Gradient Hatching

[hyposmurf]

When you create gradient hatches,how do you add shadows?Are these in effect fake shadows if your drawing in 2D?Are gradient hatches best to use for 2D and just create your own lighting shadow effects in 3D?

[robfowler]

I would have thought that gradient hatching would be for 2D work.

Shadows can be quite effective in 3D modeling once materials and lights have been added. You add the shadow (option) when the light is created.

Rob.

[hyposmurf]

So I take it that idea of gradient hatching is way of adding 3D effects to A 2D drawing.

[robfowler]

Yes, at least that's how I see it.

When I first started teaching the Scottish Higher Graphic Communication course using AutoCAD LT98 we used to have to create 2.5D isometric views of products and then export the drawing file out (as a WMF file) to an illustration package such as Corel Draw or Designworks (ugh!) and add gradient hatches to try and make the product look truly 3D with light effects and shadows. It was always a very time consuming and labourious process.

When we got AutoCAD 2000 into the school and I started doing 3D modeling of products, adding materials, lights and shadows to the products, the difference in quality of the rendered products shot up dramatically.

We were one of the first schools to advocate using AutoCAD to render products at Higher level and I had to argue hard to get the Scottish Qualifications Authority to accept AutoCAD 3D modeling and rendering as the way to go for presenting rendered products. The idea was eventually accepted and is now written into the assessment criteria for the course as an acceptable alternative for illustration purposes.

So gradient hatching is still a way to make a 2D drawing look almost as if it has been created from a model view but isn't - if you know what I mean. 3D modeling is still the way to go :wink:

Rob.

[Mr T]

When you create gradient hatches,how do you add shadows?Are these in effect fake shadows if your drawing in 2D?Are gradient hatches best to use for 2D and just create your own lighting shadow effects in 3D?

Gradient hatching (fills) are pretty cool in 2004. You can setup a few then just add them to a TOOL PALLETTE and then drag n drop away !

Nick