Hi, Artenauta! Would you like to draw people like a professional, but you find it complicated? Today we bring you some keys so you can represent the human figure with precision and realism; we teach you how to draw people step by step in a professional way.
At the end of this entry we propose a series of exercises, in which we explain how to draw other elements step by step .
Drawing the human body is one of the most complicated tasks we can face; but, don’t give up, with the right notions, and a lot of practice and perseverance, you will see how you get great results. Let’s get started!
How to Draw People
Canons and proportions; although each body is unique, there are always a series of measurements that are repeated on a fairly regular basis. We will work with the following proportions:
- To represent the height in adults, we will take as a reference 7.5 or 8 heads (or what is the same, the measurement of your head multiplied by 7.5 or 8):
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- The center of the body will always be at the level of the pubis, because the point of gravity used by the human being to maintain balance. With this, we would have a measurement of 4 heads to the pubis and another 4 from the pubis to the toes. It would look like this:
- A head from neck to chest.
- One head from chest to waist.
- One head from waist to pubis.
- A pubic head mid-thigh.
- A head from mid-thigh to the lower knee line (where the joint ends).
- A head of the lower knee line at the end of the calf.
- A head from the termination of the calves to the toes.
- The elbow will coincide with the middle of the trunk, and, therefore, with the waist line, so it would be two heads from the shoulders and two from the fingers of the hand.
- The center of the body will always be at the level of the pubis, because the point of gravity used by the human being to maintain balance. With this, we would have a measurement of 4 heads to the pubis and another 4 from the pubis to the toes. It would look like this:
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- In the case of drawing children, we cannot take 7.5 or 8 heads as a reference height, as this will vary according to age until reaching adult height. Once we are clear about the proportions, let’s see how to draw people step by step:
How to Draw a Person
Step 1 – Mark the axes and supporting points
Taking as a reference the posture of the real image, we mark the axes and support points. If we draw the curved axes, we will give more expressiveness to the drawing.
Step 2 – Start drawing the figure
We draw the figure in an analytical and schematic way.
Step 3 – Work on the shapes of the figure
We work the shapes through the line, marking the different volumes of the body, modulating the pressure we exert with the pencil.
Step 4 – Make the final details
We mark, making more pressure with the pencil, those areas that we are most interested in because they are the key to expressiveness or movement to the figure. We can blur to give a little color. Now, we can apply color to our drawing using oil, acrylic…
Now all that remains is to start practicing. Remember that practice makes perfect, and with practice and perseverance, you can achieve the results you set out to achieve. You can start practicing drawing other elements.
How to Draw Body Parts
And for you to continue putting into practice the drawing step by step we leave you these magnificent entries:
How to Draw Animals
For this purpose, we propose a series of exercises, from less to more complex, that will help you to acquire practice and improve your results. Click here and we will explain how to make each of them step by step:
- How to draw a dolphin step by step
- How to draw a rabbit step by step
- How to draw a shark step by step
- How to draw a bird step by step
- How to draw a frog step by step
- How to draw a dog step by step
- How to draw a dinosaur step by step
- How to draw a horse step by step
Drawing is one of the most complex practices that exist in the art world, but with the right knowledge and work, you will be able to master it.
For learn how to draw people like a professional, in a gradual way and adapted to your rhythm and time availability, we recommend you to visit our Painting and Drawing Coursewhere we teach you all the concepts, drawing techniques and materials for you to become a true artist, finding and developing your own style and getting to where you propose.