Drawing basic facial details.

How to draw the female face for absolute beginner's.

Basic facial detail.

Adding facial detail.

Drawing basic facial details: Eyes

When drawing basic facial details start with the eyes as they always bring the face to life. Firstly draw two almond shapes and adjust them slightly to balance them up if required. Next outline the shape with a sharp 4B pencil. An HB pencil can also be used.

Secondly, draw two circles inside of the almonds to create the iris and then using a 4B pencil do the same to the outside edge of the circle as you did to the almond. Again using the 4B pencil draw another smaller circle inside of the larger circle to create the pupil. Remember this is a basic tutorial and you will need to practice, practice, practice.

The next stage is to shade the iris with a lighter shade. Use a harder grade pencil such as a 3H or 4H.Lightly shade the whole area of the iris and then added a little detail by using the tip of the pencil to create small random lines. You can also shade above the eye to make it look more realistic.

Drawing basic facial details: Eyebrows.

The next thing to do was to add the eyebrows. lightly pencil them in first until you are happy with their shape and then added some detail. Adding the detail to the face and making it look real will come with practice as the more you do it, the better you will get. like me you will start to learn and understand what works and what doesn't. Be patient though because it won't happen overnight.

Drawing Noses.

The next thing to do is to slightly emphasise the nostrils, again using a 4B pencil. Now use a harder pencil to lightly shade the top and bottom of the nose to give it some shape. Don't worry if it looks too big or too small, as I mentioned earlier, you will start to learn what works and what doesn't and it doesn't matter how many times you rub out and try again. Eventually, with practice you will get it right.

The thing I found that I struggled with most was getting the correct shape of the nostrils. I studied lots of pictures and came to the conclusion that if I drew them as I would if I were drawing a quick cartoon picture of a bird in flight See also or even a set of bicycle handlebars I could get them pretty close. You will find that the shape of the nose will completely change the appearance of the face.

This can make a huge difference when learning how to draw a portrait which we will cover later in these tutorials.

Drawing basic facial details: How to draw mouths.

Apply the same principle as the nose to form the top lip and then added the bottom lip accordingly shading it and detailing it using the same technique as the eyes. (See also, lips and mouth) for a more detailed tutorial.

How to draw hair.

That was the fun bit as you can let your imagination run wild. I chose to give my female long hair but she can have short hair, spiky hair or no hair at all, it's entirely up to you. See also Just try to retain the shape of the face and head as I found that too much hair completely ruined the picture. ( That was only my opinion, it's up to you really.)

As stated in the title this is a beginners guide, and I like you am a beginner. I have written this tutorial in real time as it happened and all pictures and sketches are as they happened. Most aren't that great but I will keep practising until they are.

Another way to practice drawing female faces is to use images and photos.
In the next part of this tutorial we will learning how to draw a face using a photograph.