Lesson video

Hello, thank you for joining me for your Design and Technology lesson.

My name is Mrs. Conway and I will be guiding you through your learning today.

So our learning outcome today then is I can use isometric sketching and the crating technique to draw 3D shapes.

So we're gonna be looking at doing some sketching in 3D today and learning about the different techniques we can use to help us do this.

And these are our keywords for today.

We have isometric, perspective, and crating.

I'm gonna be explaining each one of these as we go through the lesson.

So the first thing we're going to look at is understanding isometric representation.

Now, when producing design work, it's really important to choose the best communication method based on the purpose of the drawing.

And in design and technology you may choose to use isometric drawing, orthographic projection, freehand sketching, exploded drawing, or perspective drawing.

There's quite a few different choices that you've got to make there, so which one possibly is the right one to use? Now just to explain them, freehand sketching is used for really quick drawings and is made without tools for capturing ideas really, really quickly.

Orthographic projection is used in manufacturing, and what this does is it shows different views of an object from different angles and always drawn in 2D.

Exploded drawings actually break down how parts of a product fit together by separating out the pieces or exploding the pieces apart from each other as such.

Perspective drawings make the objects look like they're actually going back in space.

They are the ones that are most realistic to what we would see walking around our everyday life as we witness and see objects.

Now they're used in things such as architecture, art and design.

Let's just do a quick check for understanding on those different types of drawing.

What drawing communication technique would be used for initial or rough ideas? Would it be A, orthographic projection; B, exploded drawing; C, freehand sketching; or D, perspective drawing? Just pause the video here to take a moment to think about that.

How did you get on? The answer was C, freehand sketching.

Well done if you got that right.

So freehand sketching is used for those initial or rough ideas when you're just trying to get an idea down to the paper quickly.

So let's look at isometric representation in a little bit more detail 'cause that's the one that we're focusing on for today's lesson.

Now isometric representation is a way to draw 3D objects on a flat surface and it enables us to see three sides of that drawing at once.

So it's an incredibly useful technique for designers and also other uses as well.

Let's look at the typical uses for isometric representation then.

So architecture is one.

It really helps to visualise buildings and rooms in 3D.

Engineering also uses it just to help in the designing of machines.

And video games also uses isometric representation to create 3D-like environments in 2D.

So when you've been playing video games, you may have actually been seeing this in an isometric way or a viewpoint without really realising what it is or how you are seeing it.

And product design uses it as well to show objects from different perspectives.

Now these are some examples of isometric drawings.

And now look carefully at these drawings.

What they actually do is they show objects at a 30-degree angle to create a 3D look.

This is an isometric cube, and here you can actually see in this picture a little bit more clearly that 30-degree angle.

So when I refer to a 30-degree angle, it's kind of the 30-degree angle from the bottom and that kind of angle going up that way.

Now you may be getting this a little bit muddled and it sometimes can be muddled with an oblique kind of way of drawing as well, so this is actually an oblique cube.

And this is the way that you may be the most familiar with with drawing in 3D as this is the way you were typically taught or would've been taught at primary school.

Now, an oblique cube is similar but you actually have a flat base to the object.

You can see with the isometric it's not a flat base.

On the oblique, it is.

The angle is also different as well.

So on isometric, it is 30 degrees, whereas with oblique it is 45 degrees, so it's a more severe angle.

Now to draw in isometric, a special paper is usually used, and this is called isometric paper.

The paper helps to keep everything in proportion and also at the correct angle.

So this is an example of isometric and you can see that all of the diagonals on this isometric paper are drawn at that 30-degree angle, so this really helps just to keep this all going at the right and correct angle for isometric.

Let's just do a quick check for understanding on that then.

Which of these is an example of an isometric drawing? Is it A, B, or C? Now look really carefully at these to work this out and pause the video here if you'd just like to take a moment to think about this.

And the answer? It was C.

So example A could have easily been confused, but actually very carefully you can see that that's a little bit more of an extreme angle and that's your 45-degree angle, whereas the C example is that actual 30-degree angle.

So it's a little bit tricky to see it, but hopefully you were able to just about make that difference.

How do we actually use isometric paper? It can take a little bit of practise.

So the first thing you need to do is place the isometric paper underneath a piece of plain paper.

That way you can use it as almost like a template to draw on top of and still be able to see your drawings rather than drawing directly onto the isometric paper.

