Manga stands for comic in Japanese and its popularity in recent times has been tremendous with the help of invasion of anime in network and cable TVs. Manga is often the basis of anime and many fans of anime explore and read manga. The saying book is better than a movie is often true when it comes to manga and anime, with manga representing the book and anime movie.
Drawing manga is actually extremely easy. So easy that anyone who's completely new to art of drawing can pick up a pencil and start drawing with minimal effort. Best way to learn to draw manga is to imitate. Pick a character of your favorite manga and start following the styles and looks. That will help you get a grasp of the essence of drawing manga.
Facial features of manga characters are very unique to manga and they are often used to show their personality and natural dispositions. Gigantic eyes of typical manga females and simple lines used to form facial expressions are examples of many different styles of facial features in manga.
Eyes of manga characters are very distinct. They come in four different shapes and they are slit (upward, down, straight), almond, open centered and pointed center. Different eyes are sometimes used in the same character to convey different emotional states as well. Sometimes simple line or dot is used for manga character's eyes and surprisingly very effective as well. Often the antagonists or evil characters of manga will have very thin and triangular eyes to emit menace while protagonists will have large, shapely eyes.
Hair is another feature that gives manga its own unique flavor. Some manga characters will have strands of hair and they usually appear in romance genres. However the dominating looks of hair are those of blocky, perky and often chunky hair styles. Most famous and recognizable ones would be from characters of Dragonball Z.
There are many body types when drawing manga characters. Virtually all girls will have a very wispy and thin body type, while male characters sometimes have lean body but mostly muscular types. There is also super-deformed style, also known as chibi, which is pretty self-explanatory, used to emphasize overt cuteness.
As with all things, practice makes perfect. Capture the essence of manga by studying the distinct styles such as facial features and expressions and body types. Start by mimicking the styles of your favorite manga and gradually start getting creative and add in your own flavor and style.
Quick Tip #1: Breaking It Down
Break the subject you are drawing into simple basic shapes such as square, oval, oblong, triangle, and circle. It doesn't matter whether you are drawing an apple or a dragon. If you break your model down into basic shapes and use them as an outline, you are greatly simplifying the process of drawing. |
Quick Tip #2: Outside In
Draw from outside in. What I mean by this is you should always draw the outlines of your models first then cramp all the details within those outlines. Drawing facial features such as eyes, nose and mouth before setting facial line is a huge no-no. |
Quick Tip #3: Upside-Down
One exercise that will improve your drawing skills is drawing an upside-down image. This may seem a bit weird at first but try it! It'll develop and improve your visual mode. |
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