How to draw a human in cartoon style
Increasingly, you can find the design of various advertising posters, blogs and children's parties using cartoon characters and comics. Creating such characters on paper or a tablet is a separate type of modern art that combines work and hobby. Often, children themselves want to draw cartoon characters, because this is a great opportunity to show their imagination and create their own story. We will tell you more about how to draw in a cartoon style, how to create your own characters or portray ready-made ones.
Content
- Perception of the surrounding world
- cartoon main character
- How to draw a person in cartoon style. Step by step instruction (8 steps)
- Age features of the characters
- How to add emotions
- I am my own cartoon character
- Children's cartoon
Perception of the surrounding world
It so happened that a person equally well evaluates both the completely real world and the one that is created artificially. Pictures, fictional characters, comics - all this seems to us as real as a tree outside our window. There is only a general idea that the sky is blue, the grass is green, a person has two legs, and a car has four wheels. At the same time, the details do not play a big role for a person to understand what exactly is in front of him. Missed details give us the opportunity to work with our imagination and turn the picture into a living object, to understand the situation that is depicted, to experience the emotions of the drawn characters.
Сartoon main character
When creating a cartoon or drawing in a cartoon style, the question arises of how to draw a cartoon person. It is important to remember here that, unlike a portrait, a character can have absolutely any proportions of the body and head, it is not tied to the strict standards of the golden ratio and is the embodiment of your imagination. However, you also need to be able to depict on paper or screen what is clearly looming in your head. As always, everyone chooses the path of learning for himself. This could be courses for cartoonists, courses in pencil, marker or watercolor drawing, or public information that you study on your own. In any case, absolutely everyone from scratch can learn how to create their own cartoon characters.
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How to draw a human in cartoon style
We have already said that the proportions of a cartoon character can differ significantly from a real person, but nevertheless, a person should still have a head, torso, arms and legs. At the same time, it is important that the hero looks stable, which is impossible if the head is much larger than the rest of the body. So let's look at step-by-step instructions on how to draw cartoon characters.
1
Step
The basis of any cartoon man is the head. Draw a circle to represent the head. You can draw it both by hand and with a compass. We divide the circle into four equal parts in order to proportionally place the facial features of the hero, as is done when depicting a real person (link to how to draw a person).
2
Step
As for a living person, for a cartoon character, the eyes are the most important feature that makes the image bright and individual, conveying the character of the hero, his thoughts and feelings.
The basis for the shape of the eyes can be circles, ovals, as well as shapes with the addition of angles and straight lines. In this case, a thickening “in the corners” of the eyes should be made so that they look more natural.
The next step in drawing the eyes is the iris and the pupil itself. Usually the iris is drawn round, less often oval. A black pupil is placed inside. The iris itself is either filled with a single color or drawn in detail, thereby making the image more realistic.
Glare from the main light source helps to give the image completeness and believability. Moreover, they help to portray the emotions of the hero when the eyes are shining with happiness or, on the contrary, filled with tears.
Glare from the main light source helps to give the image completeness and believability. Moreover, they help to portray the emotions of the hero when the eyes are shining with happiness or, on the contrary, filled with tears.
3
Step
Eyelashes and eyebrows complete the upper part of the face. At the same time, eyelashes can be depicted simply as a thickening of the upper line of the eye, and with a detailed drawing of hairs. Eyebrows should be added above the eyes. Here again, there is no single correct shape or thickness. Important when choosing their appearance is the gender and age of the hero, as well as his character. Sometimes cartoon characters are completely left without eyebrows, but the image still looks harmonious and complete.
4
Step
When drawing the nose, it is important not to overdo it. With a frontal image, they often draw only its tip or one side, as if assuming it is shadow. Extra details will only load the image, distracting from the eyes and the general idea of the hero. A woman's nose is usually drawn smaller and with less detail than a man's.
