Original Usenet thread from alt.ascii-art, started 28 Jun 1994.
The Making of an ASCII Mona Lisa
alt.ascii-art
· 5 messages · 28 Jun 1994 - 29 Jun 1994
I have seen several ascii versions of the Mona Lisa circulating in
alt.ascii-art but I was not happy with any of them. They all
appeared to be converted GIFs and even the best one, which was
distinctly superior to all the others, only looked decent when I
stood back at least 5 feet from it. It also had the drawback of
being stretched vertically. So I decided to make my own.
I also wanted to take this opportunity to give a concrete example
of how the special grid technique that I use, accelerates and
simplifies the creation of many ASCII drawings. I wanted to
explain, as much as possible, what was involved in drawing by
"hand" the ASCII version of a relatively complex picture while
starting from scratch.
I have described the grid technique in a previous post (in Jan.
'94), but a recapitulation is necessary before going any further.
Basically, the grid was nothing more than a series of characters
that filled up the area taken by the drawing. I realized that the
characters composing the grid would be more useful if they were
chosen to help pinpoint where a particular portion of the drawing
was located within the grid.
There was many ways of doing this, but I opted for the following
rectangle (10 x 5 characters):
1.2.3.4.5.
2.A.B.C.D.
3.E.F.G.H.
4.I.J.K.L.
5.M.N.O.P.
This rectangle was then replicated horizontally and vertically
until an area the size of an 8.5" x 11" page was filled up. I
later decided to replace the periods by spaces to "lighten" the
grid. This created an electronic grid which looked like this:
1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4
2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C
3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G
4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K
5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O
1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4
2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C
3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G
4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K
5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O
The characters 1 to 5 produced horizontal and vertical guidelines.
With these guidelines, I could quickly locate the approximate area
of the grid that I wanted to work on. To pinpoint the exact
location, I relied on the letters A to P which appeared only once
inside each rectangle.
Of course, the electronic grid alone was not very useful until I
could somehow relate it to the drawing. To do so, I printed out
the grid and then photocopied it on an acetate for reusability.
Then, whenever I wanted to work on a picture, I taped a photocopy
of it to the back of the acetate and brought up the electronic grid
on the screen. By the intermediary of the grid, I automatically
had a relationship between the picture on paper and the screen.
TIP: If you ever print a grid on an acetate, make sure to cover the
acetate with clear tape afterwards to prevent your fingers
from eroding the toner. I learned the hard way.
Now, back to Mona. You may find the discussion a little difficult
to follow at times without a picture, so either find a copy of the
Mona Lisa or print out this file.
In search of a decent reproduction of the Mona Lisa I went to the
closest library and found an excellent example on page 25 of the
book "Leonard de Vinci" published by McGraw-Hill in 1974. The
picture measured about 9.5" x 12" and was in full colour.
Next, I photocopied the picture. The lowest darkness setting gave
the best result, but was still a little bit too dark in certain
areas to distinguish some of the lines. Before addressing that
problem, I decided to cut the photocopy so that the resulting
picture could fit in 55 lines by 78 columns. This was
approximately double the height of the head and was wide enough to
show a large portion of both shoulders.
To make the barely discernable lines more visible, I highlighted
them with a blue pen. I made sure to draw those lines about one
sixteenth of an inch thick so they would be clearly visible.
Experience had taught me that very fine lines were often too
difficult to distinguish from a dark background once the grid was
superimposed on the picture. The affected lines were: the lines
between veil and hair, hair and background, chin and throat, and
the lines on each side of the face and on each side of the arched
garment extending to her left shoulder (referred to as the shawl in
the rest of this document). While I was at it, I also highlighted
the contours of the lips, nose and eyes in the same manner. I then
taped the touched up photocopy behind the acetate which had the
grid.
