Spike direction list box.

•

Type a value between 0 and 359 in the Enter a fixed value for bearing settings box on the property bar.

•

Change the direction of the roughening spikes when using a graphics stylus.

•

Choose Stylus setting from the Spike direction list box on the property bar.

•

Create roughening spikes perpendicular to the path or outline.

•

Choose Auto from the Spike direction list box on the property bar.

15

Tips: To make the tilt angle and bearing angle responsive to the graphics tablet stylus, right-Click the roughened object, and select a command from the submenu.

To get the minimum and maximum values for the roughening controls, right-click the control on the property bar and click Settings.

Self-check Questions 1. What do you mean by digital art?

2. What is software?

3. What is the meaning of the term hardware?

4. How do you write text in Corel?

5. What are smudging and roughening?

15.6 Assignments 15.6.1 Class assignments i) Draw a rectangle or a square by specifying height and width. ii) Draw a rectangle or a square and round their corners. iii) Draw ellipse, circle by dragging diagonally. iv) Draw an arc or a wedge. v) Draw a polygon or a star. vi) Draw a star. vii) Change the number of sides of a polygon or number of points on a star.

15.6.2 Home assignments i) Draw an Object and Select an object using the Pick tool. Apply the smudging effect to the inside and outside of an object. ii) Select the same object using the Pick tool. Apply a jagged or spiked edge to objects.

16

15.7

Summing Up In this Unit of Digitizer and Pen you have learnt:

i) About various software tools, such as Corel Draw, to create art. ii) How beautiful sketches can be drawn and coloured using soft wares in very short time, by using ready made built in tools of Software.

15.8

Possible Answers to Self-check Questions

1.

Art work created on Computer is called Digital Art. It has two basic requirements: Software and Hardware.

2.

Software is a program through which the worker conveys his instructions to the computer. Most common software for digital Art to create textile designs on computer are Painter Classic available with Digitizers, Adobe Photoshop and Corel Draw.

3.

Depending on the level of the software to be used and the work to be done one needs the desired type of computer and peripherals hardware.

For example, moderate software may work and on a moderate computer in terms of speed, storage etc. Advanced software may require more powerful computers or specialized peripherals.

4.

For writing text in Corel we select the text tool.

5.

a) Smudging allows you to distort an object by dragging along its outline.

When applying smudging to an object, you can control the extent and shape of the distortion whether you activate the controls for the graphics tablet stylus or use the settings that apply to a mouse.

b) The roughening effect lets you apply a jagged or spiked edge to objects, including lines, curves, and text. You can control the size, angle, direction, and number of the indentations whether you activate the graphics tablet stylus or apply settings to a mouse.

15.9 Terminal Questions 1. What are good art practices?

2. What is digital art and what are its requirements?

3. Define various points that should be remembered before drawing.

4. Describe various tools used for drawing shapes in Corel Draw.

17

15.10 References and Suggested Further Reading 1.

Thakur, Atul Jan 21, 2005. Exercise Demos using Professional Software: CorelDraw

2.

Besant, C.B. and Lui, C.W.K. 1988 Computer Aided Design and Manufacturing. East West Pvt Limited, New Delhi.

3.

Images and Features of Pen Tablets from Wacom® Intuos® 2

4. Internet Web sites:

http://www.microsoft.com/office/editions/prodinfo/tabletpc.ms px.

• http://www.corel.com.

• http://www.adobe.com • http://www.answers.com •

Also see the Manual of the Corel Draw software for tutorials.

15.11 Glossary 1.

Tool

Implement, support equipment

2.

Pictographic

Using pictures

3.

Artifact

Substance or structure modified by man; manmade

4.

Template

Pattern, mold or the like; model or standard

5.

Calligraphic

Written decoratively and beautifully

6.

Viscous

Having sticky and thick consistency

7.

Nodes

A connecting point at which several lines come together.

18