Human Anatomy Tips

[Evan Finkel]

Hello! After experiencing a long time of practicing Art in bold drawing style, all I get is the skills and the way of proper shading and coloring.

But whenever I draw I can't get the human anatomy rightly. I was seeking for some tips from the experienced artists on this community. Here are some portraits I drew this week using a simple marker and colored using Paint Tool SAI, if want to take a look.

Spoiler

Thanks.

 

[Amysaurus]

Well, I can definitely tell that your artwork is improving!

As far as the torsos of your portraits go, the anatomy is fairly sound. It looks like the main problem with these is the placement of the facial features. When you draw a face, the eyes are almost the halfway marker, separating the forehead from the rest of the features. On your drawings, the eyes and noses are too high on the face, giving the appearance of the characters having foreheads that are too small (and consequently heads that are too small). As well, it wouldn't hurt to try giving your characters more of a chin/jawline. That will make the face look much more believable overall. 

Here's a great diagram for drawing heads and features at different angles, in case you're interested.

 

[Vance Raehart]

Here's a great diagram for drawing heads and features at different angles, in case you're interested.

this could really help me as well, thx amysaurus rex

 

[Shaz]

I've moved this thread to Art & Literature. Please be sure to post your threads in the correct forum next time. Thank you.

 

[Evan Finkel]

Still alive for art, to test my anatomy I made a chibi.

 

[captainproton]

It's a cute chibi, but chibis really aren't good for testing anatomy. You can get some very basic stuff in there, but chibis are, by definition, exaggerated and deformed. I'd recommend attempting something a bit closer to realistic proportions if you want to work on your anatomy.

That being said, you do seem to have the eyes awfully high on the face. They should be at about the halfway mark on the skull.

 

[Evan Finkel]

Thanks, but I dont how can I fix dat eyes issue? :<

 

[captainproton]

Start with a circle, then add a smaller semicircle at the bottom for a jaw. This should get you something like a lumpy egg-shape or an upside-down pear shape. Run a line down the middle vertically then through the middle horizontally, getting a sort of crucifix in the middle of your pear.

Now, look at your horizontal line, crossed through the middle. Make a hash mark on this line on each side of the vertical line, evenly spaced, so your horizontal line is divided into fourths. These two hash marks are where the center of your eyes will be.

Halfway down the vertical line from the horizontal eye line, make a hash mark. This marks the bottom of the nose.

Halfway down the vertical line from the nose-mark, make another mark. This is where the mouth goes.

This is, of course, a very basic template for the placement of facial features. Humans come in all shapes and sizes and proportions, but these are the basic proportions.