How to Draw People's Faces
- 1). Make an oval or circular shape that will be the basis for the the head. Draw it big enough for facial features to be placed inside; it doesn't have to be perfect.
- 2). Create a curved horizontal line about one-half or three-quarters of the way down the circle. This is where the eyes should be placed; it is called the eye line. The eye line can be positioned on many different sides of the head, depending on where you want the face to be looking.
- 3). Provide a level of depth by drawing a vertical line that is at a right angle to the eye line. This provides a center to the face that creates a three-dimensional look. Determine a balance of your model's face by keeping her features placed on the same level on either side of the line. This line can be altered to fit your persons face or if you want to distort her features.
- 4). Shape the head and face by adding features such as a nose. The nose is usually the center of the drawing; it lets you know where to place the eyes, cheeks, ears, mouth and chin cleft. The nose can give you a introduction to the eyes by creating the eye sockets and eye brows from the bridge of the nose. Remember to erase the horizontal and vertical lines as you create the features.
- 5). Prepare the eyes from the eye sockets created from the nose. The eyes should be level and at least an eye width apart for the most realism. A cartoonish face can be made by exaggerating the eyes by drawing them farther away or closer together.
- 6). Unite the rest of the features to the face such as the mouth, cheeks and ears. The mouth will rest beneath the nose and right above the chin cleft. You don't need to worry about drawing cheeks unless they protrude. The ears should be placed in the middle of the outside part of the head.
- 7). Compose the hair in a few different sections to add texture and depth. Avoid drawing each individual strand; add a form to the top of the head and add a section on each side of the head. Create a uniform shape by erasing sections and connecting other parts until you have a single unit of hair. Once you have that established, you can add the texture in waves and cross lines to make the hair look real.
