Mechaforce PDF

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Draw Futuristic Robots that Fly, Fight, Battle and Brawl
E.J. §U
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ONCNNATl. OttO
www.impact·17ook~.com
ABOUTTHEAUTHOR
E.J . Su was born in Taiwan and moved to the United
States at age 14. In college, he first warted to learn
to program video games and declared his major in
computer science.
E.J. grew up reading only Japanese comics. Some of
his favorite comics and animations include Microman,
Astro Boy, Black Jack, Ghost in the Shell, Doraemon
and Dragon Ball. He didn't start reading American
comics until the mid-1980s when he carne across Alan
Moore's The Killing Joke.
E.J. has been heavily influenced by Japanese comic
book ar-tie>te>. Some of the mo~t in Auential include
Masamune Shirow, Akira Toriyama, Osamu Tezuka,
Fujiko F. Fujio and Mitsuru Adachi. In recent years, E.J.
has started to draw inspiration from Travis Charest,
Adam Hughes. Leinil Francis Yu and Bruce Timm.
M~haForoc CoPYriahc@ 2008 by E..J. Su. Manufactured in China.
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!::>u,E.J.
Mcchaforcc : draw futur16tic robots that Ay, flght, battle and 17rawl
I [.J. !?u.
p.cm. METRIC CONVERSION CHART
l11cludc:o:; ind<:<x.
ISBN-13: 978+00061-014-1 (pblc: alk. paper) To convert to multiply by
ISBN-10: 1-60061-014-5 (pbk.: alk. paper) Inches Centimeters 2.54
1. Robot$ in art. 2. Drawing--Technique. I. Iitle.
NC825.R56582 2008
Centimeter5 Inches 0.4
743'.89629892--dc22 2007039153 Feet Centimeters 30.5
Centimeters Feet 0 .03
Edited by Jeffrey Blockaidge
Yards Meters 0.9
Designed by Terri Woe6ner and Wendy Dunning
Production coordinated by Matt Wagner Meters Yards 1.1
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS DEDICATION
I'd like to thank all the people who helped me throLgh the bad times, and ihis book Is dedicated to m.v
those who helped me along the way to what will hopefully be a long career in wife, Michelle. ihank you for your
comic book illustration, including the lnkpunks creN, whom I worked with on patience and understanding. I am
our short-lived anthology that was the kick start of my comic book career, so blessed havln~ you by my side.
and Robert Kirkman, who gave me my first big break on the Image book Tech I laving you with me is the biggest
Jacket. accomplishment in rny life.
Val Staples, who believed in my work and helped me with all the insider
knowledge of the comic book world.
Chris Ryall and Dan iaylor, who gave me an opportunity on Transformers
and for being patient with me.
ihanks also to all those fans who supported rre and picked up the
books I have created. I wouldn't be here without any of you.
And last but not least, thanks to Jeffrey Blocksidge and the rest of the
team at IMPACi Books, for putting up with my long, drawn-out schedule.
7
fiJ INTRODUCTION
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PERSPECTIVE
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INTRODUCTION
My goal for this book Is to show what beginning artiste need to
know about designing a robot from scratch. I believe in starting
wit,h the fundamentals. Showing you how to draw a robot Isn't
enough. Knowing the mechanics of a working robot le important
to your success. Once you learn how things work, you can expand
this knowledge on your own and design your own robot.
Mechanical-looking Ideas and designs are juet the tip of the
icel7erg of your own imagination. Study this material carefully and
practice often. By the time you finish this book, you should be able
to design a robot with solid mechanics beneath its metal skin.
7
SHAPE, PEISPECTIVE
AHI TECHHIIIE
Building a set of fundamental ekille hae always been
the best way to go about learning to draw. The world is
made of comblnatlona of baalc aha pea, and per6pectlve
represents the way we aee thla world on paper. A good
grasp of basic forma and perspective will help you convey
what you see or imagine. If you're a beginner wanting to
jump right in and start drawing robots, you might flnd
these basics boring and tedious. I know how you feel. 6ut
I was fortunate enough to be introduced to these funda-
mentals early in my life, and from them my artistic skills
grew. These fundamentals will go a long way In helping
your skills grow aa well. Since baalc form and perapec-
tive are subjects all by themselvea, this chapter will only
be an overview. providing you with a glance at how forma
behave in different perepectivea.
BASIC SHAPES
Understanding l:?aeio aha pee will help you vieual-
ize how a rovot Ia oonetruoted. Beoauee rovote
are meohanioal, manufaotured things, their l:?od-
les are made up of geometrio forme.
Axit>
SPHERE
A sphere i6 a perfectly symmetrical,
three-dimen5ional, ball-5haped object.
It doe5n't change 5hape with a change
in per5pective. However. because of the
sphere's curvature, light and shadow
react in a variety of ways on and
around it. We will talk about that in the
next chapter (see pages 46-49).
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CUBE
A cube is made up of six square polygons of equa I
size. In order to draw a cube correctly, you will have
to portray lines of the same length with a variety
of angles at the same time. Doing so will develop
not only your sen6e of perspective, but also your
sense of proportion.The next section will use cubes
as examples to demonstrate various types of
perspective grids.
10
Lope;id~d top cylindu
Top ellipse
CYLINDER
A cylinder is made up of two circular
surfaces on the top and bottom of a
tube. It looks simple, but it is one of
the most problematic forms for many
artists. A lot of experienced artists
make glaring mistakes when dealing
with cylinders and similar objects. To
portray a cylinder correctly, the minor
axis of the top and bottom ellipses
should share t he same axis as the
cylinder. When an ellipse doesn't share
the same axis, the cylinder is lopsided.
Major axit;
Minor axis
ELLIPSE
Essentially, an ellipse is rl circle ir1 per-
spective. Ellipses are the only nonsolid
I objects being introduced here, but
they need to be mentioned separately
becau6e t-hey play a big role In con-
structing o~her o~jects. Notict: tht:
CONE ellipses within the cylindt:rs above.
A cone is a variety of cylinder. It tapers
down to its axis on one end.
11
ONE- POI NT PERSPECTI VE
One-point perspective is the basic form of per-
spective. A simple one-point perspective with one
vanishing point is used most often. One-point
pers pective works best in scenes dealing with
eye-level angles.
Vanl!:!hln~ point
Horizon lin"
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ro !:let up one-point pcropcctivc, choo~c a point on the hori·
zon lirw co bu your vl'Jnit~hing poit1t. l"lck. the point carefully; it
t>hould bt; nne that. would show the form of your object beet.
All the l ine~ on the puapectlve grid ahould converge at this
ONE-POINT PERSPECTIVE
one vanishln~ point.
INA SCENE -?
All horizontal IInee on the structures
recede to the vanishing paint at the
rear of the ecene. A vanishing point is
the artist's way of expressing distance.
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ALL PARALLEL LINES CONVERGE <Sl
Here is .a cube .and .a cylinder in one-point perspective. Notice the parallel lines 011 ~
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the cube. If extended, they would .all converge .at the vanishing point. Make 5ure the I
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minor .axes of the ellipses overl.a ps the axis of the cylinder. This should .alw.ay5 be
the case when drawing .a cylinder.
13
TWO-POINT PERSPECTIVE
Two~ point per6pectlve ia used for wider vlewa
that show more apace. If a acene is capturing
a radical angle from a wide view. it would become
nearly impoaaible to use only one vaniahing
point without making objects In the scene
look diatorted.
P/CK1WO
POINIS
In .:1ddltlon to the
nrnc vanit?hin~
po1n1•. e0tabli!:;h a
f•t:cond vanl$h-
ing point on the
horizon line.
LINES CONVERGE TO TWO POINIS

Herr: are a variety of bMic fonn$ in two-point per$pective.
Notice che horizont.~l cylinder's llne6 only converge lilt OM
point. The cube hae line$ that converge at both pointe.
14
TWO-POINT PERSPECf/VE IN A SCENE
The two vanishing pointe; give a sene;e of distance in two places: around the corner
to the left, and farther down the wey to the right.
EXPERIMENT WITH POINTS

This is another effective way of using two-point perspective. Two-point perepective
can effectively create a dynamic scene. Here, one point is below the ground: the
roof lines all point to a separate point off the paper.
15
THREE-POINT PERSPECTIVE
Adding a third vaniahing point to a ec:ene c:an be
c:onfueing at timee, but it is the moat ac:c:urate
way to repreeent the real world in perepec:tlve.
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CUI'ES IN THREE-POINT
PERSPECTIVE
Bt r.art:ful where you choo9e your van-
i~hinf:! pumt...v. ~1adng them ton r.lo~e to
ct1ch other will re6ult in fmu.tJ pe:r-3pec-
tivc ( ficr. l'~gt: ~?).
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Distance is expressed in the height, length and width of thh~ %ene. Three vanishing
points in a three-dimensional world is the most realistic perspective.
17
ROBOTS IN PERSPECTIVE
You can break down most things into their basic
forms, especially robots. Going from basic forms
to a full-size robot can be rather intimidating
for beginning artists. But robots are essentially
made of boxes that are stacked and connected
to one another. Thinking this way will allow you
to etart concentrating on the overall form of the
robot. Deal with the body parts individually to
keep confusion to a minimum.
ROBOT IN ONE-POINT
PERSPEC1/VE
There are no converging linea from
one side of the robot to another.
R0/301 IN TWO-POINT
PERSPEC1JVE
Vaniehing points, one above the head
and on~ off to the right, provide thla _
robot with an imposing stance, ahow-
ca6ing lt5 alze.
18
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ROBOT IN THREE~POINT
PERSPECTIVE
Th~ lin~~ expre~~ing the: h~ight. z
length and width ofthl~ t·ol,or.
are all rewding to a vani~,hing
point a~;ovc tht; robot. Notlce.1.he
impact of the robot'!.? right l~g.
19
BI RD'S- EY E V I EW
A bird's-eye view Is what you see when you view an
object from a high vantage point toward the ground.
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A SENSE OF SIZE
Thi\) vie-w iv ofu:n tmt:d to t>how the
. h~i'!ht: of Dn,y qrvcn object. In our
unplc:, wc: tire ~Mng the viewt:r the
:>er1• •of vizc and ht:ight In rt:latlon to
fl..lmilr.<J bjt:r.t.f> a1. F>trt'.a. level.
20
WORM'S-EYE VIEW
Worm's-eye view is when you view an object from
the ground. Both worm'a-eye and bird'a-eye
angles are used to establish a sense of scale
and drama.
INTIMIDATION
A worm's-eye view is a classic way of
emphasizing the size and intimidating
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nature of robots.
21
FORESHORTENING
Aleo known ae "forced perspective," thie angle
pushes perspective to euch an extreme that the
flgure or o!1ject appeare distorted and the viewer
gete the "in your face" een6e of drama.
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FORESHORTEN FOR DRAMA

The drawing above shows the correct
way of using extreme fcreshortening.
The foreeround o;~nd bo;~ckgrou nd limb5
are foreshortened consistent ly.
AVOID OVEREXTENDED LIMBS

