Learn How to Draw a Face with Confidence! pdf

Learn How to Draw a Face with
Confidence!

I know when I learn to do something for the first time that it helps if I can actually
interact and "do" the activity at hand. Nothing could be truer then when learning to
draw, especially when learning how to draw a face.
If you just start drawing the eyes, a mouth, and a nose, you may come up with a
pretty decent portrait; then again you may come out with something that looks like
an abstract drawing. You might even come up with something that will change the
shape of the modern art world.
Even if that does happen, you'll still eventually have to learn the basics to
advance for your next masterpiece!
If you don't know the rules of how to draw a face, then how can you have fun
breaking them? You can't!
Let's Begin
These steps will give you a better understanding of the process and show you the
basic formula for drawing faces accurately every time, not just those fluke
masterpieces. Once you follow these proportions and learn them, your drawings
should be exponentially better and have more depth.
There are a few different methods for drawing faces and heads, including the
"egg" method where you draw an egg shape and a second method that I find leaves
quite a bit of room for error. The simplest method I have found is the one I will
demonstrate. It's actually quite easy to pick up, which you should do in no time.
Step 1: Draw a Circle
Sounds pretty easy, but it does take some practice if you want to draw a perfect
circle. You can use a cup or even a roll of masking tape to make the circle. Just
use them now so you can learn the proportions, then I would steer away from this
as it will hinder your progress of getting your own rhythm with the pencil and you
may become dependent on drawing aids. Relying on the tools will make it look
like you are still learning how to draw a face

Step 2: Divide the Circle
Just think of the circle like the Earth. Draw a line right across the center like the
equator and then do the same from top to bottom. You should start thinking in
terms of the circle being a ball or sphere. This will help your drawings and speed
up your learning curve.

Step 3: Chop off the Sides
Obviously, the head isn't a complete circle, but it is generally round in shape.
There really isn't a set formula for the amount to chop off.
You can already customize your drawing. Exciting, isn't it? The more you chop
here, the skinnier and lengthier the head will turn out.

Step 4: The Proportions of the Face
The horizontal line or the "equator" we drew just a minute ago is more commonly
referred to as the brow line. This is where the eyebrows generally sit on the face.
The next line to be drawn will be the Hair Line. It goes roughly 1/2 to 2/3 of the
way above the Brow line.
The next line to will be the Nose Line. It again will be about the same distance as
the Hair Line from the Brow Line.
After you have drawn in those lines, you only have one more major line to draw:
the Chin Line. It is about the same distance from the Nose Line as the other lines
were from the Brow line.
If you're thinking, "Well, that was easy!" it is!
Once you get these four key lines down, everything else is easy to fill in and get
the right proportions.
Tip:If you place your thumb on your own brow and put your index finger on your
hairline and then move your fingers to the key lines we just drew you, will find that
they are all just about equally spaced. That's not even really a formula. That's a
living example always with you!

Step 5: Placing the Eyes and Mouth
The eyes and mouth are probably the easiest things when learning how to draw a
face, as they both sit just under the brow and nose lines, respectively.
Eyes
To find the position for the eyes, divide the head into five equal eyes. This will
give you the width for the mouth and nose. The space between the 2 real eyes will
be the width of your nose.
To find the width of the mouth, just come straight down from the center of your
two eyes and BAM! that's the outsides of your mouth.

The Ears
The ears are drawn in the space between the mouth line and the eyes.
Once you have these proportions down, you can manipulate and alter them
however you want.
Your next biggest challenge will be drawing the face from different angles.
Generally, most faces aren't drawn straight on, so being able to draw them from
different angles will be of great benefit to you once you master these proportions.
It just takes practice, that's all.