How to draw anime: Essential Techniques for New Artists

Anyone can learn how to draw anime. It’s not necessary to be a fan beforehand. This tutorial will be the first step towards being able to create fan art someday, so if that’s the case, you’ll find it thrilling. After reading this guide, we don’t guarantee you’ll be an expert. Still, you can draw anything respectable enough to warrant a slap on the back. This guide will give you the rundown on the basics of drawing anime.

The Japanese animation and art style known as “anime” has gained worldwide popularity. Looking at your favorite anime and seeing the characters created by experts could make you feel overwhelmed by the prospect of trying to draw them yourself. The good news is that drawing anime characters is something anyone can accomplish; the technique is rather straightforward if you divide it into smaller phases.

Anime characters are easily identifiable. Anime characters are unusual and entertaining to draw because of their oversized eyes and other distinctive face traits. Newcomers should be aware of a few basics of anime art before diving in. Below, we provide a step-by-step guide on drawing anime, covering everything from how to get the proportions correct to how to draw famous anime eyes and various forms of anime hair.

What are the fundamentals of anime drawing?

The visually stunning characters and distinctive storytelling of anime have won over audiences all around the globe. Exploring one’s creative side while learning to create animation is an exhilarating adventure. As part of this process, you should familiarize yourself with the fundamentals of anime art, including how to draw characters, convey stories, and basic sketching exercises. This guide will teach you the fundamentals of drawing anime, whether you’re a complete novice wanting to dive in or an experienced fan hoping to improve your craft.

Art Supplies Required for Anime Illustration

Having the correct tools before drawing your anime portrait will be much easier and more fun. Everything you need to begin is right here. Whether you’re a complete beginner or have been drawing for a long, our blog post about 6 essential materials and equipment can help you become a master.

Paper for Sketching or Smooth Drawings—Use a high—quality notebook or smooth drawing paper to avoid smudging too much and get clean, sharp lines.
Pencil Set (HB, 2B, 4B, 6B)—Achieving more realistic shading and depth is possible with the help of a variety of pencil grades. For lighter sketches, use an HB; for darker outlines, use a 2B or 4B.
Two types of erasers are available: a kneaded eraser for smoothing pencil lines and a precision eraser for drawing small details like anime hair and eyes.
Digital Tools, Colored Pencils, or Markers—A good set of colored pencils or markers made of alcohol will do wonders for giving your character life through color. Software such as Procreate or Clip Studio Paint is great for digital drawing.
Blending Stumps or Cotton Swabs—Ideal for generating smooth skin tones in anime-style illustrations and softening pencil shading.

Here you have all the necessary tools to begin sketching and honing your anime portrait!

Expressions Used When Sketching an Anime Character’s Face

Before you get into specific expressions and how to draw anime, you must identify the tools you’ll use. Remember that you deal with certain aspects when generating new expressions for your anime characters. Behold, these are:

The most prominent parts of the face—the eyes, brows, mouth, lips, and nose—may all be adjusted to some degree.
The head’s outline: Remember that your facial expressions cause your head’s contours, especially your jawline and cheekbones, to shift.

However, keep in mind that the character’s jaw and cheeks have changed, thus there may be a minor but noticeable change to the head’s overall silhouette. As a result, we need to constantly monitor and assess the head silhouette about the emotion we wish to express. The most effective approach is looking for examples and references in both real life and anime and manga.

Before we paint anime expressions, we need to cover something else: the hierarchy of face feature use for expression creation. The spectator will most convey an impression by the eyes and mouth, then by the eyebrows, then by the nose in specific expressions, and lastly by the head silhouette.

Explore simple Steps for how to draw anime

You should start by sketching the proportions of the character’s physique. Your character’s height is completely customizable. The tutorial character will stand at approximately six and a half heads. Draw the arms so that they hang horizontally at the body’s midline. The area between the elbow and the hand joint and the distance between the shoulder and the elbow should be equal. Remember that a character’s legs should equal half of their body length. Ensure that the dimensions of the foot, measured from the sole to the knee, are equal to those of the body, measured from the midway to the knee.

After you’ve nailed down the dimensions, it’s time to begin the how-to-draw anime guide. To begin, sketch only the general outline of the character’s body; you can add the specifics as you go.

Draw a simple head shape

We will simply cover the fundamentals because there are many ways to create anime heads. The form of your character’s skull can be influenced by their age, among other factors. Therefore, you need to choose between an older and a younger figure. A longer face is a common characteristic of older characters compared to younger ones.

To begin, sketch a basic circle to use as the base for the anime head. Afterwards, create a horizontal and vertical guideline to section the face. The horizontal line guides the placement of the eyes, while the vertical line aids in balancing the face.

Sketch Anime Eyes, Nose, and Mouth

The eyes in anime are based on real eyes, except they’re enormous and stretched vertically. Eyebrows should be slightly elevated, while the eyes should be positioned below the guideline. Additionally, you can offer them various expressions to suit your desired style. The expressions shown by anime characters’ eyes are the most telling. Here are the steps:

Jot down two enormous almond forms beneath the horizontal line.
Create a curled lower lash line and thicker upper lashes.
Make a big iris and a little pupil inside.

To make them look glossy, add highlights to the eyes.

Nose: Anime noses are simple and unadorned. Draw a thin, curving line or dot in the space between your eyes. It is easy to draw the nose. The intersection of the horizontal and vertical lines is all that’s needed to draw it. And then you’ll know that you’ve put it on your face properly. Finish by drawing the nose’s tip.

Mouth: You can skip painting the mouth’s lower lip as we draw the character from the front view. All that is required is a gently curving line from the nose to the base of the chin. Your character will appear cheerful, but you completely control their facial expressions.

