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xenocorner · 3 months

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Art Resources 01 [Facial anatomy]

Hi! First post of the Art Resources thing I mentioned a while back :) Figured I'd start with something people generally want to know more about- or something people think they already know about but could still used some lesser known tips!

Resources, break downs and tips under the Keep Reading thing :]

1. The Basics

There are thousands of methods to constructing the face. The most popular one is the little circle with the cross in the middle, and sometimes a few more lines for the jaw. While that can be a useful guideline, if you're just starting to learn the ropes it might be better to use a method that has more structure decomposition and land marks to help guide you. Here I'll leave two methods of deconstructing the face that I believe are the most useful to draw faces in different angles and perspectives as well as identify where exactly should each element be placed.

REMEMBER: All of these methods are just guidelines. In order to get different facial features, you can adjust proportions for each of these and play around with sizes.

1.1 The Loomis Method

A structural approach to drawing the head, based on first: simplifying general forms and second: identifying landmarks for the face elements. Pretty good for beginners, helps you understand the head from a more tridimensional stand point to be able to draw it from different angles.

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1.2 The Reilly Method

Also a structural approach, but this one is based on understanding the rhythms of the face (proportions, harmonies, and even some general muscular anatomy). It can be a bit harder to understand and use as a building block for beginner artists, but it can serve as a way to check your proportions after an initial sketch.

youtube

Here are other two methods, a bit less known, but that go a bit more in depth about the head. If you're a beginner, I'd recommend watching the Loomis method first before diving into these other two methods. Note: these are playlists covering each method, and the videos are longer, but worthwhile.

1.3 The Michael Hampton Method

1.4 The Steve Huston Method

And here's a hybrid of a visual and structural approach too if you're interested! (Again, this one is recommended mostly if you already have a good grasp of the general structure)

Having trouble finding that reference of the head from that specific angle? Here's a 3D model that can be used as reference from any angle. Bonus: It has a built in light feature that allows you to understand which planes of the face the light would hit!

There's also a version with more feminine features.

Here's a website that lets you pick a head angle and then searches for reference images with that angle too. Allows you to pick age, gender, and other features like glasses, facial hair, etc.

2. Understanding What's Below

When drawing the head and face, what most people think of is what we see everyday: the skin. However, there's more to the head and face than just that: there's a whole structure laying underneath that builds up everything on top. Understanding that structure can lead to better execution of skin level facial anatomy.

And what's that structure? Well, bones of course. And muscles. Even if (most of the time) we don't draw them, knowing they exist and how they are placed on top of each other can help with building what we do draw. Understanding the building blocks of the face will make it easier to avoid, say, making one eye bigger than the other. Or a forehead that's too small. Or ears that are too high. Or side profiles that cut off the brain.

Something I recommend for this is making study sheets of the bone structure, muscular structure, and skin structure. For this it's important to name the main bones and muscle groups. Not because you need to commit them to memory, but because if you name them on your practice sheet, it's easier to remember later on that they EXIST (even if you don't remember the name).

Here's a 3D model of the skull

Useful guide for the names of the bones of the skull

Here's a 3D model of the face muscles with names

3. Elements of a Whole

So we now understand the general structure of a face and some useful guidelines to build it. Good! But now, a face has a bunch of individual elements with their own individual structure and stuff to look out for. Those are, of course:

Eyes

Noses

Lips

Ears

3.1 Eyes

It's important to note that the eye has a volume of its own- it's not just a sticker laying on top of the face. It can be helpful to think of the eyeball inside the eye socket when drawing it (taking into account the bone structure we learned before). When understanding the eyeball as a sphere, it becomes easier to place the skin above: the eyelids. This can help with drawing the eye from any angle.

This can also help when drawing the dreaded Other EyeTM, specially if you are still a beginner artist. If you start by constructing the eyes with spheres and approach it from the perspective of "placing" the skin above that sphere, it's easier to get sizes and proportions right.

3.2 Noses

Again, spheres can be your friend.

3.3 Lips

Spheres part 3

A funny thing with lips that often gets over looked when one is just learning the ropes of anatomy is that it also wraps around the volume of the face. Just like the eyes aren't stickers laying on top, the lips aren't either. It's important to take the curvature of the face when placing the lips from different angles and expressions. For example, when we thing of a smile, its usually this idea that comes to mind:

Which yeah, that's fine! ...As long as your subject is facing straight to the camera.

But when we have even a bit of perspective, the way the mouth looks changes, and we often don't think of that and just draw what we think the mouth looks like... which can lead to odd looking mouths, like they're pasted on. So, it's important to keep in mind the volume of the face:

This is true for all features of the face: keeping in mind the volume. But, it can be more noticeable on the mouth.

3.4 Ears

Spheres part- no.

Even if the ear is one of the "flatter" parts of the head, it doesn't mean they don't have volume. Depending on the angle of the face, it'll change how much of the ear is shown- or which parts.

All ears are different and have their quirks, but they all can be divided in three major segments, colour coded in the image. If you deconstruct the ear in these three major parts, keeping in mind they have their own volume, it should be easier to figure out which of those parts will be seen depending on the angle of your face.

