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  Drawing the Nose: Male vs. Female

  Let’s talk about the most noticeable differences between the male nose and the female nose. By comparing these forms we can help to commit some of the process to memory. The male nose is much more angular and larger where the female nose is smaller and has softer curves.

  The Curve of the Nose

  Notice with these basic profiles that the drawing of the male nose is more angular and the female nose has more curves. The overall shapes in the female nose are smaller and less defined. This may vary based upon the character.

  Shading the Nose

  Fewer lines are used to define the shading of the female nose, as seen in the nose on the right. This is another way to show the differences when drawing the male to female features. Lighter and thinner lines compliment the smaller nose’s more subtle features.

  Experiment and Practice!

  Noses comes in so many different shapes and sizes that the best way to get better at them is to experiment. Try drawing noses with various distortions from what you are used to. Larger nostrils, more curvature to the bridge of the nose, or a larger tip to the nose are just a few things you can try to create a variety of noses for your characters.

  Shaping the Nose from the Front

  Let’s look at the same principles from the front. The male nose is still larger than the female nose and also more angular. Even when drawing the plane change from the lower ball of the nose to where the nostrils are, you can still define that area with angular lines for the male and curved lines for the female.

  Shading with Fewer Lines

  Again when shading these forms, you’ll generally use fewer lines on the female nose. A good way to practice this is to draw the nose with as few lines as possible. Sometimes less is more. The more lines you add, the more the nose will appear older and weathered. For pretty noses, keep the details to a minimum.

  Practice Various Shapes

  Here are some more nose shapes to practice with. Play around with proportions in the different areas. Study from life but then make your own stylized version and pretty soon you will be drawing them without any reference at all!

  Drawing Noses: Downward Angle

  Let’s learn to draw the nose in a downward angle, starting with the larger primitive shapes and then working in the details. Many parts of the body can be drawn using this simplified process.

  1 BLOCK IN THE BASIC SHAPES

  Draw the basic triangular shapes. You can draw the bridge of the nose with half of a thin pyramid shape with an angle cut off at the lower end for the edge of the nose. Then for the nostril, repeat this shape (in a much smaller version) and flipped in the other direction. These shapes are simple building blocks to work with and can vary.

  2 START ROUNDING THE FORMS

  Add two ovals to the existing building blocks: one for the end of the nose and one for the nostril. These should help you to start thinking of the forms in a more organic perspective.

  3 CURVE AND SHAPE THE NOSE

  Draw some more curved lines to define the shape of the nose. Remember that if you have a hard time figuring out where the curves should go, drawing guidelines can help. First draw a line down the middle of the nose, making sure to curve it around the existing forms. Then draw the cross sections up and around the nose. This technique will help you think in three-dimensional terms about your drawings.

  4 DEFINE THE NOSE

  Gently erase your construction lines and start to really envision what your nose will look like. Use concise lines and draw out your shapes. You can add some line weight now to help define areas that are more pronounced. Add thicker lines by the ball of the nose and the area where the nostril meets the cheek. This can give the nose more depth and make those areas stand out a bit more.

  5 ADD FINAL DETAILS

  Add lines to render your form. Create a drop shadow under the nose. This is another useful way to make the nose look more three-dimensional. Don’t forget to draw the line at the bottom of the nose to show the plane change. It is the line near the very bottom that curves around the nose to create a highlight effect. That can be a style choice as well, but it almost always makes the nose look more rounded.

  Try Different Angles

  Here are some more downward angle shots to practice. Just practice lots of variations and you will become comfortable creating all types of noses in no time.

  Drawing Noses: Upward Angle

  Now you will draw the nose in an upward angle. This is one of the more difficult positions in which to draw the nose, but with some practice it will become easy. Like any task that seems difficult, always start with the basics.

  1 BLOCK IN THE BASIC SHAPES

  Draw the nose as a basic three-dimensional wedge-like shape. This allows you to remember the perspective of the nose when drawing in your details.

  2 START ROUNDING THE FORMS

  Add a ball at the end of the wedge to represent the tip of the nose. Also draw a slight plane change at the top of the wedge to hint at the brow area where the bridge of the nose changes shape.

  3 CURVE AND SHAPE THE NOSE

  Draw the organic shapes over your basics. Draw a bump on the top bridge area of the nose to give it more character. Draw the nostrils larger from this perspective. They are generally bean shaped from this angle.

  4 DEFINE THE NOSE

  Draw the plane change at the bottom of the nose. Remember that it curves back and forth with the multiple shapes of the nose. You can draw this with a thinner line so it will be less pronounced. Also draw in a few thicker lines to show definition on the bump of the bridge area and the ball of the nose. Then draw a few more lines under the septum of the nose and near the nostrils to give them a bit of depth.

