What's in a nose? A lot, when it comes to portraits and drawings! The nose can decree the success or failure of drawing a face, but learning how to do it correctly is much easier than it may seem, even for a beginner!
Steps
Step 1. Study the human face
Select reference material on anatomy. You can find excellent books specifically aimed at drawing figures from an anatomical point of view that will give you a better idea of how human beings are drawn. The works of Leonardo da Vinci and Henry Gray are perfect to study as they are both artistic and anatomically accurate.
Step 2. It is also useful to work on a subject, whether it is in flesh and blood or in photos
Try to really draw what you see (which is a complex skill to acquire in itself) and not just reproduce the movement your hand is used to. If you're just sketching by heart, however, there are still some basics that can help us all create a realistic nose. Remember that there are no 2 perfectly identical faces, and no face is completely symmetrical. Humans are organic creatures, and we are all beautifully imperfect! There are many variations of the human nose, but this guide will give you a basic idea for creating an "amateur nose".
Step 3. For this exercise it is best to work in pencil and use a light touch so that the guidelines can be easily erased
Instead of using an HB pencil, you may prefer 2H or higher for finer lines.
- Draw the essential structure of the head before moving on to the facial features. This will allow you to decide the position of the face. Will your person look up, into the distance, or directly at the viewer? There are many variations to consider, and they will affect proportions and perspective.
- It is easier to draw a profile (a person looking the other way, so we see the side of the face) or a front view, as if you were conversing with the subject. For this guide, we will use the front view. Draw an ovoid shape, with the widest part of the egg at the top and the narrowest at the bottom, where we will draw the chin. Yes, this shape will vary a lot from person to person, but this only serves to get an idea of the proportion.
Step 4. Now, draw a line directly along the center of the egg from top to bottom, so that the egg is divided in two
Step 5. Draw another line in the center of the egg from right to left
Generally speaking, the eyes should be on that "equatorial" line, and the nose will start just above this line. If you prefer to draw the eyes first (and I would agree), this should help you respect the proportions.
Step 6. Start the first line of the bridge of the nose, just above the equator
Bring it down in the shape of a "j", with the lower part of the "j" more or less halfway between the equator and the chin.
Step 7. Continuing the "j", draw a small curve in the lower corner that will become one of the nostrils
Step 8. Draw another semicircle mirroring the "j" for the other nostril
Step 9. Draw two semicircles on top of the others just made to complete the upper, cartilaginous part of the nostril
- This process can be adjusted and modified to suit your style, but it should give you the basic shape of a nose without too much effort. Again, it's best to start with a light touch so you can erase and try again in case of offset proportions.
- A different and more realistic technique (which can be a little more difficult) is to start drawing one side of the nose bridge from above the equator, and then stop the line about halfway between the equator and the chin. Do the same on the other side of the bridge of the nose. You should now have two lines on each side of the "sundial" of your face.
Step 10. Draw a circle at the base of these two lines, where you stopped between the equator and the chin
Step 11. Draw two smaller circles towards the bottom of the circle you just drew for the nostrils
Step 12. Draw a semicircle over the smaller circles you just created for the fleshy part of the nostrils
It will be more natural once perfected: as in all artistic endeavors, practice makes perfect
Advice
- Use a sharp pencil.
- If you prefer to work with ink, Micron pens are perfect because they dry almost immediately and are waterproof, so if you want you can add water colors or other types of color later.
- Use a smooth, clean sheet to keep the strokes soft and neat.
- In case you haven't done so already, place the fattest part of the palm against the sheet to increase stability while drawing, using the other hand to hold the sheet in place. This should keep your hand steady in general when drawing. Just be sure to work left to right if you are right handed, or right to left if you are left handed, to avoid smudging. It will also be useful if you want to trace the lines with ink.