The next step was to load the electronic version of the grid in my
favourite word processor (WordPerfect). Before starting work, I
decided to represent the dark areas of the picture with an "8" (I'm
sure you guessed that), the shawl with an "I" and the veil with an
"8" if it was covering any hair and with an "I" if it was not (or
to show its border in the hair). I chose those characters since
they contrasted very well: it was easy to distinguish a line of
I's in an area filled with 8's.
Then, I determined which character of the acetate corresponded to
the top of her left shoulder and located that character on the
electronic grid. While holding the acetate in my left hand and
marking my position on it with my thumb, I delimited the contour
(only one character wide) around the bottom of the picture (counter
clockwise) up to her right shoulder by replacing the characters of
the grid with 8's except for the ends of the shawl which needed
I's.
I then continued up the picture, line by line, while overwriting
the grid's characters with spaces until I got to the first
character delimiting the border of Mona's hair or veil, as
determined from the acetate. At that point, I typed one of four
characters: "8", "d", "`" or "," depending on which one
corresponded best to the dark portion of the picture at that
location on the acetate. I then typed two more 8's and a space;
just enough to define the contour. Of course, when I was in the
area where the veil was the first thing to be reached I used I's
instead of 8's.
I repeated that process for each line until I reached the top of
the head. There, I decided to follow the inside line of the hair
while going down the right side of the picture. So, I first
started by defining the hair line on the forehead and filling the
top of the head with 8's. Then, starting at the inside line for
the hair I typed 8's until I reached the other side of the hair and
then added a "b" or a "," if necessary. I also made sure to drop
an "I" along the way at the exact location where I had shown the
veil to start covering the hair (it was a blue line on the
photocopy). I continued this, line by line, until I reached the
top of the shawl.
So, half an hour after loading the grid I was at this stage:
_______
_,,ad8888888888bba,_
,8888888888888888888888888,
,888888888888888888888888888888,
,8888888888888888888888888888888888,
d88888PP"""""""YY888888888888888888888,
,88 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 ""Y8888888888888,
,II 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E IIII8888888888,
,II 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J `888III8888888,
,II P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N `888888I888888,
,II 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 `888888I8888b
,II C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 8888888I8888,
II8 G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H `8888888I888b
II8 K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 88888888I888
II8 O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 88888888I888,
II8 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 ,888888888I88b
,II B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 8888888888I888
II8 F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 8888888888I888,
,II J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 8888888888I888b
II8 N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 88888888888I888
II8 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 88888888888I888,
II8 B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 88888888888I888b
II8 F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 88888888888I8888,
II8 J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 88888888888I8888b
II8 N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 88888888888I88888
II8 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 88888888888I88888
`II B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 88888888888I88888
II8 F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 8888888888I888888,
`II J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 8888888888I888888b
`II O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 8888888888I8888888
`II 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 `888888888I8888888,
II8 D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 888888888I88888888,
,II G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H `88888888I888888888,
II8 K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 88888888I8888888888,
II8 O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 88888888I888888888888,
,II 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 `8888888I88888888888888,
II8 C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 8888888I888888888888888b
,II F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 ,8888888I8888888888888888
,88 J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J I
,88 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N I
,88 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 I
,88 C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B I
,88 G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F I
d88 J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J I
8 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N 8
8 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 8
8 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B 8
8 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F 8
8 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J 8
8 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N 8
8 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 8
8 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B 8
8 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F 8
8 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J 8
8888888888888888888888888888888IIIIIIIIIIIIII88888888888888888888888888888888
Here, it seemed appropriate to fill in the shawl with I's which
automatically led to filling in the bottom right corner with 8's
and adding my name. I then completed the small portion of hair at
the top of the shawl. Then, I defined the upper portion of the
garment, beside the veil, and filled in the section below that with
8's. Next, I filled the rest of the hair (on the left side of the
picture) with 8's while defining the hair's inside line. I also
filled in, with spaces, the area of skin from the top of the
garment up to the throat. Next, I drew the veil on the forehead
and filled in the rest of the forehead with spaces. And finally I
smoothed all the lines drawn so far, leaving the face for last.
