Foundations, ages 13 and up, illustration
Composition and Storytelling
Plan pictures that read: thumbnails, notan, focal points, depth and a story across a sequence.
- Level
- Intermediate
- Lessons
- 7 in 4 units
- Time
- 5 hours of lessons
- Pace
- About five weeks
Already drawing with Lapis? Open the course in the app
The goal
What you’ll be able to draw
Plan pictures that read: thumbnails, notan, focal point, shape and value hierarchy, depth planes and leading lines; then tell a story across a sequence.
How you’ll see the progress
A composition check at the end (thumbnail and notan items), and the finished illustration.
Skills
- Composition
- Storytelling
- Value and light
Pictures you’ll make
- A Comic Page Layout Project
- From Thumbnail to Illustration Project
4 units, 7 lessons
The syllabus
Unit 2 is free for everyone, so you can see how it feels first.
- 3 checkpoint
- 2 concept
- 2 project
-
Unit 1
Thumbnails and notan
Small, fast plans in value, from two shapes to three.
Lessons for this unit are on their way.
- Free
Unit 2
Focus
Contrast, detail and edges pull the eye; unequal shapes read better.
- 01 The Focal Point Concept, 5 min Concept 5 min
- 02 Checkpoint: Focus Checkpoint, 15 min Checkpoint 15 min
-
Unit 3
Depth and mood
Planes of depth, camera angles and the same scene in two moods.
- 01 Camera Angles Concept, 5 min Concept 5 min
- 02 Checkpoint: Depth and mood Checkpoint, 15 min Checkpoint 15 min
-
Unit 4
Stories
A five-beat plan, a moment in three frames, and a finished illustration.
- 01 A Comic Page Layout Project, 60 min Project 60 min
- 02 From Thumbnail to Illustration Project, 180 min Project 180 min
- 03 Checkpoint: Stories Checkpoint, 15 min Checkpoint 15 min
When you finish
A certificate for the fridge
Finish every lesson and Lapis makes a certificate to print or download, with the nickname, the course, the date and a drawing from it. Children get one too.
Lapis certificate
Composition and Storytelling
finished by
your nickname
and the date you finish
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