Arr.h;r-'J ofr.e:n OVCI"Cr'XLcnd the length of limbs when trying to
force cxt.rcmc pr.rspt:ct ive, making t he limbs appear longer
thi.ltl r.fl~y !:ihould. Mititake,;, are made more often on limbe
that appt:ar farther away from t he viewer.
22
ROBOT IN FORCED
PERSPECTIVE
Th 1·mpact ofthefront
e is due to •ItS extreme
hand
size in contrast with t he
rest of the body.
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23
S KETCH IN G TECHNIQ U ES
Before we get Into actually drawing robots, it's
essential that you learn a few good habits for
sketching. Even skilled artists can end up with
unsatisfactory sketches. Correct your bad hab-
Its now and you'll be ready to sketch t he robote
you Imagine.
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~ H' your artwork appetu~ lopt>idcd. it could be that you are
w ,Jt-,wlitl~ on n fu.tt !IUrft~cc. When you do that. your eye-3 aren't
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IS) lookh1t3 ,1t. thl!l nrT.wor lc l.>tntiethL- on.
CORREGr VISION
Drawir1g on a '31ightly slanted surface will keep the vision
distortion 1.-o a minimum. Your eyes will fall straight on the
paper, eliminating confusing viewpoints.
SKETCH OFTEN
Do yourf>elf a favor; pick up a
sketchbook small enough so you
can take it everywhere. Practice
makes perfect, and mileage
counts. Draw whenever and wher-
ever you have time.
24
USE LONG STROKES INSTEAD
OF SHORT STROKES
One of the beet waye to keep eketches
clean is to uee long etrckee. Long
strokes not only help keep eketches
clean, but also help you focue on overall
shape and form rather than on a email
port-ion of a drawing. I always etan:.
sketching with a very light stroke,
sometimes barely touching the paper.
'r. requires practice, but it's worth
r.he effort.
DRAW CURVES
Humans are designed t::J draw curves,
'10t straight lines. Keep your etrokes
perpendicular to your kawing arm.
Curves can be easily drawn when the
arm is acting as a compass, with the
elbow as the pivot. Turn your paper
often so the strokes that you're
making favor this comfortable way
to eketch.
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SKETCH ELLIPSES
Ellipses take some pract ice. Keep your
dra•Ning arm perpendicular to the ellipr.;e's
major axis.
25
liGHTING AND SHADING
Lighting and shading are subjects all on their LIGHTING ON A CUBE ..!..
own, but with our limited apace we'll only go into In this example, the light comes from upper left-hand comer.
the basics. Look around and pay attention to The top side of the cube receives direct light, and the light
how light affects the objecte around you, and side of the cube receives partial light. The shadow side
how the objects act and react to each other. receives no direct lighting and creates a drop shadow on the
side opposite of the light.
Nature is our beet teacher--study it!
The closer the cube gets to the light source the lighter it
gets, right? Not quite. The ground reflects light onto adja-
cent surfaces. The bottom of the light side is a bit lighter
because of the reflected light. Even though the shadow side
is completely in shadow, it still receives plenty of reflected
light from the ground.
LIGHTING ON A CYLINDER
The shading here Is similar to the cube, except
the light and shadow sides are merged into one.
In this case. a core shadow is clearly visible. It's
the darkest part of the shadow side.
Co~e;h.sdow
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L/GHfiNG ON A SPHERE
Immediately next to the lighter eside of
the esphere, there'e; the core e;hadow,
much like what we found on the cylinder.
Pay e;pecial att~11tion to reflective light
off the ground. The bright highlight; or
hot Bpot may or may not exist, dcpc11d-
lng 011 the surface of a .:;phe:re.
Light bounc&-1 Shadow ca~t from o.;ph~r-e

SURROUNDING OBJECTS from cylind~r
AFFECT LIGHTING
Objecte; affect lighting on other objecte;
in the e;ame esetting. lhe objecte; receive STUDY LIGHT
reflected light not only from the ground,
Study lighting on actual objects. Go to an art
but ale;o from each other.
supply st-ore and pick up some primary shapes like
a cube, sphere, cylinder and cone that are made of
plaster. Place the &>hapes on a pure white surf-ace,
such as a tabletop or white sheet of paper. Find a
lamp that lets you adjust the light's direction, and
shine the light on the objects. It will work best if
this lamp is the only light in the room. See how light
reacts on the different shapes; this will help you
show light and shadows accurately in your drawings.
27
LIGHTING AND SHADING: REFLECTIVE S U RFACES
Dealing with robots and metal objects, eventually
you will have to deal with highly reflective sur-
face5. Thi5 5ection shows you how basic reflec-
tion works.
CHROME CUBE
Chrome e;urfaces are, In essence, mir-
rored e;urfacea. A chrome cube Is basi-
c;,-llly 6ix equare pieces of mirror stuck
toget:ht:r. Let's place thle; chrome cube
on a dc5crt highway. The reflection:; on
the cube arc pretty straightforward.
Each eidc rcftcct0 its facing environ-
ment directly.
Horizon
STANDING CHROME CYLINDER

A reflection on a chrome cylinder tends
to e;tretch the objects being reflected
In one direction. On our example, the
highway behind ue; is e;tretched from
the bottom of the cylinder to the top.
The reflection:; cloe;e to the :;idee; of
the cylinder are more compressed than
in the middle. The highw{:ly ~head of us
e;hould barely appear on the bottom
edge of the cylinder.
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CHROME CYLINDER
LYING ON ITS SIDE
Here, we have a cylinder lying on its
side. The reflection is still stretching
in the same direction, but now the
reflection of the horizon is visible.
Sky
CHROME SPHERE
With a chrome sphue, everything
reflected has a -ftsh-e-Je lens" effect.
Things are compressed toward the
edge and magnified toward the center.
We can clearly see the whole scene
being reflected. but it if> di~torted.
Hot5pot
Horizon
Shadow reflection
Horizon R~fl~ctlon of cylinder Rcfl~ction of vphere
MULfiPLE CHROME OBJECTS

Drawing more than one chrome object
in the same scene can be tricky
because they are always reflecting
off each other. In this example, we see
the cylinder being reflected on the
sphere and the sphere reflecting on the
cylinder. Things can get confusing ff we
continue to add more objects into the
same scene. The key to remember is
that chrome reflects everything.
29
COLORING AROBOT
This section is not meant to teach you how to color,
but rather to show you the processes I normally go
through as I apply color in a photo-editing program .
.. START WITH FLAT COLOR ROBOT LINE ART

U Apply Aat color on the different Thi~ is the sample that we
body part£,. I hzwe e~ habit of assigning will be using to examine my
slightly different colors t;o different coloring process. Start with
piece~ of ~he se~me color oo I can quickly an image that is clean and
5clect diffuent pieces even though has well-defined lines. It will
they e~re in the 5ame color !X;heme. For make coloring easier.
cxamplt:, the: right leg he~s the yellow
tone on both 5hitl and foot. I would
normally give them slightly different
colors so I could quickly select the foot
witnout. picking JP the shin.
DEFINE SHADOW
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w I <..an color on the layer on top. but
~ could alw<Jy~ qo back to 0elect the
-.( cotor piece~ from the flat layt:r. At. thi~
\.") ~t:.!<ge, I creau ;'l 5hadow aide on all
7 t.he p1ecer, for n rough idea of where
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"2 ADD COLOR DETAILS
~ 1 ~·i~· b where the most work cmnes ' CD
in. OverL111 d~)il of each color piece is
tiddcd. t.t-'Xtures an~ painted .9nrJ more
dct:ail i~. •~'~dcd to the sharJow. f<emem-
bcr· how WI' c... lkctl.:~bout light reAectlng
off om: ~.urfact: t.o another? n11a 16 a
good t:x.>Jrnplc of how dif&erent coloro
affect. t:.'lch other.
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h;.lVt: ;.J highlight. or "hot spot." In the
final swge of the coloring prow~~. the
hig~ light.~• .:-trc added to the colon;.
30
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ROBOTIC ANATOMY
Robots are built and made to imitate life, and the major-
ity of robots Imitate humans in particular. Ani male,
including humans, in the living world are, in essence, very
sophisticated machinee. To create believable robots, use
tubes, pipes, nuts, bolts, hydraulics and various other
machinery parts to replace the muscles and bones that
are in the natural world.
HEAD, NECK AND SHOULDERS
Neck movement 17ecomea head movement. Rol7ots
need to have hydraulic shocks in place in order to
emulate a human head'e flexing and rotating.
Mechanical v~rtebra~
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HUMAN HEAD, NECK

<S) AND SHOULDERS
tY MECHANICAL HEAD, NECK AND SHOULDERS
w Th~ 9ter noclc:ifJomavtoid and 1,rapezlus
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~ neck anfJ shoulder area that allow head tract and expand in conjunction with the bending mechanical vertebrae, allowing
0 mnw:mr.nt. movement Chat i6 similar to a human neck.
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SHOULDER JOINT--
FRONTV1EW
The 5houlder :;~ehaves like
the hip. It should appear to
have the potential to move
on two axes. Here, it twists
MECHANICAL HEADS IN VARIOUS POS/fiONS toward us.
The con~,l.nJet-lon of your robot\~ neck 5hould allow for a full
range of motion. You may have to 5acriflce motion if you wish
to experiment to get a certc'lin look. but that'5 half the fun.
SHOULDER JOINT
-SIDEV1EW
Here, we can view the potential
for the arm to move up and out.
:34
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DRAW A ROUGH OUTLINE DRAW BASIC SHAPES
I Start with a very sketchy, almost stick flgurelike rough 2 At. t.his st.Dge, everyt.hing iu uCill rough, muvtly in r<)IJgh
~.You want to keep the strokes long, straight and very boxes and t.ubes, and variou~::~ uhapcf, lhat would make up thr.
.a~>t. At this stage, my pencil is usually barely touching the overall shape of the robat. Thit~ it~ the btage to work ou1. the
:1aper. In fact, you will barely see these strokes; this sample relationships between component~ to m<~ke !)ure every joint~
--e art is enhanced to show the strokes better. It's very pipe. ~ube and me~al box if> working likr: il f,hould. Stroke~
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-rportant at this stage to work out the proper posture should still be kept relatively light. m
and proportion. Correction at this stage is easiest; lines >·
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are easy to erase and you haven't wasted too much time on
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:;omething that doesn't work. IMITATORS m
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OF LIFE 7'\
Strip away the armor and out<:r >·

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t;h~ll to 5ee that robot6 are like Q
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all living thingt; In the world. 711ey
ADO DEFINING LINES I
3 AND DETAILS
requir~ oophi~ticaud machin-
t:ry to giv~ th~m the freedom of
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~hem definite definition. and throw in m
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details to spice up the artwork. (j)
35
TORSO
Our goal here is to emulate the human torso's
range of movement with mechanical compo-
nents. Dividing the torso into chest, rib cage,
abdominal and hip sections will give our robot
the maximum movement possible.
Ribcage
Abdominal
hydraulic
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Hip
I
HUMAN TORSO MECHANICAL TORSO
llw tore.o is n1.lde up ot tour parw, which all move in relation I chose to implement a couple of major hydraulic connections
to ~~m;h uthvr. Jr.'s helpful to break down the torso into these between the rib cage and hip to act as abdominal muscles.
pllrts irl order to drrJw t:hem. The abdomlnals are the most Notice how the four parts are represented here. The spine is
flexible part otthe torso, bur. a lur. of muscle groups are visible because, unlike us, the robot has no skin.
working t;ogct..hcr with the spine to make us bend and flex
our t.or~o.
HIP AND THIGH- HIP AND THIGH-

SIDE VIEW FRONT VIEW
The hip C<ln rotate up Our robot's main purpose is
and out, but only so to move like a human, not look
far. Using a spherical exactly like one. The possibility of
joint here will indicate a movement should be visible from
greater range of motion. all angles.
36
DRAW A ROUGH OUTLINE
1 Start by drawing bone structure
3'1d rough body posture. Stay with
"'10Stly long, straight strokes. Keep
p ur strokes light. If the posture
~oesn't work, this is the time to
~arrect it.
DRAW BASIC SHAPES

