The Human Body

When doing the figure, it is useful to sketch in a quick "dummy" so that you can get the basic proportions and pose, without having to spend a lot of time on it. If the pose or the drawing doesn't work out, then you havn't put loads of effort into the drawing and you can try again without regrets.

The dummy on the left is done with bubbles. I do not recommend this method because it is difficult to tell which way the bubbles face, and they really do not define the head, upperbody, and hips well. The dummy on the right uses boxes. Boxes allow you to see how the figure is bending because you can see the front, back, sides, top, and bottom.

Pose your figure however you want. The boxes will give you a good idea of how the final drawing will look.

Even though the figures here are simple, you can tell exactly how they are posed, and you have a good idea of what they're doing.

Draw your box figures until you find a composition that really appeals to you. Once you find a composition that you like, it's time to take that doodle to the next stage!

The human figure is anywhere between 6-8 heads tall, depending on the individual.

The shoulders are 1 1/2 - 2 heads wide.

The torso and head are as long as the legs.

The hands fall halfway down the thighs.

Figures come in all shapes and sizes. Taller people will typically have longer legs and bigger feet.

The thigh and calf of a leg are equal in lenth, but not in thickness. The calf of a female will have a shapely curve.

The upper and lower arm are also equal in length, but not in thickness.

When standing still, a person will put one leg under their center of gravity and let the majority of their weight fall on that leg. It is very rare to see a person standing still resting the weight of their body equally upon both of their legs.

Here is an example of a quick dummy that I am going to take through the steps to a more finished drawing. I get my basic pose at this stage. You will want to draw this in VERY lightly so that it is easy to go on top with more detail later. I drew this dark so that it could be seen for the tutorial.

I then go back in and fill out the figure. The box-like head becomes oval shaped, but bulges out in the back to allow room for the skull. Arms and legs are filled out, with the upper parts being thicker and more muscular then the lower parts. The torso keeps the bend where the connecting ball was in my dummy, but I allow the organic lines of the human torso to override the boxes, but I still keep the general direction the boxes were facing.

NOW it's finally time to worry about the facial features and clothing. Because I had a good sketch, the final drawing looks smooth and natural instead of the awkward angles drawing it all-at-once will often give.