Practice: Value Gradient
Practice: Value Gradient
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50:18

The Shading Course

Module 3 - How to Control Values

Practice: Value Gradient

53

Practice: Value Gradient

53

Overview

If you want realism in your work, you need to master seeing values and controlling your medium. That’s what the next few assignments are about. With the Value Gradient, Value Couplet, and Value Scale, the specific skills you will develop are value control, edge control and the ability to create smooth tones. This is extremely useful in realistic drawing! It allows you to create a convincing illusion of form and resolve many drawing problems.

You can do one Value Gradient for each medium you work in. It’s ideal to do it when you first encounter a new medium, but it’s helpful at any skill level. Many experienced artists still practice Value Gradients to maintain their craftsmanship. If it’s good enough for them, it’s surely good enough for us!

Materials

  • A soft pencil for dark tones. I like a 2B. If you want to go darker, you can use a 3B or 4B. But be mindful that softer pencils produce more sheen. To avoid this, you might try a Staedtler Mars Lumograph pencil or a Faber Castell Pitt Graphite Matt.
  • A hard pencil for light tones. I like a 2H. If you only have an HB or H, they will work as well.
  • A kneadable eraser and/or a mechanical eraser. 
  • A ruler. You can also use the edge of a book.
  • A piece of paper. You need a proper drawing paper, around 160 gsm (98 lb). Canson Mi-Teintes, Fabriano Roma, or Arches work well.

Duration

This project should take between 30 minutes and 3 hours to complete. The time depends on your experience level with your medium. Do not rush through the value assignments. If you are pressed for time, focus on the Value Gradient first, then Value Couplets. 

Things to keep in mind

  • If you work carefully and with clean hands, you will finish much quicker than trying to rush.
  • Keep “cleaning up” your gradient as you work, so it is free of texture/noise, and you can see the values clearly.
  • This will take time. Expect to invest at least 1 hour.

Steps

1) Draw a box

Use light lines to indicate the shape of your gradient.


2) Start with the dark extreme

Place your “darkest dark” on the left side of your gradient. The far right represents your “lightest light”, the paper value.


3) Establish a rough gradient

Grow out from black towards the middle value and establish a gradient. Keep your tone fairly clean/even. Is the gradation well-balanced overall?


4) Refine

Clean up the tones to make a smooth transition from left to right.


5) Finish

Finish the scale by sharpening the contour and evening out any irregularities. This can take a while! Be patient and really go for perfection.


Common Mistakes

1) Noise

❌ Do not rush and create a messy tone because it will limit how clearly you see the values.✅ Do create smooth tones. Here’s an article on how to do this.

2) Out of Balance

❌ Do not make the gradient too dark or too light overall.✅ Do keep it balanced.

3) Dark Outline

❌ Do not draw a dark or thick outline around the gradient. It’s distracting.✅ Do draw a subtle outline around the contour. This helps separate the light tones from the paper.

Successful Examples

How to Create Smooth Tones

Make sure to also read this article: www.dorian-iten.com/smooth-tones

Newest
@tonyhcf
28d
Yanjun Jin
8mo
4B/2B & 2H. Really struggling with smoothing out the lightest part, don't know how to make the light strokes disappear while not making the area too dark...
Woo Joo
7mo
wow very clean!
@rfrimpong3
I used the 6B pencil in procreate
@marq777
9mo
It's not super refined but it's alright for a first time I suppose. And the picture makes the outlines look a lot muddier than they really are
Vin
9mo
hmm, the dark part is not so dark, maybe I should try 4B next time. (This time I use 2H & 2B).
@kotka
10mo
I can't for the life of me get good photos of my work. In real life, they look so much better, and the best part - almost identical. Bought the Mi-Tientes just for the sake of this course. Did the top one first and was sure I had bought the wrong paper because it felt and looked way too rough. Then I turned the finished work around and realised there was a smooth side... So I re-did the gradient. Best part, they both look similar even though I did each by feeling only. 2B and 2H Staedtler Mars Technico lead holder.
Derek Adams
Daniel Lucas Nizari
4b,2b,2h with a hint of hb
Samuel Sanjaya
2b and 2h pencils. i think it's not value is too light overall. Any feedbacks will be appreciated
@kotka
10mo
Yes, it looks a bit too light. Try a 4B!
@cindygs
2yr
Graphite 2B/2H
Romain Decotte
Here’s my gradient done with 2B / 2H graphite pencils.
Karlo H.
2yr
Graphite 2B and 2H
Kwame Alexander
2B(I think) and 2H. Took a little over an hour.
Chris Bodary
Graphite 2h and 2b pencils and kneaded eraser used, no smudging. oil paints used was ivory black and titanium white.
Ayşenur Akkaş
Hello, I also tried making acrylic paint chart but never end up blending it this perfectly. Do you have any tips for me?
@selenitis
2yr
First gradient done using digital brushes I usually use, second gradient done using a mechanical pencil (the only pencil I have)
@ivat
2yr
Carl de Jager
Hi guys. I've worked quite a lot in pencil, charcoal, paint and digital media, including in Procreate. In my opinion, the secret to obtaining smooth tones fast is NOT how well you can smudge, but how well you can spot and correct 'islands' or 'patches' of darker or lighter tonal values. It works for all media and is generally MUCH faster than smudging. Dorian has a great article about how to spot these and correct them. If you didn't notice it in the lesson notes, here it is again: https://www.dorian-iten.com/smooth-tones/
Sharntel Davey
Pencil value gradient using 4b, 2b, and 2h.
@flugmodus1
Hey @Dorian Iten , i was wondering if there is value gradient exercise specifically for the digital medium? As you have shown in your Video making a digital gradient can be really easy. I feel like i am missing the point doing it digitally. :-) Awesome course by the way, i am kind of addicted :-)
Dorian Iten
@flugmodus1 I just came up with a possible assignment in my response to evnl below :) "Maybe a good solution to this is for those of you working digitally to use one of the uploaded images from a student who has worked traditionally and do island hunting on that image, refining the tones and balancing the gradient as well as you can." I'm happy to hear that you're enjoying the course! :)
@flugmodus1
The first one: Hatching in Procreate (Pro Create Pencil), the second one: Smudging in Procreate (Basecolor with paint brush) Still figuring out the best setup ...
Carl de Jager
Nice. In the second one there are still quite visible bands of separate value. Check out Dorian's article on a quick way to create smooth tones here :https://www.dorian-iten.com/smooth-tones/
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Former program director at Barcelona Academy of Art. Passionate about teaching craft and exploring the inner game of art.
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