2 Start using long, straight strokes
:.o sketch out the basic forms. This
~the time to work out perspective
:ln each of the mechanical parts. You
;;nould !:ltillkeep it rough and light at
: nis point.
"2 ADD DETAILS

~ Finish up by defining lines and
adding email detaile, euch as panele,
pietone, nute and bolte.
37
ARMS
Due to the large range of movement at the
shoulder, this is one of the more complicated
areas of the human l7ody to mechanize. Rotary
joints In conjunction with hydraulics are required
to emulate enough of the movement. We will have
more detail of the ehoulder joint on page 47.
Shoulderjoint
HUMAN ARM
The deltoid muPCie controls
t he raieing and Chc drop-
ping of the arm. TriceptHmd
bleeps cont rol the flexing
of the forearm. When bicep
contre~cts, the forea rm
fold!? up. When the tricep
contracts. the forearm
ext-ends.
MECHANICAL ARM
The shoulder and elbow joints should
look different because they have differ-
ent ranges of motion. The shoulder is
more sophi5ticated.
ELBOW
HYDRAULIC-
RELAXED MECHANICAL FOREARM-
In a relaxed posi· ELBOW ROTATING
tion. t he t ricep HYDRAULIC- MECHANICAL Since humans have limited
piston recedes FLEXED forearm rotation, two hydraulic
FOREARM-
Into the m<.1ss of Extension of the tricep shocks prevent an overextension
the upper arm.
RELAXED
piston .:~long with the of the forearm.
The circular nature of
recession of the bicep
the forearm reminds us
piston causes the
that it is used to twist
elbow joint to bend.
the hand.
\ •.\ .
.\
ROUGH OUTLINE
1DRAW A
Start by
drawing bone
structure
Stay with
body posture.
and rough . ht strokes. Keep
mostly on-:~, .
l 11 stra1g
If the posture
kes light.
your stro . . the time to
doesn't work' thiS IS
correct it.
ICSHAPES
.
2 DRAW BAS 1 g stra1-:~
·11ht strokes
Start using on '. f ms. This
the baSIC or
to sketch out k t perspective
. to wor ou v
is the time hanical parts. ,ou
on each of the m~c h and light at
should still keep It roug
this point.
DDDETA/LS
'2 A ft ·ng lines and
~ finish up
II
by de nl has breaks in
details, sue d
adding sma . and hatche
the metal panels, nvets
patterns.
39
HANDS AND FINGERS
A human hand ie a complex machine within Itself.
The hande need to be agile, active and nimble.
The more active and the greater range of motion
a body part has, the bigger the problem it pre5-
ente when It comee to duplicating its function
mechanically.
HUMAN HAND
rhf: hand '"' ht:~vlly.Jolnted and any rep- MECHANICAL HAND
t't.«;t.nt,.1t.lon of ir. ~hould reAect: t:hib. A rol1ot: hand should play up the jolnt-6
wi-chin the structure. This will make it
ea5ier 'CO 5ee an ability w move.
FINGER- RELAXED
~11nw krtuc,klc:t.- £-hould not only be ablr. to fold up but al5o
bt: able t() 111DVC'l1Jt.erally. iliJ.lll-bet~rittgjoint i6 u6ed on the
knuc.kl~~;. CLt~mg m-ound Wlc; l7£tlllimiU. the range of move-
mtmr. orr r.ftt1 krtucklu Co prc..wnt. ~lypcrcxt.ension.
Fv~ ry lin~t1r juinr. hu~ !;>trlttll hydrtlulics to control the
contr·.• r.tim1 ;'lnd exten~ion of r.h1.1 linge:r.
FINGER-FLEXED
Extending the hydraulics of the fln-
ger results in the finger curling up.
40
DRAW A NORMAL
1HUMAN HAND
Start with sketching out a normal
I
)-..
z
Q
.,uman hand, and make sure you clearly (j)
oeftne every section of the finger. )'·
z
Q
DRAW THE HAND IN BOXES 11
2 Draw all t.he parts of the hand as
?oxes. It's important to work out the
correct perspective on ever.J section of
r;he finger. You'll need the perspective
correct to go on to the next stage. It
may seem overwhelming at flrst, but
you'll be better off if you focus on one
finger, or one s-ection of the finger, at
a t ·ime.
'2 DRAW MECHANICAL

~DETAILS
This step takes t he perspective one
step further. Build irregularly shaped
pieces on top of the perspective that
you established in the previous step.
Again, it is much easier if you focus on
one section of the hand at a t ime.
41
ROBOTIC HAND VARIATIONS
Robotic hands can be anything you can think of,
not always typical humanlike hands. This sec-
tion will show you a variety of different types
of hands. Use them as examples. Then let your
imagination run wild and come up with some-
thing totally different.
TRI-CLAW
rhis is one of the typical robotic
hands. The three clawlike flngers are
balanc~d. making clamping or grab-
bing possible and useful.
PINCER -1-
1hi~ type oF hand conAgur~t.ion is t.ypi-
<;ttlly rY;t,c:rvc:d for attacking. Grabbing
is rather difficult and limited.
GUN HAND
There's no functional flnger here that allows
t his hand to pick up anything. The sole purpose
of this configuration is to attack.
42
CLAMP HAND
This type of hand will probably function
better on industrial robots. It f ulfills its
function best on a laborer.
ORGANIC CLAW HAND

This hand is heavily armored. Although
it could serve mostly as a functional
hand, the sharp claws could be used as
a weapon as well.
PAW
This is based on an animal's paw.
The sharp claws could be used as
deadly offensive weapons.
4:3
LEG·S AND FEET
Legs serve as the platform and engine of any
bipeda l organism. Bipedal robotic feet are one of
the most difficult thinge to accomplish realisti-
cally. Millions of nerves and muscles are work-
ing to compensate for each other in order for a
human to stand, wallk, run and do other activities.
Fortunately, robots need only our imaginations.
KNEE AND ANKLE

RANGES OF MOTION
Though the leg can be in count-
lee;e; poe;itione;, it only hae; two
pointe; of movement within ite;elf:
the knee joint and the ankle joint.
MECHANICAL LEG
Th i~ i~ the robotic leg in a relaxed
position. Jue.t like all the other jointe,
the bendin~ of the knee and ankle is
powered by hydraulice.
/
./
HUMAN LEG
ror hurmm~. Ur~ I~ rm.1kuv Uf! more than half of
t.bc body. lhdr fii7.f: f>hould rt:tll!:ct thl!: amount of
upper body wt':ir~ht tlu;y 1mr~r. ~upport.
ANKLE
The ankle neede. to rotate FOOT PUSHING OFF
in more than one direction; The tendon in the back
therefore, a ball bearing ie; contract e and the twin

ueed here. The purpoee of hydraulice in front extend
the twin hydraulice in front while the foot ie; puehing off.
The robotic leg ie; curled up ie; to control the rotation of
by extending the hydrau- the ball joint.
lice; around the knee.
44
DRAW BONE STRUCTURE
1 Start with basic bone structure, r
Ill
'"~presenting the joints with cin::les.
~~
?ay attention to the strokes, keeping (j)
-;""em long and straight. Going with
ong, straight strokes helps you focus
>
z
on the overall figure rather than on a
Cl
11
5malldetail. m
m
I
DRAW BASIC SHAPES
2 Refine the basic bone structures
into basic shapes such as boxes and
spheres that stack on top of one
another. This lays down the groundwork
for the next stage, and it is a good
time to correct any perspective or pro-
portion problems. It's always easier to
see what you are doing wrong with just
boxes. Once you get into the details,
you can easily lose sight of perspective
and proportion.
ADD DETAILS AND

3 MECHANICAL PARTS
Add ~mall details. Although you should
think about the placement of hydrau-
lics, pipes, wires. nuts and bolts right
f-rom the start. once you get the hang
of drawing mechanical parts, the small
details come as second nature.
45
JOINTS
I believe jointe are the heart and eoul of drawing
a good robot. Unleee you underetand how thinge
work. you can't do a good enough job of draw-
ing it. One of the moat complicated mechani-
callaauea on a robot Ia figuring out how a joint
rotatee correctly.
ELBOW JOINT
IL_ ] ThiB i$ a Bimple graphic repreBent;ation of how

an elbow should bend, and the range of motion
it needs to emulate human motion. The tradi-
tional single joint elbow usually doesn't work well
becau5e the rotation of the joint is restricted.
Double joints are a much preferred configuration
because they allow optimum ran~1e of motion.
OOUI3LE-JOINrEO ELBOW
fhi!; if; a clo!;e-up of the double-jointed
elbow. Hydr'tlulic!; are required on both
jointB in order to work correctly.
KNEE JOINT
The same type of principle in the elbow joint ,;1pplies
to the knee joint. A double joint is a more efft~ctive
configuration, especially for the knee. More o1ften
than not, the mass of the leg makes it almof;t
impossible to have a single-jointed knee.
46
BENT KNEE JOINT
Aa the hydraulic!:> on both !:>ide of the
joint extend, the knee naturally bend a.
L
0
SHOULDER JOINT z
The ahoulder require!:> two rotary joint6 going ~
in different direction in order to work like
a human ahoulder. Theae jointa mimic the
muaclef> that lift, drop and rotate the
human arm.
THE 3600 JOINT

A ball-bearing joint i~ a ~imple
way to expre~~ a joint that ha~
a near-limitle~~ range of motion.
However; it i~ ~tructurally weak.
Attaching large, imposing robot
parts to this joint may make the
drawing unbelievable and less
intere~ting. Play with a joint's
construction to make it suit
your drawing.
47
ROBOTI C BODY TYPE VARI ATI ONS
Robots are not just slim. slick and athletic. They
can be fat. thin. exaggerated or have a feminine
appearance.
EGG SHAPE
This is an example of robot with an egg-
shaped body. Its head is integrated
into its body rather than left separate.
Having a pair of large feet allows this
robot better balance while standing.
PROPORTIONED FEATURES
In ~his design, with the head and torso inte-
grated into one unit, ~he weight of the torso
is shifted to ~he upper body, and the legs are
designed larger to compensate for its bulk.
EXTRA SLIM DESIGN

