#anime art tutorial

[pufftastic]

Eye shading tutorial + Colour theory tips!!

[laidbackmarco]

Dreams, Driving, and Drawing

This was the car I that I rode in for the first timeIn the daily grind of day to day life, it’s really easy for me to forget that living in Japan used to be only an idea I had. Ten years ago I had sat down to go for a drive with my friend, that short drive had changed the course of my life. I still remember the giddy excitement I had felt while riding in the RB20DET swapped 240sx. The surging…

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[doopiedoover]

Hey doopie! Can you give me advice/reference on drawing the female form? (A.K.A. how do you do it?)

OKAY EVERYONE SIT DOWN AND LET THE DOOPSTER TELL YOU HOW TO MOTHERFLIPPIN ART.Today we will be learning about the female anatomy (anime edition because, damn, look at the size of that head). Well, this is how I draw it, at least!TOP ROW DISCUSSIONFIGURE 1.) As you can see, this is how I would normally draw the female body. For females, as opposed to males, the shoulders would be much shorter, and the torso doesn’t always take an hourglass shape, however, I absolutely love hourglass shapes so that’s normally what I draw. You can always make them as boxy or as chubby as you like! All body types are different. As for the hips, I tend to make them round, cartoonish, and wide. I usually draw the legs longer than the torso. But if the figure alone seems too complicated for you, let’s break it down, shall we?FIGURE 2.) Here I broke down the anatomy into shapes. This helps me a LOT sometimes when I’m having trouble drawing the body. You can always add more shapes if it seems too complicated, or less! There’s no right or wrong way to do it, honestly, just follow the basics. You can always add ovals on the thighs, knees, calves, shoulders, whatever makes it easier for you. Shapes will definitely help keep things proportionate.FIGURE 3.) Speaking of proportions, let’s study the figure some more. The dotted lines indicate the basic anatomy of the character and where the proportions parallel with one another. This will keep your work symmetrical! I typically draw the hips as wide as the shoulders. The armpits/breasts should start where the shoulder begins. If you don’t know where the shoulder should begins, put on a tank top and look in the mirror (or imagine your character wearing a tank top). See where the outer curve of the tank top follows your shoulder? That’s where the arm would start. This also works with the seam of a fitting t-shirt, and that’s typically where the armpit tucks. MINDBLOWING RIGHT? The elbows always stop at the waist, and the wrist at the widest part of the hips. The fingers normally end mid-thigh. There used to be a rule at school where if your skirt didn’t pass your fingertips, it was too short. I like to use that as a guide for how long the arms should be!FIGURE 4.) Flaunt those curves, gurl. The male anatomy tends to be much more boxy than the female, so a lot of artists that are used to drawing guys seem to have trouble with the female shape. Here I drew arrows to indicate those beautiful curves. As you can see, the shoulders point downwards, female shoulders tend to be less broad than the males. A curve that both genders have is the inner elbow. People tend to forget this shape, and sometimes it’s 100% okay to not draw this in cartoons and such. But I personally always draw the curves of the inner elbows. The waist, I love to take on an hourglass shape. It’s super fun to draw, maybe I got addicted to it thanks to Sailor Moon, I don’t know, but hourglasses are fun. Explore your options, there are a LOT! And of course you have the legs, which, are really tricky to be honest. Imagine them as really soft, sideways M’s. The inner legs, tend to be less curves! Try to keep them more straight, but not too straight! and the knees bring those legs together so throw some knees on there! Unlike me. I sometimes forget the knees. Whoops.BOTTOM ROW DISCUSSIONSide views. The bane of my existence (and a lot of other artists’). Side views are difficult and I have the most trouble on them. You can probably tell that mine aren’t perfect, but we’re gonna discuss anyway!FIGURE 1.) Here I’m comparing the side view to the forward-facing view. I like to keep the neck as the center. As long as the neck is in the same spot, the body will be centered properly as well. I typically keep the waist/midriff the same size. That isn’t always true, however. Sometimes the stomach is bigger sideways, or smaller. Keep that in mind!. As for the feet, I used the heels as another center. That may be why she looks “shorter” but remember guys, perspective. Imagine her turning to the side.FIGURE 2.) Break her down into shapes, again! Make sure that you bring the thigh into the hip. I like to imagine barbie dolls or action figures and how they’re jointed. Same with the shoulders. This will help a lot while you draw!FIGURE 3.) Let’s test our proportions once more. I typically make the chin in proportion to the back of the neck. Of course, depending on how you want to proportion the jaw, it’s up to you. The back I make symmetrical to the mid-cranium, or the back of the ear. I also make the nose in proportion to the breast (before drawing on some big honkers, no’wah’mean? ;) ) Of course, again, the elbow is proportionate to the waist. The wrist, is still symmetrical to the hip, except this time, you can’t see the hip! Oh no! What are you gonna do? Let me tell you my friend. You see that crotch right there? There’s your hip. Well, no, it’s not your hip, but you know what I mean. ALSO that is also the same spot in which you want to end your curve to the buttocks. You can bring it as far outward as you like (ayye), but all butts curve descend downward. Otherwise it may look unnatural. But hey, if that’s what you’re going for, I won’t judge you! And lastly, the start of the butt, the calve, and the heel, should all be symmetrical as well. This will help your character look as if she’s standing upright. Very important! FIGURE 4.) And last but not least, DEM CURVES. Sideways view is very similar. The shoulder still curves downward, that doesn’t change. The breast will curve downwards as well. That “hourglass” shape that was mentioned earlier, keep that in the BACK, but smooth out the front this time. The thighs won’t be as curvy, since they’re facing a different direction, but the back of the calves can be as curvy as you like. Just make sure the front isn’t, as opposed to the thigh, which you can give the front a little more curve. Why? Because the top of the thigh can hold fat and muscle, and the top of the calve is mostly bone. Feel your own thighs. You’re probably your own best reference. And the feet, of course, will curve outwards as feet tend to do. I’m sorry this was so long! Hopefully it gave you guys an idea on how I draw my female characters. I didn’t draw boobs on the model because boobs vary in size and shape. That’s a whole ‘nother tutorial, my friend. I understand that these tips vary also, everyone has different styles of art and really, go by your best judgement. As an artist, you are free to experiment and find what YOU personally like. Most of all, try to have fun with it. Try not to treat your work like a tedious school study, because honestly, the best way to improve is to ENJOY yourself! If you have any questions, feel free to ask. Also if you have any professional advice of your own, feel free to share! I’d love to hear your opinions. 

Now get out there and draw them anime ladies. Take care!