This is a tutorial video on drawing faces from difficult angles.

Subtitles in various languages have been added, so please turn them on before watching.

Introduction

This time, I will introduce some of my tips for drawing faces from difficult angles.

You can try them out right away without having to learn complex anatomy, so please give them a try.

What to Keep in Mind Before You Start Drawing Faces 1: "A single line always expresses more than two things"

Before introducing tips for drawing faces from difficult angles, there's something to keep in mind when drawing faces: the meaning and function of lines.

 

For example, what happens when you draw a single line on a canvas?

By drawing a single line, two regions, red and yellow, were created.

 

This means that when you draw a single line, you are simultaneously drawing two things.

A single line always expresses more than two things at the same time.

 

When drawing a line, you need to pay attention not only to one region but also to the other region that is created when you draw the line.

 

For example, when drawing the line for the upper eyelid and the outer corner of the eye, you are simultaneously drawing the adjacent side of the face.

When drawing the lines for the upper eyelid and the outer corner of the eye, you need to imagine the side of the face at the same time.

When drawing the lower eyelid, you are simultaneously drawing the curved surface of the adjacent cheek.

When drawing the lower eyelid, you need to imagine the curved surface of the cheek at the same time.

In this way, you need to draw lines while imagining surfaces and three-dimensional forms that are not directly represented by lines.

This is very difficult.

However, this also means that parts do not exist in isolation but coexist and support each other. Other adjacent parts also serve as guides for drawing a particular part.

What to Keep in Mind Before You Start Drawing Faces 2: "Draw lines a little slower"

As such, when drawing lines, you need to imagine and be aware of many things. Therefore, it's important to draw lines slowly.

In other words, don't draw lines too quickly.

If you move your pen too quickly, your awareness and imagination for other parts won't keep up with the speed of your pen, and your valuable inspiration will fizzle out.

If you match the speed of your pen movement to your brain's processing speed, you can draw lines while maintaining your imagination and attention.

 

Don't just draw lines on paper; draw them in sync with your brain.

What to Keep in Mind Before You Start Drawing Faces 3: "Move your eyes slightly away from the canvas"

The next important thing is to move your eyes slightly away from the canvas.

 

If your eyes are too close to the canvas, your field of vision narrows like this, and you can only see the part you're drawing with the pen.

To draw faces well, the balance with other parts is important.

To draw lines while being aware of the parts you haven't drawn yet, move your eyes slightly away from the canvas, keep a wide field of vision, and draw while looking at the whole.

Be careful not to focus too much on drawing a single part.

Convenient CLIP STUDIO Feature for Drawing Faces: "Window Split"

I will introduce a convenient CLIP STUDIO feature for drawing faces: "Window Split."

This feature allows you to draw while displaying various perspectives simultaneously.

First, click "New Window" from "Canvas" in the "Window" menu on the "Menu Bar."

Next, click "Tile" from "Canvas" in the "Window" menu.

This allows you to view and draw a single image from two perspectives.

 

Each window can be individually zoomed in/out, horizontally flipped, or rotated while drawing. This is useful for drawing while checking the balance of the face.

You can add any number of windows and arrange them as you like by dragging the tab at the top left. Windows can also be moved to a different monitor.

It's also convenient when zooming in to draw details, as you can check the finished look from a distant perspective while continuing to draw.

3 Tips for Drawing Faces from Difficult Angles

Now, let's get to the main topic.

My tips for drawing faces from difficult angles can be largely divided into three categories!

 

1. Memorize the contrast between low angles and high angles

 

2. Think backward from the function of face parts

 

3. Connect with other body parts or senses

 

I will explain each in detail.

1. Memorize the contrast between low angles and high angles

This means forgetting about anatomy for a moment and memorizing the shapes and positional relationships of each part in low angles and high angles entirely.

Drawing auxiliary lines can make it feel like a technical drawing, making it difficult to draw expressions, so this is recommended as a way to draw more casually.

Now, I will list the characteristics of low angles and high angles.

Low angle characteristics are shown in red, and high angle characteristics in green.

In a low angle, the lines of the parts are upward curves.

In a high angle, the lines of the parts are downward curves.

In a low angle, the earlobes appear larger.

In a high angle, the earlobes appear smaller.