This robot has an almost insectfike
quality. It is slim and wiry, with a head
shaped like a mantis or grasshopper.
48
TANK DESIGN
Here, the robot's lower legs are built
into tank treads. This is possibly the
most rea listically grounded robot as
it is more closely related to current
military weaponry.
WALKER DESIGN
This design is barely humanoid,
but its advantage is tha-c i"Cs
lower center of gravi"Cy makes it
more stable -chan o-cher -cypes of
robo"Cs with heavy upper bodies.
APELIKE DESIGN
This type of design appears to
be heavily armored and gives an
impression of power.
49
NONHUMANOID ROBOTS
Rol7ote are eimply imitations of life ana nature.
You can flnd a lot of ae6ign in6piration in other
creaturee.
HORSES
Hor5ee> are naturally graceful, and
~ it can be a challenge to capture
\--
0 that grace in robot form. The key ie.
t:Cl to keep the body e.traight for the
~ moe.t part, moving only the lege..
D
0
z
<
2
::::>
I
z
0
z
SPIDERS
Spidere. and in5ect5 are excellent robot ine.pira-
tione.. Their hard exookeletone. are eae.ily e.een ae.
the metal 5kin5 of robote.. Looking cloe.ely at how
they move can help you t remendoue.ly in under-
e.tanding robotic jointe..
50
TIGERS
Tigers e1re wound-up balls of muscle
ree1dy to pounce. Try to capture their
e1ir of anticipation.
z
0
z
I
c
:5:::
)>
z
0
'V
~
CP
0
FANTASY CREATURES -\
(j)
Let your imagination roam free. Use
rea l animals as references for your
fantasy ones, though. in order to
maintain a semblance of realism .
51
IRIIIII IIIIlS
This chapter will show you eamplee of how I approach
drawing a robot from different angles and In t.llff8~
po666, as well as how to construct a scene.
HUMANOID ROBOT ONE: FRONT VIEW
Humanoid robots are coneructed
like human~. They have two legs
and two ar me. The hard anglea of
the aha pes make the form ro17otic.
.. CREATE SKELETAL
II STRUCTURE
lay down the foundation of the robot,
making aure your proportions are cor-
rect. Remember to keep the atrokea
light, long and straight. Uae the jointa
aa reference pointe. In t hia view, keep
the ahouldera, hipa and kneea aligned
horizontally.
3:
UJ
ADD BASIC SHAPES
>
1-
z
2 Adding baaic aha pea ia the moat
important atage of your drawing. Add
~
u..
ahapea to give volume to your skeleton.
Use three-dimensional boxes, draw-
I
UJ ing them in perspective. Separate the
z
0 cheat, ribs, abdominala and hips into
1- parte that look like they can move.
0
en Remember, moat jointe only rotate or
~ bend in one direction. Pay special atten-
D tion to the elbows and kneea.
0
z
<( • DRAW ROUGH DETAILS
2 ~ Add detail a to the exiating
::::::l
I ahapea. Surface patterne and linea
will add intereat to your boxea. Elbowe
and ahouldera are good places to
add mechanical extenaiona. They can
repreaent weapons or other apecial
equipment.
1NK SHAPES AND DETAILS

4 Choose the details you want to
make absolutely clear. Go over your
drawing with an ink pen. Add ahadowa
in placea hidden from clear view and
hatchmarka In placea where a shadow
ia implied. Keep your light conatant: in
thie caae, from above. Thia robot hae
many details in groupe of three, adding
continuity to the deaign.
54
ADDCOLOR
5. . See page 30 for methods on how
to color your robot.
®
HUMANOID ROBOT ON£: THR££-OUARTfR VIEW
WCREATE SKELETAL
U STRUCTURE
Draw the b<l~ic ~kelet<l l ~tructu re. In
thi~ view, pay attention to t he way the
robot stands. The foot and shoulder
that are farther away appear higher
than their counterparts. Plan out your
skeletal structure, keeping the parts in
proportion. Use the joints as guides.
ADD BASIC SHAPES

2 Pay special attention to the
elbows and kn~es. Because the robot
is turned, it is no longer symmetrical.
Practice roughing in the shapes cor-
rectly to represent t he different parts
at this new angle. Take your time. This
is not easy. Use long, straight strokes,
keeping them light.
• . DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

.~ Fol lowing the edges you mapped
out in step 2, add the surface details.
Use the basic shapes as guidelines.

4 ·Complete the details. giving them
depth and volume with shadow. Use
thick lines for the major shapes and
thin lines for the details.
ADDCOLOR
5 See page 30 for methods on how
56
HUMANOID ROBOT ONE: BIRD'S-EYE VIEW
~
w
>
w
>-
w I
\S)
aQL
CREATE SKELETAL
In
L1J
1 STRUCTURE
z Thie; view requiree; the top of the robot
0 to be much larger than the bottom.
1---
0 Draw peropective lines that recede to a
In vanie;hlng point below the robot'e; feet.
0
QL Draw the ekeletal structure, making
D e;ure that the lengths of the arms,
0 legs and chest are proportional to one
z
<( another.
2
:::::>
I ADO BASIC SHAPES
2
. Uee the perepective lines to rough
in the basic e;hapes. If extended, all
vertlcalllnee ehould recede to the
vanishing point below. Emphasize the
broadness of the shoulders for dr<itma.
Don't be afr<itid to exaggerote. 1NK SHAPES AND DETAILS
4 Dr<ilw the detaile at the top larger
and more precise than th~e near the
3 DRAW ROUGH DETAILSoppor-
This view creates different bottom. This creates a sense of per-
spective. The lack of detail for the lower
tunitiee for detail. Use the perspective
employed In the basic ehapes to add portion pushes it into the distance.
details to the shapes. Uee your imagi-
nation, but make eure to etay consis-
tent with the detaile; you've outlined in
the prevloue demos if you want to dr<itw
5 AOD COLOR
. See page 30 for methods on how
the eame robot.
58
FORESHORTENING
In this view, the legs appear shorter because
their length recedes into the distance. The
shoulders and head appear larger because they
are closer: This effect is called foreshortening (see
page22).
59
HUMANOID ROBOT ONE: WORM'S-EYE VIEW
/
·'
5
w
>
w
>-
w I
~
2
~ CREATE SKELETAL
~ 1STRUCTURE I
}
Thie perspective emphasizes t he
w I
z robot's height. The features at the I
0 baee of the robot will be largest. Place
\-- the vanishing point some distance
0
rD above the robot's head and draw your
~ perspective guidelines. Draw t he skel-
a etal structure. Keep it proportional by
0 ue;ing the joints as guides. If some-thing
z doesn't look right, erase and try again.
<
2
~
I
I
2
ADD BASIC SHAPES
Use the perepective guidelinee; to
I
rough in the basic shapes. All vertical /
liMs e;hould recede to the vaniehing
point above the robot if extended. /
Emphasize the shapes at t he bottom.
The details should be clearer, so allow
ample white space. Exaggerate the size
difference between top and bottom.
Don't hold back or the drawing may be
static. If you have to choose, be a little
wrong, but be dramatic.
60
'2 DRAW ROUGH DETAILS
~ Explore the new opportunities for
detail with this perspective. Not ice here
t hat the legs are hollow and that the
pistons from the feet flt up and into
the leg cavity. Make sure to get the \
'
overlap correct. These details separate \
OK drawings from great ones.

4 ·Draw the closer details as clearly
as you can. farther away at the top,
suggest details and use thinner lines.
ADDCOLOR
5 See page 30 for methods
on how to color your robot.
61
HUMANOID ROBOT ONE: BAnLE POSE
CREATE SKELETAL
1STRUCTURE
Draw the ske etal ~tructure of the
robot in batte pose. Raising one leg
and extending one fiat is not enough.
Capture the movement wit-h a t.wiated
torao. Plan how the joints and limbs will
line up. Make aure your parte are pro-
portlona I and .::~ ppea r to move together.
ADD BASIC SHAPES

2 Draw the basic shapes of the
robot . Build on the skeletal atructure
to give shape to the limbs and mass
to the body. Keep in mind the rotation
or awing of the joints when drawing
them. All parts should look like they
can move easily on the joint, especially
in battle poses.
ll2 DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

-~ Add rough details to the boxes.
Here, the lat>erlike gun on the top of
the robot's right wrist adds drama to
the sc.ene.

4 Outline the drawing in ink. Ut>e
thick linea for large shapes. u~ thin
lines for details and implied texture.
ADDCOLOR
62
®
63
HIJMANOID ROBOT TWO: FRONT VIEW
fhi6 robot will be a more exaggerated human form.
The ehoulders and feet give it an imposing and
dramatic profile.
3::
UJ
>
\-
z CREATE SKELETAL STRUCTURE
~
lL
1 Draw the foundation with skeletal structu res. Make the
shoulder width brae1d. Match this width by drawing larger
~
\-
feet with .::1 wider stance.
0 ADD BASIC SHAPES

ta
0
nL .
2 Emphasize the proportions you outlined in step 1. Use
your basic shapes to make the shoulders and feet impactful.
D Showcase t heir mass. Notice the forearm shapes here. They
0
z taper toward the wrist like a human forearm, but the taper
< is exaggerated. See also how the feet are ineide of and eur-
2 roUinded by the lege.
:::J
I
"2 DRAW ROUGH DETAILS
~ Take advantage of the larger shapes to aevtliop a higher
level of surface detail. Suggest uses for the shapes. The
ridges on the forearm here suggest that they bend over each
other like a wrist. These ridges also appear in the abdominal
region, suggesting flexibil ity s imilar to the wrist.
4 1NK SHAPES AND DETAILS

Clarify your details and shapes with ink. Notice here
how the overlapping shapes of the elbow and abdominal area
are applied to the fingers, especially the thumb. Use shadow.
Keep your overlaps clear and precise. Overlapping is the main
way to euggest space. Be confident and decisive. If a detail REPEAT DETAIL PATTERNS
doesn't look right, don't ink it. Erase and correct it.
Find parts that move similarly and give them
a similar design. Repeating details will unify the
design and make for a well thought-out, more
realistic-looking machine.
64
ADDCOLOR
5
. See page 30 for methods on how to color your robo-;.
65
HUMANOID ROBOT TWO: THREE-OUARTER VIEW
CREATE SKELETAL STRUCTURE

1 Draw the same etructure as the previous demo, bur. turn
it to a three-(\uarter view. Take note which foot, which ehoul-
der. which hand and which knee le placed higher. Uee parallel
lines to make the height differences cqneietent.
ADO BASIC SHAPES

2 Take the time to under6tand how the basic ehapes from
the previoue demoe will appear in this view. Notice here how
the outside edge of the shoulder is visible only on the left,
as with the forearm and leg. Keep t he height differences
consletent from etep 1. Take your time, erasing and redrawing
as neceesary.
• DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

..;;//1 Add detalle; to the cxie>ting ehapee;, giving t hem form
and volume while embellishing their surface features. The
hands and knees are places to explore greater detail. Lightly ®
draw the corrplete circular joint to ensure an aecurate ehape
when only a small part ie revealed.
/NK SHAPES AND DETAILS

4 Complete the details from etep 3 and ink the drawing.
Uee thick, dark lines to emphasize major ehapee. Uee
thinner lines for small detaile. Be confident with your
lines where ehapes overlap, even in the emalleetdetails,
like the Angere and feet.
5 AOOCOLOR
See page ~0 for methode; on how to color your robot.
66
67
HUMANOID ROBOT TWO: BIRD'S-EYE VIEW
.. CREATE SKELETAL
II STRUCTURE
Lay out the robot's skeletal structure
using ~im ple lines and shapes. Adjust
for proper joint placement and limb pro-
portion. Notice that the shoulder and
hip lines at~ at an angle, yet parallel.
The viewpoint here is directly above the
robot's left; shoulder.
~ADD BASIC SHAPES

& Build upon the skeletal lines to
draw the shapes of the body. Visualize
how these shapes appear at different
\J
sLLI angles. Use the previous demos for
reference. Use the vanishing point to
>
w help yoLJ draw the shapes in perspec-
>-
w tive. Draw shapes through overlaps to
I
ensure proper proportion and place-
!J)
aClL ment. Notice here how the elbow j oint
is visible underneath the large shoulder
C(j
pad to the r ight.
~ DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

