How To Draw A Self Portrait Easy

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Drawing a cocky portrait is an first-class manner to learn well-nigh shading, sketching, and proportions. Learning to describe a realistic portrait of the human face tin be a difficult task even for avant-garde artists, just in that location's no ameliorate way to develop your artistic ability and grow in your trade. Whether you've been drawing for years or yous're just starting out, if yous follow a few basic tips and techniques, you'll exist sketching a realistic portrait of yourself in no fourth dimension.

1. i

   Set up upwardly a mirror where it'southward easy to see. Identify it where you can move your head back and forth every bit picayune as possible while you describe. A rectangular mirror is preferable, merely a circular mirror may be used as well.^[1]

   • Using a mirror allows you to run across what you're cartoon in iii-D, and allows yous to adjust your low-cal source as you describe.

2. 2

   Angle the mirror based upon the profile you want to describe. Choose a comfortable pose that you can maintain for a sustained amount of time, as you'll be using this pose throughout your drawing. Keep your optics on the mirror roughly 80% of the time equally you depict.

   • Considering you're drawing what you encounter in the mirror, you should spend more than time looking in the mirror than really cartoon.

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3. 3

   Utilize a photo in place of a mirror for easier reference. Stand confronting a plain groundwork that makes your features popular out, such as a solid-colored wall. If you can't find a solid-colored wall, use a solid-colored drop-cloth to hang in the background. Adapt the lighting to bandage shadows yous desire.

   • Use top-lighting or lighting from above to observe more than shadows for your photograph.
   • Using a photograph gives you a 2-D reference that is easier to use than a mirror. The photo stays in one position, so you tin reference the same image many times without adjusting your drawing.
   • Drawing from a mirror is more than difficult and can aid avant-garde artists amend their skill.^[ii]

4. 4

   Keep your drawing surface equally vertical as possible. Invest in a inexpensive tabular array easel that has a clip congenital into it. Use the clip to concur your drawing in a near-vertical position while you sketch.

   • The self portrait can get distorted more hands on a flat surface.^[3]

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1. ane

   Draw a circumvolve in the center of the page. To depict a well-formed circle, trace around the edges of a gyre of duct tap or a cup. Keep the lines light so you can go back and tweak the shape of the edges later on on.

   • Most head shapes are closer to an oval than a circle, so you lot can draw an oval if you lot'd adopt.

2. 

   ii

   Draw a vertical line down the center of the circle. And then, depict a horizontal line across the center circle. The horizontal line will cross in the middle of the vertical line you lot only drew.

   • Your lines don't have to perfect, as you volition exist erasing them later on. But get them as close to center as possible.^[4]

3. 

   iii

   Measure one-half the diameter of the circle with a ruler. Place the edge of the ruler on the bottom of the circle and transfer the measurement yous simply took. Draw a line underneath the circumvolve where the measurement stops. For a female person chin, describe the line slightly higher. Make the line roughly one-half the length of the circle.

   • This line will be your reference for where to describe your chin.
   • If you don't have a ruler, you can use your pencil. Place your finger on the pencil at the betoken of the measurement. Use your finger and the edge of the pencil equally a reference for the measurement.

4. 

   iv

   Sketch 4 lines to connect the circle to the mentum line. Place your pencil on the outside of the circle at the terminate of the horizontal line. Draw a line down, nearly halfway toward the chin line, and angled slightly inward. And then, place your pencil on the outside edge of the mentum line on the same side as the line you just drew. Draw a line up and angled outward to connect information technology to the line you just drew.

   • Echo these steps on the other side to consummate the jawline.
   • If your jaw is sharper and more defined, apply steeper angles to connect the chin line. If your jaw is more rounded, use softer lines. Refer to the mirror for reference on how sharp to make the angles.
   • Don't forget to keep your lines light and then yous can mankind out the item later on.^[5]

5. 

   5

   Re-describe the horizontal line at the halfway point of your current drawing. Erase the first horizontal line you drew. Mensurate the halfway point of the electric current drawing and describe a new horizontal line all the fashion across the outline.

