didn't dissapoint
I just got this book and I'm very glad I did. I think it's perfect that she covers shading, because that's what makes the hands look "real". You add shading to a circle and it becomes a sphere, an object that has substance. I used to draw hands and they looked like crap. After reading and studying this book, I've gone back to my old crappy drawings of hands and apply the correct shading and they actually look pretty good now.
Draw real hands? Not really...
The title of this book should be "Do realistic shadding with a pencil". While the images shown are well drawn, and the artist certainly has talent, most of the instruction in the book concerns shading the hands realisticly, rather than actually telling you how to draw them. Drawing hands by using the references provided in the book or from life is easy. As is drawing just about anything from reference. However, that's not being able to draw real hands. That's being able to copy real hands. The book does not cover the proportions of the hand very well at all, and without that you will still have trouble drawing hands in any position without reference. The book also doesn't discuss the underlying skeletal structure or muscle groups very well at all, and that lack of information also makes it hard to draw the hand in any position without reference.
In short, if you want to know how to do realistic shading with a pencil and some other tools, this book is ok. If you want to really learn how to draw hands I recommend you read the 10 or so pages on hands found in The Atlas of Human Anatomy for the Artist. You'll find more truly useful information there than you will in the 79 pages of this book.
Lee Hammond delivers...
Lee Hammond delivers! I get a kick out of this, because I've been able to give two FIVE STAR ratings today, and this is one of them. "DRAW REAL HANDS" is a humbly presented work of the draftman's realm.
Hammond is straight-forward, accomplished instruction, and genuinely provides a valuable service to those looking for good book instruction. I take such a delight in instructors like Hammond, who doesn't combine coy wording or psycho-babble in the title. He's offering basic art instruction, and that's exactly what he delivers, with a thorough coverage of the specific subject and at a reasonable price.
And Hammond doesn't drone on with wordy text or promise "complete guide to" ..."complete course in drawing"... or use words like "ultimate" or "drawing on the right side of everyone's wallet" etc. He's an OKAY drawing author by me. Lee Hammond promises HANDS; Lee Hammond delivers HANDS.
Maybe good art instruction is just that simple. Throw in a little love and encouragement, and watch'em grow.
Congratulations Mr. Hammond, on a good book.
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