10 Most Commented:

Proportions and Features: The Face
About Proportions:
Generally, proportions refer to how different parts of the body relate to each other.  The length of the arm compared to the length of the torso, etc.  It is important to realize that there can be vast differences in proportion depending on the style of the artist.  Compare a life drawing of a human to an anime figure, for example.  Both are depictions of people, yet normally you don't see people in real life who are 2/3 legs.  :-)  I don't anyway.  Learn to look at different styles and recognize the proportions - the way different features relate to each other.  Compare comic book art to Disney animation, and Disney animation to anime.  Then find your own sense of proportion, which will also enhance your own artistic style.  The important thing is to be consistent in your proportions.  If you draw figures 6 heads high, be sure that the rest of the figure matches up, and make sure that all your drawings use those same standards - that will establish a style.  Otherwise, people are likely to comment that you just drew a person with a huge head.
**Disclaimer**
The information below is based on MY OWN sense of proportion and style.  Therefore, it is subjective and should not be taken as some kind of 'golden standard'.  If you want to draw people with realistic proportions - draw from life and study photos of people.  I will try to differentiate between the two.  Experiment to develop your own sense of proportion.
About this tutorial:
I originally started writing this tutorial some years ago, and it has gone through various incarnations and improvements.  I have kept it up and continue to work on it because of the feedback I have received from people who enjoyed it and learned something from it.  So, if you don't like the tutorial and you don't think it's worthwhile, well, I apologize for wasting ten minutes of your time and you can now go about your life.  Please understand that there are other people out there who enjoy and value it.

I have been working with Ellen Million Graphics to produce a printed, beefed up version of this proportions and features section.  We are calling it the Fantasy Artist Primer.  Some of the material will be reprinted from this site, but it will also include new text and new illustrations on some topics I will not be covering in this online edition.  If you like this tutorial, consider purchasing a copy.  It will not be expensive.


The features of the face are probably the trickiest part of drawing a person.  In order for your drawings to have life and expression, it's essential to be able to draw them accurately and flexibly.  I've taken each feature and broken it into several steps, as I've learned to draw them.  Experiment and find your own methods!
Eyes, Eyebrows:
 
Steps for drawing the eye These steps are illustrated at left - follow them from top to bottom with the text. 

Step 1.  Draw the upper curve of the eye, from corner to corner.  If possible, draw the upper curves for both eyes at this time, and check to make sure they are symmetrical and correctly spaced.  If you have drawn the upper curve and from corner to corner it measures 1 inch, then there will be about 1 inch of space (the width of one eye) between the inner corners of the eyes for the bridge of the nose.  Also check to make sure you have not placed one eye higher than another.  From this point forward you can finish one eye at a time, but it is much easier to "match" eyes if you have drawn the upper curves for both of them at the same time.  You can finish one eye, then go back and finish the other to match. 

Step 2.  Carefully "suggest" the lower lid of the eye, making the line thicker where it attaches to the inner and outer corners.  It is not necessary to draw in the entire line – in fact the eye may lose expressiveness and look cartoonish if you do. 

Step 3.  At the inner corner of the eye, draw in the tiny tear duct.  Then it's time to mark the circle for the iris – the colored part of the eye.  Keep in mind that the eyeball is about three iris-widths wide (or the iris is about 1/3 of the width of the eye from corner to corner).  If you draw the iris too large for the eye, the subject will appear younger, more child-like.  If you draw the iris too small, the subject may appear crazed or evil or alien.  If you have problems drawing the curve of the circle freehand, consider buying a stencil with circles of various shapes to make it easier.  Note that the whole circle of the iris will not be visible unless you are trying to draw a very shocked or surprised expression.  Part of the iris will be hidden under the upper or lower lid, or both. 

Step 4.  Now you can draw in the pupil, or the black center of the eye.  Draw the outline but don't fill it in yet.  Note that there is a small chunk missing from the pupil – this is for adding a bright highlight to the eye, to make it seem more alive.  The pupil will be circular and centered in the middle of the iris – not off to one side or odd shaped.  The pupil may also be larger or smaller depending on the light the eye is being exposed to.  In bright light, it will contract.  In darkness, it will expand to let in more light.  You can study your own pupil in a mirror to see this.  At this time, also sketch in lightly the fold of the upper eyelid, which has about the same curve as the upper lid.  You can experiment with this curve until you find one you like, as it will be placed differently if the eyes are deepset or exotically shaped. 

