Silverpoint

Sighting angles

Sighting an angle: a pencil held at arm's length is tilted to match a roofline, then the tilt is carried to the paper and compared against a horizontal1 · MATCH THE PENCIL TO THE EDGEarm straight, elbow locked, one eye closed2 · CARRY THE TILT TO THE PAGE≈ 29°compare to level, not to the previous lineMeasure against the two things that never lie: plumb and level.Ask "how far off vertical?" or "how far off horizontal?", never "what angle is it?"Nine out of ten wrong buildings are wrong because an angle was guessed. Sight it.
FigureSighting an angle
FoundationLine + Mass

Sighting angles

A pencil at arm's length, a door frame, a roofline

Measure an angle in the world with a pencil and transfer it to the page, comparing to plumb and level every time.

Difficulty
Time
about 0.5 h
You draw with
2H and HB
Sighting anglesPlumb and level

Why this one

  • Unit 2 of the program: Seeing.
  • A room corner and a building whose main angles are within a few degrees of true. Not pretty. Right.

From your kit

The whole kit →
  1. 1Grafwood 2H, HB 2H, HB for layout and line. Long points from the Blackwing on everything up to B.
  2. 2Kneaded eraser and the Mono Zero press-and-lift corrections only; the Mono Zero for a single sharp light.
  3. 3Alpha sketchbook 9 x 6 draw at the book's size and keep the proportions; date the page.
In general, this study asks for
  • Drawing pad
  • 2H and HB
  • A window with a building visible, or a photo of one

Watch first

All videos →

Sighting angles with a pencil against level and plumb.

YouTube
The basics: sighting and measuring in drawingThe Drawing Database · Comparative measurement with a straight arm, demonstrated on a still life.

The plan

4 stages · ~41 min
  1. 1

    The corner of your room

    12 min

    Sit facing a corner of your room where two walls meet the ceiling. Straight arm, elbow locked, one eye closed. Tilt the pencil to lie along the line where the left wall meets the ceiling. Hold the tilt, swing the arm down to the page, draw the line. Do the same for the right wall. Then the floor lines. You have just drawn a room in perspective without knowing any perspective.

    Sighting an angle: a pencil held at arm's length is tilted to match a roofline, then the tilt is carried to the paper and compared against a horizontal1 · MATCH THE PENCIL TO THE EDGEarm straight, elbow locked, one eye closed2 · CARRY THE TILT TO THE PAGE≈ 29°compare to level, not to the previous lineMeasure against the two things that never lie: plumb and level.Ask "how far off vertical?" or "how far off horizontal?", never "what angle is it?"Nine out of ten wrong buildings are wrong because an angle was guessed. Sight it.
    FigureMatch, carry, compare to level.
    Checklist0 / 1
  2. 2

    A roofline

    12 min

    Through the window, or from a photo propped at eye level, sight the main roofline of a building and draw it. Then the eave below it. Then the line of the base. Compare each to level: how far off is it? Then draw the vertical corner of the building and check it against the edge of your paper.

    Checklist0 / 1
  3. 3

    Check and re-sight

    12 min

    Sight each line again, now comparing the pencil to the line on your paper instead of the subject. The second sighting catches most errors. Correct with a fresh line beside the old one; do not erase yet.

    Cley Church, Norfolk, Cotman, 1818
    Art Institute of Chicago

    Cotman, Cley Church, Norfolk, 1818. Graphite and gray wash on ivory wove paper.

    Cotman, Cley Church. Every roof pitch, every buttress slope here was sighted and checked.

    The Art Institute of Chicago · Gift of Dorothy Braude Edinburg to the Harry B. and Bessie K. Braude Memorial Collection

    Checklist0 / 1
  4. 4

    Self-check

    5 min

    Tick each item honestly. If one is a no, the session is not finished; go back to that step.

    Checklist0 / 3

What it should look like

  • A room corner and a building whose main angles are within a few degrees of true. Not pretty. Right.

Where it goes wrong

  • The arm bends between sightings. Comfort. Lock the elbow. Say 'straight' aloud each time if you must.
  • Comparing each new angle to the previous line. Errors compound. Always compare to plumb or level.

Log this session

Start the clock when you pick up the pencil. Stop it when you put it down. Log it. Every session counts toward the box.

00:00of ~30 min

Status

How did it go?

Up nextComparative measurement