
Unbeknownst to me, our workplace had a pretty cool autoshow of our own on Friday. Nothin’ better than having a few cola’s, some brats, burgers, and cool cars to look at; owned by our very own co-workers! Here are a few pics that I have uploaded into the “Reference Photos” gallery. Unfortunately, I only had my Droid with me, but it did a decent job of taking some pictures.
What is really cool about the Droid is its ability to capture Hot Spots! You know….the brightest reflections on a vehicle that reflects the sun off of its surfaces. I felt that some of the pics seemed over exposed giving you that “squinty” eye feel, where the light is displaced linearly throughout the photo. However, overall it does a wonderful job of tracking where the sun hits the car along the apex of the curves.

Here are some awesome pics of a beautifully restored ’66 Jaguar E-Type, purchased 16 years ago by one of our Studio Managers. Over the years he has restored this bad boy, completely detailing out the interior, exterior, and rebuilding the engine. A stunner! These pics really do a great job of showing where the light source is and how it reflects off the the gracious curves on this old classic. Check out the “Reference Photo” gallery to see the complete set here!
Finally was able to get out of work on a SUNDAY!! Can you believe that? I actually had to work the entire weekend…during the Woodward Cruise! A total bummerrama! In anycase….I managed to escape later Sunday evening to catch the tail end of the Woodward Cruise. You know…the typical time frame when there are NO cars left and everyone goes home. Maybe that is an exaggeration but here are a few pics that I took that would be excellent photo reference for you to learn from.
Gotta say it was just awesome…even though I didn’t capture it during prime time. This is what Detroit is all about folks. Hangin out with your buddies, your girl, and some cold suds! The ambiance and the smell of burned rubber and fuel makes you feel like you deserve to own a hotrod!
Drawing wheels and tires can be somewhat difficult without knowing the basics and fundamentals of form. Part 2 on “How to Draw Wheels and Tires” concludes with adding some warmer tones and textures to the final digital painting.
Drawing wheels and tires can be somewhat difficult without knowing the basics and fundamentals of form. However, in this tutorial, we will review how to use a reference photograph to create a wheel and tire from an old grand prix car.
Hope you liked this tutorial. Stay tuned for Part 2 next week where I’ll finish off the digital painting with some textures and warmer colors!
Sorry for the long delay in posting but juggling the duties of fatherhood, husbandhood, AND preparing to move, can sort of suck up all your time! So anyway…without any further delay…I wanted to discuss the power of using reference photos when drawing cars….or anything for that matter.
Having a strong reference library to help inspire, motivate, and educate yourself is one of the KEY elements in developing your visual vocabulary. It not only helps to make you a stronger artist, but it helps you to start thinking of all the details that are typically missing from drawings.
I was thinking that it would be great to have some high quality images available for people to download so they could increase their visual vocabulary. Exactly what can you do with the reference photos? Well…check out the video below!
Click on the link below to go the photo reference library







