In our case, since the avatar is just about the right size to start with, we decided to keep the dimension of the image to the default $10 imes 10$ setting at the end. If the image is too small, then it’s hard to appreciate any fine detail, and if it’s too big, then one might have a hard time focusing on the big picture - literally. However, depending on the size of the source image, sometimes it makes sense to consider rescaling it so that at the default zoom level, the image occupies around 70% of the graphing grid either in height or in width. By default, Desmos likes to set the origin $(0,0)$ as the center of the image, and that is a good choice for most purposes. Complexity: Both the Redditlady and the Redditdog have very well-defined borders and colors, making it a formidable challenge that’s not too intimidating.Īnd with both criteria passed, we proceed to happily import our avatar image into Desmos.

Passion Level: Since we only create avatars that we like, channeling energy into recreating the creatures invented in part by ourselves is definitely not an issue.Now, does this logo make a good choice as a source image? We certainly think it does: In our case, using the Reddit Gold membership recently awarded to us, we went out there and created our first very own signature Reddit alien avatar: Guess who’s in the house? The Math Vault Snoovtar! ( alien avatar in Redditese)įor the lack of better terms, let’s just call these lovely creatures Math Vault Redditlady and Redditdog, respectively. Of course, you don’t want to make the picture too easy either, as it might not be much of a gratifying experience if you do it that way. Otherwise, you might have to regret your decision much later when you’re already, say, 21 hours into the process.

This is because unlike ordinary pencil-and-eraser sketching, sketching in Desmos has to be done by filling the command lines with equations, tables and inequalities, so that if you can’t fuel enough passion into a drawing, then the time and effort invested into reproducing it is probably not going to worth it.Īlso, when choosing a picture, take good care to select one that is not too difficult to draw. Unless you are some kind of sketching guru - which we certainly are not - it’s generally better to base the sketching on some underlying model: some picture that you actually want to draw some picture that you can rely upon in case the sketching derails by a huge margin.Īnd in case it’s not clear enough, you should only choose a picture that you really, really enjoy sketching - something that you can derive a whole lot of satisfaction from. Portion Crunching in Action: Antenna & Hat.

To remedy this situation, we came up with a laborious and interesting solution: we decided to go out there and create a new Desmos sketch from scratch, and work backward to comment a bit on the steps, procedures and reasoning involved in the sketching process - as we go through the different stages and portions of the drawing.Īnd with that, let’s proceed straight into our Desmos Art guide in computational sketching, which - as you might have guessed - is going to be both fun and informative - even if you have no intention whatsoever of using any graphing calculator in the near future.

And how did those numbers get so precise up to four decimals digits?.

How did the author know that $3.982$ is the leading coefficient to use?.

Why does this weird-looking equation pop out from nowhere?.

These are basically pictures and animations created in Desmos primarily through the clever use of equations and inequalities - among other features such as tables, animating sliders and regression models. Indeed, if you go to this official staff pick page, you should see that a whole bunch of creative artworks were already being created - anything from cartoon characters, landscape to logos and portraits.īut here’s a problem: when you reach a Desmos artwork page, you get to see the end-result with all the equations and inequalities, without necessarily having any clue about how the sketching process comes about from the beginning to the end: If you’re of the type who enjoys playing around with graphing calculator, then you might be interested in the so-called Desmos Art.

Desmos art graph