Photographic Distortion no. 1

GARRET 

click on pic for sharper image

The drawing above is from a photo I took at the Jamestown historic site many years ago.

When drawing from photographs it is best to be aware of the many distortions caused by the camera so you can compensate accordingly.

Unlike the camera, the human eye can only focus on one area of a subject at a time. However, the camera can create an image in which the entire scene is in focus.This is contrary to the way we see. 

Through rapid eye movements and split second focusing ability, we are given the illusion that we see the whole world in focus at once.  Not so. At the next social or business event you’re forced to go to, stare at the nose of the guy you're pretending to listen to without moving your eyeballs. Notice that the peripheral areas on all sides of his nose are slightly blurry. An artist who utilizes this phenomenon in his drawings or paintings it will create a depth of form to his work.

If an artist religiously copies a photo that has a focal range of infinity where everything is in sharp focus, it will result in flatness to his work.

A hard edge will visually travel to the picture plane which causes this flatness, where a soft edge will recede into space giving the illusion of depth.

In future blog postings, I will discuss other photographic distortions to be wary of when drawing.