Now the trickiest thing is just to make sure you've got it the right way up, and this is quite a common mistake that can be made at the start of using it.

You want to make sure the lines are running vertically, not horizontally.

So just like my example there, you've got vertical and diagonal lines.

If your lines are running horizontal and diagonal, then it's the wrong way up and you just need to turn it.

It's just good practise to secure the paper with a paperclip or a really small amount of masking tape in the corner just to hold those two pieces of paper together so that they don't slip around and you don't kind of lose track of where you are up to.

Right, it's time for you guys to have a go at a task.

You are gonna have a go at drawing a cube using the isometric paper.

Now let's just remind ourselves of what we need to do just to get this set up correctly.

The first thing you're gonna do is place the isometric paper beneath or underneath your plain paper.

So don't draw directly onto the isometric paper.

You're then gonna make sure the lines are running vertically, not horizontally.

So just double check that piece of paper, you should be able to see vertical and diagonal lines, not horizontal.

You're then gonna secure the paper with a paper clip or a really small piece of masking tape in the corner.

And then you're going to begin with drawing the cube.

Make sure you follow the lines, they're there for a reason.

Where you can sometimes go wrong with isometric is you kind of decide, actually, I'm just gonna go off at a completely different angle.

Follow the lines, even if they don't necessarily feel right 'cause it's gonna take a little bit of practise to get used to it, just stick with those lines.

They're correct and they're there for a reason.

Right, pause the video here to have a go at this task and good luck.

How did you get on? Now that can be a little bit tricky at first.

For some people this comes really easily and naturally, and for others it's just a little bit trickier.

That doesn't really mean anything, all our brains just work in slightly different ways.

So you were asked to draw a cube using isometric paper.

Now just let's have a little check that we've got it right.

This is like your success criteria that I'm now gonna go through.

So all vertical lines should be the same length.

That's because I asked you to draw a cube and obviously a cube will mean that all of the sides are the same size.

The next check is just to check it's actually in isometric.

And to do that, have you followed all of the lines of the isometric paper? Are the lines going diagonal at 30 degrees and have you got vertical lines as well? Also, just check that you can clearly see the top face and the two sides of the cube.

Remember, when I first started talking to you about isometric, I said that it enabled you to see three sides of an object, and you should be able to see the top and two sides.

The last check is just to check all the sides are the same size as well.

Now if all your vertical lines are the same length, then in theory your sides should be the same size, but that will depend on if you have drawn your diagonals the right length as well.

Remember, this was a cube you were trying to achieve.

Just compare yours to the success criteria that I've gone through and also the example that you've got on the screen there and just see how you actually got on.

Right, the second part of your task then is now to try and draw some more complex shapes using your isometric paper.

You've done a basic cube, let's step it up and see what we can do next.

Now the shapes that you've got an example of there follow the grid lines and each square within the shape is the same size, so that's really important that you keep to those same sizes.

Right, pause the video here to have a go at this task and see how you get on.

Okay, how did you get on? Obviously we just made that a little bit more complicated, but hopefully it kind of made sense to you.

Now you can see in the example here, as I said, each square or each kind of cube is one kind of square on the isometric paper.

So just compare your drawings to the example that I've got there and just also compare it to that success criteria I mentioned, that the shapes follow the grid lines and each square within the shape is the same size.

You wanna make sure each square is the same shape, otherwise it wouldn't have all matched up together.

Now how was that, was that a little bit more complicated, or did it still kind of make sense? Again, as long as you stuck to the isometric paper and followed that as a pattern, it can work really, really nicely just to make your life a little bit easier for drawing in isometric.

I also sometimes just kind of count the actual kind of triangles on the isometric paper to really remind myself of how many cubes I'm actually trying to draw out, so that's just a little helpful hint.

Okay, now let's look at applying this crating technique.

Now the crating technique for drawing is all about breaking down a drawing into simpler shapes.

We start with basic shapes like squares and circles to form the structure.

We then add details by drawing lines and smaller shapes onto that before we finish with really clean smart lines.

Now, a crate is basically just a guide to help you draw a more complex design, so crating can be a really helpful technique just to draw something that might be a little bit more complicated but you're still trying to draw in 3D.

And it helps you to build up a 3D form which you can then later erase, and by that I mean the actual crate you erase rather than that 3D form.