   • This will exist your heart line. Feel free to characterization it for easy reference when you start drawing the eyes. Only make sure you label it lightly so you can become back and erase information technology.

6. 

   vi

   Draw a line at the halfway signal between the eye line and the chin line. Then, draw another line halfway betwixt the line y'all simply drew and the chin line. You will at present have 3 horizontal lines drawn beyond your outline.

   • The first line yous drew volition exist the nose line, and the 2d line will exist the lip line. For easy reference subsequently, lightly characterization these lines with pencil so y'all can erase them afterwards on.

7. 7

   Sketch a horizontal line at the center point between the centre line and the crown. Then, draw some other horizontal line between the line you just drew and the middle eye line. You lot volition now accept a total of 5 horizontal lines.

   • These 2 lines will both exist hair lines. Characterization them for easy reference after on.

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1. 

   1

   Make small, vertical dashes to split the centre line into 5 equal sections. Use a ruler to measure the unabridged width of the caput and divide that number by 5. For case, if the widest part of the caput is 6 centimetres (two.4 in) long, split up that by 5 to get one.2 centimetres (0.47 in). Then, use your ruler to separate the horizontal eye line into 5 sections that are i.ii centimetres (0.47 in) each.

   • You will cease up with 4 as spaced tick marks that separate the eye line into five equal sections.^[6]

2. 

   2

   Draw the left eye betwixt the 1st and 2nd dashes on the horizontal eye line. Starting time the left border of the left center on the 1st tick mark from the left, and make the correct border of the left eye touch the 2nd tick mark from the left. Draw the far correct edge of the right heart touching the 1st dash from the right, with the inner corner of the correct eye touching the second dash from the right.

   • This will ensure your optics are evenly spaced and identical in size.

3. 

   iii

   Fill up in the eyebrows directly above the eyes. If the portrait ends up looking pitiful, your eyebrows may exist spaced too close together. Endeavour spacing them further apart for a happier demeanor.^[seven]

4. 

   four

   Sketch a vertical line from the inner corner of the left eye to the nose line. Practise the same for the correct eye. Sketch the nose inside of these boundary lines, using the vertical line in the middle as reference to keep the nose as symmetrical as possible.

   • For a medium-length nose, draw it in a higher place the nose line.
   • For a longer nose, draw information technology beneath the nose line.
   • For a shorter nose, draw it between the eye and nose line.
   • Go on the boundary lines lite so you can get back and erase them after.

5. 

   5

   Brand a vertical line from the middle of each heart down to the lip line. Draw the lips in between these purlieus lines, with the bottom lip resting on the lip line. Use the eye vertical line equally reference to draw the lips every bit symmetrically as possible.

   • If your mouth is an boilerplate size, sketch it well inside the boundary lines. Adjust every bit necessary for larger or smaller mouths.
   • Make sure to describe the purlieus lines lightly so you can go back and erase them after.^[8]

6. 

   6

   Add the hairline in between the 2 separate lines labeled "pilus". For a female face up, draw a smooth line around the forehead. Try to avoid adding any angles. For a male face, sketch a well-divers, angular hairline.^[nine] Then, fill in the rest of the hair, using the hairline you just drew as reference.

   • Fill in the hairline with thick lines, adding shadows and highlighting as you work.^[x]

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1. 1

   Erase all unnecessary lines from the portrait. Use light pressure when erasing the lines so you don't rip the paper. This includes the original vertical line, all of the horizontal lines, and the purlieus lines you used for creating your proportions.

   • If you labeled your middle, lip, olfactory organ, and hair lines for easier reference, erase those besides.

2. 

   2

   Fill in the ears, areas in the eyes, lips, and olfactory organ. Draw your ears roughly between the eye and nose line, then sketch out your cervix. Get dorsum and add whatsoever details you may have left out when sketching the outline of the main features.

   • Fill in things like lip wrinkles, shadows nether the optics, and shading on the span of the nose.
   • Spend time adding wrinkles and sunspots to the skin, jewelry such as earrings or nose rings, details in the eyebrows, and any other minute tweaks you want to add. The more details you add to the portrait, the more than realistic it will announced.

3. 