So, after one hour of work I was at this stage:
_______
_,,ad8888888888bba,_
,ad88888I888888888888888ba,
,88888888I88888888888888888888a,
,d888888888I8888888888888888888888b,
d88888PP"""" ""YY88888888888888888888b,
,d88"'__,,--------,,,,._ ""Y8888888888888,
,8II-'" "```IIII8888888888,
,I88' `Y88III8888888,
,II88I `Y88888I888888,
,II888' `888888I8888b
,II8888 Y888888I8888,
II88888 `8888888I888b
II88888, 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 88888888I888
II88888I 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 88888888I888,
II88888' 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 ,888888888I88I
,II88888 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D d888888888I888
III88888, 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 8888888888I888,
,III88888I 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 8888888888I888I
III888888I 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 88888888888I888
II88888888, 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 88888888888I888,
II88888888I A B C D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 88888888888I888b
]I888888888, E F G H 3 E F G H 3 E F G H 88888888888I8888,
II888888888I I J K L 4 I J K L 4 I J K L 88888888888I8888I
II8888888888b N O P 5 M N O P 5 M N O P 88888888888I88888
II888888888888a 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 88888888888I88888
`II8888888888888b, D 2 A B C D 2 A B C D 88888888888I88888
II888888888888888ba,_ E F G H 3 E F G H 8888888888I888888,
`II88888888888888888b I J K L 4 I J K L I888888888I888888b
`II88888888888888888 M N O P 5 M N O P I888888888I8888888
`II8888888888888888 `888888888I8888888,
II8888888888888888, Y88888888I8888888b,
,II8888888888888888b `88888888I88888888b,
II888888888888888P"I 88888888I8888888888,
II888888888888P" ` Y8888888I88888888888b,
,II888888888P" `8888888I8888888888888b,
II888888888' 8888888I888888888888888b
,II888888888 ,8888888I8888888888888888
,d88888888888 d888888I8888888888IIIIIII
,ad888888888888I 8888888I8888IIIIIIIIIIIII
,d888888888888888' 888888IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
,d888888888888P'8P' Y888IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
,8888888888888, " ,IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
d888888888888888, ,IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
888888888888888888a, _ ,IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII888888888
888888888888888888888ba,_d' ,IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII88888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888bbbaaa,,,______,IIIIIIIIIIIIIII888888888888888888
88888888888888888888888888888888888888888IIIIIIIIIIIIIII888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888888888IIIIIIIIIIIIII88888888888888888888888
888888888888888888888888888888888888888IIIIIIIIIIIIII888888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888888IIIIIIIIIIIIII88888888888888888888888888
88888888888888888888888888888888888IIIIIIIIIIIIII8888888888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888IIIIIIIIIIIIII88888888888888888 Normand 88
88888888888888888888888888888888IIIIIIIIIIIIII8888888888888888888 Veilleux 88
8888888888888888888888888888888IIIIIIIIIIIIII88888888888888888888888888888888
I found the shawl to be much too pale in comparison to the rest of
the garment, so I tried replacing the I's with darker characters
such as M, H, A, etc. Unfortunately, even though I could see the
difference on the screen reasonably well, I could not see any
difference between those characters and the surrounding 8's when I
used the reduced view feature of WordPerfect. I have been using
this feature to view an entire page at a time on the screen. It's
only when I tried a 'Z' that I was able to distinguish between the
two characters in the reduced view. So, 'Z' had my vote.
I then worked on the face for about half an hour, defining the
mouth, nose, eyes, etc. I tried my preferred style first, but it
looked awful so I tried line draw instead without any more success.
Nothing seemed to work, so I reverted back to my preferred style of
ASCII drawing and to be true to it I did not add any shading to the
face.
