Shadings in digital taxonomic drawings

There is no author summary for this article yet. Authors can add summaries to their articles on ScienceOpen to make them more accessible to a non-specialist audience.

Abstract

This contribution describes how shadings can be applied to taxonomic line drawings created with vector graphics software. The line drawings created with the vector graphic software are saved in vector format and then also in bitmap graphics format. The bitmap version is opened in a bitmap graphics program and the areas for shading selected. A new layer is then created and clouds of pixels are ‘sprayed’ onto these areas. The pixel clouds are saved and later placed onto the outlines in the vector graphic software as a new layer. The results combine the advantages of vector graphics, perfectly smooth lines and the greyscales of bitmap graphics.

Related collections

Most cited references 5

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: found

Is Open Access

A fast GNU method to draw accurate scientific illustrations for taxonomy

Giuseppe Montesanto (2015)

Abstract Nowadays only digital figures are accepted by the most important journals of taxonomy. These may be produced by scanning conventional drawings, made with high precision technical ink-pens, which normally use capillary cartridge and various line widths. Digital drawing techniques that use vector graphics, have already been described in literature to support scientists in drawing figures and plates for scientific illustrations; these techniques use many different software and hardware devices. The present work gives step-by-step instructions on how to make accurate line drawings with a new procedure that uses bitmap graphics with the GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP). This method is noteworthy: it is very accurate, producing detailed lines at the highest resolution; the raster lines appear as realistic ink-made drawings; it is faster than the traditional way of making illustrations; everyone can use this simple technique; this method is completely free as it does not use expensive and licensed software and it can be used with different operating systems. The method has been developed drawing figures of terrestrial isopods and some examples are here given.

0 comments Cited 48 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

Record: found
Abstract: not found
Article: not found

Drawing setae the digital way

Charles Coleman (2009)

0 comments Cited 45 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: not found

Substituting time-consuming pencil drawings in arthropod taxonomy using stacks of digital photographs

CHARLES O. COLEMAN (2006)

The most time-consuming part of a taxonomic description is making the illustrations. This contribution shows how to save time by omitting the pencil drawings of arthropod appendages and replacing them by stacks of microphotographs. These are imported into a drawing software package on a computer in order to make a publication-ready line drawing, a technique described in detail in Coleman (2003). The photographic method requires a special treatment of the appendages which is also shown.