5
Step
The lower part of the face consists of the mouth and chin. For the elderly, a more massive chin is often used, to which wrinkles and curves are added, while the young face is smoother and more even. The mouth can be depicted as a thin line-thread, or it can be drawn in detail like it is depicted in a living person. Here it is worth relying on the skill of the author and the planned result.
6
Step
The ears on the front side usually do not have much detail. They only remotely resemble the shape of a half pear, an oval, or even hide behind the long hair of the character.
7
Step
Hair on the head, like a beard with a mustache, raises many questions. In fact, you can draw a cartoon character without drawing every hair. It is enough to give a general shape to the hairstyle, beard or mustache. At the same time, you can play with color by adding several shades that create an overflow effect in the light, add an unusual shape or separate curls, the tips of which will look like triangles.
8
Step
The torso and limbs of the hero can be quite primitive. The body and limbs can be based on 5 rectangles, which are given the appropriate shape with the help of folds of clothing. For a beginner, it is easier to depict the hands behind the back, so as not to draw all the fingers. Although, unlike the image of a real person, the cartoon character often turns out to be not with five fingers, but with three or four, or even his hand as if constantly in a mitten.
Feet can be drawn in massive boots, shoes or boots, they can be disproportionately large or small to emphasize the strength or, on the contrary, the fragility of the character.
So, the classic cartoon character is ready.
Age features of the characters
When drawing this or that hero of your composition, it is important to take into account some features related to the age, gender, ethnicity of the character. Even the simple cartoonish style of drawing allows these individual differences to be conveyed.
So, the first thing to decide is the age of the depicted person. You can draw a child, a teenager, a young man or woman, or an old man. Naturally, the sizes of these people will differ significantly. It is also worth considering the features of the figure, characteristic of a certain age. For example, babies usually have a characteristic swelling on the cheeks and wrinkles on the arms and legs. Adolescents are distinguished by some angularity, often displaced body proportions. Old people often find themselves hunched over or on half-bent legs.
The image of the face is also different. For example, in older people, wrinkles should be added near the eyes, and the face itself in children is more rounded than in adults. Also, in older people, the skin often sags and the chin seems even longer. The ears of an elderly character are usually larger, and the hair on the head is much less.
How to add emotions
We figured out how to draw people in a cartoon style. However, the character will become a person, not a soulless doll, only by acquiring their emotions. Any experiences of a person are always reflected on his face, so it is the face of the character that will be subjected to the greatest deformation. To portray surprise, you can draw one eyebrow above the other, add a characteristic curve to it. A sad person can close their eyelids, they can also add tears that will gleam in the light. A happy character's eyes are usually sparkling, while they are wide open and accompanied by a characteristic smile.
I am my own cartoon character
Often you want to be the hero of a picture, comic book or cartoon, of which you are the author. But how to draw yourself in a cartoon style and still retain individual features.
To draw a hero from a living person, it is best to take a photo of him and try to portray the person realistically. However, you don't have to go into too much detail. The drawing is just an aid. So you can note for yourself the important individual features of the future character, as well as note those details that are too difficult to draw. In the future, they can be omitted or depicted in a simplified form.
The main thing in the image of a character from a living person is his face. You can deliberately enlarge the eyes, change the facial expressions of the hero and give him an image that resembles the images of other characters in style, while conveying his personal characteristics.
The body of such a character will not differ significantly from the bodies of your other heroes. In this case, you can make all the participants in the picture completely identical or rely on the growth and format of the characters. Here again, everything depends only on the imagination and desires of the author of the image.
Children's cartoon
Children often love to draw and are fans of certain cartoon characters. To get closer to their favorite characters, they think about how to draw cartoon characters. At the same time, someone simply portrays their favorite characters, while someone uses their imagination to the maximum and creates new stories and adds new characters. For children, such a drawing can be a great start to an artistic career or simply distract from routine activities.
To draw your favorite character, you can use the recommendations similar to drawing a character from a living person, but it is better to learn this professionally in a Disney-style children's drawing course. Favorite cartoon characters come to life before the eyes of the child and he himself feels like a part of his favorite fairy tale.
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