\-
0
C(j
3 Add surface details and break
the basic shapes down further to
~ indicate potential movement. Remem -
D ber, large shapes need joints. A robot
0 cannot function as a mass of blocks.
z For example, the shoulder joint here
<(
2 is made visible and smaller than the
:::)
shoulder mass as the armor recedes
I
s lightly away f rom t he body.
4 1NK SHAPES AND DETAILS

finish by inking t he major st ruc-
tu res and sharpening the details you
wish to emphasize. Here, t he t hree
holes on the f ront of _the shoulder
armor indicate that t he armor has
mass and is thick; we see the bottom
edge of the holes on t he shoulder to
the right, a nd the left; s ide of t he holes
on the shoulder to the left;.
ADDCOLOR
5to
. See page 30 for methods on how
color your robot.
68
HUMANOID ROBOT TWO: WORM'S·EYE VIEW
CREATE SKELETAL "'2 DRAW ROUGH DETAILS 1NK SHAPES AND DETAILS
1STRUCTURE
Thle; view emphasizes the robot's
~ Add detaila to the aha pea. Notice
how packed the detalla on the upper
4 Ink the major structures and
r~ne the details. The thick, black
height. Plan and draw the joints and body appear compared to the l~s. Thie ink line around the front I~ makes it
limbe. This time, the bottom features helps emphasize the viewpoint that the visually "pop" into the for~ round. The
will appear much larger than the head upper body is far above. Adding lines thinner, lese defined lines of the rear I~
and shoulders. This pose puts one foot following the shape of the foot makes it help push it Into the background. Make
forward and twists the body, oo the appear more mechanical and less 11oof- good use of the ehadO'.vs under the
shoulder and hip lines are at different like." The ellghU:et lines can make the front leg. Because it's oo large, make
angles. difference. sure the leg is drawn accurately.
ADD 13ASIC SHAPES

2 Build up the linee into aha pes,
keeping the angles of the upper body
5 ADDCOLOR
See page 30 for methods on how
and leg~ correct. Showcaae the
legs and feet. Take time to draw the
mechanics of the foot attachment
correctly to show that the parts travel
upward and ine;ide the leg. Use your own
hand as a reference for drawing the
large, looming fist.
70
®
zC) HUMANOID ROBOT lWO: BATTLE POSE
\=:
~
~
1CREATE SKELETAL
m STRUCTURE
z
C)
Draw the ok'eletill fitructurc to capture
the l.'lctlon of the fX>OC. The leg in front
~
UJ qrve~ the lmpre~~lon of the rol:lot
~ tldvt~ncing. Milke wrc the l:lody !:lend~
Dt tht: jointf, }JM nowhere else. The
owortl fihould dt:.sJr tha head and tilt
()li']htly toward tht: vit:wcr.
2 ADD SHAPES AND ,_
ROUGH DETAILS
At.lt.l t.h1: bm,ic: r.h,'lpt:!i of the 11ody, fol-
lowing t.he pooe lt~ld out by the r.kclctal
II I
(J)
vt'-ruc.turt:. f.m·t:frrllyform the shapes of
1.ht: fron1. ,mll . Be conoiotent with the
CD
0 5hnpc of r.lle forclcej in the f ron I- and
{L
"iidc vicWJ.
UJ
-'
I
~
en
3 FINISH DETAILS AND INKto
Follow tnt: f<h1Jrc~ of the body
~
,'ldd further detail. Build the mechanict~
of the ftxJL t>o Lhat they travel up and
\- Into the l;oreleq c!.lf,ing. Be confident in
G
{'Q rnkrn!3 1.hc 5tructureo, Ulk'inq care where
<...)
tht:y wcrlap one another: Uge thick'
~
D linch for large 5hape5 nnd thin line6
0 f'vr rJt: t1Jilf,,
z
<
2
:=l
4 ADDCOLOR
Scv raqr: :?0 fnr methods on how
I
Lo t:nlor ymw r·oi?Ot .
72
73
2: WINGED ROBOT: FRONT VIEW
~ A winged ro~ot ehould look light
enough to fly, and itt:> wingE> should
~ look etrong enough to carry it.
~
~
~
Lu
~ ~ CREATE SKELETAL
STRUCfURE
Draw your skeletal structure with cor-
rect; proportions In mind. Include the
wing uhapce. Decide how big they should
be. Aa always, u6e the joints as refer-
ence points. Use long, straight 6trokes,
and keep the titrokes light.
2 ADD BASIC SHAPES

Draw the basic shapes t hat make CD @
up the robot. Sepe~rate the toreo into
~ chest.. ribs, abdominala and hips to
llJ expre55 each part. through different
> ehape6. fhe wings should have a joint to
1-
z a llow them to move.
~
lL
~
3 DRAW ROUGH DETAILS
a Add details to the basic shapes
rQ by breaking them into more shapes
0
~ or l.ldding lincu to their surfaces. You
a ca n also experiment with exaggerrating
llJ
<-.:) small fe&lture~ to help create detail.
z For eXElmple, flare out t he lower legs
~ for a wider calf, and use r idge marks
on the abdominal region and on the
upper thighs.
4 FINISH DETAILS AND INK

Go over the drawing with Ink &lnd
refine; r.he dec.ailr:;. Ur:;e shadows where
appropri~l te. TI1is robot:. if> particulary
busy. Notice the impacr.ful che6t; the
diagonal liner:; from each corm:r make it
appear to jut toward the viewer. Keep
t he wings simple.
5 ADDCOLOR
See page 30 for methods on how to
®
color your robot.
74
®
75
WINGED ROBOT: THREE-OUARTER VIEW
CREATE SKELETAL
I STRUCTURE
Captt~re the 5wtep of the wing struc-
a
ture in t he initial rowing. Balance the
figure by aligning Lhe ankle. knee, hip,
elbow. shoulder .:md wing join~.
2 ADD BASIC SHAPES

UtJt: the vame lines to help block In
t he b1.10ic vhavm,. Tht: fmnt leg appear€>
1.1rqer t ht.1t1 the bDGI: leg. Notice the
dr·<mlat.Jc th rw:;t of the chev t now t hat
tht: body l~, turned.
E6 • DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

>
I.)L . . Add dt:Lallb to the basic ~hape5.
L1J Givt: thr:m dlmen51or1allty by 5howing
\-
t'JL t.ht: correct !7lde5 In thl~ View. ror exam-
<
:) ple, much of t.hc left arm and leg detail
0I it. hiddt:n fmm the Viewer. Add more
L1J
d~ll to th~ •..vinge nnd wing joints.
L1J
~
I
\- FINISH DETAILS AND INK
w
z 4 U5e bolder linee to give the near-
0 e&ot leg more lmp~ct. Notice how the
\- dctJ..tile of the cht:FA follow the angle':? of
a
cD t.he underlying chest shape. Dividing the
~ wing "ft:-'lt.hr.r!>" wlt.h a o:?lmple line mal<eo
D tllem look more rrwUJIIic Dnd robotic.
LU
G
z ADDCOLOR
5 Sut: page 30 for methods on how
W color your robot.
76
®
77
WINGED ROBOT: BIRD'S·EYE VIEW
CREATE SKELETAL
1STRUCTURE
In this view. draw per~pectlve IInee con-
verging to a vanl~hlng point below the
robo t.. Draw the bae;ic bone structure
LJ$Ing the~e line~ a~ guides. Show t.hc
wing& npread and the shoulders and
arms as the largest shape6 on the
bo~y. The left leg I$ extended here to
bai;mce with t he wing~.
ADD BASIC SHAPES

2 fJrawthe ba~lc ~hape~. building on
Lhr. fJkr.letalstructtwe. Make ~LJ re body
,,h.<.~ pee at.t.ached to a .Joint allow For
movement. Notice he1·e how the chest
shttpe juw forward almof;t a full head
lengt h.
~ DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

.~ Add detail~ r.o r.he basic 5hape5
and rcfir1e their edge~. Not.lce how the
~~ctc1llls spread evenly across t.hc body.
1ht. lt.g-3 ot1ly appe~1r more dc:t.ttiled
because t hey <\Ire fore:;hortened in t:.hi&
view. U<3e a 9quetre :;hilpc: for t.hc t:.op
of the hand-il common feature of
rovot.c,;.
FINISH DETAILS AND INK

4 Finl!?h the drawir1g by following the
dct:.ail&eE>tabliehed 111 etep :;. Outline
r.he~ mt~or ;.hupc.:t> wi t,h a thick line. Go
ovt.r· the detail~ with L1 thin line.
ADDCOLOR
5 See page 30 for method£'> on how
r.o color your robot..
78
79
WINGED ROBOT: WORM'S-EYE VIEW
CREATE SKELETAL
I STRUCTURE
Dr!lw pcr5pectlve line~ converginq
a vani9hing point. above t..hc
t.llW,1t'd
rnba1.'"> l1ead. Again, u9e pt~r&lllellino~
Lo .11llgn th~ joint.~. 1he robot'9 right
foot and le-g will be the n109t impacr.ful
&>hli pt: In thi9 view. St.art. the wi~f-1 afi a
9irnplc fan t.hapr..
ADD BASIC SHAPES

2 t";ttlld 9hape~ Otl
~t.ructure.
r.fte !>kulut.1JI
The ~h&tpc:v will be the f.ltart-
ln!3 point· for r.hc: dc:t·t.tilt> 1;0 come. Make
~ure each limb i!.> t:urncd w cxprr.&s
t.he robot·~ ~~mu:. fhc t~hapcf• will get
fJM"t.tll~r <'1 5 the rovot'9 body move& up
~nd farther aw...y In thl~ view. Notice
t.hut;. t;.hc fiut..tJ appear IBrt3t:r than th e
he<~ d.

~ Add the det.ai1!7 and fJhapee; that
make a robot. Draw multiple circular
knee joint 5hape6 and leg ca6ing6 to
rc6emble clothing. Far away at the top.
rough in the detail6 of the che5t, arrn6
and head. Give each of the wing "feath-
ero" their 6hape.
80
®

4 Outline the robot lr black ink. U5e
thick line5 for the larger, impactful
shapes, 5uch a5 the front leg and foot.
Go lighter for the line5 and detail5 at
the very top. Make 5ure there 15 enough
white 5pace between each detail to
show the mass of the body. Draw shad-
O\VS where no light can reach.
ADDCOLOR
WINGED ROBOT: BATTLE POSE
CREATE SKELEfAL
1 SfRUCfURE
Drawing the t>tnu;turr. of a battle poe;e
1!3 like any other view. Vleuallze the poee
11r1d viow you WtlnC, Llrld rough in t;he '
limbv Llrld joint-t; 00 Chat. t;he t;t;ruc-
t;un; of your robot. iu proport-ional. ihe
<mlggernted hand iv one of the lt~rgeet
eh.apee in thie vie-N, which adde depth.
The eweep of t.he wing& add& drama.
ADD BASIC SHAPES

2 IJraw thr. b8 e;lr. e;h8pt:!? tht: l?,'lme
way as for any pose, following the F.ikel-
ut-1.11 uL-ruct;urc. F'ay vpccial att.cntion to
the; elvowv and knueto. lhu ulbow uf t.hc
left ;11111 hen~ i~ in line with the 9houlder
!.lnd hand.
~ DRAW ROUGH DEfA/LS

~ Md d~a ll5 t.o the l'o1Jy part
E.>httpet>. For the flngcrn, outllnr. thfl
FihapP. of each segment:, but remember
t.o ,111ow a gap for movement. Roughly
emult1te the mu!;X;Ie!> of your own hand
In 1.he robot.'& hand.
FINISH DEfAILS AND INK

