How To Draw A Tilted Head
How to Draw a Head in Any Angle from Imagination
This lesson provides a constructive approach to draw a head in any angle from imagination. And because this approach was built with developing animation skills in mind, you will realize that connecting your drawings to create motion is a no-brainer. Enjoy, share the wealth, tell your friends!
- Roadmap and prerequisites
- How to draw a head in major poses
- The front view Loomis-inspired
- The back view Loomis-inspired
- The profile view Loomis-inspired
- The same head in all three views
- Varying the head shape even further
- How to draw a head turn front to back
- The head turn explained with a box
- Simplified head turn drawing
- Improved head turn drawing
- The magic of digital drawing
- Practice
- How to draw a head tilted in major directions
- Tilt the head to the side
- Backward tilt of the head
- Forward tilt of the head
- The magic of digital drawing
- Practice
- Combining head turn and tilts
- Moving the head around the scene
- Annexes
- Foreshortening curves in space
Roadmap and prerequisites
In order to draw a head in any angle from imagination, we will first study the head shape in all major positions. These are the front, profile and back views of the head. Then we will cover navigating between head drawings to create illusion of movement, thus learning to draw it in different angles. As a result, we will proceed as follows.
- We will rely on the Loomis method which is perfect for quick drawings and easy understanding. We recommend reading about it first. In a few words, this method uses a sphere flattened on the sides (i.e. a sphere with a wedge cut out on the sides) to represent the cranium part of the head. Additional lines are then attached to the cranium to make the whole construction look like a head.
- Other recommended prerequisites are also linked to whenever suitable.
- What's more, you will be presented with hands-on exercises that we recommend practicing often enough: until you feel like you've mastered the purpose of these exercises.
Besides, please note that this lesson is not the appropriate lead for detailing or discussing how to draw male and female heads. It is essentially about prototyping 3D heads, a reliable basis for further detailing the head if necessary. Let's start without further ado.
How to draw a head in major poses
In this section, we're going to use construction lines to draw the head effortlessly. These lines are better drawn gently, i.e. not too dark or bold. But darker lines can be used for the final drawing. So we advocate using light lines until we get to the actual shape of the head where you can start using darker lines if you want to. But with practice, you would be able to draw a head without any intermediary lines other than the basic circular shape for designing the cranium (as illustrated in the next paragraphs).
The front view Loomis-inspired
First, let's see how to draw a head in front view. To do so, we will Loomis-construct the head, as detailed in the instructions below.
1. A circle as a base for the cranium
Draw a circle representing the base for designing the shape of the cranium. The circle doesn't need to be perfectly accurate, and you can read this (not yet available) lesson to learn how to draw circles freehand. But for a first try and waiting for the not yet published lesson to be ready, you can use assistant tools if you prefer to easily create the expected shape. Also note that we're starting with a circle instead of a sphere because a circle is simpler to draw and enough to later create the illusion of a 3D head.
2. First side of the cranium
Draw a vertical line inside the circle representing the left side of the cranium. The length of this line will depend on how wide the circle is. But the further it is from the center of the circle, the shorter it becomes. So the idea here is to set a length of your choice for this side of the cranium. In any case, keep in mind that this line must always stay inside the circle, from one edge to another. It actually cuts a wedge of the circle to set up each side of the cranium.
3. Second side of the cranium + Hairline
Draw the second side of the cranium as shown below. To be sure both sides of the cranium start at the same level and are the same length, you can first draw a horizontal line starting at the top of the first side of the cranium. This line will represent the location of the hairline, i.e. the edge of the hair on the forehead. Finally, as a mnemonic, keep in mind that the sides of the cranium define the wideness of the face.
4. Bottom line of the nose + Eyebrow line
- Draw a horizontal line connecting the bottom of each side of the cranium. This line will represent the level of the bottom of the nose.
- Halfway between the hairline and the bottom line of the nose, place the eyebrow line representing the level of the eyebrows. At this stage and with a perfect circle, the eyebrow line would be at the center of the circle, dividing it into two equal parts. So we already have two thirds out of three; only a third is missing now.
5. Chin line + Center of the face + Checking the shape of the head
- Draw a horizontal line for the chin located below the bottom line of the nose and delimiting the last third of the head. As a result, the bottom line of the nose will be halfway between the eyebrow line and the chin line.
- Draw a line along the vertical diameter of the circle representing the center of the face.