Step 5.  Now you can fill in the pupil of the eye, being careful to leave the white highlight.  Note how this immediately makes the eye more lifelike and striking.  Also, the coloring of the iris is normally varied with striations that radiate from the center of the pupil.  You can sketch these in to add realism, but be careful not to add too many, and to avoid marking over the white highlight.  If drawing a female subject, you can also thicken the eyelashes at this time by emphasizing the curve of the upper lid that you first drew.  Single eyelashes are difficult to draw without making the eye appear fake, so thickening the upper lid is an easy way of giving the impression of longer, thicker lashes.  This is also clean-up time, so carefully remove any stray marks and study your eye to make sure it looks natural, lively and balanced. 

Step 6.  Shading time.  Think about the color of eyes you want your subject to have.  Are they dark or light?  Keep this in mind as you shade the iris, being careful to leave the white highlight alone.  You may even add more than one highlight if you wish.  Note that the iris is set within the eyeball itself, and often looks luminous and jewel-like.  You can achieve this effect by making the colored iris slightly darker where the upper lid overshadows it, and keeping the shading lighter on the lower curve of the iris.  Remember to add your darker striations, too.  The white of the eyeball is, of course, white, but don't let that stop you from adding a little shading on each corner to make the eyeball appear three dimensional.  The shading of the skin will be darker around wrinkles, like laugh lines or the upper eyelid fold, and around the area of both corners of the eye.  If the subject is female, you may consider shading in eyeshadow to bring out her eyes further. 

Once you have finished one eye, follow the steps with the other, being careful to compare one eye against the other at each step to make sure they are symmetrical.  Pay particular attention to the position of the iris within the eye, and the shape of the pupil in the iris.  You don't want your subject looking crosseyed!  If in doubt, ask a friend for their opinion.  They'll easily be able to tell you if the eyes look natural, or if something is wrong. 


Whenever you draw eyes, it's important to remember that there's an eyeball back there, and you're really only drawing the part that shows through the eyelids. 

The shape of an eye can vary tremendously, which you can use as character specific.  When you are drawing faces, don't draw them all the same - vary the features to make your drawings more individual and less cookie-cutter. Iris (my character), for instance, has a thin face with a sharply pointed chin and narrow, angular eyes.  Her appearance is geared to reflect that of a fox, since she is a gambler and a thief. 

Eyebrows will follow the shape of the upper line of the eye.  If you have a very curved upper eye, the eyebrow will also be very curved.  It's important to realize that eyebrows are a very flexible and emotive part of the eye area.  'Angry' eyebrows drawn low over the eyes can be mischievious when coupled with a grin.  And who hasn't coveted the eyebrow quirk, when one brow raises higher than the other?  Study facial expressions, and you can't help but realize how important eyebrows become. 

Eyebrows normally are the same color as the character's hair (perhaps a shade or two darker).  Figuring out the placement of the eyebrow is pretty easy.  Draw an invisible line from the outer edge of the nostril with the inner corner of the eye and you have the beginning of the eyebrow.  Draw another line from the outer edge of the nostril to the outer corner of the eye and you have the end of the eyebrow. 

Men: 
It's not that men have smaller eyes than women - they just have larger faces.  Generally their eyes are narrower than women's, with less fuss made over the shape.  Don't emphisize a man's eyelashes.  Their eyebrows are thicker and less groomed (sometimes resulting in a unibrow). 

Mouth, Lips:
 

Steps to drawing the mouth These steps are illustrated at left - follow them from top to bottom with the text. 

Step 1.  Mark the corners of the mouth, then make a mark for the middle of the mouth, slightly higher than the corners.  Think of drawing the mouth as playing connect the dots.  If you can mark the corners of the mouth correctly, then the lips are just a matter of connecting the dots.  If you have trouble with the following steps, try making midway marks – adding more dots so your connecting lines are shorter to draw. 

Step 2.  Draw a line connecting one corner of the mouth with the middle dot, then draw another line from the other corner to the middle dot, being careful to mirror the first line you drew.  Note how the lines arch slightly before dipping in the middle.  Don't draw it straight.  This line marks the opening of the mouth between the lips. 

Step 3.  Now it's time to draw the curve of the upper lip.  If you need to, make a mark slightly above the first middle mark (you can draw the slight 'u' shape people have on their upper lip), and then connect a line from one corner of the mouth to that middle mark, just as you did to draw the first line.  Note that the curve of the upper lip is greater than the slight curve of the opening line. 