This was how the picture looked at that stage:
_______
_,,ad8888888888bba,_
,ad88888I888888888888888ba,
,88888888I88888888888888888888a,
,d888888888I8888888888888888888888b,
d88888PP"""" ""YY88888888888888888888b,
,d88"'__,,--------,,,,._ ""Y8888888888888,
,8II-'" "```IIII8888888888,
,I88' `Y88III8888888,
,II88I `Y88888I888888,
,II888' `888888I8888b
,II8888 Y888888I8888,
II88888 `8888888I888b
II88888, .aag, ,gaaP"" 88888888I888
II88888I ___"b d" ____ 88888888I888,
II88888' <^I88>I I <^I888' ,888888888I88I
,II88888 . `""" I I `""" . d888888888I888
III88888, ```` b '''' 8888888888I888,
,III88888I 8888888888I888I
III888888I , \, 88888888888I888
II88888888, I' "I 88888888888I888,
II88888888I `"baad"' ,88888888888I888b
]I888888888, ,P88888888888I8888,
II888888888I "Y88bd888P" ,d" 88888888888I8888I
II8888888888b `""""" _,8" ,88888888888I88888
II888888888888a _,P"' ,d88888888888I88888
`II8888888888888b, _,d"' ,aP"88888888888I88888
II888888888888888ba,__,,ad"" _,aP" 8888888888I888888,
`II88888888888888888b"ba,,,,aadP"' I888888888I888888b
`II88888888888888888 `""""' I888888888I8888888
`II8888888888888888 `888888888I8888888,
II8888888888888888, Y88888888I8888888b,
,II8888888888888888b `88888888I88888888b,
II888888888888888P"I 88888888I8888888888,
II888888888888P" ` Y8888888I88888888888b,
,II888888888P" `8888888I8888888888888b,
II888888888' 8888888I888888888888888b
,II888888888 ,8888888I8888888888888888
,d88888888888 d888888I8888888888ZZZZZZZ
,ad888888888888I 8888888I8888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
,d888888888888888' 888888IZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
,d888888888888P'8P' Y888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
,8888888888888, " ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
d888888888888888, ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
888888888888888888a, _ ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888
888888888888888888888ba,_d' ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888bbbaaa,,,______,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888888888888
88888888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888888888
888888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888888888888
88888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ8888888888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888 Normand 88
88888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ8888888888888888888 Veilleux 88
8888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888888888888888888
Since I could not seem to improve the face, I decided to try and
experiment with shading to see if that could help. Well, it did
not turn out the way I thought it would: the shading was too pale.
So I ended up losing half an hour to get to this stage:
_______
_,,ad8888888888bba,_
,ad88888I888888888888888ba,
,88888888I88888888888888888888a,
,d88888888I88888888888888888888888b,
d88888PP""" """YY88888888888888888888b,
,d88"'__,,--------,,,;:::""Y8888888888888,
,8II:'" .,:.":::IIII8888888888,
,I88:. ...::::::Y88III8888888,
,II88I:. :..:::::Y88888I888888,
,II888'.. :.:...:::::888888I8888b
,II8888. .::::::Y888888I8888,
II88888: .:::::::8888888I888b
II88888; .aag, ,gaaP""... .:.::::::88888888I888
II88888I:::::::"b d":::::;;::, :..:::::88888888I888,
II88888'::<^I88>I I::.<^I888' ..:.::;888888888I88I
,II88888 . `""" I I:.. `""" . ..:.::d888888888I888
III88888, ```` b;. '''' ..:.:::8888888888I888,
,III88888I :. ..:.::::8888888888I888I
III888888I , :, :::.::::88888888888I888
II88888888;: I' "I :.:.:::::88888888888I888,
II88888888I:. `"baad": .:::.::::88888888888I888b
]I888888888;:.:. :.:..:.:: ..:.:.:::::88888888888I8888,
II888888888I:. ."Y88bd888P" ..::.::::::88888888888I8888I
II8888888888b::. `""""'.:.:.:.::.::::::;88888888888I88888
II888888888888a:. :::::.:. .:,aP:::::;d88888888888I88888
`II8888888888888b;. ..::.;aP":::::;aP:88888888888I88888
II888888888888888ba,__,,aP"::::::;aP::::8888888888I888888,
`II88888888888888888b"ba;;;;aadP":::::::I888888888I888888b
`II88888888888888888 .:::::::::::::::::I888888888I8888888
`II8888888888888888 .::::::::::::::..`888888888I8888888,
