3D Aspect

[jmb]

Hello,

I practice leathercarving (flowers, faces, animals, ....) and, when I look at the result, it hasn't enough depth or 3D aspect compared with what I can see on this forum for example.

What can improve this ? What can be the reason of this lack of depth : dampening of the leather, how I hit with the mallet ?

[Hilly]

Hello,

I practice leathercarving (flowers, faces, animals, ....) and, when I look at the result, it hasn't enough depth or 3D aspect compared with what I can see on this forum for example.

What can improve this ? What can be the reason of this lack of depth : dampening of the leather, how I hit with the mallet ?

Yes, properly casing your leather before you carve your design has a lot to do with it. Too wet, and the lines sort of swell shut. Too dry, and it's hard to carve.

The depth to which you carve determines how deeply you can bevel. Ideally, you should be cutting about half the depth of your leather.

Also, the order in which you bevel has a lot of affect on the look of depth. Always bevel the nearest items first, and the farthest away stuff the last.

[TwinOaks]

If you would, post a pic of your work. That way we can 'point' to specific areas and make suggestions. It is a little difficult to read print and say "Do this here, do that over there..."

Also, there's more to 3D carving than 'slice, smack, smack, smack.....' There's also quite a bit of work that occurs with other tools. Then there's embossing- Some of that 3D work you see is actually 3D, where the leather is pushed from the flesh side and stands out from the surface. That effect, combined with proper carving and tooling can yield results which are, in a word ......*spectacular*.

[jmb]

If you would, post a pic of your work. That way we can 'point' to specific areas and make suggestions. It is a little difficult to read print and say "Do this here, do that over there..."

Also, there's more to 3D carving than 'slice, smack, smack, smack.....' There's also quite a bit of work that occurs with other tools. Then there's embossing- Some of that 3D work you see is actually 3D, where the leather is pushed from the flesh side and stands out from the surface. That effect, combined with proper carving and tooling can yield results which are, in a word ......*spectacular*.

Thanks for your advices. In order to illustrate what I said about my work, here are some examples of what I do.

[electrathon]

There are a lot of little tricks to get depth, but the first and one of the most basic is to work half way through the leather thickness you have. Start by cutting half way through with the swivel knife. Then bevel, shade, background, etc. down to that depth.

Aaron

[ClayB]

I think one of the keys to getting a 3-D look to your work is to learn to vary the depth of your cuts and your tooling. Take your leaf for example. It looks like you have cut and beveled the center vein the same depth as the border of the leaf. By tooling it to that depth, it makes the vein look like it is setting on top of the leaf instead of being a part of the leaf. If you would have cut the center vein shallower, then beveled it lightly, it would give it a more realistic appearance, IMO.

A really good place to go for basic tooling information is Paul Burnett's Painting Cow website. Check out the free lessons he offers. There is a LOT of info there to get you off on the right track.

[jmb]

I think one of the keys to getting a 3-D look to your work is to learn to vary the depth of your cuts and your tooling. Take your leaf for example. It looks like you have cut and beveled the center vein the same depth as the border of the leaf. By tooling it to that depth, it makes the vein look like it is setting on top of the leaf instead of being a part of the leaf. If you would have cut the center vein shallower, then beveled it lightly, it would give it a more realistic appearance, IMO.

A really good place to go for basic tooling information is Paul Burnett's Painting Cow website. Check out the free lessons he offers. There is a LOT of info there to get you off on the right track.

Thanks a lot for all these advises that I will try to apply.

[iwannabeacowboy]

I concur with the others(I'm still learning) proper casing, swivel knife depth. And don't be afraid to whack a little harder with your choice of whacking instruments. Also once your getting your main depth of your object, then as your adding your detail work will be where I'll start backing off with the maul to give it some depth-3D. One more thing I'm sure you'll read elsewhere is the 3 p's-Practice, Practice, Practice.