Help, please: Shading skill

Blue salt

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HI everyone I want buy video or book about shading teach because it difficult to me now ! No matter how i do i always get bad shading! I have seen Christian DeCamillis on engraversstudio video ! It helpful to me but not enough ! Can everyone tell me what kind book or video should i buy ? sorry my english bad ! thank for everyone !
 
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Sam

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[video=youtube;Ck8Q6xJJB4I]https://youtu.be/Ck8Q6xJJB4I[/video]

Shading is probably the most challenging part of hand engraving. It requires supreme graver control and the instincts to know how to effectively shade a variety of shapes to create volume and a three dimensional quality.

This isn't an instructional video, but a lot can be learned by watching it and paying attention to the direction of cuts, etc. I hope this helps.
 

Blue salt

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Thank you sam

THANK YOU SAM Your videos on youtube i have seen many time You are great graver and your shading very beautiful ! :豎起大拇指:
 

monk

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at first, don't try to cut as many lines as sam does in the video. just try to make the lines you do cut to be smooth and flowing. a few lines well cut, is far better than too many lines poorly done. notice the smooth rotation of the vise. also how the graver is removed at the cuts' end. he doesn't just let the graver come to a rest, he "pops" it out of the cut. this makes for a better looking result, with fewer burrs to deal with.
 

KCSteve

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I'm still working on my shading as well. Every now and then I'll take a practice plate and just do some shading. Sometimes I'll cut a shape to shade into, sometimes I'll just draw it on the metal, sometimes I just try to build it with the shade lines.

What I try to do is get the most clean, the most consistent, and the most 'blackening' set of lines. My goal is to have the shaded area go from very pale grey to dead black, the way Sam and the others do. Sometimes I get pretty darn close.

I know that ever time I 'waste' a couple of hours on this it makes my shading get just a little bit better.
 

Sam

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I'm still working on my shading as well. Every now and then I'll take a practice plate and just do some shading. Sometimes I'll cut a shape to shade into, sometimes I'll just draw it on the metal, sometimes I just try to build it with the shade lines.

What I try to do is get the most clean, the most consistent, and the most 'blackening' set of lines. My goal is to have the shaded area go from very pale grey to dead black, the way Sam and the others do. Sometimes I get pretty darn close.

I know that ever time I 'waste' a couple of hours on this it makes my shading get just a little bit better.

Don't keep us in suspense, Steve! Show us your progress!
Practice is never a waste of time. Not practicing is!
 

KCSteve

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Took some time today. I use galvanized fender washers for cheap practice plates. The hole can make it interesting, and the galvanized surface isn't always the best to work with, but I figure it's like practicing inlay with copper - if you can make a nice cut here, you can do it anywhere.
And the good thing about fender washers is that they're cheap - check the price of a box of 100 for yourself.

I started with just some groups of lines, then started doing leaves. I did one with simple shading - I'm better at it and sometimes less is more.

As noted, the galvanized finish made getting a perfect line start tough but that's part of the practice.
 

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Stewe thanks for your tips on shading and boat washers to practice on. One question, what kind of engraver,do you use and at what angels.

Pär B.
 

monk

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par: i'll let steve answer that. but if the galvanized finish is a bit rough, you could use 800 grit wet&dry abrasive paper to smooth it out. a small scotchbrite wheel will also do well for this. the nice thing about these-- they force yo to work & think small. for engraving, that's a good thing.
 

grumpyphil

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You can also skip the galvanized completely. McMaster has 316SS fender washers and they are not expensive.
 

KCSteve

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I'm lucky enough to have both GRS and Lindsay systems. On that one I happened to use my Lindsay and odds are I was using the standard (for Lindsay) 116 Universal.
 

Supercracker

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I practice on metal electrical outlet covers. A little more area than washers and a quick swipe with emery cloth to knock the galvanization off and it's good to go. $10 at Lowes get's you a big handful too.
 

Sam

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For those starting out with pneumatic handpieces or hammer & chisel, remember that vibration is your worst enemy. As far as practice plates go, use something that's thick and stiff enough not to vibrate. Washers are probably ok since they're relatively small.

Personally, I'd use steel practice plates. They're inexpensive, ready to go, thick enough, and don't have galvanization that needs to be sanded off. But whatever you use, keep vibration to a minimum by attaching thin practice material to a wooden block with epoxy, superglue, or hot glue.

If you're hand pushing then vibration is not a concern.
 

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