4. Expressions!

Now that we understand the elements and construction blocks of the face (bones and muscles), we can play around with them a bit more. So, time to make expressions!

When playing with how the skin moves, it's fundamental to understand the muscle groups of the face and how they move, relax and tense depending on the expression. Knowing that these muscles exist and how they interact with the skin above will help you know where the eyebrow should furrow, where wrinkles would form.

A BOOK I widely recommend is Anatomy of Facial Expression, which you can find here for purchase

Or here as a PDF

This book also covers skull anatomy, so it's a useful tool to study the structure talked about in 02.

There's also an ArtStation account that uploads a bunch of useful 3D model resources for anatomy (facial or otherwise).

Scott McCloud's book, Making Comics, has a section dedicated to facial expressions too (great book in general, not only if you're interested in comics!). You can find it in PAGE 80 (or 88 in the document).

Another thing that can be helpful is studying from life! You can do that by making different expressions in front of a mirror and pay close attention to which muscle groups tense and relax, where wrinkles appear, how your skin moves. Or, if you're like me and hate staring at your face, you can also study from video references.

Here's a link to a PLAYLIST containing various videos of people making different expressions.

The previous playlist contains real people, thus, REALISTIC ANATOMY. It's important to note that even if your drawing style is heavily stylised (like anime, cartoon, etc), it's still fundamental that you understand real world rules so you later know how to bend and break them properly to implement those to your own style.

However, that doesn't mean you can't study STYLISED EXPRESSIONS too! It's actually a great idea to see how other people exaggerate certain anatomical aspects to their own work so you can also understand how to do it in yours. Here's a list with various videos of EXPRESSIONS IN MOTION for animation tests. Study them the same as the previous ones: paying close attention to how the face and muscles MOVE.

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Pause the videos you study as needed! While all of this might seem more useful for animation, it's also incredibly useful in illustration, and studying things in movement can help with understanding them better, thus putting them to paper (or tablet) becomes easier.

Finally, here's some videos in a sort of CLASS FORMAT that can help with walking you through drawing expressions more effectively than a text post could lol

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#art resources #I'm sorry this took so long life just gets in the way some times #also sorry for the radio silence over here #it'll probably stay like that for a while lol #hope this can somewhat make up for it tho :']#please also tell me if the redaction is clear or if I should change something about format for these things #Maybe I'm doing way too much explanation and y'all just want the links lol

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l3viat8an · 1 year

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This came to me at night. Imagine RAD doing a play based on Snow White and the 7 dwarves. Poly Mc is Snow White, the brothers are the dwarves and Mephistopheles is the prince

I had some fun with this~!

So, let’s say somehow you get all the way to opening night!

You even got through the dress rehearsals without too much complaining!-

Also the brothers are sharing a dressing room while you and Mephisto each have your own!

And are doing a last minute wardrobe check / fixing makeup.

“I don’t see why MC has ta kiss the prince! One of the dwarves would be just fine!” Mammon pouts pulling on the last piece of his costume.

“Only if we were doing this play for fun and not an audience!! Think about it, they want authenticity!” “Levi….you do realize we’re not dwarves, right? I think authenticity is already out the window.”

“T-that’s not the point!” Levi turns away from Satan and pokes at his costume acting busy-

“I think watching MC kiss the prince on stage is hot~ although I’d definitely make a better prince~”

Asmo sighs looking at his reflection and fixing his hair, “Isn’t it a bit late to start complaining?” Belphie lazily lifts his head from his own vanity and looks around at his brothers “We said we’d play our parts. Besides it’s just Mephisto.”

“I kinda see what Mammon means, I can’t say I like the idea of watching MC kiss another demon…..” “See! At least Beel gets it! I really thought Levi’d be on my said but he’s too busy bein’ a nerd!” “Hey!” “Don’t start that again! We have our roles, if after the play I find out any of you tried to sabotage Mephistopheles last minute there will be hell to pay. Got it?” “Fucking sadist.” ”What was that?” “Nothing.” Well that mostly shut them up-

Before more arguing can happen Simeon knocks on the door “Five minutes to curtain, hurry up!”

“Show time~” Asmo sings as he heads out first!

The brothers all head to the stage, stopping when they see you and Mephisto getting in some last minute rehearsal (kissing-)

“What the hell?!?” “Oh, MC~! How naughty~” “Huh…” “W-w-what?!?” “Care to explain yourselves?”

“It was all MC’s idea!” Mephisto pulls away from you fixing his costume and attempting to act normal, “What?” You say with a small smirk, “Just a bit of last minute practice~”

“I hope you realize you’ll have to pay for that later darling.” “We can hardly let our human get away with that.” “We’ll have plenty of time to think of a proper punishment during the show.” “Oh, this will be fun~!” “Fun ain’t the word I’d use!” “Calm down Mammon. It was just a kiss.” “J-just a kiss?!? A completely unnecessary kiss!!” “Oh boy-“

Simeon pops up in between the brothers and starts ushering you all towards the stage before they can do anything to Mephisto- “One minute to current. Move!”

But just what have you gotten yourself into later~?

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