II8888888888888888, ..::.:::::.:.. Y88888888I8888888b,
,II8888888888888888b .::..:.. `88888888I88888888b,
II888888888888888P"I ..:. 88888888I8888888888,
II888888888888P"::.` Y8888888I88888888888b,
,II888888888P".::: `8888888I8888888888888b,
II888888888' 8888888I888888888888888b
Later, I decided to give line drawing another chance and started
working on the face with no shading. I managed to get a decent
looking nose in about 5 minutes so I continued and slowly but
surely the rest of the face took on a new look that was much better
than anything obtained so far. It took about half an hour of trial
and error to get to this:
_______
_,,ad8888888888bba,_
,ad88888I888888888888888ba,
,88888888I88888888888888888888a,
,d888888888I8888888888888888888888b,
d88888PP"""" ""YY88888888888888888888b,
,d88"'__,,--------,,,,._ ""Y8888888888888,
,8II-'" "```IIII8888888888,
,I88' `Y88III8888888,
,II88I `Y88888I888888,
,II888' `888888I8888b
,II8888 Y888888I8888,
II88888 `8888888I888b
II88888, ---. ..----- 88888888I888
II88888I _,,_ `. .' _,,_ 88888888I888,
II88888' <'(@@> | | <'(@@> ,888888888I88I
,II88888 `""" | | `""" d888888888I888
III88888, ` 8888888888I888,
,III88888I 8888888888I888I
III888888I , ', 88888888888I888
II88888888, (_ _) 88888888888I888,
II88888888I `--' ,88888888888I888b
]I888888888, ,P88888888888I8888,
II888888888I "Y88bd888P" ,d" 88888888888I8888I
II8888888888b `""""" _,8" ,88888888888I88888
II888888888888a _,P"' ,d88888888888I88888
`II8888888888888b, _,d"' ,aP"88888888888I88888
II888888888888888ba,__,,ad"" _,aP" 8888888888I888888,
`II88888888888888888b"ba,,,,aadP"' I888888888I888888b
`II88888888888888888 `""""' I888888888I8888888
`II8888888888888888 `888888888I8888888,
II8888888888888888, Y88888888I8888888b,
,II8888888888888888b `88888888I88888888b,
II888888888888888P"I 88888888I8888888888,
II888888888888P" ` Y8888888I88888888888b,
,II888888888P" `8888888I8888888888888b,
II888888888' 888888I8888888888888888b
,II888888888 ,888888I88888888888888888
,d88888888888 d888888I8888888888ZZZZZZZ
,ad888888888888I 8888888I8888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
,d888888888888888' 888888IZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
,d888888888888P'8P' Y888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
,8888888888888, " ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
d888888888888888, ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
888888888888888888a, _ ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888
888888888888888888888ba,_d' ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888bbbaaa,,,______,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888888888888
88888888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888888888
888888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888888888888
88888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ8888888888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888 Normand 88
88888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ8888888888888888888 Veilleux 88
8888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888888888888888888
I decided to consider this the final unshaded version.
Now, the question remained: would it be worthwhile to add in the
shading? I showed the unshaded version of the picture to a friend
who is a graphic designer. It didn't take him long to mention
shading as the next step. I showed him the first attempt
(displayed above) and admitted that I had no idea how to improve
it. He suggested using a printed copy of my unshaded picture and
drawing the shading on it first, before attempting to draw it on
the computer.
Well, that almost discouraged me right there. Drawing simple stuff
on paper was not a problem, but when it came to shading I didn't
have a clue how it could be done. He helped by pointing out that
I could start by drawing the outer edge of the faintest shading as
though it were a regular object. I could then define another line
that would represent the "middle ground" of the shading. He
suggested not to use more than 2 or 3 different levels of shading.