   3

   Shape the jaw and cheeks based upon the angle of the face up. If your jawline is more divers, add abrupt angles to the jaw expanse. If it is more than rounded, erase whatsoever precipitous angles and smooth them out. Do the aforementioned to the cheekbones, adding or removing definition as necessary.

   • To make yourself look younger, make the jawline narrower so your basic look less developed.^[11]

4. 4

   Add together shading to your portrait to make information technology more realistic. Utilise a smudging tool or your finger to add shadows as y'all go. As you lot shade, take into account whatever glares in the hair or optics.

   • Make sure to add shadowing to the neck area. This will keep it from looking like information technology'due south floating in sparse air.^[12]

5. five

   Hang your portrait in a frame that compliments your work. Use a frame that goes well with the medium y'all used to draw your portrait. If you lot used a charcoal pencil, compliment your drawing past hanging it in a unproblematic black frame. If you used colored pencils or soft color of any sort, try a wooden frame.

   • Drawing a self-portrait is hard work, and framing it is an excellent way to brandish your achievement.^[13]

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Add New Question

• Question

  How can I make the shading realistic with a pencil?

  

  What I do is I lightly become over where I want to shade with pencil, and then rub information technology in with my finger to help information technology blend.

• Question

  How do I correctly use shading as a beginner?

  

  Try taking a picture of yourself and changing the filter to the black and white setting. This should assistance you figure out where to shade. It's all nigh observing where the light and shadows fall.

• Question

  How do I make shades wait realistic on my drawings?

  

  Wherever you see shadow in the film yous took, shade it in the same identify in your portrait. Make sure not to over-darken and be sure to alloy in.

• Question

  What kind of pencil should I use?

  

  When you lot are sketching the rough outline, use H or HB. Then, when you lot're gear up to shade use softer pencils like 3B.

• Question

  How exercise I draw the eyebrows?

  

  If you lot have a well-defined countenance shape, draw the outline first, and then fill up in the shading and maybe some hairs. If your eyebrows are less well-defined, describe small lines (hairs) throughout the eyebrow area for a realistic effect. Practice your best to copy what you meet in the picture.

• Question

  Where can I get sketch/coloring pencils?

  

  Virtually everything is on Amazon at present. You tin besides try a craft or store.

• Question

  How can drawing a cocky-portrait be beneficial at different stages of life?

  

  If you draw yourself at unlike stages of life, you can meet how you have improved and changed over time, about like a diary. Information technology besides provides an idea of how your drawing skills take changed through the years.

• Question

  How can I draw a adept face shape?

  

  You lot could employ a grid, re-create the aforementioned grid onto you paper lightly and so use it to help you lot. Try to draw what you see, and not what your encephalon tells you y'all wait like.

• Question

  How can I draw a cocky-portrait without a photograph of myself?

  

  You can use a mirror if you lot don't take the power to take a photo, but that might exist more difficult.

• Question

  How do I know where to put the shading without a photograph?

  

  Penelope Charry

  Community Answer

  You can await in the mirror. You can also use the light source to determine where to put the shading. Another idea is to create your ain calorie-free source or change information technology. Information technology's upwards to you!

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VideoRead Video Transcript

• Try to continue dark colors in the hair and eyes so that they popular more.

• Employ a 4B charcoal pencil to help you gradually build up shadows as you lot describe.

Thanks for submitting a tip for review!

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• Exist careful non to rip the paper when y'all erase the markings.

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Things Yous'll Need

• Mirror, preferably rectangular
• Pencil, preferably charcoal
• Sturdy, clean drawing paper (preferably newsprint)
• Kneaded eraser, optional
• Photograph of yourself, optional
• Drib-cloth, optional

About This Article

Article Summary X

To draw a cocky portrait, start by setting up a mirror so you can easily see information technology while you draw, and so gear up an easel so you can draw on a vertical surface. Next, lightly sketch in the bones proportions of your facial features, then draw the features themselves. Lastly, sketch in the finer details and add shading to make your drawing await more realistic! For tips on creating realistic shadows, read on!

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Source: https://www.wikihow.com/Draw-a-Self-Portrait

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