In a low angle, the top of the ear is below the eyes.

In a high angle, the top of the ear is above the eyes.

In a low angle, the eyes, nose, and mouth are positioned higher on the face.

In a high angle, the eyes, nose, and mouth are positioned lower on the face.

In a low angle, the cheeks and jaw appear wider.

In a high angle, the forehead and the crown of the head appear wider.

In a low angle, the bottom of each part is visible.

In a high angle, the top of each part is visible.

When you're unsure whether to draw in a low angle or a high angle, try drawing while recalling this contrast.

I've added a short video to help you remember the contrast between low angles and high angles with rhythm, so please check it out if you like. Please turn on subtitles in your preferred language to watch.

2. Think backward from the function of face parts

The second tip is to "think backward from the function of face parts."

 

This means that when you're struggling with the shape or positional relationship of a face part, you should go back to considering the part's capabilities.

 

For example, when viewing a face slightly from the back diagonally like this, should you draw the eyes? Or should you not draw them?

It feels like they might be hidden by the facial bones, but they might be slightly visible, so it's a confusing point.

It feels like they might be hidden by the facial bones, but they might be slightly visible, so it's a confusing point.

In such cases, it's good to move your hand to the position of the camera. If you can see your hand from your own eyes, then the eyes will also be visible from the camera's perspective.

 

This way of thinking is also useful for understanding the shape of parts.

For example, if you actually exhale strongly, you can grasp the direction of your nostrils.

Since exhaled air doesn't hit the area above the lips, you can intuitively understand that the direction of the nostrils and the area above the lips are almost parallel.

When you're unsure about the shape or direction of the ears, think of them as antennas that catch sound.

Ears have a structure that feels like an antenna attached directly to the side of the face, then split in the direction of the jaw.

Ears have difficulty hearing sounds from directly behind but hear sounds from the front and side directions well. This is because ears are attached to the head in a direction that allows them to catch sounds from the front and sides.

 

 

The bulge behind the antenna feels like it fits into the hollow between the jaw and the skull.

This can be used as a criterion for judging whether the back of the ear is visible or not when viewed from diagonally behind.

3. Connect with other body parts or senses

Ears are not vertically attached to the head; they are slightly tilted, but imagining this angle can be difficult. However, there's a way to intuitively grasp this angle.

 

Here, let's rely on the sensation of your hand as a ruler. Everyone, try covering your ears with your hands.

The angle of your hands when you cover your ears is roughly the same as the tilt of your ears.

 

The sensation of your hand is very helpful for grasping three-dimensional forms.

For example, the length between the outer corner of the eye and the base of the ear is roughly the same as the width of your hand.

This is useful for understanding the side of the face or the length of eyeglass temples.

The length from the jaw to the hairline is also roughly the same as the length of your palm.

However, be aware that in anime and manga illustrations, the area of the cheeks and forehead may be reduced to make the eyes larger, or hands may be designed to be larger.

 

Consider these merely as guidelines.

Convenient Feature for Face Correction 1: "Multiple Selection on Vector Layers"

There's a convenient feature for correcting faces: multiple vector selection on vector layers.

First, create a selection with the Lasso tool or Selection pen to span the lines you want to fix, then click "Select vectors within selection" from the Menu Bar.

This allows you to collectively transform or move only the desired lines.

Other convenient features of vector layers and how to register shortcuts are explained in detail in a previous video, so please refer to that.

Convenient Feature for Face Correction 2: "Liquify Tool and its Reversal Method" (Distort Tool)

For raster layers, the Liquify tool is convenient.

You can intuitively distort areas traced with the pen.

When using the Liquify tool while holding down the Alt key, you can distort in the opposite direction without changing settings.

This allows you to switch the distortion direction with one touch, which is very convenient. There's no need to reach for the tool properties to switch.

Conclusion

That concludes the tutorial on drawing faces from difficult angles.

This is just a temporary solution, so I think individual practice is necessary.

 

However, since the face is an important part that governs human expressions, I believe it's better to prioritize rich emotional expression over strict three-dimensional correctness.

Drawing too many auxiliary lines can make it feel like a technical drawing, leading to a loss of expression, so I hope the drawing methods introduced here will help you create rich expressions.