INTRODUCTION
My fascination with the natural world started during my childhood in the Adirondack region of upstate New York. I’ve always needed to know the names, characteristics, and life cycles of the plants, insects, birds, and animals around me. I’ve carried this fascination with me into adulthood, finding that nature has become a major theme of and inspiration for my work as an artist and illustrator.
The best teacher for drawing animals is nature itself. Observing animals in their natural habitat when possible will help you understand how an animal moves and what it looks like in a natural setting. Visit a local zoo to take reference photos and draw from life. Natural history museums are a great place to see good taxidermy animals and skeletons, and will help you become familiar with animal anatomy, bringing more confidence and realism to your work. This type of study will also help you improve on details, such as feet, which are often lost in reference photos.
Drawing animals can seem very complex, so I suggest first getting a feel for proportions and the basic shapes that make up the body. Beginning with the underlying shapes, rather than the outer contour of the animal, will give a more solid feeling. By making some marks to indicate the placement of bones and muscle groups as you start your drawing, you will capture more accurately the position of the limbs, body, and head, adding a sense of realism to the final drawing. Once you are happy with the basic shape and have refined the outline, the final step is to add things like fur or feathers, markings, and other little details. You don’t need to draw every individual hair on an animal—just a few lines to indicate length and direction of fur, scales, or feathers. You will find that shapes and structures are similar among related species. For example, deer, elk, and moose all share some common characteristics and forms, as do felines, canines, and other related groups. The closeup sections of this book will help you with specific details such as eyes, noses, and feet.
This book is not organized by scientific classification, but it includes some groups of commonly recognized animals that you may have as pets, in your neighborhood, or that you can see at a farm or zoo. Anatomical drawing and scientific illustration follow a more specific set of conventions and level of detail, and there are a number of excellent references available on those subjects for the interested student.
I hope this book will introduce you to the basics and get you more comfortable with drawing some of the animal life we see all around us.
HOW TO USE THIS BOOK
There are many tools, media, and styles in which to draw animals. This book uses some techniques I have learned over the years and will show you the methods I have found most useful for understanding the basics of drawing realistically. The figures and steps can be copied directly to achieve a finished drawing, and the process and method can be used for drawing many other subjects, whether plants, animals, or anything else.
Suggested Materials
• Graphite pencil. At a minimum, you should have a standard HB pencil. Harder pencils (such as 2H, 4H, etc.) are useful for making lighter lines and underdrawing, while softer pencils (2-6B) are helpful for more dramatic lines and shading.
• Felt tip pens or brush pens
• Smooth paper, at least 80lb
• Eraser. I recommend a kneaded eraser, which erases very cleanly without smudging and doesn’t leave “crumbs” on your paper.
Basic Drawing Process
Begin the drawing with your harder pencil so your lines will be light and easy to erase—but make sure you do not press too hard and make an indent on the paper. Once you are satisfied with your shapes and basic contour, go over the drawing with your soft pencil or drawing pens. You can then erase your lighter pencil lines for a clean, finished drawing.
Blocking in the Figure
Every subject in this book begins with a solid shape or shapes to describe the general proportions of the body and head of the animal. It’s important to establish the correct proportions in the first step: How large is the head relative to the body? What is the general shape of the animal’s pose and main body sections?
Next, gestural lines are added to show the position and proportions of facial features (eyes, nostrils, etc.), limbs, and/or tail. In the example of the Chipmunk on the previous page, step one shows the circle to establish the placement of the head and the two curved lines to show the shoulder-to- elbow placement and direction, plus the placement of the back feet. Step two adds some contour/shape to the body, head, and limbs. Step 3 shows the placement and approximate shape of the foot on the other side of the body, the ears, and the tail, plus a line to indicate where on the head the eyes belong.
Constructing the Image
Once you establish the basic shapes and proportions of the animal, you can start to add more detailed contours and features. The middle steps (generally steps 3 and 4 or 4 to 6) are the construction steps. In this stage of the drawing, you are establishing the three-dimensional quality of the animal. In the Corgi example at right, step 4 begins to add some surface features of the face (lines, folds, etc.) and some fur placement overlying the solid body shape. In steps 5 and 6, more details are added and the lines are refined.
Adding Details and Cleanup
Final lines and small details come last. Here, you add things like the suggestion of fur or feathers, plus a little bit of shading. Once you’re happy with your work, go over your contour lines with a pen and add more detail. Finally, erase your pencil lines. In step 5 of the Penguin drawing below, you can still see the light pencil lines of the general shapes we started with, but some final details such as the fur-like feathers near the feet have been added as well as a line indicating where the black and white areas will be. In step 6, the lighter lines have been erased and final color and shading are added to show both the coloring and some light and shadow.
