Techniques for Drawing Female Manga Characters

Table of Contents

Chapter 1
Drawing the Female Figure: The Basic Rules

.EnVISlon

a Figure Eight

I
Thesecrettodrawingashapeiy femaleligureistogiveherasle<1der wa;starojbroadhips.lnessence you wanl\othink of atigure8

3. Drawsmallcircleswherelhe aTITISaodlegswiibeallached Tl1ese...nbe<.:omelhejoints

4.Fleshoutlhewaisland<i<lw the arms and legs

(I ne Human BOdy]
Thelleshisessenliallyclolhingfo'lhebones.Ask''WIalkilldol clolhes do I wan\these bones 10 wear?"Youcancreal""" "ndless va'iety 01ligures bycMnging howyoU'dress' tOebones wilhflesh

Inundergarmen\s

TJ\ehumanbOdy;s bum upon askele10n 01bones, which are covered wIIh muscle, fal. aro:Jskin, Bonestructurearo:Jthetlesh Imuscleandlal)anached to~varyffompernontoDerson

ICharal:terltltlcsYof'!!theittemalillt;taUf88
Thefe~leligureisdetinedmosl prominentty by the bust. the waist and the hips

Breasts:

Shape, size. lXIS~ion. and are ~~e:~~:~ $eepage22 ~r:~~tg

RtJs:~~~~~~:I~ri~:~he (bulbecarelul: ~ theuoeis ~ creates agaun! 1001<) too heavy.

Crotch: Thereisatwaysagpace betweenlhethighsalthe crolchEMInwt\engtalKling wilhkneestogether

~~=::I:I~~n.:.~~~:~"" h.nouplron\lI1.crotcll

lDiffereiitiiitinQ
you ullde<staod howlhadifle;ences booostruC1ure aodbodylypealteC1 '1 propMions,yoU'libeabietOdrawawioo varfe1yoffemale1igures

tSOOv I VP&S]
in their

-Theslomar;h aodlowerab<.lo<renarebolhslightty rounded -ThechestaodbodyesawholearecurvaceOUS,andthelorso is qu~eshort -Theshoulders,arms,andlegsareaisolTle'M1alfleshy;even whenthelegsaodarmsareklng.theyhaveafuilnesslolhem -Thesides 011he chest aod hips lormashapelycurve . TheNpsare~rood

~
-AprominenlbreastbOne -Brwdshoulclerstohouse welklevelopedlungs. .UmbsaredJ<lwnmore -~

~:': ~:e:=~~d
'~I:"u~'t~~~~g::'~~~~:

(bu\be~areJul alk>overdoll, n
lhe muscles 1aper at lbe knee crea1;ogthesharpestcu,ve .

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Thekeypolntstonoteare.

~.~~~~~':~O:h~~O~~h:
3. TherblineOOIow!hebreas1 4. Thelhicknessof lheIhlghs

ami

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tDfHerenees-:ln

Flal.lre:-ACCOrd~~9:.!9,A'~e)

Fl'IQerlengthrepresenmoneolthe mos(prominentdifterencest:>e\Weenlhe ligures<JIaduUandchild,AISO,foradotescenl gllsyoucancreateayouth1utappearaoceby bul wIIh roore =:tl~::,,~:nadU~.

Neck:1Nckand re~tivelyshort

LimtJs:Even\WoenkmG. I\OIlullye><len<.led

Anadolescentfigure

True-la-Life
What to Exaggerate

vs. Manga
and Wha110 Simplify

f\ I
T,pll3:1helegs

=~.__....\=

,oughlyequal In general. Ihc thigh alV.lthe shin in length, buldrawiflglheshinsl;gh1IY a'" l""9"rma~es a mo,ea1traclive leg

TheBack
Thecon1ourofttlebac~
bumps and dips, IOIIowiI"(lneed

Incli.ides

many

bulnormallyonlylhe bedrawn spine and

shoulder

blades

~: ~h':~~O~~s

M@
TipNS:Taparlhewarst.harply Theal"(llefromampltowaistwilloftenleave Ihefigurawaislless ~dra""realis!ically, selt almoslalwayscallsfore.aggeration.FQIIow imagir'larylinesdra'M1fromlhearmp~slottlecrOlch Tip'#8:Thedisfanrefromwalsl!OCrotch Ttlewalslandcro1charenormallyaboul eneheadapa~, If this dlslanre iSlooshort the hlpslpelviswillook toosllgh1and ltlefigureunbalanced