Crates are used to make drawing complicated shapes just that little bit easier, and designers use these even if they've been designing for years and years and years, they will still use crating for those more complicated ideas that they're trying to get down onto paper.

Let's just do a quick check for understanding on this.

Which of the below is a correctly labelled drawing? Is it A or is it B? Pause the video here just to take a moment to think about your answer.

Okay, and the answer? It was A.

So if you remember, I said that the crate was these kind of construction lines or these lines that we eventually rub out and we actually draw the main design inside the crate.

Well done if you got that right.

So here are some examples of crating being used to draw more complex shapes, and they really can be used for a variety of different kind of objects, different shapes and different forms. You can see that the crating is forming the outline, they're kind of the box or the form that's going to be drawn inside of.

Let's just do another quick check for understanding then.

True or false? A crate is the final fully drawn outcome.

Is that true or false? Pause the video here if you'd like to take a moment just to think about that.

And the answer? It's false.

The crate is not the final fully drawn outcome, that's kind of the main sketch.

The crate is the thing that you would then rub out at the end and get rid of.

It is purely there to help you plan the sketch.

Now why? Just explain that again.

A crate is a guide that helps you sketch a more complex shape and it will be erased later.

Okay, it's time for you to have a go at this.

I'm challenging you to sketch a character using the crating technique.

Now, the first thing you're going to do is you're going to draw one large cuboid.

And don't forget, you're using isometric projection to do this, so you may want to use the isometric grid paper below your piece of plain paper to help guide you.

So you're going to start with that one large cuboid.

You're then going to draw a smaller cuboid sitting on top of the first one.

The one large cuboid you're drawing is the body, the one that's a little bit smaller sitting on top is going to form the cube or the crate for the head.

You're then going to draw two long cuboids at the bottom which will form the crate for the legs.

Now you can see in the example that I've just done on the right, you can see here that it's taking like a rough form of a human.

Now it is very rough at this stage.

This is where you'll then move into adding detail.

So inside the cuboids you are then going to add details to create a superhero.

Be as creative as you can be, I'm sure you are able to do so.

What's your happy with your superhero? Then you're going to rub out all of your crate lines.

We don't wanna see those at the end.

And once you've ripped out those crate lines, that will enable you then to have the opportunity to define the outline of your superhero.

So you can go over that either by pressing a little bit harder with your pencil or just neatening up all those edges to really define the actual shape and design of your superhero.

Okay, good luck with this task.

Pause the video here to have a go at this.

Alright, how did you get on? Now, these are just some ideas.

Your design might look like these, but I'm sure they'll be completely and utterly different, completely original and probably better than these as well.

So you can see here in these examples we've used that crating technique just to get that isometric form correct and in the right position.

So we've been able to take our idea and put it into a 3D form a little bit more easily by just breaking it down into the body and the legs and the head.

You can also see the arms have been included onto these as well.

The last thing to consider is actually all of those crating lines are now gone, they have been raised, they've gone, and we can just see that final form of the sketch of the superhero character.

Just compare yours to the examples and just see if you've got your lines going in the right direction.

You might want to check it against your isometric paper as well, just again to check that all the angles are going at the correct kind of location or way.

So let's just summarise today's lesson.

We've been looking at crating techniques.

Now when producing design work, it's really important to choose the best communication method based on the purpose of the drawing.

And we looked at a couple of different examples of drawing techniques or communication methods, but the one we really focused on was isometric drawing.

An isometric drawing is a way to draw 3D objects using 30-degree angles.

Remember not to get it confused with oblique, which uses 45-degree angles.

Isometric uses that 30-degree angle.

An isometric drawing is used in design, engineering, and also gaming.

We also looked then at making the isometric drawing into more complex shapes by using the crating technique.

And the crating technique breaks complex drawings down into simple shapes like cubes and cylinders, and that really helps with accuracy and also proportion when then drawing in isometric.

Well done for today's lesson.

Hopefully you've learned that little bit more about drawing in 3D and it's making sense to you how to use isometric and crating as well.

You hopefully also got some really creative superheroes, so well done on that task.

Remember, with drawing, it really helps to practise your techniques.

So if you're really wanting to improve your drawing, practise as often as you can and go back over these techniques at some point as well.

Thank you for joining me for the lesson today and I will see you soon.