4 Fininh with ink and ou1.1inc each
~h,'l pe <
'ind det~1ll . Vary your line width.
U~e t.hlcker line9 for larger 9ht~pe9
t.hat. appear clo9er: Be conOdent ,.,.. -
In how t he 9hape9 are overlt1ppirlg.
Le,1Ve enouqh white 9petce between
thr. lnl: llnr.e to ehow tht: ma65 of
the body.
ADDCOLOR
5 !?t:t: pagt: ?50 for mr.thode; on how
C.U color your robot...
82
®
83
FEMALE ROBOT: FRONT VIEW
A female-looking robot require6 feminine proportlon6;
namely. longer lege, wider hlpe ana narrower 6houl-
c:ler6 ana wai6t.
I
~j
... 0
CD '
8
W CREATE SKELETAL DRAW ROUGH DETAILS .AI INK SHAPES AND DETAILS
I SfRUCfURE 3 Refine the shapes with precise
by adding addi-
4r4t Complete the details from step
M.s.tp out;. t:.hc porporl-ionfl correctly. A ilnos. Give them volume 3. Use shadows to show depth. For
furm..lit: roiml;. will have proportions simi· tional sides. Add mechanical surface this robot, keep your surface lines long
l.>~r to a ft:malc human. Draw tho ieg6 details, keeping in mind, when possible, and smooth. Follow the curves of your
longr:r and the €lhoulders narrower. the purpose of each particular part. shapes to help show the form, keeping
Especially with a female robot, do not the robot feminine.
ADD BASIC SHAPES bunch large block shapes close to one
2 Add curvier, lighter-looking shapes another; separate them with a joint. ADDCOLOR
to the skol~l structure. Bow in the 5 See page 30 for methods on how
legs slightly to emphasize the hip
width. Draw the head higher to suggest
a longer neck. Remember; most joints
bend or rotate in only one direction.
84
®
85
FEMALE ROBOT: THREE·OUARTER VIEW
-.
>
w
s:
.. CREATE SKELETAL "2 DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

II STRUCTURE .; J# Break up your ba!:iic !:ihapes into
In r.lli~ vie.w, the: robor..·~ bfr.. !.>ide; i~ more refined shapes. Add surface lines.
hiqhcr. !?ketch your skeletal structure focu~ on a reM new to this view, such
I J~l11g the. jOitlt'.!> M guide:~. U~e guidc;- tie> the toide of the left knee and the
li nC;<~ l<J pl&~w l·ht: anklet~, knccG, hips, robot\:; right armpit.
cl~owf.> and l?houl,~~r!?.
2
ADD BASIC SHAPES
~;how rmly wh.1t I~ vi~il?le. Don't
4 Finish the robot by following
REPEAT SHAPES
t he der.ails established in step 3.
l't: ,1fi',1id r.o leavt>. thing::; out com· Add sht1dows to the places that are FOR DETAIL
ple.r~ly. like; r.hc; b<lck uf t-he lc..ft:. leg and covered by other shapes: near the hip. As a starting point for adding
wing. Keep your shape6 In line with the under the !:lhoulder and in the "hole" at
additional shapes for details,
bt:IMVIor oF r.lle joint ar.r.aching r.hern. t.he top of the head. mimic the shape surrounding it.
Curve. your !;>h<lpue. t:<J make them more
Notice the shape on the outside
feminine.
ADDCOLOR of the robot's right shoulder; its
5 See page 30 for methods on how outline matches the outline of
the main shoulder.
86
®
87
z FEMALE ROBOT: BIRD'S-EYE VIEW
C)
\=:
'<
~
1STRUCTURE
CREATE SKELETAL
U)
z
C)
Draw th~ 0k~letal 0tructure and joints.
Mar' out the pe.rsp~lv~ lln~0 for tl1i0
~
Lu vl~w. pl<1cing che vaniohing point below
~ the robot.'!:) fm:i;. M/;lkv t>ure your angles
W"l: corm,;t. The hlp, chest and should~r
lln~!l are p£1rallel but anglt:r.l.
2 ADD BASIC SHAPES

to
litis vivw require!? you account
~or r.he wing$ Mtd empft~t:>i'e c~w head
1.111d t'Jhnttldr.r!?.IJrawt.he shape0 of the
joinr.~. keepinfi in mind t-~wir 6pecif1c
t·:mgt. of tnor.ion. Use r.he peropect:ive
linev t.o help draw the t?hapes of the
;:: t ·ol?ot:~ l1o(Jy. CD
UJ
:>
~
w I
Add drAallr.;, kccp1t1g In n1ind which
IS)
pat-ts of the body m~ newly revealed
D in thlg view. KMp the amounr. of der-ail
UL
ca cunt,i F,~r:nt .<~r:rm;o; thr. wholt. rol1ot.
s
I:D
Don't· dmw more un ~he top ~ccaut?e
t.her~ k• more ~urf~1Ct: arva. Leave
~
whit<- ~fi.l<A:J t.c :.;how ~ulk t~nd mt~kc the
~lu.lpe::> imp;..lct.ful.
w
_j
2
·<
1.1..1
4 FINISH DETAILS ANO INK
Ink your dr'awinfl, t-aking care to
IJ...
ntJillt1r. the major shapes. Use thicker
line~, t:.o brinfl the foreground fihapes
clo&cr and thln11cr llt1t.s to push th~
~.<Jd:t;!rotmd sh.1p~s away. Notice the
t hlr:k ~~houll~~t·liM6 here compared to
th~ llght~t· llt1 ...6 of the feet.
5 ADOCOLOR
St:e p;;1ge 30 for mcthod6 on how
t.o color your robot.
BE PURPOSEFUL
Everything drawn should appear
to serve some purpose. Even
if it's decorative, it must work
with the operation of the robot's
joints and limbs.
88
®
89
FEMALE ROBOT: WORM'S-EYE VIEW
CREATE SKELETAL
1STRUCTURE
lhi:> vi~ ~howca!X:u the ro!lot'~ height.
TI1c>. uppt'rjointF.> will appc:ar bunched
ut. t-he t.op. while ihe leg Joint~ will be
tarthu apart. Draw thto. !3keler.al ~t:ruc
t urc to capttm~ t iM pmp~r l7orJy lengt-h.
IJtM th~ jnint~ a!'1 tJi~t;mce marke~ t.o
g&~UtjC propot"tl011.
ADD 13ASIC SHAPES

