If you want to draw a face but don’t know where to get started, or how to draw a face more accurately, this blog post is written for you! We will learn basic facial proportions and easy steps to draw a face. In addition, you will get more tips on how to draw different faces at the end of the post.
Drawing a face is not only drawing a head with two eyes, one nose, one mouth, and two ears but also putting the facial features in the right positions. That’s why it is necessary to learn basic facial proportions.
It might be hard at first to remember the ratios of the features, but with regular practice, you will be able to use them without difficulty. The upside is your portrait sketch will look more accurate and professional.
The image above shows you an overview of the proportions of a face. I will walk you through each proportion with more detailed explanations.
Hairline, Brow Line, Nose Line, and Chin
On a basic standard face, the distance between the hairline, brow line, nose line, and chin is almost the same. Those lines divide a face into three equal parts.
In real life, some people may have a bigger forehead so the distance between their brow line and the hairline can be larger than from the brow line to the end of the nose, or from the nose to the chin. Some people might have shorter or longer chins.
It’s good to keep that in mind, so you can be flexible in defining the lines. Having a model or a reference photo for drawing can be very helpful.
Where Should You Draw the Eyes?
The eye line should be about a third of the distance from the brow line to the end of the nose.
After drawing the eye line, you can define the top of the hair. The eye line is about in the middle from the top of the hair to the chin. It depends on the hairstyle of the model so the top of the hair can be different.
The distance between the two eyes will be as same as the length of the eyes. If we divide the width of the face from the left ear to the right ear into five equal parts, we will be able to define how long the eyes should be.
Again, some people might have their eyes farther apart from each other while others might have a bit closer eyes.
Mouth and Nose
The width of the nose from the left wing to the right wing should be equal to the distance between the two eyes. Draw two vertical lines from the beginning of the eyes, you will be able to get the nose’s size.
The mouth is slightly wider than the nose. Some people have a wide mouth. Divide the distance from the end of the nose to the chin into three equal parts, then the line for the mouth should be a third of that.
There is a curve under the lower lip. It is the upper part of the chin. It should be about half of the distance from the nose to the chin.
How About Drawing the Ears?
The height of the ears is about as same as the length from the brow line to the nose line. However, when a head is looking up, the ears will appear lower than those lines. When a head is looking down, the ears will appear higher than those lines.
Notes About The Facial Proportions
Those ratios are just basic guidelines for drawing a standard face from the front view. Different faces have their unique proportions. That’s why it’s very helpful to draw based on a reference photo.
The facial proportions are slightly different between males and females and between people of different ages (adults, old people, kids). We will learn some tips for how to draw people of different genders and ages at the end of this blog post.
The proportions will change when the direction of the head changes. For example, if you look at a head from the side view, you might not be able to see the other eye of the face. We will learn steps to sketch a face from the side view later on in this blog post.
How to Draw a Face (Front View)
Step 1: Draw a Circle and a Cross
A head looks like a ball. That’s why we will draw a circle to create the shape for the skull. The circle doesn’t need to be perfectly round.
After that, draw a cross that goes through the center point of the circle. The horizontal line will be the browline. The vertical line will be the center line of the face.
Step 2: Draw Horizontal Lines
Define the hairline, nose line, and chin line and draw them. The hairline and nose line should be about ⅔ of the distance from the center point of the circle to the circle. The distance between the chin to the nose line should be as same as the distance between the nose line to the brow line and from the brow line to the hairline.
Draw the lines for the eyes (eye line), the mouth, and the top of the head.
Step 3: Sketch the Jaw and Ears
Imagine a head is a ball, then slice off two sides of the ball, and we will get the places for the ears. The ears will be as long as from the brow line to the nose line.
From the bottom of the ears, draw curved lines to create the jaw.
Step 4: Draw the Hair, Neck, and Shoulder
The hair should be bigger than the skull. Draw the general shape of the hair instead of drawing too many details for the hair.
Step 5: Locate the Eyes, Nose, and Mouth
The distance between two eyes will be similar to the length of each eye. The eyes should be symmetric through the center line of the face.
Draw two vertical lines from the beginning of the eyes and we will get the width of the nose. The mouth is a bit wider than the nose.
