Shadows

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Separation of Light and Shadow

  • Lighting Ratio: reducing the unflattering effects of harsh or dark shadows
  • the value of a color is a measure of its lightness or darkness in comparison to a scale of grays
  • Rule of thumb; "In bright sunlight, a newspaper in shadow is darker than a black shirt in the light

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Cast Shadows

Cast Shadows

  • when a form intercepts a parcel of direct light, it projects or casts a shadow onto whatever lies behind it
  • the patches of light determine the lightness and color temperature of the shadow
  • a soft light will cast a shadow with a blurry edge, a hard light will produce a harsh edge
  • the edge of every shadow gets softer as the distance increases from the object that casts the shadow
  • the parallel pattern of light and shadow is an effective device to create depth in a painting
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Half Shadow
Half Shadow

  • one way to create drama, especially with a vertical form, is to light the top half and leave the rest in shadow
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Occlusion Shadow

Occlusion Shadow
  • dark accents occur at places where forms come close enough to each other to crowd out the light, leaving a small dense area of shadow
  • commonly seen where materials push together in folds or at points of contact with the ground





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