- At this point, you should start noticing the shape of the head. Basically, all that's missing is the jawbone. However, we don't like this head shape because it is too short: the chin line is too close to the edge of the circle. There is nothing wrong with this actually, more specifically when designing heads in the realm of art. But here we want to touch on backtracking to correct the shape of the head when drawing from imagination. This is what we will do in the next step.
6. Adjusting the shape of the head if desired
You don't need to do this if you like the head shape that you drew. Make sure to read on though.
To adjust the too short shape of the head that we pointed out in the previous step, we will first erase unnecessary lines to restart at the end of step 3. Then we will make sure that eyebrow line, bottom line of the nose and chin line are kept at same needed distance from each other to create the desired head shape. This is well demonstrated in the picture below.
Other possibilities are as follows, but the resulting head shape would be different.
- Start over at the end of step 3. Then move the hairline up (with the eyebrow line still at the center of the circle, creating more room for each third of the head) or down (moving all thirds in the same direction).
- Start from scratch and optionally create a larger circle. Then move the sides of the cranium inward, narrowing the face to create more room for each third of the head. In this case, we might not need to move any third of the head up or down.
7. One more line to prepare constructing the jaw
Draw one more line that we will use to design the shape of the jaw. We will place it about halfway between the bottom line of the nose and the chin line. But it could be anywhere between those two lines.
8. Making the head shape stand out
Draw the shape of the head by tracing over the construction lines. Referring to the picture below, note that all short horizontal lines are centered around the center line of the face. These are the hairline, the eyebrow line, the bottom line of the nose and the chin line. We've also made them all the same length just for simplicity and aesthetics.
9. Shape of the jaw + Connections to the chin
- Draw a shape of your choice for the jaw. To do so, first draw two lines connecting the bottom of each side of the cranium to the line between the bottom line of the nose and the chin line. These lines can be vertical or angled inward (towards the chin). The ones shown in the picture below are slightly angled, but the inclination could be more pronounced. Now connect these two lines to the chin.
- The head shape is complete but doesn't yet look 3D (showing depth or volume). So we will add two slightly curved lines to make it look like so, starting from eyebrow level to the chin.
Summary
Now that we can draw a head in front view from imagination, it's important to keep in mind that these steps are guidelines and not to be learnt by heart. We should only be aware of the major steps toward making a figure look like a head in front view.
- A circle as a base for the cranium.
- The sides of the cranium cutting a wedge of the circle. The closer they are, the narrower the face.
- Hairline, Eyebrow line, Bottom line of the nose and Chin line located at the same distance from each other along the center line of the face.
- The shape of the jaw.
- Connections from eyebrow level to the chin, making the head look 3D.
Key notes completing the summary
As we will be drawing the head in other views and in order to reuse certain lines for different purposes as we will see later, for example when drawing the only visible side of the cranium in profile or three-quarter view, the hair line and the bottom line of the nose are better placed at the upper and lower ends of both sides of the cranium. So the eyebrow line will be located halfway between the two, dividing the circle into halves. Remember, this is the layout that we corrected earlier when adjusting the shape of the head.
As of now, we will refer to a head sharing the above-mentioned layout as the "standard Loomis head", because it is very specific, easier to cope with, and meets the requirements of the original Loomis method widely documented on the internet, just for your information so you don't need to read these: Google, YouTube, etc. However, because this layout will allow us to reuse lines is not a sufficient reason to never steer away from it. This is even truer for the artist who wants to master drawing the same subject in different angles from imagination and doesn't want to be frustrated when preferred expectations are not met.
Practice
Below are different head shapes drawn from copies of the same circle. Make sure to practice this exercise yourself, but do not pay attention to the fanciful contour of the neck and trapezius shown in the second picture.
The back view Loomis-inspired
Now, let's study how to draw a head as seen from the back. To help with this process, we will start drawing a head in front view and shift away at some point to create the impression of a back view. Let's try this out.
1. Starting a front view
Draw all the lines we've learnt for constructing a head in front view.
2. Outer shape of the head in front view
Draw the outer shape of the head in front view as pictured below.
3. Shifting to a back view
- Draw a curved line along a part of the circle to show the shape of the cranium as seen from the back.
- Draw a horizontal line to help distinguish the rear plane of the jaw from its bottom plane.
4. Center of the back of the head
Draw a vertical line inside the circle to show the center of the back of the head. And voila!
Practice
Below are different head shapes drawn from copies of the same circle. Make sure to practice this exercise yourself.
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The profile view Loomis-inspired
Now that front and back views are done, let's see how to draw a head in profile view. To this end, please refer to the instructions below.
