Community Reviews

Rating(4 / 5.0, 100 votes)
5 stars
36(36%)
4 stars
28(28%)
3 stars
36(36%)
2 stars
0(0%)
1 stars
0(0%)
100 reviews
April 17,2025
... Show More
Very basic in some parts, vague in others. Norling isn't very good at explaining things. For example, there's a section warning that if you put your vanishing points too close together, the drawing will be distorted. However, the author doesn't explain important things like: "How do I tell if my vanishing points are too close together?" "How far apart should my vanishing points be?"

I guess reading Andrew Loomis spoiled me. Why can't he write EVERY drawing book?
April 17,2025
... Show More
It's a great book which explains perspective in a simple way with a lot of clear illustrations. There are also many practice problems in the book to get a better idea of how to use perspective. It also goes over any issues that you might have while drawing, and tells you how to fix them. I literally couldn't recommend this enough.
April 17,2025
... Show More
Summary (pp. 202-203)
n  
n   - Study the railroad track, it will furnish the fundamentals of perspective. n  
n   - Learn to draw a brick, you will then have a working knowledge of perspective. n  
n   - Learn all you can about the "Big Three" of perspective: the Eye Level, Vanishing Point A, and Vanishing Point B. [1] n  
n   - Do not let the mechanics of perspective cramp your freehand drawing. n  
n   - Use your knowledge of perspective to insure accuracy in your drawing and to check for error. n  
n   - Learn all you can about perspective. The knowledge gained will give you confidence in your drawing and thus allow more freedom. [2] n  
n   - Sketch an object freely and naturally; try to avoid laying out a cold mechanical setting and forcing the object into it. Perspective can easily be overdone. n  
n   - Remember the value of intersecting diagonals (crosslines) to find a center. n  
n   - Always place the two vanishing points far apart, thus avoiding violent perspective. n  
n   - Do not concern yourself about the technical placing of vanishing points in freehand perspective—their position is approximate. n  
n   - Study any good technical book for the mechanical placing of vanishing points. This knowledge is very useful for mechanical renderings. n  
n   - Remember the manner in which one vanishing point moves in relationship with the other. This is important. n  
n   - Draw a whole city by drawing the arrangement of bricks. n  
n   - Think of bricks and cylinders as the basis for most of the things we sketch in perspective. n  
n   - Learn to draw a cylinder and your knowledge of drawing has been greatly broadened. n  
n   - The inside of a room is the inside of a box. Learn how to draw a box. n  
n   - Try drawing a checkerboard in two-point perspective. It is a good test for correct drawing. n  
n   - If an object is difficult to draw because of its irregular shape, consider it as fitted inside a box; then draw the box in perspective. n  
n   - Don't attempt to include too much in a perspective drawing, the eye incudes only a small area. [3] n  
n   - Consider upright or perpendicular lines as drawn parallel, having no vanishing point considered. n  
n   - Think of the reflection of an object as left-handed and upside down. [4] n  
n   - Use the same vanishing points for the reflection as for the object. This is true when the object is level with the reflecting surface. n  
n   - Don't confuse a reflection and a shadow, they are not the same. n  
n

Personal notes
[1] Here, one remaining vanishing point is located at the infinity.
[2] How to Draw by Robertson and Bertling seems to be a good follow-up.
[3] Our cone of vision (CoV), without distortion, is 60 degrees wide. For one-point perspective, however, choose 50 (or even 40) degrees, because it is very prone to distortions.
[4] Basically, duplicate the mirror-reflection of the object in 3D and draw both objects. It is then easy to see that both the object and the reflection, as long as they're level with the reflecting surface, share the same vanishing points.
April 17,2025
... Show More
Recommended for a complete beginner. Although later chapters need more time, most of the books can be easily approached by everyone.
April 17,2025
... Show More
One of the most helpful art books to kickstart your hobby passion or career in art.
April 17,2025
... Show More
Basically everything you need to know about perspective, written very concisely. I will consult these topics over and over again, it's so useful. They're the kind of stuff you hardly notice until you someone point them out to you.
April 17,2025
... Show More
Một cuốn sách siêu cần thiết cho những ai mới nhập môn học về phối cảnh. Sách không được xuất bản tại Việt Nam. Chỉ có thể mua sách qua Amazon hoặc tự order hay tải bản ebook trên mạng để đọc. Nội dung sách khá chi tiết, với những ai không học mỹ thuật mà đọc qua cũng có thể hiểu. Thật sự đây là 1 quyển sách rất hay cho ai muốn làm quen nhanh về phối cảnh mà trong đầu chưa có gì. Phù hợp cho bạn nào đang muốn học vẽ minh họa, vẽ background. Minh họa dễ hiểu, hướng dẫn siêu ngắn gọn.
April 17,2025
... Show More
Thanks to this book I can now take my questionable Sonic fan art to a whole new level.
Leave a Review
You must be logged in to rate and post a review. Register an account to get started.