Step 6: Sketch the Facial Features
Use hard lines to sketch the shapes of the eyes, eyebrows, nose, lips, and ears. The shapes need to be correct first before you should draw the details. Erase the straight lines that we used to measure from the beginning.
Step 7: Draw the Details with Soft Lines
It’s the time now to draw the details with soft lines or curved lines. Adjust the lines with your pencil and eraser until the face looks natural.
Step 8: Add Details to Hair
Add more details to the hair to create its style. Remember to soften the hairline around the face. It shouldn’t be a solid line around the face.
And that’s how you sketch faces from the front. How about drawing a face from the side? Read on to learn the steps.
How to Draw a Face (Side View)
Will a face keep the same proportions when it’s looked at from the side view? Some proportions are still the same but some can’t be applied because the perspective has changed. Below are the steps to draw a woman’s face from the side.
Step 1: Draw Two Circles
The bigger circle defines the size of the skull. The smaller circle should be ⅔ of the bigger circle. The two circles should have the same center point.
Step 2: Draw Hairline, Brow Line, and Nose Line
Draw three horizontal lines going through the top, the center, and the bottom of the smaller circles. Those lines will be the hairline, brow line, and nose line. The distance between them is the same.
Step 3: Sketch the Jaw and Neck
Locate the chin. The length from the chin to the nose should be equal to the length from the nose line to the brow line, and from the brow line to the hairline.
Draw a curved line from the brow line to the chin line. This will form the overall shape for the front of the face. You can see that the nose is still missing.
Draw a curved line for the jaw. The jaw should start from the point where the nose line cuts the vertical line going through the center point of the circles.
Draw the front and the back of the neck as illustrated in the image below.
Step 4: Locate the Eye Line and the Mouth
Based on the standard proportions introduced earlier, sketch the eye line and the mouth line, as well as the upper chin.
Step 5: Sketch the Nose and Chin
From the side view, we can see the nose bridge and one nose wing. Different people will have different nose shapes but in general, the nose will look like a triangle.
Some people have forward chins while some have inward chins. When the model looks up, the chin will move further away from the neck. When the model looks down, the chin will come closer to the neck.
Step 6: Sketch the Eye, Nose, Lips, and Ear
When we look at a person from the side, we can only see one eye and one ear. Draw the features with some straight lines like in the image below.
Now you can erase the straight lines that we just used for measurements.
Step 7: Draw the Hair
You might want to have a different hairstyle for your portrait. Some hairstyles expose the full or a part of the hairline while some completely hide it. If you decide to draw the hairline, remember that the hairline will never be a solid line from the forehead to the back of the neck. In addition, different people have different hairlines.
Step 8: Add More Details with Soft Lines
Use soft and curved lines to soften the sketch and add more details such as the hair, eyebrows, and eyelashes.
This is the final drawing of a face from the side.
More Tips for How to Draw a Person’s Face
How to Draw a Female Face
A female face usually has more curves such as the jaw, eyebrows, and hairline. A female face usually has a V-shaped jaw but it can be different from woman to woman.
How to Draw a Male Face
A regular male face usually has more straight lines such as the jaw and eyebrows. A male face tends to have a bigger jaw and a wider forehead than a female face. The eyebrows of a male usually are very thick.
How to Draw a Kid’s Face
The head of a kid will be rounder than an adult’s head. Their eyes can be a bit further away from each other than the standard proportion. Kids tend to have wide-opened eyes and chubby cheeks. The facial features of a kid will be less clearly defined than the facial features of an adult. For example, their eyebrows have light colors and their noses are not as high as an adult’s nose.
How to Draw Old People
Old people will have wrinkles on their faces and necks. The end of their eyes tends to be lower than the beginning of their eyes. Old people usually have thinner lips. Their cheekbones seem more obvious to be seen than the cheekbones of a kid or an adult.
The Takeaway
You have learned how to draw a face from different views step-by-step and the basic facial proportions. I hope that you can now draw faces with more confidence. Drawing takes time to practice, especially drawing portraits.
If you want to get more tips on how to draw portraits and other topics, sign up for my newsletter!
In the meantime, you can also check out my blog post about how to draw a rose step-by-step.