1. Starting a front view
Draw all the lines we've learnt for constructing a head in front view.
2. Starting the shape of the cranium in profile view
Trace over the circle to start showing the shape of the cranium as seen in profile view.
!. Introducing the side of the cranium to complete its shape
First of all, remember that a sphere has been flattened on the sides to represent both sides of the cranium. In profile view, one of these sides is fully visible, and we need to show the aforementioned "flattened" effect when drawing the cranium. This is done using a circle or ellipse sharing the same center as the larger circle initially drawn as a base for the cranium. Several configurations are illustrated in the picture below. Configuration 1 pictures a circle while the others reveal increasingly wider ellipses. They are all drawn freehand and aren't meant to be utterly accurate.
This (not yet available) lesson explains how to draw circles and ellipses freehand. Basically and as can be seen in the above picture, we only need four short horizontal and vertical lines to establish the furthermost ends of the circle or ellipse along the horizontal and vertical axes. The reason why we need lines and not points at said furthermost ends is that elliptical and circular paths actually touch more than one point there. Of course, none of these extra lines need to be seen in a drawing: we just need to be aware of them as they help construct the expected shape more easily.
Besides, we can also draw a plus-shaped cross before constructing the circle or ellipse as outlined in the previous paragraph, thus increasing accuracy during construction because the plus-shaped cross is meant to cut the circle or ellipse into four equal parts. We will also use the bottom end of the plus-shaped cross to design the shape of the jaw as we will see in the next steps. In the meantime, several configurations are illustrated below for the side of the cranium, starting from a circle to increasingly wider ellipses.
Finally, when drawing this plus-shaped cross, keep in mind that its vertical part better shares the same length as each side of the cranium in front view. Indeed, by doing so we're actually taking another step closer to drawing the same cranium in different views: front and profile this time. And for aesthetic reasons, the length of the horizontal part of the plus-shaped cross may vary from the length of its vertical part to about the diameter of the circle initially drawn as a base for the cranium. These recommendations can be easily checked in the picture above showing a circle and increasingly wider ellipses.
3. Time to draw the only visible side of the cranium
Now draw the visible side of the cranium. Our attempt is an ellipse illustrated in the picture below. Also note that to reuse some of the construction lines as a guide for drawing the ellipse, we could have made the ellipse as wide as the width of the head in front view. But such a layout for the side of the cranium threatens the beauty of the head, so we choose another one with a narrower ellipse.
4. Direction of the head
Draw a vertical or slightly curved line showing the face or anterior part of the head. In profile view, the face is either on the left or on the right. The chin will also appear to us as a point, assuming we're looking at the ears of the character and cannot see the interior of the head for instance. Don't worry about this complicated and perspective-oriented detail, we will sort it out later when moving the head in space or moving around it.
5. Hairline + Eyebrow line + Bottom line of the nose
Draw three horizontal lines representing the hairline, the eyebrow line and the bottom line of the nose.
6. Shape of the jaw + Connection to the chin
- Draw a shape of your choice for the jaw. As a reminder, there are many possibilities and we need at least two lines, the first one being either vertical or angled towards the chin.
- Add the missing connection to the chin starting at eyebrow level as shown below. For layouts where the eyebrow line cuts the circle into halves like in the standard Loomis head, this connection will start at the point of intersection of the plus-shaped cross (on the side of the cranium).
Practice
Below are different head shapes drawn from copies of the same circle. Make sure to practice this exercise yourself.
The same head in all three views
How does one draw the same head in front, profile and back views?
Starting from scratch
- Front view first: when designing custom heads, be sure to draw the front view first, following the steps detailed above. Then you can use this view to draw the other two as detailed below.
- Back view from front view: in order to achieve this, please refer to the section on how to draw a head in back view. And even if it's totally acceptable, be aware that this constructed representation of the back view of the head from its front view is rather approximative, because when the head is seen from the back, the front of the jaw (chin included) is further in space thus foreshortened even moderately. Worry not, we'll come back to this later on.
- Profile view from front view: for this purpose, please refer to the section on how to draw a head in profile view. As for the three horizontal lines representing hairline, eyebrow line and bottom line of the nose, you can make them half of their length in front view just for aesthetics. Also note that unless already vertical in front view, in which case it is also vertical in profile view, any of the two lines making the jaw of the head will look more angled towards the chin in profile view compared to front view. This is due to foreshortening which is a big topic we cannot address in this lesson. Foreshortening also explains why the connection to the chin look curvier in profile view compared to front view.
