Introduction

Hello everyone!

This is Freddie, and in this tutorial I'll be going through the basics of what makes a pose feel natural. Along the way, I'll be sharing a few tips and tricks to enliven a character, simply by changing the way they stand.

Basic anatomy and how to simplify its construction

Anatomy, fondly known as 'the artist's bane', is the study of the human body. It requires an incredibly deep understanding of muscles and bones and whatnot to master, but that is not quite what we're going to tackle today.

One important lesson in art as a whole is, I think, to take it in small, manageable bits. And small, manageable bits is exactly what we're going to be separating anatomy into. To do that, we can use construction (=the simplification of complex shapes into more basic ones) to divide the human body up into squares, ovals, triangles, spheres and the like. As long as you can sketch those basic shapes, you can sketch some basic anatomy.

As seen below, the body on the right is much quicker to draw, and composed of shapes which are much easier to shift into a pose.

If this still feels a bit overwhelming, you can break the body down to even simpler shapes. Trust in your instincts, and sketch shapes up to the level of detail which resonates the most with you. The objective here is just to make it easier for yourself to outline a basic body.

Gesture vs anatomy

In order to replicate the mobility of the human body, the most important part might very well be gesture. A gesture drawing is a quick sketch of a figure, with a focus on its curves and motion.

While anatomy represents the human body, gesture sketches seek to represent the human figure. The difference is that gesture drawing relies on the 'feel' of the figure, rather than how it actually is. It allows to exaggerate for effect, while still keeping into consideration the rules of anatomy.

If to study anatomy you will be observing diagrams of muscles and bones, the study of gesture is all about how you view the human figure and how you portray it on paper (or digital canvas).

Side by side, you can see the visual split between a focus on movement and a focus on anatomical accuracy. Of course, neither is better or worse than the other, but when it comes to poses, you'll likely want to be more loose in your sketches; this is why learning how to draw gesture can be very useful.

Gesture practice

Now that we've established why you should study gesture, we can move onto how to actually practice it.

Firstly, I would advise you take the time to compile a library of references, either on Pinterest or Deviantart or any other website that has similar functions.

Once you have chosen a set of references, open a new file, and set yourself a timer. I would recommend not exceeding 10 minutes, as any longer and you might experience the urge of perfecting every line - which would defy the purpose of the exercise. Focus on outlining the basic form of the person, replicate the motion of the body, use wide and spontaneous lines, and have some fun?

:) Honestly, you could even do this exercise on the regular, or whenever you have a short break at work or school, since it's so short and only requires your phone and some paper.

3d models

This might be a good time to mention that, whichever version of Clip Studio Paint you are using, you will have - some - access to 3d models. These can give you an excellent structure over which to base your pose, but my personal recommendation would be to use them after having sketched some gestural poses, just to be sure not to lose the natural fluidity of the pose.

Centre of mass & contrapposto

Having grounded the basics of construction and shapes, we can move onto more specific tips to help give life to a pose.

The body naturally shifts its position to account for a change in its weight. Imagine, for example, that you're carrying a heavy grocery bag in one hand. Your posture will lean towards it, because suddenly, half of your body is much heavier.

According to physics, all objects are balanced thanks their centre of mass being supported on a stable base, which, when applied to the human body usually means the feet. The hypothetical centre of the body's weight is concentrated around the belly button (as shown above), and it is what is referred to as the centre of mass.

 

Above, we've seen one way in which the body may balance out an added weight. However, depending on how the person is carrying an object, they may tilt opposite the weight, for example to lift it or if they're transporting it with both their hands.

What all of this amounts to is that, for a person to be standing, their weight needs to be stabilized by their posture. The character must have a stable footing the centre of mass will be supported on, in order for them to stand.

It also means the upper body can move relatively freely, without the lower body losing its footing.

 

One of the most subtle and useful applications of this concept, is a technique called 'contrapposto' (literally meaning 'counterpoise' in Italian), a term which refers to the line of the shoulders being opposite that of the hips. The most famous examples of this can be seen in Michelangelo's sculptures, which are worth checking out, if the topic interest you.

To use it too, simply draw two diagonals through shoulder and hips, making sure that they are headed in opposite directions.

Adding personality

This tip and the next are especially useful for original characters, but you could use them for regular illustrations too, as long as your subject is human.

Body language can reveal certain parts of a person's personality, and it reveals them in the manner in which people stand, if they fidget or not, the way they hold their shoulders. Since it's so visible, it can be integrated in drawings of people with ease.

Below, you can see some examples.

As you may have guessed, on the left we have an extroverted character, on the right an introverted one, and in the middle an in-between, who gives off a relaxed, dreamy vibe. While the outgoing person curves outward, the introverted one slumps inward, which might be a nice, if basic, way to remember it.

Interacting with the environment/props

Another nice trick to liven up your poses, is to have the character interact with an environment, or with an object, which relates to them.

Translate the likings or occupation of the character into the pose itself, add them to it, and pose your character around the prop. In the example below, we can see what looks to be a knight, implied just from the association the sword has with the figure.

If you do not have the interests of the character figured out, or if you're drawing an illustration unrelated to any original character, another source of inspiration could be from an aesthetic. Look for lists on the internet, or compile a mood-board, and - for this tip - you'll want to find some object or symbol that encapsulates the aesthetic.

Balloons might be associated with a 'carnival-core' or an amusement park aesthetic, for example, while holding a lollipop with a doll-core or pastel style, just to name a few.

Aesthetics on the whole are a fantastic way to find a base for your character designs, and, as demonstrated above, they can also be re-purposed for posing too.

A brief note on perspective

People move through space, as well as in it. The use of perspective conveys that in drawings, by shifting the proximity of the character from the viewpoint, in order to add another dimension of life to them.

When it comes to poses, a one-point perspective will suffice in most cases.

We are going to try out an example of it.

First, draw the horizon line. Choose a spot about three quarters up the page, and use the guide ruler to draw a straight line across.

Mark a point halfway through the line. This is going to be where all the lines converge to, as it is the vanishing point.

In this example, the figure will have their hand reaching out for the 'camera'.

Draw the parts of the figure that are neither closer nor further away from the point on which they stand.

Next, apply some perspective by sketching out the person's hand, loosely bigger than their head. At this point, just ensure the shape is correct.

This could be the end of it, were it not that the perspective in use is a tad too dramatic for the subject matter. Since the foreshortening we're going for in this example is less exaggerated, we'll have to 'fix' this.

Start by connecting the top and bottom extremities of the hand to the vanishing point. In another colour, do the same for the head.

The blue lines form an angle that is almost twice the one from the head.

To correct that, draw a selection around the hand and use the transform tool (ctrl+t). Try to make the hand almost fit within the green lines.

The difference is only slight, but it makes the bottom picture look just a bit more natural.

 

A second method for adding perspective to a pose, one that does not involve any guidelines, is to make use of the same simplified construction we explored in the first section, and divide it into more shapes.

By dividing the limbs into same-sized sections of similar shapes - in this case I have used cylinders - you can apply the same perspective you would with said shape, and repeat it for as many pieces as fit the limb.

When the appendage moves, you can squeeze or prolong these sections accordingly. By keeping the number the same, and going progressively bigger or smaller, the pose will be kept in proportion.

To add movement and life to poses, while still keeping the sense of anatomy, it's ideal to aim to construct the human figure in ways that aid your drawing process.

Conclusion

Thank you for reading this far!

If you have any questions, feel free to leave them down below; I'm by no means an expert, but I will do my best to answer them.

If not, I hope this helped a little, and see you next time~