Drawing Exercises

Any practices to improve drawing?

I draw anime and cartoons, and I've been drawing for about 2 years now. I'm improving a little, but I still need work. I've always said practice helps, but are there any specific exercises I can do to help improve drawing? I need to work on: Figure (body, eyes, and hair for the most part) Hands and feet Perspective Shadows and lighting Wrinkles in clothing Anybody with any help to any of these categories, please share your wisdom. Much appreciated!

Public Comments

1. The most important thing is to work from life. Copying anime will help you get better at copying anime, but it won't help you draw. Start with simple objects, solid shapes like coffee mugs or ceramic vases. Draw them again and again, but really look at the thing, don't just draw the way you think it looks. Once you feel you have a handle on that, start on more complex things, like people or flowers. One great challenge is to crumple up a sheet of white paper and then try to draw that. It will be different from every single angle, and getting the shadows accurate is quite a lesson in itself. And here's a great little cheat, when you've finished your drawing, look at it in a mirror. The reflection will be in reverse and allow you to look at it with fresh eyes and see exactly what needs to be fixed.
2. Hello! :D When I began drawing anime, I just copied what I saw at first because I couldn't picture how to to draw them in my head. That might be one way to start off. You may start to draw on your own ideas, like what you did at first, which is very good! Checking out different "How to draw..." books are very useful. The library has a few good books on that. For body figures: The way I draw the body is with circles and ovals. the stick figure technique is good too. Ways that may help you is calculating whether the body parts aren't twisted in awkward stances or positions by looking at other pictures with the similar position. Hands and Feet:Sometimes it's hard making sure the fingers or toes are in the right place, I had a lot of trouble with that. I was taught that the hand should be the size of the face, since it covers the face if you place your hand on your face. The toes kind of go from an up to down line, toe to pinkie. Hair: The hair is basically "flowy" lines. It's just free, curvy lines for a bunch of anime cartoons. You can get a book or manga that has anime and get some ideas from the different hair styles they have that eventually you can go on your own from there. Anime hair is a little bit bigger and exaggerated sometimes, about l l that much from the head. Shadows and lighting: Shadows are opposite the lighting area sometimes. For example, of you draw a face with the lighting on the right side then the shadow will go on the left. there are many types of shadow shading too. there could be a regular skin tone, to a darker similar one, to a darker one from that or black. The light should always follow the perspective it's hitting it by directing all to the same direction it follows. Shadows can be under wrinkles in the clothes, under the neck, under the hair(if it has bangs), the body's shadow, Shadows under the feet that forms the feet beneath with black shading. Just shade where another object in your drawing or is over it. Look at other objects where you stand and see how the shadow and light forms. Figure drawing! Wrinkles and clothing: Any clothing suits to the way you want it to be. The wrinkles just fold even more where a body part bends like your arm. That center is where you form more lines because the clothing comes together. Draw little wrinkles as possible where the body doesn't bend or not draw any at all. Wrinkles are formed where the movement is taking place. I hope I made of some sense, it's kind of better to get it in a visuals perspective. Maybe I can show you when we meet again! I'm sorry if I didn't make any sense! >_< Ah! TOO MUCH! SORRY!
3. http://www.drawnow.com/