How Tone creates Reality:
Light creates tone, without light we would not be able to see any object. When you first look at the object you plan to draw you usually begin by looking at the overall shape of the object. Shape is considered to be flat ie two dimensional. But once you observe the effect of light on the object and begin to describe this using any media such as pencil or coloured paper, you can then begin to give the optical illusion that the object appears three dimensional. Light cannot travel around corners, or fall evenly around three dimensional objects so by documenting this observation as clearly as possible should allow you to make your drawings appear realistic. The top illustration shows how tone can be divided up into shapes. The middle illustration shows how tone can be divided into different gradations, this leads to making a work look more realistic by showing the effect light on the surface of the object. The surface of the cup is smooth therefore light travels gradually around its surface. The last illustration shows a charcoal drawing of the same subject. Therefore no matter what medium you use, tone added to an outline drawing helps to make it look realistic.