So off to the drawing board I went.
I did not keep all the stages of the shading, but suffice to say
that it took about twice as much time then all the rest of the
picture. This was the final result of the shaded version:
_______
_,,ad8888888888bba,_
,ad88888I888888888888888ba,
,88888888I88888888888888888888a,
,d888888888I8888888888888888888888b,
d88888PP"""" ""YY88888888888888888888b,
,d88"'__,,--------,,,,.;ZZZY8888888888888,
,8IIl'" ;;l"ZZZIII8888888888,
,I88l;' ;lZZZZZ888III8888888,
,II88Zl;. ;llZZZZZ888888I888888,
,II888Zl;. .;;;;;lllZZZ888888I8888b
,II8888Z;; `;;;;;''llZZ8888888I8888,
II88888Z;' .;lZZZ8888888I888b
II88888Z; _,aaa, .,aaaaa,__.l;llZZZ88888888I888
II88888IZZZZZZZZZ, .ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ;llZZ88888888I888,
II88888IZZ<'(@@>Z| |ZZZ<'(@@>ZZZZ;;llZZ888888888I88I
,II88888; `""" ;| |ZZ; `""" ;;llZ8888888888I888
II888888l `;; .;llZZ8888888888I888,
,II888888Z; ;;; .;;llZZZ8888888888I888I
III888888Zl; .., `;; ,;;lllZZZ88888888888I888
II88888888Z;;...;(_ _) ,;;;llZZZZ88888888888I888,
II88888888Zl;;;;;' `--'Z;. .,;;;;llZZZZ88888888888I888b
]I888888888Z;;;;' ";llllll;..;;;lllZZZZ88888888888I8888,
II888888888Zl.;;"Y88bd888P";;,..;lllZZZZZ88888888888I8888I
II8888888888Zl;.; `"PPP";;;,..;lllZZZZZZZ88888888888I88888
II888888888888Zl;;. `;;;l;;;;lllZZZZZZZZW88888888888I88888
`II8888888888888Zl;. ,;;lllZZZZZZZZWMZ88888888888I88888
II8888888888888888ZbaalllZZZZZZZZZWWMZZZ8888888888I888888,
`II88888888888888888b"WWZZZZZWWWMMZZZZZZI888888888I888888b
`II88888888888888888;ZZMMMMMMZZZZZZZZllI888888888I8888888
`II8888888888888888 `;lZZZZZZZZZZZlllll888888888I8888888,
II8888888888888888, `;lllZZZZllllll;;.Y88888888I8888888b,
,II8888888888888888b .;;lllllll;;;.;..88888888I88888888b,
II888888888888888PZI;. .`;;;.;;;..; ...88888888I8888888888,
II888888888888PZ;;';;. ;. .;. .;. .. Y8888888I88888888888b,
,II888888888PZ;;' `8888888I8888888888888b,
II888888888' 888888I8888888888888888b
,II888888888 ,888888I88888888888888888
,d88888888888 d888888I8888888888ZZZZZZZ
,ad888888888888I 8888888I8888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
,d888888888888888' 888888IZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
,d888888888888P'8P' Y888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
,8888888888888, " ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
d888888888888888, ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
888888888888888888a, _ ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888
888888888888888888888ba,_d' ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888bbbaaa,,,______,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888888888888
88888888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888888888
888888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888888888888
88888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ8888888888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888 Normand 88
88888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ8888888888888888888 Veilleux 88
8888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888888888888888888
As you can see, the grid system that I have been working with since
January '94 allows to very quickly transfer the large details from
paper to screen while keeping the proportions of the original
picture. This eliminates a lot of the time-consuming
experimentation otherwise required to get the right proportions.
You can't go wrong with the grid: the characters that compose it
allow you to "see" where you should start and where you should
stop. The skills required to use it are fairly simple as well,
although they do need to be practiced. One thing the grid cannot
do though, is eliminate the experimentation needed for the
finishing touch: the smaller details, the smoothing, the shading,
etc.