2 L>rttwt.l'lc mechanical parts as
l'!l~ic !.oh"po~. lining them up with their
juin t:!.o. ftty !.-pcclttlat.t.cn'Uon to eibow6
llri(J kr1oo~. t:mph!tuizo the length of the
~~~ lty '~lllwine t.hcf1c fihapcfi longer

t.htm the upper body, which 16 tore-
$hOI'"ttl1ed. Notice that the: lc:g~ take
up 1.1imoot tour-flfth9 of thi9 dr&'lwing.

~ Add detail~ to the foreground
ankle jolnt-heelaaaembly and the
!lot-wm of t.he knee joint. Don't be
tempted to overdo the detail on the
leg~ becauae they appear bigger. Keep
it fiimple. Simple geometric shape6 keep
the robot machinelike. Suggeat the
viewable detaila in the upper body.
90
®

4 Refine the details, adding shad·
ows and shading accordingly. The ankle
assembly is complex. Make sure the
proper segments are overlapping. Add
shadows to the undetailed parts hid·
den from the light.
ADDCOLOR
91
DRAGON ROBOT: SIDE VIEW
A dragon ro17ot hae j oints and ehapeelike a human·
oid. ireat thi6 6ide view like a technical drawing.
CREATE THE SKELETAL STRUCTURE

1 u~e. th~joint::.,; tmd limb!:> l,;u work out. a 6tructure that is
plr:tJtling. Notlcr. that the': leg ir:; jointed twice. The dmgonlil<e
fc;Llt•urc:v vhuuld alrr.!.ldy br: apparent.
ADD BASIC SHAPES

2 A dragon robot. rnove!3 differently than a humanoid robot,
!30 make !3ure t.he r.he joints and shapr.n interact correctly.
Dmw t:he r·LliiLlnd neck a!:> a serief> of f.>hapev that. can move.
The leg net:d!3 different oh1.1pes than a humanoid too. fhe foot
claw in €ir.par.'.ited h1to sl".gments. The head is angular:

~ Ad,l de: t-ail and rdlnc your rough aha pes. Use similar
~~h.ll't~ for· tiM Mck antJ tail to show thac th1,'Y move Gimilarly.
Usc 6ln1ilar· sha~?e!.'l for the claws of the hands and feet; 6ince
L-hcy M:rvc a !?lmllar purpoae. Explon~ the details of the joints
ar. t-he hip and should'er. Examine the curvature oftht: mouth.
FINISH DETAILS ANO INK

4 Outline the larger body aha pes with t.hick ink lines. Use
thlnr1er linea fot· the ~mall body parts and der.aih;. Shadows FEATURES OF A DRAGON
111 small sections of the: body give the appearan~ of mechan-
ical holes or nooks. A robot is made from parts: give each Toy with this drawing until you have a creature
part its individual Aavor to make the whole robot realistic.. with dragon/ike proportions: large, lizard/ike head;
long neck and tail; smaller wings and forearms and
clawed hands and feet.
5 AOOCOLOR
See page 30 for methods on how to color your robot.
92
DRAGON ROBOT: THREE·OUARTER VIEW
CREATE SKELETAL
1STRUCTURE
Draw the fikelctal nt1·uctu r~ In thl6 vl~w.
1ht: at1glr.s ofth~ arm!3, l~s. chest and
hip~ are all different. Drow the center
br1tJy 111a~~ and joint-s DS general circlet>.
M~ kr: r?Urt: they work togtrther with the
limb!? tn nM kt. t iM r~e look Auid. lhe
h~.~,J fMit1g lr..1ck t..owt1rd ~he;: body bal-
anet:F? the fitJIJrt:.
ADD ~ASIC SHAPES

2 li1kc your Umc in thit> t>tcp. Draw
t.h~ t't~!.>ic t>h~pc~ from the !Ike Ictal
:.ot.ruct;ure. R.oug~1 in t-he fingero. feet,
ttiOll r.h, wir1g~ und eye~. ~very ~hapc will
l1e diff~n:mt. Work ctlrofully on the joinw

;U1rJ ;lt1tjlt': of the f;Jt.irlg lt:9. Rt:m¢:mber
t he motion of .~ joi11t .1~ ynr ' d1-aw the
~hapc6 connect ed to lt.

~ 1\dd detail~? by further reAning
the bat?ic t?hapes and adding mechani-
cal elemerrC5 to the 5urface5. Decide FINISH DETAILS AND INK ADDCOLOR
where your major 5hapes will be. Notice
here; how the roundnef?f'l of tht: ou t.~idt::
4 Outline the shape~? and detail~?.
Cr~::~:;~t.c; ~h~:;~duw!:>
tJy rneam; of com:~let.e
5 See page 30 for method~? on how
tu color your robot..
hip iB now an angled mechanical piece. black or cro5Bhatching to achieve a
Explore the jointB of the wingB and leg B. gray. lhe BhadowB under each neck
!here is ample room for movement In piece emphaBize that the neck i5 indeed
the lower leg here as its casing recedes a series of individual pieces.
from both the knee and ankle.
94
95
DRAGON ROBOT: BIRD'S-EYE VIEW
CREATE SKELETAL
1STRUCTURE
St-llrt- out with th!!: $k!!:l~l !:>tructure
of thi<J vtew, which look$ Into the drag-
on't> mout-h. Draw the join~ and ba!:>ic
bo&ty ml.luu. Wort. until the 6kcleton i6
prormrtion,...l. Tru: wlng6 and neck will
be <lilllO:)t directly beneath the vit:wer.
n,~r'C.1for~. t-h~ir t.rhtlp<:t> will be wcatly
tc?l't:"ihOI"tel1&f.
ADD BASIC SHAPES

2
. Dmw the V<19ic !llwpe!l of t:.h~
rolml.- frnm thr. e,kr.lf:tal ~Structure
dr,Jwn in f,t..t:p t l)nn't. be too rigid at
t.hi~, fAagr.. M,<,~kr. !?ure t,o capture the
t>wt:t:p of thr. lmdy by turning your
u~uJpt:t, m:r:on:lingly. me mouth cavtty
iv Ll ucncu af circle~:~. l"ht: head and back
form r.he ltlrf:!t:!.>C vhupcv. NoUcc here
how ihr. fr.t:t arr. 11nw tar br.low and
r.li'.1W!1 "mallu to '3how the di!:>tance.
A2 DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

~ Define the cdt:~C6 of your 6hapt$
nntJ ruu9h in I:J1~ d~W.til!>. Pey llt.t.cntion
r.u wl11d1 !.>hup~!.> ()Vurlap ot-her;.. The
ne>.c.k iHitJ r.wl r~:~muir1 u !>~ric!> of circultlr
~h.1 l?t:~ ~~tnJt113 tt?t~~ther; yer. r.h~:~ ne:ck is
ttimoGt complt.tr.ly nb~cun~d by t hr. bulk
<.rf l·h'' hcttd tmd l.hc forcGhortcnlng.
Ji1k11 r.h1:1 t:irnt1 t:u und<:.r~·l;tmd huw t..he
~IMI'"~ tJmwtl in pr-eviou~ view~ appear
In thlfi view. Explorr. tht. r~vt:alt:d jointe
ur l.ht1 juw.

4 Flnlt>h tht: dt:tall~ t:5tabli~ht:d
In ~u.r 3. Co ove•· th~ lint:9 with ink,
varyine t:.he line widt-h between thin and
thiclc Uuc repcaUng clcmcnt6 in the
tall to 5eparate it from the body ma5e.
Make 9Ut'e your details allow for join"t
movement.
ADDCOLOR
S See page 30 for method!:> on how
96
DRAGON ROBOT: WORM'S-EYE VIEW
(_ 1
~
>
UJ
)-
UJ
1CREAfE SKELETAL
I STRUCWRE
{f)
Oruw t-he l:lmAc t,kr.IC'WII t>tructurt: of
a
~ tht: dt·,, gonu1itlt3 th~ join~ as marlcere.
tQ rho fU<:t. ttrc la~c and 1mpo£>1ng In thl5
~ view, t.hou13h ;~t thll) l)Ulf!e t he robot
0 reE~Cml:llcf:l a d~.
In
0
~
z
0
2 ADD tMSICSHAPES
!"?howcafic t he t?c~mt:nt6 of t he
~ trm1t lr.~~ ~Jnd claw!3. Build the 9hape~
<
~ ()IJt from t ho ~kelecn l ~CrucCure. tmd
()
r.~ny t ht. In Ilk ofche body back t:.oward
thl'! di~ti1t1t hit1d ~~~. Add the wing5. 11te
robot'!? lt.fr. ~hl'lllldt.r iA higher b6cause
t-hat. f.oldc lfi clot?cr to tht. vir.wr.r.
®
.3 ~:~:~~~~Yn~~f~~~~s
va ni~hing point far abov6 and behind
t he robot. Tht. hori7..ontallines of th6
6hapc6 of the robot'e body should
recede to t..hi£> point 86 the e;hapes
move away from tile viewer. Uoo theoo
line!> 8!> guides to the details of the
legt>. Separate t-he front leg joint from
the body casing. Mark out the t>eg -
ment6 of the neck and the details of
the jaw.
98
4 Ink the drawing uBing varying line
thickneBBeB. UBe thicker lineB for the
impactful BhapeB up front and the main
body maBB. Use thinner lineB for the
details, the hind legs and the distant
head above.
ADDCOLOR
DRAGON ROBOT: BAnLE POSE
CREATE SKELETAL
1STRUCTURE
r-:11y i?pt:cl:~l .11tt.entlot1to t he angle of
t hr. 11111d lt:gs. IJr<~w the l1l ndqua rter~ ~o
r.h&1t. t.hc:y arc: viuiblc. Thr: hc8d in down
poiood for bt~ttlc:. ~Zough in the
Llrle-1
<111gle and 9hape of t-he:: hc:<.~d.
AVO SHAPES ANO ROUGH

2 VETAILS
~Jtlld th~ c'lha r~~ of t;he IJody from
thr. flkr.lr.tal st ructure. Ku p t he limb~
vc:pttr>JL{;d by vie;iblt: j oh11.6. Whe11 the.
joint.!:> Llren't visible, keep a difltance
ber.ween ~l~joining Form~. ~uc-h u~ t:.hc:
hiJ,,j lr.f3!'l ..1t1'~ hlp. Not:lu how t he 9hape
b~h ind t he heild-t.h~ t..<.Jrw-i!:> tilted
wit:·h the head and t.hc !:lending of the

robot'i? n-ot1t left; le<j.
~ FINISH DETAILS AND INK

~ I nk t.hc: rnujor !:ohttpc~;o that have
OJ Jtl?lt~e. edge.5 with thick line:3. Use t hin
line~? for interior cdgee, detall6 and
ehapee farther in the background.
AOOCOLOR
4 See page 30 for methode on how
100
101
COMPOSI N G A SCENE
You can't design a scene without talking about
composition. What exactly makes a good com-
position? That's a subject all by itself. Here are
some basics to help you get started, but the
concepts here are by no means the only ways to
dolt.
w
z
w
u
\f)
<
(~)
z
....
~
0
..
u
MAKE INTERESTING COMPOSITIONS USE THUMBNAILS

At.:J ~~ rule of t.humb, t ri.;mgular r.omi?O!?it:iont? will almost always One of the things I do as preparation for a full-blown illustrel-
be morr. h1tr.rr.r?tinq .and dynamic. Arrange elements in your tion is draw a rough, smaller version of the illustration, called
drawing~; w Form rough t:-ri&mgleslike the examples above. a "thumbnaiL" The purpose of .::1 thumbnail is to work out
composition, light and/or shadow problems before doing the
full-size illustration.
102
MOTION AND SPEED LINES
5peec::lllnee are typically ueec::l in comic book illus-
tration a, moat heavily l:7y Japanese comic book
artiste. There are a lot of artiste who prefer not
to uee epeec::lllnee, but I think if they are ueetJ
effectively, they can be a very powerful storytell-
ing technique. Even the "King," Jack Kirl:7y, ueec::l
these techniques. I'll a how you a few basic tech-
niques on creating anc::l ueing epeec::lllnee.
SIDE~TO~SIDE L/NIES
This is the type of effect used to represent speed from the
side. The key is to vary the spaces between lines and to vary
the thicknesses of t he lines.
s:
a
~
0
z
>
z
'V
(j)
\)
111
l f1
'V
FOCUS LINES I
This technique i6 u6ed to bring a~tcntion to a certain 6pot z
m
on t he drawing. In this example, t he focus Ht1es are also (S)
f~LURRED LINES
creating the motion of the robot launching forwar,~ • .:md we.
Photographs often capture moving
anticipate the punch 16 about to be thrown.
objects as blurs. Use this technique to
create a sense of quick movement on a
static, two-dimensional drawing.
CREATE MOOD WITH LIGHTING

Moods can be achieved through
light and shadow. Lighting from
different angles creates different
moods. Experiment to see which
lighting scheme works for which
drawing.
Bottom lighting Side lifjhting
10:3
DESIGNING A SCENE
A scene takes into account both the 5hapes of the
figuree and their relationship to the background. A
eimple background i5 enough to give a sense of size
and depth eo that the robots appear to be battling
In a real place.
.. DRAW A THUMBNAIL OF THE SCENE

• Hnr1c your idea with a couple of thumbnail sketches to
understt~nd how you wane the f:>ccnc to look.
CREATE HORIZON LINE AND

2 PERSPECTIVE GUIDES
LJn1w ~1 :Jeries of per5peccivc lines converging to a vanishing
point In the bottom middle of the pii~per. The vanishing point
mF,tb on the norizon line.
'2 DRAW BASIC ENVIRONMENTAL SHAPES

w ,J1 A~ you d d with robots, drow the shapes of a bacl<-
z gmund m1ing the pcr$pcctlve llt1es as guides. All nonvertical
UJ
<...) liM.;; .;;houk! r~ede to the vanishing poinc.
{f)
DRAW BASIC ROBOT STRUCTURE
L
- 4 AND SHAPES
Drttw t·hc ba&ic &hapcn of your mbotf; following the poses
~ pl.'lnn.-;d lt1 the t:humlm~1il. ;'>t.~lrt'- wir.h ~~ ~kc;lc:t.al e>tructure to
(j)
UJ ~ct.. t..hc pv~ctJ correct, tht:n b11lld !?hapes and joints. Make
C\ !3urco. co..1ch '3hDpe: thttt i!.> tttt:.ttched io ajoint can move prop-
