BASIC
LESSON 3 Heads Above the Rest: Figure-Drawing Fundamentals Before we get under way, I want to remind you to do your manga pen warm-up exercises. OK, ready now? Then let's begin! "This lesson will include:
1. An expla explanat nation ion of propo proporti rtions ons 2. How to measure character heights
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The Measurements:
Please look at the lineup below. There are two main takeaways:
1. The heads are getting smaller. 2. The bodies are getting longer. What is changing is how many “heads “heads tall” our character is.
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The Differences:
1. The versions of the character that you see here are two-, three- and four-head lengths. •Two- and three-head-lengths are sometimes called c alled “chibi” or “superdeformed” characters. (“Chibi” is a Japanese slang word that means “small” “small” or “tiny. “t iny.”) ”) •Chibi characters look childlike, and are quite popular in Japanese manga. 2. A four-head character doesn’t look as strange, but because it is short, typically it is the height of a younger child character. 3. The more heads that are added to the count, the smaller the actual head becomes. Someone with four heads the size of a twohead length chibi character would simply tower over an adult!
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BASIC
LESSON 3 Heads Above 5 the Rest: Growing Up
4. The above shows five-, six- and seven-headlength figures respectively: •The versions ranging from four-head lengths to six-head lengths are rather normallooking, while the seven-head version looks somewhat unusual. •A seven-head length is normally used for more mature and taller characters - for example, superheroes, bishounen, and RPG hero characters. •Some manga artists draw characters that are eight-head-lengths tall, but they are meant to look strange and stretched-out.
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"For
practice:
Draw a character lineup like the one you see here, from two- to eight-head-length characters. Don't worry about the eyes, hairstyle or other small details; concentrate on making your character the right proportions for the head size you are trying to draw. Don't worry if you find one size harder to draw than the others. With regular practice, you will soon be drawing well-proportioned characters!
Lesson continued on next page Copyright © 2005-2016 Japanime Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved Manga University is a registered trademark of Japanime Co. Ltd. Lessons are for personal use only
BASIC
LESSON 3 Heads the Rest: Troubleshooting Lesson Above Wrap-up ! Extra
tips:
If you are having trouble:
1. Start with circles. 2. Draw the head about the size of the top circle. 3. Use the position of the other circles to figure out where the rest of the body is placed. For example: • For a six-head-length character, the third circle is about where the legs connect to the body. • A five-head-length character’s knee should be in the middle of the fourth circle. • A six-head-length character’s knee should should be just above the fifth circle.
! Your
Feedback:
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See you during the next lesson!
Copyright © 2005-2016 Japanime Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved Manga University is a registered trademark of Japanime Co. Ltd. Lessons are for personal use only