---<-<@ ---<-<@ ---<-<@ ---<-<@ ---<-<@
A big thank you goes to Rowan Crawford who spent time revising an
earlier draft of this document and who provided many useful
suggestions to improve its contents.
The pictures I post are at their best when printed with a
'Line Printer 16.67 cpi' font or equivalent.
___ _______
,88888, ,d88888888a
,88" `Y8, ,88"' `"Y8i ,ggggg, ,ggggg, ,ggg,,ggg,,ggg,
I8b, `8b ,88' d8I dP" "Y8ggg8""""8I ,8" "8P" "8P" "8,
`Y8P 88.88' ,88' i8' ,8I 8I I8 8I 8I 8I
(8V8' d8P I8, ,d8' Y8,,dP 8I 8I Yb,
(88P ,8P `Y8888P" `Y88P' 8I 8I `Y8ba
d88 d8'
,88' ,8P _,,ggdd888bbgg,,_
d8P I8I _,gd8888P"""""""""Y8888bg,_
,88 I8b _,gd88P"""' `"""Y88bg,_
88' `Y8b,__,gd8P""' Normand Veilleux `""Y8bg,_
d8P `Y88888P"' nve...@emr1.emr.ca `"Y88ba
Normand Veilleux (nve...@emr1.emr.ca) wrote: text deleted ... : I also wanted to take this opportunity to give a concrete example : of how the special grid technique that I use, accelerates and : simplifies the creation of many ASCII drawings. I wanted to : explain, as much as possible, what was involved in drawing by : "hand" the ASCII version of a relatively complex picture while : starting from scratch. : I have described the grid technique in a previous post (in Jan. : '94), but a recapitulation is necessary before going any further. : Basically, the grid was nothing more than a series of characters : that filled up the area taken by the drawing. I realized that the : characters composing the grid would be more useful if they were : chosen to help pinpoint where a particular portion of the drawing : was located within the grid. I really enjoyed the summary of this technique, and found the example extremely helpful. It looks to me like you have "re-invented" the counted cross-stitch. This is a type of needlework in which the image is composed of squares which are "colored in" by a cross of colored thread. The patterns for these things look very much like the picture which you have generated; these patterns are produced using the same method which you describe (an overlay). The overlay is just a simple square grid, with the size adjusted to match the thread count of the base fabric. The grid is not indexed, as you have done; the needleworker must count squares to find a specific location. It might be that the patterns for cross-stitch might be converted to ascii art rather easily ... has anyone tried this ?
_______
_,,ad8888888888bba,_
,ad88888I888888888888888ba,
,88888888I88888888888888888888a,
,d888888888I8888888888888888888888b,
d88888PP"""" ""YY88888888888888888888b,
,d88"'__,,--------,,,,.;ZZZY8888888888888,
,8IIl'" ;;l"ZZZIII8888888888,
,I88l;' ;lZZZZZ888III8888888,
,II88Zl;. ;llZZZZZ888888I888888,
,II888Zl;. .;;;;;lllZZZ888888I8888b
,II8888Z;; `;;;;;''llZZ8888888I8888,
II88888Z;' .;lZZZ8888888I888b
II88888Z; _,aaa, .,aaaaa,__.l;llZZZ88888888I888
II88888IZZZZZZZZZ, .ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ;llZZ88888888I888,
II88888IZZ<'(@@>Z| |ZZZ<'(@@>ZZZZ;;llZZ888888888I88I
,II88888; `""" ;| |ZZ; `""" ;;llZ8888888888I888
II888888l `;; .;llZZ8888888888I888,
,II888888Z; ;;; .;;llZZZ8888888888I888I
III888888Zl; .., `;; ,;;lllZZZ88888888888I888
II88888888Z;;...;(_ _) ,;;;llZZZZ88888888888I888,
II88888888Zl;;;;;' `--'Z;. .,;;;;llZZZZ88888888888I888b
]I888888888Z;;;;' ";llllll;..;;;lllZZZZ88888888888I8888,
II888888888Zl.;;"Y88bd888P";;,..;lllZZZZZ88888888888I8888I
II8888888888Zl;.; `"PPP";;;,..;lllZZZZZZZ88888888888I88888
II888888888888Zl;;. `;;;l;;;;lllZZZZZZZZW88888888888I88888
`II8888888888888Zl;. ,;;lllZZZZZZZZWMZ88888888888I88888
II8888888888888888ZbaalllZZZZZZZZZWWMZZZ8888888888I888888,
`II88888888888888888b"WWZZZZZWWWMMZZZZZZI888888888I888888b
`II88888888888888888;ZZMMMMMMZZZZZZZZllI888888888I8888888
`II8888888888888888 `;lZZZZZZZZZZZlllll888888888I8888888,