Manycrea.estelKltolormarourldlheneok and shoulder blades as wehsa!ttlewarsl, bulyoushoutdofll<lmosto/!hem!orapretllerbaGk

~- )(~ Mal"(la
BackTipM2:Thebu1tocks ASi~e.lalKllngpo.ecanno!fully Illuslratemall\)a-stylebuUock. Seepage38

Actual

~m~

Thebr..ast"andnipp~faceoutward atroughlya90 angle1ooJIBanolher

straightforward

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}(

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<

The Nipple

and the'Areola

>

(0
Witharms,aised,IMchestthrusts

'I
'::i~~~~~:~o =~:~~~ .
cMogeShape

~
.
m_m-

"~"---v;

Subtledillerer\OOS betwee~wI\en Inearmsaredownan<.lwlleolheya'e . rarsed can beseenclearly insKJe view

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-> ~;'~

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Ibroadshoulclers,tl1e

I armsalso tend tOQfOW. up thlcke'. TOd'awslelld~farms.lightl!n

'~''~

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.: 'MIe<1drawlngaf,"urewlih Aslenderuppe
raisedarms,keeplheupper

~~~~~~~~_:~_u~~-~-~~~~-~~~:.:.~~v:~.~:~ ~~~~:..~~~~

Ihe shou!der muscles and ,educe

that gillesarnJre

torso'

! !