Step 4.  Unlike the upper lip, you do not want to outline the entire lower lip.  The lower lip is thicker than the upper lip, but it is narrower from side to side.  Don't connect the line to the corners of the mouth.  Leave it open. 

Step 5.  Clean up time.  Survey the overall effect of the lips you have drawn, and adjust where necessary.  Perhaps you have drawn the curve of one side higher than the other, or perhaps your lower lip is too thick.  Erase and redraw if necessary.  Note that you can subtly change the expression by making the corners of the mouth (the first marks you made) curve up slightly in a hint of a smile, or angle the marks downward to project dissaproval or sadness.  The corners of the mouth are very important. 

Step 6.  Shading time.  The upper lip will be shaded darker than the lower lip to give a three dimensional feel.  Don't shade both lips the same.  The lower lip will have more highlights and require a lighter touch.  Look at your own lips and notice the direction of the slight wrinkles.  You can lightly shade in those wrinkles to make the lips seem more realistic.  Shade the lips darkly to suggest lipstick or a more adult age, shade them lightly to keep the subject youthful and natural. 

If you are drawing a male subject, draw in the opening line (steps 1 and 2).  You will want to draw the lower lip as well, but be careful with the upper lip.  Draw it in very lightly.  Also use very light shading, so it won't appear as if he's wearing lipstick.  For men, the opening line with be the darkest.  The lips are also narrower than for a woman (or perhaps the mouth is just wider). 

Lips form a roughly hexoganal shape when closed.  This makes a good guideline shape to work with. 

Smiling: 
When you smile, the corners of your mouth raise and your upper lip stretches wider to compensate.  Your lower lip stays in about the same spot.  This creates a rough trapezoid shape.  Be sure to look at your own mouth in the mirror, practice smiling and notice how the shape of your mouth changes.  Then try to draw it.  As with the steps above, first mark each corner of the mouth to anchor it, making it easier to sketch in the lips.  When it comes to drawing teeth, don't draw in each tooth - suggest the shape of the teeth, but don’t draw each one individually.

Nose:
 

Steps to drawing the nose These steps are illustrated at left - follow them from top to bottom with the text. 

Step 1.  The key to drawing noses is to lightly sketch in a larger circle for the "ball" of the nose, and two smaller ovals for the nostrils.  If you can correctly place and size these shapes, your work will be mostly done.  These shapes form the underlying framework for the finished nose. 

Step 2.  Firm up the line of the bridge of the nose, or suggest a line on either side for the bridge.  It's not necessary to make it perfectly straight.  Sometimes a slightly upturned tip or a gentle bump can add a lot of character, but be careful.  Also mark in where your nostrils are.  A thicker, heavier line can do wonders for nostrils without making a piggish impression. 

Step 3.  General clean up.  Carefully erase away the framework shapes you sketched.  You should be left with an outline for the visible curve of the nostril, a thicker, darker shadow to depict the entrance of the nostril itself, and perhaps some lighter sketched lines to suggest the general shape of the nose and the bridge.  If necessary, get a mirror and look at your own nose to help you. 

Step 4.  Shading.  Noses are particularly tricky to shade, because they stick out from the rest of the face and you must pay close attention to the direction of your light source.  Generally, the underside of the nose will be darker, and the lightest part will be along the bridge.  If you are looking at a nose straight on, one side will have more of a shadow than the other.  Again, refer to a mirror to help you with this. 

Putting the Face Together:

Being able to draw eyes and a mouth and a nose in different spots is all well and good - but how do you make that into a face?

The answer is with proportions.

Sketch an oval shape.  It doesn't have to be perfect.  You can refine it later.  This is the head. 

Lightly draw a line vertically down the middle of the face, and then another line horizontally, dividing the oval into quarters. 

The horizontal guideline marks the placement of the eyes.  The face is about four - five eyes wide.  Make small marks for the corners of the eyes. 

Divide the lower half of the face in half again, and you have the mark for the placement of the nose.  Divide that in half and you have the mouth placement. 

For 'real' proportions, the nose should be as wide as one eye (the space between the eyes) and the corners of the mouth should extend from the middle (pupil) of each eye, making it two eyes wide.  Typically in my drawings the nose and mouth are minimized, which makes the eyes seem larger.  You can experiment to find your own style with faces. 

Once you have found the placement of your features, your guidelines can be erased (being careful not to erase your placement marks) and you can start filling in the face. 

