Drawing a Leaf Front & Back
Use leaf rubbings as a starting point for drawing a leaf front and back. Follow these directions, and give it a try!
Refined Drawing
Place another piece of tracing paper over the rubbing and trace a more refined drawing, using the rubbing to determine how the veins come off the midrib. This is the stage where you decide how much or how little information will go into your drawing. Make sure all the veins connect to the midrib. Then transfer the refined drawing onto a clean sheet of drawing paper.
Light Source: Front of Leaf
This is of the top, or front, of the leaf, which has a slightly puckered surface. Using the light source of 11 o’clock at 45 degrees gives it greater depth and form and accentuates the convex shape. Tape your leaf to a wall and photograph it with the light source as reference.
Each section of the leaf on both sides appears as a convex, half-spherical shape. This is achieved by following the surface contour of each undulation. The tonal values incorporate the venation and get lighter where the leaf protrudes and is closer to the light source.
Light Source: Back of Leaf
The back of the leaf is a reverse image of the front. The veins protrude and each section is concave, going inward. The light source is still in the same position, but the result is the opposite, due to the change in direction of the surface contour. Notice how the highlights are now in reverse, and each raised vein casts a shadow to its right onto the leaf.
Impressed Lines
It can be difficult to create tiny white veins. A simple and effective way to render fine lines in a drawing is to impress them into the paper. To do this, start with your tracing paper drawing, so you already have the top of the leaf drawn. You will use it again to create the underside of the leaf.
Indicate which side of the tracing paper is the top of the leaf by writing the word “top” in the corner to prevent confusion. Flip the tracing paper over and carefully trace only the outline of the leaf. You want the leaf margin to transfer onto the paper but not the veins, which will be white.
Keeping the paper with the word “top” facing down, slide it off the drawing onto a scrap piece of paper. Trace the veins. The graphite on the veins will transfer onto the scrap paper, and the venation lines will be on both sides of the tracing paper.
Flip the tracing paper over so the “top” side is facing up, and erase the venation lines. Be careful to remove all the graphite from the interior of the leaf.
Flip the tracing paper over again, and realign the leaf margin you just transferred. If necessary, use a small amount of removable tape to keep the tracing paper in place. Using a 2H or hard lead pencil, transfer the venation lines, carefully and firmly going over the lines. You may want to practice on a scrap piece of paper first to see how much pressure is needed.
When you remove the tracing paper, you should see only the outline of the leaf. The venation, although invisible, is indented into the paper. Using the side of your drawing pencil, lay down graphite in the direction of the surface contour. The venation will appear as fine white lines. The line is impressed or “recessed” into the paper and will not accept graphite.