erly !.llrmq that Joil1t'(? t·ange of motion.
CREATE ENVIRONMENTAL INTERACTION

5 Druw fulling !..>hurdv of l.?ulldlng to Involve the background
wich t:l1c; uct;ion of t-he rol.?ot !.?attic. Add wme action "gtar-
bur\>t!.>" t.o e:rnphuE.>i:.w &I point of great Impact. Draw billowing
,J,•·~t.t.o g1ve: tht: illu?ion of Umc ptl£>5-ing.
/!
104
SHOWING A STORY
In order to tell a story, a scene needs to imply a
sequence of events. Here, the rocks must fall before
the dust clouds form. But, in order for the rocks to
fall, the robot must be slammed into the building. By
showing all three-the robot slamming, the rocks
falling, the dust cloud forming- the scene becomes
a story.
105
BATTLE SCENE: HUMANOID VS. HUMANOID
a
0 CREAIE A tHUMBNAIL
z
<
2
1 rlan th~ ~n~ wi'th 1.:1 t.humlmllil eket<;h o~anizinq who
~&rikc:5 whom. UndcrtJt.snd how e.Bch robot'e form ie going to
:::l
I change wh~n punching or falling.
tSl
> DRAW SKELETAL STRUCTURES AND
2 E3ASIC SHAPES
Dr11w t.htl ba5ic 5hE1pe!.> u1 e~ch robot in em action poec. Plan
where each joint will be .!ll1d how th~ body will b~nd th~r~. ua~
lhv:l'l to c.o11nt.ct: r.h~ joit11%l to giv~ an idea of t.he lengt-h each
p.1rt, nuA~ to bt. r.o remain proporr.ional and in pe~pect.ive.
'-2 ADD ROUGH DETAILS

~ Draw the dctalll'.illl'.i you would on any robot regardlt:66
of poeic. Pay attr.ntlon to which details should be hidden from
vlcw. Rcmcmbr.r, t he robot·., lilnb~ ~hn11 ld be rigid with their
bodlc£> bending only at t heir jolntl'.i.
FINISH DElAILS AND INK

4 Before coloring. Ink t he la~e ahapee to eet them in
~pttcc. U5C thick llncti for the larger, more impactful 6hape6
and t hin line5 for r.he nne det.ail5. leave white 6pace for
coloring and to ~how the maee of the bodie6. There 6hould be
more white epac~ in front than farther in the back.
5 COLOR
See page 30 for method5 on how to calor your robote.
Apply r.hoee ideau to the background, but remember to
!)howc~.:~ee 'the battle. The light at the point of Impact her~
~mphaeizee the action. Nowhere elee in the 5et:ne ie the light
oo intcnee.
106
BARLE SCENE: DRAGON VS. HUMANOID
CREAIE A 1HUMBNA/L
1 Car.'ture the general idea of the occme in a thumbnail
drawing. Map out how the robots will interact and che general
locat-ions of t.heir l'odle~.
ORAW SKELETAL STRUCTURES AND

2 BASIC SHAPES
J)raw 1.hr. b~sic skeletal ~tructure of both robots. Pllilce the
joint:) of et:tch so that they are proportional. Build the basic
~h.<ipt:'\!1 around thejoinr.s t~lon'l the ~keleCttletructureB. Keep
thr. rol?ot£> r·..:Jatively the st~me size. Here. the dragon'B head
may 17e 17ig~or; l?ur. the r.wo chevtv are about equal.
"2 ADD ROUGH DETAILS

.;JI Add deCailslike Che flrrgcru, rive tv and head of the
hum.:moid. r~nd the teech, spikes arrd t;.c;alc:like neck of t he
drilgOti-1. Work on one roboc at a tirne to avoid c:onfusion where
the two r·obot~ overlap.

4 lt1k the m;~jor ~hapes of the robocs. separating their
rrwchw1icMI part.&. U&c thick llnee; to e;eparate the robot5
h·om t.he white background space and where their bodies
ovcrl!tp. Uuc thin linel? on the detail6. Leave white space
within thr. bodlr.6 to e;how 111<.1 66.
COLOR
5 See page 30 for methods on how to color your robots.
Apply thoee idea€> to the background, but remember to
showc;.ase the battle. TI1e fire irr the background here puts
the scene in the con~ of a larger conflict.
108
INDEX
Anatomy. See Robot anatomy Cylinder, 11 Geometric forma, 1D-11

Ankle,44 lighting on, 26 Geometric shapes, 90
Ankle joint-heel assembly. 9Q-91 lop6lded, 11 Gun hand.42
Apellke body type. 49 one-point perGpectlve, 13
Arms,38-39 two-point perspective, 14 Handa, 40-41. See also Mechanical
Axis, 1Q-11 See also Chrome cylinder hand
Details, repeating, 64, 86 Head,34-35
Bllll-be;aringjoint, 47 Distance Highlights, 30
Basic shapes, 1Q-11 three-point perspective and, 17 Hip,36
arrn6, 39 vanishing point and, 12 Horizon line
elbows and knees, 56 Dragon robot one-point perf>pective, 12
head, nevk and shoulders, 35 battle pose, 10Q-101 two-point perspective, 14
lege and feet, 45, 70 battle scene, 108-109 Hon:;e robots, 50
torso, 37,74 bird's-eye view, 96-97 Hot spot,30
Batt!~ pose side view, 92- 93 Human arm, 38
<Jr~lgon robot, 10Q-101 three-quarter view, 94-95 Human hand, 40-41
humanoid robot. 62-63,72-73 worm's-eye view, 98-99 Human head, neck and e;houldera, 34
winged robot, 82- 83 Drama, foreshortening for, 22 Human leg, 44
Bat;tle scene. Humanoid robot
dragon vs. humanoid, 108-109 Egg shape body type, 48 battle pose, 62-63,72-73
hurnanoitJ v6. humanoid, 106-107 Ell1ow. hydraulic, 38-39 battle scene, 10~107
Blrd'15·t:ye. view. 20 Elbow joint, 46 Ellipse, 11 bird's-eye view, 58-59, 68-69
dragon robot. 96-97 as circle in perspective, 11 front view, 54--55. 64-65
f..:t11.1lr. robot. 8l~89 sketching, 25 three-quarter view, 56-57,66-67
humanoid robot, 58--59, 68--69 Environmental interoction, 104 worm'a-eye view, 60-61. 7Q-71
Wingr.d robot, 78-'79 Ext;rn ~lim 17ody type. 48 Human tor~o. 36
Blurred line~:>, 103
Body tyre variationa, 4&-49 Fantasy creat-ures, 51 Intimidation. worm'a-eye view for, 21
Feet., 44-45
Chrome cube, 28 Female robot Join't, ball-bearing, 47
Chrome.: cylinder blrd's-eye view. 88-89 Joint.s, 46-47
lying on its ~ide. 29 front view, 84-85
fit;mdlng. 28 three-quarter view, 86-87 Knee,44
Chrome; object&, multiple, 29 worm's·eye view, 9D-91 Knee joint, 46-47
Chrome :lphere. 29 Fingers, 40-41
Cir-c;lo. in P"ropc:cl-ivc, cllip6e ae;, 11 Flat color, 30 Legs,44-45
Clamp hand, 43 Focuf> linee, 103 worm's-eye view, 90
Claw hand, 4 3 Forced perspective Ligh'tlng and shading, 26-27
Color; flat, 30 cubes in three-point perspective create mood with,103
Color dc:t.tlilf>, 30 and,16 on cylinder, 26
Coloring a robot, 30-31 foree;horten lng as, 22- 23 reflective surfaces, 28-29
Compo!3ition. 102 Foree;hortenlng, 22- 23 on sphere, 27
Cone, 11 bird's-eye view and, 59 £>urrounding objects and, 27
Cube,10 Front view Limbe, overextended, 22
chrome, 28 female robot, 84-85 Line art, robot, 30
lighting on, 26 humanoid robot, 54-55, 64-65 Linee
one-point perspective, 13 winged robot, 74-75 motion and speed, 103
three-point perspective, 16-17 thick va. thin, 106
two-point perspective, 14 Line segments, 10
Curve6, drawing, 25
110
Mechanical arm, 38-39 hand variations, 42-43 Three-quarter view
'v1echanical forearm, 38 head, nec:k and ehoulder6, 34-35 dragon robot, 94-95
Mechanical hand, 40-41 joint6, 46-47 female robot, 86-87
variations, 42-43 legs and feet. 44-45 humanoid robot, 56--57. 66-67
Mechanical head, neck and 6houldero, toroo. 3f>-37 winged robot, 76-77
34--35 Thumbnail, of scene, 102, 104
Mechanical leg, 44-45 Scene Tlgtr robot!3, 51
Mechanical tor6o, 36-37 composing. 102 Tort>o, 36-37
Metric converolon chart, 4 designing,, 104 Tri -claw. 4 2
Mood, create with lighting, 103 one-point peropective, 13 Two-point ptr!3pective, 14-15
Motion line6, 103 sequence: of event$ in, 105 cube in,14
three-point perspective, 17 cytlnr.ler it1, 14
Neck,34-35 two-point; per6pectivc, 15 robot in,18
Nonhumanoid robots, So-51 Shading, lighting and. See Lighting and scene in.15
shading
One-point per6pective. 12-13 Shadow, defining, 30 Vanishing paine
cube in,13 Shapes, basic, 1Q-11. See aloo Basic dle>tance and, 12
cylinder in, 13 shapes one·poinc pc.:rt~pc:ct..iw:, 12- 1?>
robot in, 18 Shoulder j oit1t, 34, 47 three-poinC pc.:rl.tpc:c;tivc, 16- 17
6cene in,13 Shoulders, 34-35 two-point pcrvpr.r:t.ivr., 14-1!-i
Organic claw hand, 43 Side-to-side: lines, 103 Vision
Overextended limb6, 22 Size, sense of, 20 r.orrtct, 24
Skeletal stnJcture distorted. 24
Paw,43 battle pose, 62, 72. 8 2
Per6pective bird's-eye view, 58, 68, 78, 88 Walker body type. 49
forced, 22 front view, 54, 64, 74, 84 Winged robot
one-point, 12- 13 three-qu~lrter view, 56, 66, 76, 86 battle pose. 82-8~
robot6 in, 18-19 worm'S-~Je view, 60, 70, 80, 90 bird's-eye view. '/J:r-'7~1
three-point, 16-17 Sketching technique6 front view, 74-75
two-point, 14-15 correct vision, 24 three-quarter view. 76-77
Per6pective grid, 12-13 curves, 2!5 worm'6-eye view, 8D-81
Pincer. 42 distorteol vision, 24 Worm's·eye view, 21
Polygon, square, 10 ellipses, 2:5 dragon roboc in, 98- 99
Proportioned features body type, 48 long vs. short strokes, 25 female robot in, 9Q-91
Speed lines, 103 humanoid robot, in. 60-61, 7Q-71
Reflective 6urface6, 28-29 Sphere,10 legs ln.90
~peating details, 64, 86 chrome, :2:9 winged robot in, 80-81
~bot lighting 011, 27
body type variations, 48-49 Spider robots. 50
coloring, 30-31 Square poly~Jon, 10
dragon. See Dragon robot Stance, imposing, 18
female. See Female robot Starburots, action, 104
in forced peropective, 23 Story. showi11g, 105
humanoid. See Humanoid robot Strokes, lon~J vs. short, 25
nonhumanold, SQ-51
in peropective, 18-19 Tank body type, 49
winged. See Winged robot Thigh.36
~bot anatomy, 33-51 36Q• joint, 47
arms,38-39 Three-point per6pective, 16-17
hands and nnger6, 40-41 robot in, 19
scene in, 17
111
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fw Publications, Inc., 4700 Eaat Galbr<.~i!:h Road, Cincinnati,

DIS I'RIBU rED IN CANADA BY I-RASER DIRECT

liiS J'Kit:IUl£:.1..> IN 1HE IJ.K. AND EUROPE BY DAVID & CHARLES

DISl RI!;Ul ED IN AUSTRALIA BY CAPRICORN LINK

Library of Congreee Cataloging in Publication Data

LINES CONVERGE TO TWO POINIS

EXPERIMENT WITH POINTS

FORESHORTEN FOR DRAMA

AVOID OVEREXTENDED LIMBS

Light bounc&-1 Shadow ca~t from o.;ph~r-e

STANDING CHROME CYLINDER

Horizon R~fl~ctlon of cylinder Rcfl~ction of vphere

MULfiPLE CHROME OBJECTS

.. START WITH FLAT COLOR ROBOT LINE ART

HUMAN HEAD, NECK

Strip away the armor and out<:r >·

HIP AND THIGH- HIP AND THIGH-

DRAW BASIC SHAPES

"2 ADD DETAILS

'2 DRAW MECHANICAL

ORGANIC CLAW HAND

KNEE AND ANKLE

therefore, a ball bearing ie; contract e and the twin

ADD DETAILS AND

IL_ ] ThiB i$ a Bimple graphic repreBent;ation of how

THE 3600 JOINT

EXTRA SLIM DESIGN

1NK SHAPES AND DETAILS

ADD BASIC SHAPES

• . DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

1NK SHAPES AND DETAILS

OK drawings from great ones.

1NK SHAPES AND DETAILS

ADD BASIC SHAPES

ll2 DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

1NK SHAPES AND DETAILS

0 ADD BASIC SHAPES

4 1NK SHAPES AND DETAILS

CREATE SKELETAL STRUCTURE

ADO BASIC SHAPES

• DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

/NK SHAPES AND DETAILS

~ADD BASIC SHAPES

~ DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

4 1NK SHAPES AND DETAILS

ADD 13ASIC SHAPES

2 ADD SHAPES AND ,_

2 ADD BASIC SHAPES

4 FINISH DETAILS AND INK

2 ADD BASIC SHAPES

E6 • DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

ADD BASIC SHAPES

~ DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

FINISH DETAILS AND INK

ADD BASIC SHAPES

"2 DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

FINISH DETAILS AND INK

ADD BASIC SHAPES

~ DRAW ROUGH DEfA/LS

FINISH DEfAILS AND INK

.. CREATE SKELETAL "2 DRAW ROUGH DETAILS

FINISH DETAILS AND INK