Guidelines can be very useful to mark the tilt of the head with just a few lines, which helps you visualize how your features will look at different angles. 

Drawing a face, step by step:
Step 1. 
First thing you need to do is sketch the outline of the face, which is just a roundish shape with a slightly pointy bottom end.  It's easiest to decide what kind of jaw line you want at this point, so think - do you want a square jaw?  A pointed jaw?  Is the face oval, or more circular, or heart-shaped? 

Get the outline of the skull roughed in.  There's no need to perfect it at this stage, but you want to have a fairly good idea, and you want it to be decently symetrical.  Sketch in a line about halfway through that oval lengthwise, and then sketch another line widthwise, quartering your oval. 
 
 
 

Step 2. 
I've now marked in some dots along that midway line, for the corners of the eyes.  You want to leave about the same space between the eye as one eye is wide.  In other words, if you eye from corner to corner is 1 inch, then you want about 1 inch of space between the eyes.  Feel free to alter this if you want to give your face a very different look. 

I have also marked a short line about halfway between the "eye" guideline and the bottom of the chin.  This 1/4 mark is where the nose will end.  Another mark below that is for the lips. 
 
 
 

Step 3. 
First, I erased some of my guiding line for the eyes and I connected the marks I made for the corners of the eyes with the upper arch of the eye, checking to make sure my arches match.  Once you have the eyes placed, the other features fall into place. 

With the upper arch drawn, I can now draw in the eyebrows based on that arch. 

I have also started the framework for my nose with a largish sketched in circle and two smaller circles.  Normally I would finish the eyes before starting on the nose, but I'm condensing some steps. 
 
 

Step 4. 
First, I finished one eye (the right one).  When I was happy with it, I began work on the left, carefully matching it to the one on the right. 

I have started some more work on the nose, and I have drawn in the center line for my lips. 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Step 5. 
As I worked, I began erasing my vertical guideline.  I worked on finishing the nose, and then I continued to the lips. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Step 6. 
My guidelines are all erased.  I have added my lips.  My face is now complete, but it looks funny indeed without hair! 

I began working on the hair by sketching in a light hairline.  Then I started at the crown of the head, drawing quickly and trying to keep my lines flowing.  It's easiest to draw the pieces of the hair at the crown, falling naturally over the face, and then procede to flesh out the sides and back.  A stray lock or two falling over the face is sometimes nice. 

Be careful not to be rigid while drawing hair - often I find it best to work lightly and quickly to capture movement.  Hair can be a great source of movement, blowing in the wind or expressing action.  Sometimes if you try to be too detailed at first, you will make it look stiff and unnatural. 
 
 

Step 7. 
I have finalized the shape of the hair a bit more, and erased the outlines of the top of the skull and the parts that the hair covers.  At this point you could certainly work on adding more detail to the hair, if you wanted it more defined. 

I left the tops of her ears because I thought they looked cute.  Don't neglect putting ears in your work - they are an often overlooked detail. 
 
 
 
 
 

Step 8. 
This face would not be complete without shading.  Not only does shading greatly enhance the simple lines we had earlier, but it's a great way to cover up and fix mistakes you might have made.  As you draw, constantly re-evaluate the piece and work towards adjusting the flaws you find.  Careful work with an eraser and a good eye can often fix even the most awkward start to a face. 

I have done some work with medium to light tones, working in the shadowed areas. 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Step 9. 
I went back in with a darker tone and brought out the very dark values.  I find that lots of beginners like to stop too soon with their shading - they put in some light tones and think that they are done.  Oftentimes, the more you "push" your values, going for very dark areas as well as very light areas, the more finished and dramatic looking the final piece will be. 

Next time you think you are done, try taking your shading a little bit farther.  See if you like it.  Make sure your darkest areas are as dark as you can make them.  Think about the light source in your piece, and where the shadows would fall. 
 

Continue to the Figure


If you have any comments/questions, feel free to visit the message board.


Graphics, Content, Artwork © Copyright 1989-2005, Jennie Seay
All Rights Reserved - ask for permission before using anything on this page

Huge thanks to the many talented people who can code and provide their stuff online for people like me. :-)
Credit goes to:

Greymatter mods:
Moe Figit's stats mod
David Beckemeyer's anti-spam comments hack
Also, thanks to the Greymatter forums for helping me over the years.
Javascript and CSS code snippets from The JavaScript Source and Hypergurl.
DHTML menu by Milonic found at Dynamic Drive.
Some quotes found at Famous Quotations.

This page last updated .