Always drawing similar diagonal bust-ups, or tried to draw a full body but it doesn't fit the screen well! Studied composition but can't quite apply it to your own illustrations!

We'll solve these problems! The composition method introduced here is easy even for beginners, so please read to the end and create illustrations that go viral.

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What is 'Composition'?

First, let's review. What exactly is a useful composition for character illustrations?

 

When you hear "composition," it might sound difficult and make you want to run away, but don't worry, the "composition" used when drawing character illustrations isn't that complex.

 

So, what is "composition" in this context?

 

Simply put, it's "fitting what you want to convey into a frame."

 

Everyone, think about it: illustrations are a way to convey your ideas to others, not through words or sentences, but through visual expression.

 

The tool that helps your ideas be conveyed effectively is composition.

 

Just as effective documents have patterns and rules, effective illustration compositions also have rules and patterns. If you follow them, you'll succeed.

Now, let's move on to practice!

As an example, we will create an illustration draft of "a girl passing by her crush in the hallway."

Step 1: Decide the Frame (Rule of Thirds)

It's quite difficult to just start drawing a composition on a blank canvas.

So, first, let's draw a frame.

 

Once you have the frame, you can sketch the composition using simple shapes.

 

When practicing, you don't need to worry about the frame's aspect ratio; just draw it roughly.

Tips: You can easily draw a frame using the "Figure" sub tool "Rectangle" in Clip Studio Paint.

Once you've decided on the frame, place a simplified character.

 

If you don't know where to place the character, use the secret technique: the Rule of Thirds.

 

Many of you have probably heard of the Rule of Thirds. Simply put, it's a composition technique where you divide the frame horizontally and vertically into three equal parts, and place the main subject of the illustration along these lines.

 

Furthermore, if you place the main subject at one of the four intersection points of these lines, you'll get a well-balanced image.

 

This is a very convenient composition that can be used for both portrait and landscape frames.

If you're unsure, try arranging elements using the Rule of Thirds.

Place the character using that as a guideline.

Step 2: Decide the Shot

Next, let's decide the size of the person relative to the screen.

 

In other words, we decide how much of the human body to show within the frame.

 

This refers to whether it's a full-body pose, a bust-up, or a close-up of the face.

 

This is called a shot.

There are seven types of shots: long shot, full shot, knee shot, waist shot, bust-up, close-up, and super close-up.

 

Knowing these will dramatically increase your character illustration composition ideas.

 

So, how do you choose a shot?

 

It depends on what you want to convey and what you want to show in your illustration.

 

For example, if you want to show the character's face and expression most, a close-up is good. If you want to show the face but also convey "where" and "what" the character is doing, a bust-up or waist-up that shows the background is recommended.

 

Furthermore, if you want to convey the situation, a knee shot or full shot is effective.

 

If you want to convey the world view, you can even go for a long shot.

 

In most cases, the closer the shot, the more subjective it becomes; the wider the shot, the more objective the image.

This time, I want to convey the girl's heart-pounding feeling, but also the story "I passed by my crush!", so I'll go with a waist-up shot that also shows the background.

 

Once that's decided, I'll adjust the character's size. The boy will be boldly cropped as just part of the background.

 

With that, the composition is almost complete, but to make the illustration more polished and attractive, let's also pay a little attention to eye-tracking (gaze guidance) in the final touches.

Step 3: Add Eye-Tracking

Eye-tracking is a technique that guides the viewer's gaze to the parts you want to show by rhythmically arranging elements like backgrounds and props.

 

Eye-tracking might seem like an advanced technique, but like composition, don't overthink it; simply remember it as a formula.

 

Here are three commonly used eye-tracking mechanisms.

1. Flow from Large to Small

The human gaze naturally flows from larger objects to smaller ones.

 

Therefore, place the main subject of your illustration at the end of a path guided from large to small objects.

 

Furthermore, this technique can also create a sense of perspective, with larger objects in the foreground and smaller ones in the background, adding depth to illustrations that might otherwise appear flat. It's highly recommended.

2. Follow the Line

When people see aligned objects, their gaze unconsciously follows a line.

 

Even if no line is actually drawn, people can perceive an invisible one.

Therefore, if you place what you want to show most at the end of a perceived line, you can naturally draw people's attention there.

 

Concentration lines often used in manga are a good exaggerated example of this.

 

If you're unsure where to place motifs to create a guiding line, you can easily place them by drawing concentration lines as a draft.

3. Guidance by Density Contrast

Look at this picture. The dots are arranged uniformly; there's no density variation.

 

There's nothing particularly eye-catching.

Now, if you change the dot arrangement, and instead of uniform, you deliberately create a single spaced-out area within densely packed dots, your eyes will strangely be drawn to that spot.

 

The opposite is also true.

 

This technique is particularly well-suited for illustrations with many motifs. Please give it a try.

In this illustration, since the girl is the main subject, we'll use elements like window lines and trees to guide the viewer's gaze.

Here is the cleaned-up composition rough. We will draw the illustration using this as a draft.

Summary

How was it?

 

This time, I introduced tips for creating an attractive composition in 3 steps. Even if you try just one, please give it a shot!

 

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