Anime Drawing Tips and Tricks: How to Improve Your Skills and Draw Better Anime

How to Draw Anime for Beginners: A Step-by-Step Guide

Anime is a popular and diverse style of animation that originated in Japan. It has a huge fan base around the world, and many people are inspired by its unique and expressive characters. Anime covers a wide range of genres, themes, and stories, from action and adventure to romance and comedy.

But what exactly is anime, and how can you learn how to draw it? In this article, we will answer these questions and show you how to draw an anime character step by step, using some examples and tips from various sources. We will also provide you with some free anime drawing software and tools that you can use to create your own anime art. By the end of this article, you should have a basic understanding of how to draw anime for beginners.

anime drawing

What are the different types of anime art styles?

Anime is not a single style of drawing, but rather a collection of different styles that share some common features. Some of these features are:

• Large and expressive eyes

• Small or simplified nose and mouth

• Exaggerated facial expressions

• Stylized hair

• Slim and elongated body proportions

• Vibrant colors

However, these features can vary depending on the type of anime art style. Some of the most popular types of anime art styles are:

• Shoujo: This style is aimed at young female audiences, and usually focuses on romance, friendship, and comedy. The characters have soft colors, slender bodies, and delicate facial features.

• Shonen: This style is aimed at young male audiences, and usually focuses on action, adventure, and fantasy. The characters have bright colors, muscular bodies, and dynamic poses.

• Moe: This style is characterized by cute and adorable characters, often with exaggerated features such as big eyes, small mouths, round faces, and blush marks. The term moe means "to feel affection" in Japanese.

• Chibi: This style is used for small and cute characters, often with big heads and small bodies. The features are simplified and exaggerated, such as huge round eyes and no nose.

• Josei: This style is aimed at adult female audiences, and usually focuses on realistic and mature themes such as daily life and relationships. The characters have natural colors, realistic proportions, and subtle expressions.

These are just some examples of the different types of anime art styles. There are many more variations and subgenres that you can explore and learn from.

How to Draw an Anime Character Step by Step

Now that you have some idea of what anime is and what are the different types of anime art styles, let's move on to the main part of this article: how to draw an anime character step by step. We will start with the head and face, then move on to the body, and finally add some details and clothing. You can follow along with the examples and tips below, or you can use your own imagination and creativity. Drawing an Anime Head and Face

The head and face are the most important parts of an anime character, as they convey the personality and emotions of the character. To draw an anime head and face, you will need to follow these steps:

• Draw an oval and divide it into sections

• Draw anime eyes

• Draw anime nose and mouth

• Draw anime hair

How to draw an oval and divide it into sections

The first step is to draw a simple oval shape for the head. You can use a circle tool or a compass to make it easier. The oval should be slightly wider at the bottom than at the top, as shown in the example below.

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Next, you need to divide the oval into four sections: two horizontal and two vertical. The horizontal lines should be slightly curved to follow the shape of the oval. The vertical line should be straight and pass through the center of the oval. The intersection of the lines will be the center point of the face.

The upper horizontal line will be the guideline for the eyes, while the lower horizontal line will be the guideline for the nose and mouth. The vertical line will help you align the features symmetrically.

You can also add some more guidelines to help you with the shape of the face and the placement of the ears. The shape of the face can vary depending on the type of anime art style you are using, but generally it is narrower at the chin and wider at the cheeks. The ears are usually located between the eyes and nose lines, as shown in the example below.

How to draw anime eyes

Anime eyes are one of the most distinctive features of anime characters, as they are large, expressive, and often have detailed designs. To draw anime eyes, you will need to follow these steps:

• Draw two almond-shaped curves on the eye line, leaving some space between them. These will be the upper eyelids.

• Draw two smaller curves below the upper eyelids, following their shape. These will be the lower eyelids.

• Draw two circles inside each eye, touching both eyelids. These will be the irises.

• Draw two smaller circles inside each iris, near the upper eyelid. These will be the pupils.

• Draw two tiny circles inside each pupil, near the lower eyelid. These will be the highlights.

• Add some eyelashes to both eyelids, making them thicker and longer at the outer corners.

• Add some eyebrows above each eye, following the shape of the eye. The eyebrows should be thin and curved.

You can also customize your anime eyes by changing their shape, size, color, and design. For example, you can make them rounder or sharper, bigger or smaller, darker or lighter, or add some patterns or gradients to them. You can also change their expression by adjusting their position, angle, or size. For example, you can make them wider or narrower, higher or lower, slanted or straight, or bigger or smaller.

How to draw anime nose and mouth

Anime nose and mouth are usually small and simple, as they are not the main focus of the face. To draw anime nose and mouth, you will need to follow these steps:

• Draw a small dot or line on the nose line, slightly below the center point of the face. This will be the nose.

• Draw a short horizontal line or curve on the mouth line, slightly above the chin. This will be the mouth.

• Add some shading or color to the nose and mouth, if you want.

You can also customize your anime nose and mouth by changing their shape, size, position, or expression. For example, you can make them rounder or sharper, bigger or smaller, higher or lower, or smiling or frowning.

How to draw anime hair

Anime hair is another important feature of anime characters, as it can show their personality and style. Anime hair is usually stylized and exaggerated, with spikes, curls, bangs, and accessories. To draw anime hair, you will need to follow these steps:

• Draw a rough outline of the hair on top of the head, following the shape of the oval. The outline should be made of curved lines that form clumps or strands of hair.

• Draw the bangs or fringe on the forehead, using curved lines that cover part of the eyes. The bangs can be straight, curved, or spiky.

• Draw the sideburns or ears on the sides of the head, using curved lines that connect to the hair outline. The sideburns can be long or short, while the ears can be visible or hidden by the hair.

Draw the back hair on the back of the head, using curved lines that extend from the hair outline. The back hair can be long or s