Given one or two views
Unless we've actually seen it, can we determine what a head will look like in any major view given a shot or drawing of it in other major views? Probably, but that's beyond the scope of this lesson. However, if we can't know for sure, we can guess at the very least.
Practice
Now practice drawing the same head in all three major views starting from scratch.
In any case, keep in mind that the guidelines in this lesson are not rules to obey at any cost. We just need the viewer to understand what we're trying to portray: the same head in different angles. And as can be noticed, understanding how to draw a head from different angles is enough knowledge to draw the same head from these angles, because we only need to focus on proportions and other details which make this head unique.
Varying the head shape even further
Not because we're drawing simplified head shapes necessarily means we can't vary their designs. In this section, we will see how to draw a head while staying away from common normalization rules if ever desired or necessary. Let's take a look at the following scenarios.
1. The standard Loomis head is enough
It's not necessary to stick to this specific configuration of the head. But it's fine to do so as long as we understand what we're doing: we're not just drawing lines where we're told to do so.
2. The three thirds of the head are best at equal distance
Hairline, eyebrow line, bottom line of the nose and chin line aren't necessarily spaced evenly. But for drawing purposes, it's fine to always stick to the rule of thirds requiring to keep these lines equidistant.
3. The vertical or inward-angled sides of the cranium
The sides of the cranium can be vertical or angled inward. This will be reflected both on the back and profile views of the head. We've already tackled drawing vertical sides for the cranium, but how do we deal with tilted ones?
Front and back views are easily sorted out as they share the same foundation for the head shape. This is easily noticed in the first drawing of the picture below. The profile view on the other hand reveals a tilted line in the lower part of the visible side of the cranium as shown in the third drawing below. In this drawing, the vertical part of the plus-shaped cross has been removed to increase readability. The last drawing is not really important; it shows a common way to place the ears on the head, from eyebrow level to the bottom of the nose.
In any case, please note that the aim here is not to track accuracy: we're only making sure we understand what we're drawing. Indeed, as will be demonstrated in the upcoming sections, viewers don't really care what looks accurate in a drawing or animation. Instead, they care about what looks believable. In other words, after having designed a head in any of the major views, we will only need to make sure these drawings are appropriately connected to create believable movements. Of course, consistency is essential regarding features like the position of the eyes, the size of the head, etc.
4. Circle or ellipse for the cranium in profile view
It's fine to use a circle as a base for the cranium in profile view. But the cranium is not a sphere actually. It looks more like an egg, a 3D ellipse if you prefer. So we can use an ellipse as its basic shape, rather than a circle as we did so far. To get this elliptical shape approximately right and be sure we can easily draw it again, we will fit it inside a rectangle the same way a circle fits inside a square. We don't need to aim for accuracy at all and this is easily noticed in the first drawing of the picture below.
The second drawing shows a head in profile view having an ellipse as a base for the cranium. To draw this head shape, we followed the exact steps we designed earlier for drawing a head in profile view, but we started from an ellipse instead of a circle.
The other two drawings show two methods of initiating a head in front or back views starting with an ellipse instead of a circle: we either connect the sides of the cranium directly to the ellipse and take the risk of having a flat top for the head, or we first draw two little curves to connect the ellipse and the top of each side of the cranium (as if we were attaching the sides of the cranium to a virtual circle inside the ellipse). This brings up a new memento: when drawing a head in major views, the circular or elliptical shape that we start from is that of the said head in profile view.
5. Jaw and connections to the chin
These can be whimsical shapes, especially if we're designing creatures or drawing muscles of the head, rather than sticking to the rigid lines on the skull. But in the best-case scenario, such whimsical shapes would require understanding how curves foreshorten in space, which we haven't studied yet. And obviously, knowledge of anatomy is recommended if not necessary to achieve mastery in drawing detailed heads from imagination. But here, we will make do with 3D head shapes only, as mentioned at the beginning of this lesson.
How to draw a head turn front to back
Now let's say we want to draw a head in three-quarter view. This view is about halfway between the front and profile views of the head: it is reached when the head is turning horizontally to the left or to the right. So why not study how to draw a head turn? Indeed, if we could connect the front, profile and back views of the head, there wouldn't be any intermediary pose that we couldn't draw. We would actually be solving many problems with a single formula. And that's exactly what we're going to learn in this section.
This lesson is still in progress and remaining sections will hopefully be available soon.
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How To Draw A Tilted Head
Source: https://arnatomy.com/how-to-draw-a-head-in-any-angle-from-imagination/
Posted by: browndowerturs.blogspot.com
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