II8888888888888888, `;lllZZZZllllll;;.Y88888888I8888888b,
,II8888888888888888b .;;lllllll;;;.;..88888888I88888888b,
II888888888888888PZI;. .`;;;.;;;..; ...88888888I8888888888,
II888888888888PZ;;';;. ;. .;. .;. .. Y8888888I88888888888b,
,II888888888PZ;;' `8888888I8888888888888b,
II888888888' 888888I8888888888888888b
,II888888888 ,888888I88888888888888888
,d88888888888 d888888I8888888888ZZZZZZZ
,ad888888888888I 8888888I8888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
,d888888888888888' 888888IZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
,d888888888888P'8P' Y888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
,8888888888888, " ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
d888888888888888, ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
888888888888888888a, _ ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888
888888888888888888888ba,_d' ,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888bbbaaa,,,______,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888888888888
88888888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888888888
888888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ888888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888888888888
88888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ8888888888888888888888888888
8888888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888 Normand 88
88888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ8888888888888888888 Veilleux 88
8888888888888888888888888888888ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ88888888888888888888888888888888
I don't know if it's just my font or what, but it looks to me like poor Mona
is bug-eyed and bearded! I thought the smaller gif conversions were much
more representative of the painting. I don't mean to be cruel, but without
the topic, I would not recognize this as the Mona Lisa. Before shading, I
think you were a little closer. (still bug-eyed 8)
Sean Lambert sum...@cs.montana.edu
dwy...@hal.oit.uwplatt.edu (dwyer howard) writes: >It might be that the patterns for cross-stitch might be converted >to ascii art rather easily ... has anyone tried this ? This is a fun idea. I await the first ASCII 'sampler' eagerly. Not quite the sme thing... Ulichney`s book `Digital Halftoning' had an enlarged section of a Jacquard fabric. The artist has made a face out of light and dark. You can see they have faced all the same problems as we do - trying to get a tight pattern for halftones; trying to get a smooth gradation between grey levels; trying to render features that don't quite fit an integral number of pixels. (apologies for no ascii-art - new job, new editor, new newsreader, new font. Hope this message comes out OK). -- adBBba. Ba. A VgooodB ,B B. B Richard Kirk b ,B" _ S"b B.Bb .dBb .B dBBB. B.aP" _"B. JB.aPb ra...@canon.co.uk BaP" .B B .JB? B B. B.BBV B B BK. B BP'BCaP' B `YaaP' VBP B B? VB?' B `bd' B "YaaBP B B "Vbaa 0483-448869
[cut cut cut] >It might be that the patterns for cross-stitch might be converted >to ascii art rather easily ... has anyone tried this ? There is one problem with this, and that is the fact that characters (usually) are NOT square. I have done some cross stitching before, so I know what you are talking about. Also, I think cross stitch patterns would appear very large indeed on a screen. The screen is normally about 24 lines or so long, and about 80 columns. If you mashed the cross stitch down, so that two vertical squares are one character, that's only a cross stitch 48 x 80 at the most (for one screen size, that is.) I don't think it would be impossible to do, but I just thought I'd point out the difficulties that I see, in case someone else forgets =] - Sean Lambert - sum...@cs.montana.edu
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