  5 ADD FINAL DETAILS

  Add your rendering lines to bring out the forms of the nose. The amount of shading is purely up to you and your style, but try to reinforce the shapes that you have already drawn. Curving the lines in the direction of the rounded shapes will help with that effect. It is also a good idea to use thinner lines than those used in the original drawing so they do not distract from the overall shapes.

  More Upward Angles

  Here are a few more nose shapes to play around with. Experiment with all of the basic forms to get a nice variety. No two noses are alike so feel free to mess up and try again and again!

  Drawing Lips: Male

  Let’s focus on the mouths of our characters. First you will draw a male mouth from the front and from the side. This is an easy one. Well, it’s easy when the mouth is closed!

  1 DRAW THE GUIDELINES

  Draw a stretched out M for the front view of the mouth. Then place a line below the M for the bottom lip. Then draw a Y shape turned on its side for the profile view of the mouth. Notice that the line that separates the top lip from the bottom lip tilts downward slightly. Draw the bottom lip just a bit thicker than the top lip.

  2 DRAW MORE ORGANIC SHAPES

  Lightly erase your rough guidelines and draw over them with more organic shapes. Focus on giving the lips a softer look than the previous sketch. Add in a few more details for the top lip and a crescent shape where the bottom lip connects to the chin. Do not add too much detail to the top lip on the male or the lips will look feminine.

  Three-Dimensional Thinking

  Here is another example of trying to envision the forms in a three-dimensional space. Practice studies like these to reinforce your knowledge of the forms. Draw the lines bending around the lips and try to imagine the subtle changes that the forms make.

  3 REFINE THE LINES

  Draw larger line weights to give the lips more defined shape. Also draw in the shadows beneath the lower lip and on the edges of the top lip.

  4 ADD FINAL DETAILS

  Render the lines with crosshatching to round out the shapes even further. Remember to keep these lines thinner and less pronounced than the previous line work. When shading the lips, use fewer lines if you want them to appear younger and use more lines
to give the appearance of age.

  Keep Practicing

  In these examples, notice that the top lip is usually a bit thinner than the bottom. The top lip is going to produce more of a shadow due to the plane change. Male lips generally are less pronounced.

  Drawing Lips: Female

  For this lesson you will draw the female mouth closed. The idea is to use more pronounced curves to give them a more sultry look than the male version.

  1 DRAW THE GUIDELINES

  Start with the same basic lines as the male lips but add a bit more curve and more distance from the bottom lip line to the M-shape line. This will leave room to make the lip more voluptuous. Also notice the angle difference from the top lip to the bottom lip.

  2 MARK GUIDES FOR THE FACIAL FEATURES

  From the middle line that you just made to the bottom line that represents the chin area, create another horizontal line at the halfway point. This will be where the nose goes later. From this point to the chin, create three sections evenly spaced by drawing two more horizontal lines.

  3 CURVE THE LIP SHAPES

  Gently erase your previous lines and draw over them with the curves that you see in the lips. Notice how they taper inward toward the area where they meet the cheeks. Keep in mind that they are compounding curves, and they bend downward and back from this perspective.

  4 DRAW THE SHADOW SHAPES

  Now that the main shapes are in place, you can build up the definition. Draw in the shapes of shadows or, in this case, the shape of the highlight on the lips. Also draw in the more-defined lines for the chin and the dimple above the lip.

  5 ADD FINAL DETAILS

  Render the lines with crosshatching to show the curves of the lips. Tapering the lines and curving them in the direction of the forms will help to make them appear more three-dimensional.

  Keep Practicing

  Here are some more examples to practice. Try creating multiple lip poses with the same style. Try to envision as many closed lips studies as you can. Exercises like these will help you to feel comfortable with a given area of your drawings. Then, after you have the hang of it, try changing something about the style and do the studies again!

  Drawing the Mouth: Screaming

  In this lesson you will draw the mouth screaming. You can’t have a comic without someone screaming at least once. So let’s get screaming, shall we?

  1 DRAW THE GUIDELINES

  Draw the opening of the mouth. Start angular and we will smooth out the lines in the next steps. Draw a curved rectangular shape for the top teeth and the gums. From this angle, we are going to see more of the bottom teeth so draw a horseshoe shape for now. The bottom front teeth are thinner than the rest so draw the shape accordingly. Also draw in a line for the bottom lip.