~~~ 0
Smallbutshapelybreasls

35

~~~ ~~~
AsmallbrooslCOVf!red wfillahaoo A larger bfeas! Asmallbreastheldflrmly 36 Flesh pressing between the lingers shows the !ullroess ofthebreasl

Nipplepee~ingsl;ghtly throughthehngoo>

Shif\ the posRlon 01 the nipple loshow$Oltne5'>orrorceful manipulation 01 the breas1.

(SquHzlrig...the

Breasts

TOBe.ther)

us

(StylerofNeckllne)

(Other Style.)

NoIsaWing,bulsomewhal Ilalbuttocks

CDlnerent
Realistic

VieWS Of Ine Hunocks:a

buttocks

Naked bullocks are remal1\ablysimple

Lealherpanls

Thesec'<,)\lodrawinganattractive buttoc~s Isinlhlnklng o/!hec'evlce asanexlefl5looo1\t>espine

3-Exlendthellneofthesplne alonglhecurve of the buttocks

11:Tf8C18

TOUcan ~cnl8V. Willime~lIu11OCk8l s

<

Different VIewa)

(Techntq!!.e.

9! ~!pre88lon)

Applyscreenlones lobrlng cui IlIecurvalureandfleshiness

UStlundelwearloaccentuale IlIesenooo!realily

The Crotch

Thellneslnlheunde"",*" showlhecontourso1\hecmtch.

(s. Failing' Over!lackwards)

Qcj

Yoocand,awalioodo'Mlthe centerroracreaseintheunOe""'*ll".

Thecruciallines Wilhoulthesellnes loobullOCks.,.,;Uappea,flal

55

The Legs

'M>eny<>l.>wanllodrawalessbeelythlgh. d",wthelhighllfS1lnlhecleslredpropo~~ andthenadjust the bullockS as necessary fursnaluralfil Thelt1ickness oflhe thigh whereft attache!,; totllepelvisdetarmineslhesMpeolthebuU"",s

(rhe

Relation

Between

Pelvis

and-L:eg.

High-cutslyleuOOe""""r reveal\;lhelhighjoin!

T-r i I I

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I!lhelioelraclnglromhiplolhigh curvestOOV<ide,lhelegwiUlooI<!al ThehiJ!'> arewidebul are shapely the legs Thehipsare_aroJ!hi!legs areheavy."e\ as well

{!If)
f(M'shapelierIegS,1aperlhel;nes ruml'19!romshlnaroJcalltoankle

62

"

The Neck
Connecting the Head 10 Ihe Body

Dependingontheposlureandlheangle, IhestomachcreasesmayOfmaynolshow Toavoidlheappeafanceofalalbelly, ~eep\hecreases 10 a minimum in yootdrawlng

(Other. Example. bnebodysuilsallerthe per!IOI'1'senlirefigure

"baIt1in!i1l1U1i1lhars

onesizelOOsnaI 69

Water Droplets an d Beads of Sweat

<

1:.\!alef"IIOw$

'along:bo

"Ody.c:ontouts.

Wire Frames
GetlingaGraspollheSody'sCurves

From Low Angle)

Fr,om HI9J:l,~A'ngle

74

4.. < Dra)!Jng

I!nderpants)

(5~'brawllig.~sklrts

AnSWef~aCleafCOllarbone

g
Answer

1,Usefacialleatures,hairslyle. orciDIhlng1ashionstodislinguish

=ld:~:e~::,re~::~iS
maleandte"",lefigures

2.=S::;.a~~:I~~~S

Chapter 3
Drawing the Female Figure: Using Detail for Effect

Different Types of Nails

I

-f~-~-i
<Examples
OfHa':'ldS and Nalls>

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~/Y "

Man <Showing Icured Nalls)

Eyes, Eyelids, and Eyelashes

)

<

The

SUUC1ui'e

af ~!\~'~,ye

<

How;"Eyelash'es"Grow

>

( A Selection

of Eyelids

withFolds)

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~

SIan1edeyesareslan!e<.Ieven whenviewedlromlc.eside

<DlfferentTypea_,of.J~yela'-fie8

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r-Y

~~ ~~

< !;!!It,,-!~nt'i~t~q,t:~L~)
AealisticEyes

w.deEyes

MangaEjles

~TaUEyes

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The Mouth and Lips

( The~S!iiP.e::Ofthe 'Lips>

Youcanachlevemanydmerent eNectswllhthemoulhacco,ding to whalaspecI yoochoose to highlight

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7
WlerIseeklngapa,licularelfect wtlh the mouth,fOCUS alfe<ltion onlt bycroppinolhelra.meloe.c!u<.Ielheeyes

[Effects You Can Achieve with Black and Shading~

(~ccentlng the o,utllne)

The Ears and Earrings

Thelopollheearisonlhe same Ieve! aslhe eyebrows. andlt'tebollomo11heeeris level with the base 01 the nose

"~~=-

The Hair

:~~;;~~:~~~'::::'"Y
Ihe hair is. alll.lt'(lwmuchQ! ttlt\ere is

~~:r~~ff~~~~Caen:~~~:~nalr

l!thel1al,l5tlnean<:lsof!, illel'ldSl0liellatagalnsl.

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..

Ihescalp-

t1
: ..

iltelldstogrcmoutwardtrom ll\escalp

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t~~
Bnehair Typlcalhalrslyles

(1!a!,"DeIi8Itj>

rGOlOrmQ 1ne n81r:J

\Tlps, 'arDlawlng Hall,)

A Catalogue of Undergarments
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c 1~~Und.rpant.:9

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ml~l~ A+\I~~IH

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Miscellaoeous

Slringpanlles

,Girdle \

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Miscellaooous

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fii!,