If you are new to drawing animals, you can copy the steps in this book exactly. As you become more advanced in your drawing practice, you can apply these steps and techniques to other animals you observe and to entirely different subjects. The animals shown in this book are very general examples, so keep in mind that many animals (for example, zebras and tigers) include multiple species, each having slightly different features, proportions, and coloring. Also, just as with people, every animal has its own distinguishing features and personality that vary a lot between individuals. Observing these differences and capturing them in your drawings will improve your skills and bring more personality to your work.
TIPS FOR BETTER LINE CONTROL
All of the drawings in this book are line drawings. Here are some tips and tricks to make your lines smoother and more controlled. Even though we are only using lines to create realistic animals, with good line control, your drawings can be more polished and life-like.
TIP #1: DRAW WITH MORE THAN JUST YOUR HAND AND WRIST
Beginners tend to grip their pencil very tightly and move just their hand/wrist. Drawing is not at all like writing. Practice loosening the grip on your pencil and moving your entire arm when you draw. You’ll find that your lines become smoother and more consistent. Turn your paper if you need to, pulling down the page to create a smooth line. It’s much easier to pull your lines down the page than to push them up. Drawing large will also help—use an 11" × 14" (28 × 36 cm) or larger sheet of paper if you can.
EXERCISE: Using your favorite drawing tool, draw on a large piece of paper or chalkboard and just practice getting smooth lines by drawing large, simple shapes. Make circles, ovals, and triangles in one long, large stroke moving from your shoulder. This is a good warm-up exercise before you begin drawing each day.
TIP #2: ALWAYS “DRAW THROUGH”
When drawing shapes for things like legs, get in the habit of drawing the complete form, even if it overlaps or will be hidden by another part of the animal. This ensures that you will draw the full shape accurately and not accidentally distort it by trying to fit it around the other forms.
In this example from shown here, the complete leg shapes are shown overlapping even though, in the finished drawing, the front leg is hidden by wing feathers and the back leg is hidden by the body. Understanding the placement of the features you can’t see will give your work a more realistic, three-dimensional look.
TIP #3: VARY THE LINE THICKNESS
Varying the thickness of the line as you draw will immediately make your drawing look more interesting and dynamic. As suggested shown here, a softer pencil (or a softer felt-tip ink pen or brush pen) will allow you to easily change your line weight with slight pressure changes as you draw.
EXERCISE: On a large sheet of paper, draw with a felt tip or brush pen. Make a series of lines, experimenting with varying the line thickness using more or less pressure on the same line as you draw. Also experiment with holding your drawing tool at a different angle to see how it affects the thickness and quality of the line. Try drawing the lines more slowly or more quickly and see what effect it has on the line quality.
TIP #4: USE LINE WEIGHT TO SUGGEST LIGHT AND SHADOW
The thickness of your line can also suggest light and shadow. Thin lines will make a surface seem well lit, while a thicker line will suggest contrast and shadow. This can also add drama to your drawing. In addition, when drawing fur or feathers, it is not necessary to show each individual hair. A few lines to establish the direction of the fur and some marks to show where the fur changes direction or is in shadow will be enough to give the body dimension.
EXERCISE: Draw simple household objects like fruit or a cup. Note from which direction the light is coming and use thinner lines on the edges that face the light source and thicker lines on the edges that are furthest away from the light. Once you are comfortable using this technique for simpler objects, you can do the same with more complex subjects.
TIP #5: SHADING
In addition to using thick and thin lines to suggest light and shadow, you can also use a couple of techniques in your line drawing to create more dramatic shading and shadows. Here, I use the term “shading” to mean areas that are inherently darker than others, not necessarily due to cast shadows. Lines drawn closer together will create a darker area; lines drawn further apart will create more subtle shading. You can also use the side of your pencil to quickly shade or fill in an area evenly. Don’t let markings such as stripes or spots distract you from the underlying form of the animal. These markings should be added last and will follow the contours of the surface of the animal. The tiger below shows the full form of the animal in step 5. Then, lines showing the placement of the stripes (following the three-dimensional form of the animal) are added. In the final step, shading is added along with the final stripes.
EXERCISE: Create a still-life from a few simple objects and overlap one object in front of the other. First use the side of your pencil to create smooth shading on the darkest object(s). Then observe where the darkest parts of the shadows are and use parallel lines very close together to shade those areas. Use lines drawn a little farther apart to shade areas that are not quite as dark. Layering these techniques will allow you to describe both the relative colors of objects just in black and white as well as capture the light and shadow falling on the objects.