When it comes to drawing anime, it can be hard to know where to start. Hopefully though, I can give you a few of my personal favorite tips for drawing anime. シ
Before I share any tips, I always have to tell people the difference between anime and manga. Manga is anime in most any art form, physical or digital. Anime comes from the English word animation, meaning to animate or give life, in this case through TV.
Now that we know the difference between anime and manga (it matters, trust me 🙃) I can share my favorite tips with you guys.
Tip #1 Use templates and references
I have heard SO many people say this, but I'll say it again just for you 😉. USING REFERENCES IS NOT CHEATING!!! I cannot emphasise this enough! I use references and templets ALL. THE. TIME. And it actually, really, truly helps. Also tracing. Sometimes tracing is the only way to help you hands get used to the shape of something you want to draw. Not too long ago I would look up "anime template" and trace it to help my hands get used to the shape. Here is one one that I just now found on Google.
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| Credit to "Learn2DrawManga" on DevientArt |
After I traced the template, I used multiple how-to-draw books for references (which I still do) to draw the clothes, which brings me to my next tip,
Tip #2 Clothes hang loose from the body
When I was younger, any humans that I drew, I drew with clothes on. (Obviously.) But they always clung to the body of the people, making SOMETHING that I could not figure out for the life of me look slightly off. it wasn't until I was was older and using references (refer to Tip #1) that I realized what the problem was. If you look closely at a picture of someone wearing any type of clothing, you can see that it doesn't cling tight to their body, it's loose. Drawing clothes on a person that cling tight to their body can make it look too small for that person. However, we can use this to our advantage (and pretty easily too.) In manga, little kids will often wear clothes that are just a bit too small for them. To achieve a little kid look in manga, make him/her either slightly overweight or slightly underweight. Both are good for younger characters. Also make the clothes a bit small or baggy, depending on which body type you choose.
Credit to "Dragoart" at "Dragoart.com"
Tip #3 Put tiny dots on the very corners of the mouth
It may sound weird, but this is sometimes essential. Adding dots on the corners of the mouth can express only very slight changes in emotion. However, people often notice even the smallest of things when it comes to art. Dots on the top on the mouth indicate a slight smile, whereas dots on the bottom of the mouth often indicate a slight frown. The dots shouldn't be very obvious or prominent, but more subtle and blended in. Sadly, when I searched online I couldn't find any examples of this.
Tip #4 Remember to recharge
This doesn't just apply to drawing manga. Whenever you're drawing something that you're having trouble with, remember to take a break. Get some food, take a walk etc. and come back later with fresh eyes. It really helps! My personal favorite way to relax is to watch TV or play some video games. It lets my brain calm down and just turn to mush for a little while. 🙂
Credit to "g-stockstudio"
Tip #5 Use a line of action
A line of action is kind of exactly what it sounds like. It's a line that curves to show the actions of what you are drawing. However, it is a guideline, and like other guidelines, should be erased after the line art (if there is any) is finished. I personally have never used a line of action, but have actually imagined one into the drawing. That way, I have less lines to erase.
Anyway, that's all the art tips for drawing manga that I have for now. Hopefully I'll be able to come with more tips and ideas in future posts. I hope this helped you all draw just a little bit better now!
-CrystalTheDragon
