Faces seem complicated, but they’re not once you understand how to start off properly and then simply use reference points to figure out
| where to put everything. You can really learn to do this right now, today, and start drawing decent quality Manga characters almost immediately. To draw a Manga face, the first thing you do is just draw a simple circle, that’s it. This will always be the starting point, and this should always be done with an |
easily erasable pencil (you’ll see why in a bit). The line that you’re going to draw straight down the middle will help to serve as a reference point. Now, take note that adult characters have longer chins and more slender faces, whereas children tend to have shorter chins and more rounded faces. From here, things get a bit more complicated, so grab some paper and pencil(s) and have a look at this:
If you’re drawing a child, you should remember that their face needs to be a bit more round, and the eyes should appear bigger
| than they would on an adult. Also, the amount of the face that’s below the mouth is very minimal, and the bridge of the nose is just barely distinctive. A quick tip to make a face appear younger and more childish is to position the eyes and ears just below the horizontal line. One of the most difficult things to do with the |
face is drawing the eyes, when doing so remember:
- The eyebrow will tend to follow the shape of the upper eyelid to some degree.
- The eyes on a Manga face will typically have a top and a bottom with ‘suggested’ sides or corners.
- Eyes of Manga girls normally have more highlights in them than those of the boys and their eyelashes are also almost always longer.
- The upper eyelid usually casts a shadow on the eye itself, regardless of lighting.
- The distance from the eyebrow to the upper eyelid should be proportional to the eye’s height.
Additional Resources and Further Reading
Here’s a great detailed step-by-step tutorial from about.com with plenty of example pictures.
MangaTutorials.com has a LOT of awesome material if you want to know anything and everything about drawing manga, plus there’s an excellent forum as well.