Describe the shape of the face and ears

You should ensure that your character’s face will have some symmetry once you have the shape of their head. Draw a vertical line down the center to ensure the face is square. Additionally, you must sketch a horizontal line to serve as the eyeline for your character. Additionally, another one beneath the circle will serve as a guide for drawing the cheeks and jaw.

Take the character’s age and gender into account while adjusting the jawline.
Make sure the ears are proportional to the head by drawing them below eye level.
Anime Hair Drawing Tutorial

Always finish drawing the hair after you’ve finished the face characteristics. You are aware that a vast array of hairstyles are available to anime characters. Let’s pick something easy that has a lot of volume. Anime hairstyles are stylized and full of life. For its depiction:

Draw a loose outline of the hair’s shape.
Style it anyway you choose by adding spikes or gentle curves.
To make it look more realistic, add some hair.
To create the illusion of depth and dimension, shade the area.

Draw the hair around the top of the head while keeping some distance.

Fill Out the Body

What follows is a detailed tutorial on basic anatomy drawing techniques. A few basic forms make up the human body’s architecture: a rectangle for the chest, an oval for the hips, and little circles for the joints of the legs and shoulders. Next, complete the upper body outline by drawing a line from the rib cage to the hips, which will serve as the waist. Legs should be drawn next; they should be about the same length as the character’s upper body, from the crown of the head to the waist.

The arms should be added last. As a general guideline, it’s best to position the character’s elbow at waist level and then extend the arm, including the hand, to approximately mid-thigh. We will strive to make drawing anime hands easier, although it can be fairly challenging. A rough outline of the hand’s palm and thumb’s base should be done first. The next step is to sketch the thumb and outer fingers. Proper thumb position: 45 degrees from the hand and just below the knuckle bone of the middle finger. After that, you should add lines and clean up the drawing.

Adhering to these rules will guarantee that your proportional anatomy is accurate regardless of the type of body you’re depicting.

Create an Outline and Finish the Drawing

Use a fine liner pen to review the sketch and make bold outlines. Before you apply color, erase any extra pencil lines and make sure all the details are perfect.

Enhance with Shade and Color

When coloring the skin and blending shadows, use gentle gradients.

For an anime-inspired look, color the eyes brightly using a gradient effect.
To give the hair dimension, highlight it by leaving certain sections lighter than others.

A Guide to Drawing Anime Girls and Boys

Also read:

Male and female anime characters differ in minor ways:

An hourglass figure is the best shape for sketching a female anime character. The jawline needs to be shorter and the face needs to be softer. Make sure your character has a feminine figure and a thin neck when you sketch them.

Earlier in the article, we discussed appropriate body proportions when designing an anime boy. If you sketch a boy in his adolescent years, you might want to keep him slim. Draw a slightly longer jaw to make the face look narrower. Also, bring the necklines closer to the jaw for a more muscular neck.

Anime Clothes Drawing Tutorial

Again, the outfit you pick out should reflect your desired style. The gender of the character you’re drawing will also play a role. Clothing for female characters is typically form-fitting and slender. For example, you may wish your character to sport a shirt and shorts. To represent each garment, you must draw a smooth curving line. Because of these curves, the garment will appear to be form-fitting. They can also be made to look more natural by folding them. For the finishing touch, you can accessorize with some vibrant colors.

Amazing Anime Facts

From its humble beginnings in Japan, anime has exploded in popularity around the globe!

One origin of “anime” is the English word “animation.”
Among the many well-liked anime series are “Naruto,” “Pokémon,” and “Sailor Moon.”

Advice for Crafting Better Anime Characters

Look at several anime characters to get a feel for the range of facial structures. Here’s tips for how to draw anime:

Try out a variety of expressions, such as joy, sadness, or rage, to improve your skills.
Look at people’s faces and anime artwork for a better sense of proportion.
Try a variety of hairstyles for a one-of-a-kind look: short, long, curly, spikey, etc.

FAQs: how to draw anime

How can one begin to draw the faces of anime characters?

A circle and some dimensions can serve as a starting point. Afterwards, gradually add to the facial characteristics.

How can one become better at sketching anime eyes?

Work on the shading, highlights, and eyelashes to give them personality. Another thing that can assist is looking at various anime styles.

What are the essential materials for creating anime portraits?

A standard set of tools—pencil, eraser, fine liner, and various colored markers or pencils—can benefit artists of all skill levels.

Is drawing anime characters a simple task?

Depending on one’s background and level of effort, learning to draw anime can be easy or tough. Anime drawing is easier if you have experience with other types of drawing. Painting in a style you’ve never tried before might be challenging. But drawing anime will get easier and easier if you can figure out how to study and practice correctly.

Conclusion

Once you understand the basics of how to draw anime figures, you can keep adding to your skills. Consider trying out various hairstyles, outfits, and expressions and learning how to draw figures in various positions and from various perspectives. If you put in the time and effort, you can develop your style and make famous anime artwork.

Mastering the art of drawing anime portraits is a thrilling adventure that gets better the more you do it. Just follow these procedures, try various designs, and enjoy yourself! Maintain your artistic pursuits and give life to your anime creations. Using the same aspects of expressions is the key to drawing anime expressions. Last but not least, take your time to draw. Ensure that every part of your face and body contributes to the mood you’re trying to convey. Consider the lighting and the angle from which you want to display the scene; it’s not only about the faces.

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How to draw anime: Essential Techniques for New Artists

What are the fundamentals of anime drawing?

Art Supplies Required for Anime Illustration

Expressions Used When Sketching an Anime Character’s Face