  2 SKETCH THE TEETH

  Start to draw the teeth with more detail. We will only see a few of the front top teeth, but the bottom will be much more visible, so focus on them more. The bottom front four are thinner and line up straight across. Then you have the two canines, which are generally sharper looking. Draw the rest of the molars straight back, getting larger at the back of the mouth. Understanding the size and shape differences of the teeth from one another can be tricky, but draw them enough times and you will begin to understand it.

  3 START ADDING DETAIL

  Draw more detail on the teeth. Try drawing the separations of the teeth from the top and bottom of each tooth but not fully connecting the lines. It is better to hint at some lines than drawing them all the way through. Draw the indents of the lower teeth. These are shaped like an X or a tilted Y, as I have drawn here. Draw in the shapes for the gums on the bottom. Use a small A between each tooth.

  4 DEFINE THE SHAPES

  Gently erase the sketch lines and draw them back in with more definition. Think about cleaning up the work but also about thickening the lines in the right areas to give the drawing more life. Well-placed line weights are very important in comics and drawing in general.

  5 ADD SHADOW SHAPES

  Fill in your shadow shapes. This will make some areas of your drawing really stand out. Fill in areas like the back of the mouth to make the tongue stand out more. Fill in the gums to make the teeth more visible, and add a drop shadow beneath the tongue to give the appearance of depth.

  6 ADD FINAL DETAILS

  Render the lines by adding crosshatching and more shading. Try to think of these as gradients and use them to transition from the dark areas to the light. Also use some thicker lines to contrast the smaller lighter lines. If the lines become too distracting, then that defeats the purpose. Be mindful of how you use them.

  Try a Different Angle

  Practice drawing mouths over and over again. When you are ready, you can start drawing crazy creatures of the night like this one. It may look quite different, but I assure you the same fundamentals apply!

  Drawing the Mouth: Smiling

  For this lesson you will draw the mouth smiling. We will approach the smile at an angle to study the change in shape from one side to the other.

  1 DRAW THE GUIDELINES

  Draw a bowed vertical line. The bow will help you to remember the curve that is present in the mouth from this angle. Now draw an M shape for the top lip. The same shape will work for the lower line of the top lip, but it will be more stretched out to meet the edges.

  2 SKETCH THE TEETH SHAPE

  Draw a block shape for the teeth. You can make it angular at first and smooth out the lines later. Draw the divide for the top and bottom teeth, but make sure to leave more room for the top teeth. Don’t make the mistake of drawing the line in the middle of the teeth. You also don’t need to continue this line all the way across. The missing part will look like a highlight on the front of the teeth.

  3 ADD THE BOTTOM LIP

  Draw the bottom shape of the lower lip. It will be thicker toward the front and taper inward toward the cheeks. Just remember that most of the time the lower lip is thicker than the top lip. Getting the transition of the thicker part of the lip to the thinner part can be tricky, but the more you study this area the easier it will get.

  4 ADD DETAILS

  Draw the teeth. I like to add more of the visible details to the inner back part of the mouth and omit the details at the front. Doing so helps to convey depth and lighting. Drawing every tooth can make the mouth look flat and overly detailed.

  5 DRAW THE HIGHLIGHTS

  Draw the highlights of the lips. I tend to do this only on the female lips to help illustrate a glare or the effect of lipstick. This also helps to round out the lips and adds another dynamic to them.

  6 ADD FINAL DETAILS

  Shade in the rest of the lips and add in rendering lines on the bottom lip to round out the form.

  Drawing the Ears: Front View

  In this lesson you will draw a front view of the ear. This is the easiest perspective of the ear to draw. It can still be a little tricky, but with practice everything becomes easier. So let’s put in some of that practice right now.

  1 DRAW THE GUIDELINES

  Define the overall shape of the ear by drawing a disk-like shape on a slight angle. Make sure to start out a bit wider at the top. Then draw another shape to represent the area that connects to the head. This is similar to the larger shape, but tapers more drastically at the bottom.

  2 SKETCH THE EAR SHAPES

  Start to think about the depth of the shape of the ear. Draw a line to create the inner ridge of the ear on the right side. Draw a smaller oval to represent the opening in the ear. The shapes of the ear are more complex than this, so give yourself plenty of guides to work up to those more complex areas.

  3 CURVE AND DEVELOP THE SHAPES

  Gently erase your construction lines and begin to draw the more organic shapes of the ear. This part takes time to get right so don’t rush and don’t feel bad if it doesn’t work out at first. Study from life and just keep at it. One thing to notice is how the inner part of the ear will actually extend out past the ear ridg
e from this angle.

  4 ADD FINAL DETAILS

  Gently erase the rest of your rough sketch lines and draw in the shapes of shadows. Add more line work to round out the forms. Use more or less lines depending on the style you are going for.