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Drawing Kids

Curves vs. Angles

When a baby is first born, he has a lot of baby fat that gradually goes away as he grows up. The younger the person you are drawing, the more rounded his face and body will be. So, when you are drawing a child, try to use more circles and curves as opposed to angles.

Proportion

The most notable difference between a child and adult is the proportion of the head vs. the body. When you are young, your head doesn’t grow as much as the rest of the body and reaches full size before everything else. As a result, heads can look a lot bigger on kids.

A typical person is about the height of six heads. A kid is significantly less, probably around 3 or 4, depending on his age.

Faces

Again, children are pudgier than adults, so their faces will be more round as a result. I usually draw kids with very circular heads. I also give them round, chubby cheeks.

Eyes are typically larger and are set farther down on the head, giving them a larger forehead. Noses are small and cute. Ears tend to stick out more.

As you draw older ages, the cheeks and jawline become more angular as the baby fat goes away. The face will start to look longer, and the proportions start to even out.

Attitude

Don’t just draw a bunch of lines and expect to create a cute kid. Learning to draw children is fun because they present so many great moods and situations. As with any good character design, it’s best to start with an attitude, action, or emotion. Draw a kid that is bratty, precocious, whiny, mischievous, or playful. These kinds of ideas will always make a better drawing.

How about you guys?…Do you have any good tips about drawing children? You can let me know by leaving a comment on this post or at DaniDraws.com.

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