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Vatia1;oo
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Laoed slip va'laliQns

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!tIe"""""-,,,o/\tIebo(!y. ... Ughlweighlpoclce<ingfabflc .Drawwrink1esabng!r.&lopar><ltlOlloml'lema.

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.AfewwrinldeslolowlheconWu",8Ilhocrol<:l1

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The Female Figure Goes to School

f1~.Gettlng~QreB8ed:'::'The;BloU8e)

$IWing imo hers hOe in asealedposilion.

EvenWhenthechar<lCteris si~ystandingorsil!ingstraight a1/{)idmak;ngthe!igure~etyrigid

@
8ra S!'aps are usually rradeol slUrdymaterial

Wfinklesonthebacklyplcally appeararoondlheshoulder bladesandlhewalsl

Using transler screens loshow the ~~::~ ~~oo~~u~~ afeellr.go1volume

(11. 'Riding

a Bicycle)

Chapter 4
Learn from the Pros

CBeauty

with Bou!l.uet)

~
.~PresefVeYourO!igillaiConceplionthmughAttentionloDetaiJ . StaMbyblockingout\heoverallimage,aodlhenwork~aCQmplete rough sketch. 11you goahead and rough inlhellowersando1her accessories at Ihis slage. you should beabletop1OCged wilh confic!enceandfirn.hwthadrawk1gthalremalrlSqunefaithlul fOy<Juroriginaloonception. lMenyoup,=kl.pyoorpentOCOlT'4'leIeamughsketchlikelhis. yoomusthaveaclearvisionoithelinaldrawingyouwJshlOcreate andyourpenmJSlbeoonlrolledbyavmyprec;seseoseolllotiere each line musl go .

CLriadhaj,;s a ha~ma,k 01gi~s comics (ShOjo mange). Here, a do~enor$O lines twis1 together tolormoochlre!is, and you can seehowlhadelicalelyC1.JlVinginas anr,lthe.aryingwidths oIwh1te sl"IoebelwOOnthemCO!TtJIr>eto g:lvethacurlsaremarkablefeeling

'"

( Alluring "Adult)

AchievingaNaturaiBalance . 'M1enaecidlnQoothetigure'scompos"ionandove<allpropo~ions. use your guide 1k1esto mai1talnlMe proper balance. Focosirg too much oolheproponlonscano!\enresun In a lifeless figu'e. but the draINing I'o!ncomaalive Iikelhis so long as yoodeveloptheCOlT'()OSition wilhacloorvisualimage

( Dream 'Fantasy

Your Mos! Cherished .

Dreams are the Soul 01 Manga

Evenln!hissi11lJlelinedrawil"lQ,lhearlislhasmejiculous~de\alled Ihelace althe sleeve and around lhehem.But lhedrawlogtakeson

:k~=:;~~Y.m~~~~=~~~~~~:t~:~~nt
provides anolhefelegar>t . 116 accent Thefin;shed drawing seems lao,eal lobe adream, yet too imaginary 10bereal,andperhapSinthatv.ecanseetheveryesseJlOOolmanga

Girl Athlete

Dr<\wllby6anchoHoshino

(lfurnorous

Illustration)

Simplilied .

Features,

but Drawnw~h

Warmth

Thelacial!ealUreshavebeens;mpl~ie<ltoaoe><I""me, and IhebodylsdlstlnctlYSlylized,ButbyapplyinglheSameslylato eachcharaclel,acel'\alnteelingolrhYlhmlsborobefweeo!hem Theunadoroeddolsandliroesacluallyrevealaremarkableamount oTeXj,>fe$sioo. IM'tendrawnwilhacOoa'lrrageanddlslinct sense of ITI(IOd,even the simplest hguleS C!lnbe lilledwilh heart

(Coqu.ettfsh

Maiden)

Thesubtlestructuraldelailseenln

:~~I~~~~~~~~s~;ap
lhesecrelsolmaklngtheligure seemlT'(lrerealandlanglble Suchellec1iveusaofde!allcan :':~t~n,:"one'snallve

ForProperBaianceandSuucture, .

Sketd1

Even lM1atWon't

Show

8yctKK>SingaposetMtprovidesa!eelingoIOep1halibyitsell,

Y'OucancreateaJlO'M!~ulillllSiono/physic'll presence

even

in

astandaloneligurewithoulanybackground.Thesacrellagelllng lhe righlbalance In lhis figure lies in inclooingdetails oIlhe loin area In lheloughsketch. 8ven lhough lhal part is sJated to be spollednblack. . Thelogoonlheshortsprovldesanlrrp::l/taotaccenl,llmayseemlike atriviallhing.buldrawingtr.alogoneatlyandsharplyconlnbutestoa feelingoltautne!;!i,aro;lintensitieslheleelingotphysulpresence

(Glamourous Beauty)

I\voic!wastingtimaonsmailihings Ol'lCelhepenwarkbeginS.lheneck isleTlcleanwherelher.ecklaceis si<ltedlogo.

Pursue Your Own Idealo! Beauly.Wilhoul .

Compromise

Onlhewayloafinisheddrawing,youhaveonlysome<:MlifOOlo <lacideanlhecmJ1)OSition.lacialexpresslon.acoessor~.aod In this case, thehanddrawn sopromioonllyinlherooghsketchultimateIY901'emoved.Siocea sign~icanl amount otellar! goes inleaven a roughsketch. the naMal lendency wou1dbelol<eep the hand even inlhe final pen work,bUI

anyspecialmolifs wish10 incluoo. you

Ihereisavaluablelessonlnthise"'m~e.lnordertoachiavelhe t>e51possiblerenOelingolyourvisioo,youmuslsome1i""",bewilling 10 change course, even~n meansadd~iooal work. II is the refusal IOCOlrpfomise your vision thai oMIlullimaletybaarltlel;nesI resulls ""e,

.I~I.~