NOTE: ALL ART SHOWCASED IS MINE.
Today's question is something every artist dreads learning to draw. The things that end up looking bad every time we try! This question is a frequent problem with starting artists: it is so much of one that sometimes you may cut these out altogether! So what are they...?
Today we will be learning how to draw HANDS and FEET! This is something I have trouble on myself, but I'll share with you some tips I have learned! The examples here aren't going to be zoomed in on the hands (curse my stupid tablet) so just look closely at them for what I am tryna teach ya. When I started, I had many issues with hands and avoided feet altogether.. Now I can draw them a lot better. To what do I owe this success (besides the Creator, Whose Plan it was for me to finally figure out a way to do so)?
It is called observation!
If you remember the last lesson, Proportions, you remember the first exercise we did: measuring hands. If you would like, glance at your hand and notice the following things: 1) a hand is just not its fingers, it is its palm as well, 2) your hand's fingers vary in length and 3) your hand has many curves. Spread it out, ball it into a fist, and observe how your hands look from these angles.
Looks hard to draw at first, right? Wrong!
What shapes make up your hand? Your palm/back of your hand: rounded rectangles. Your fingers are cylinders. If you think in shapes, it becomes much easier to draw them. Now, glance at the examples below of hands to gain a better understanding of their shapes, proportions, and other things.
Example 2.1
Look at the hands below. What do you notice? What angles are they? Do you see the joints, and the clear shapes?
Yes! Freddy's hands are rather
turned inward or resting on a surface, and Golden Freddy's partially hidden hand is
hanging. Lastly, Bonnie's hand is on his hip, in a
3/4, finger-down view. Their hands are constructed of
rectangles and cylinders.
Did you notice how Freddy, the brown bear, has his hand resting on his stomach? This shows his hand in a sort of front view. You can clearly see how his fingers, colored a separate shade, are connected to his palm. And how about the hand supporting the hat, turned at a side angle? Same. I use these animatronic drawings to show you how the joints are drawn when they are being "constructed" during the drafting stage. You may remember that the first example from the last lesson did the same.
As for Bonnie, the bunny, and Golden Freddy, the other bear, their hands are drawn similarly. Goldie's hand is drawn at a side view. Bonnie's hand is drawn with some weight and foreshortening. Foreshortening is when you make something smaller so that it looks like it is traveling into the picture.
Now, let's do some more human-like hands.
Example 2.2
Here is a drawing I did for LLM. It was supposed to be HelptheWolves, sorry. Anyway! The hands are doing something different this time. What do you notice?
Yes! They are
gripping the sign. Notice how the hands are foreshortened slightly.
That was to show you how to draw them partially hidden. Basically, construct the hands using shapes, use your own as reference, and then edit them. How about this example?
Example 2.3
This one will be easier to find, as it is an ink and pen sketch instead of a full color sketch. Anyway, again. What about the hands do you notice?
Yep! One is turned
towards us using foreshortening, the other is
more of a side view.
The fur may have thrown you off for a moment. However, look closer. This is a drawing of our family dog Lola, who is cancer-stricken and is soon to die. I added many of her markings, personality, and other things in this drawing, including the fact that she is a short-hair Terrier. Therefore, fur only bunches at certain places. The hands are fur- free. But don't be confused. She still has fur, but less so on her "paws". Also, the hands, in reality, be them furry or human, are longer than what we usually think.
To help you some more, glance at the next examples before seeing my little tutorial on feet. As you read and look at them (both old pieces) try and find out what shapes they use!
Examples 2.4-5
Take a look at manga Goldicat! See her hands, holding her... lunch? Well, what do you see about them?
Yeahhh! They are
foreshortened, facing towards us!
Now, what about Goldicat here?
Yesssss! Her hands here are
faced outwardly, palms out as if beckoning you to her. This piece is older, so the body isn't as well-drawn, but the hands are an example of my first attempts at realistic hands.
And now, for the grand finale.
Feet. Thankfully, we can cover feet with shoes. We could make our characters wear those mitts with just a thumb thing, but that's no fun. However, we can give our girls and boys shoes to hide our terrible misconceptions of the things we walk on, and the things some people have a fetish for. Why, I have no idea. Let's go!
Example 2.6
Here's Oceania, with bare feet. What do you notice about them? What shapes make up her feet?
Right! She is standing on her tip toe, presenting her foot to a
side view. Her other foot, elevated, is a
3/4 view.
Since Oceania is a cat, her toes are more rounded and fatter. However, if it was a human foot, you would simply replace the toes with five longer and thinner ones. Remember the size of the toes and their length, and look at your own for reference.
Example 2.7
Goldicat's hands aren't up to par for teaching you, but her shoes are. What do you notice about them?
Right! Her shoes are rounded, but ring true of the construction of the foot beneath them!
To wrap up this lesson, I'll give you a few more feet tips. Feet are longer than hands. They can be drawn like a flat hand if that helps. However, when drawing feet, draw them as shapes and add toes the same you would draw hands. Feet connect to ankles, so remember to draw that. Feet arch, they are not flat. If ever in doubt, simply check your own foot in the pose you want to draw or ask someone to pose for you.
Thanks a ton for reading!
What would you like the next lesson to be on?
PRACTICE PROBLEMS
Do you see the feet and hands below? What angle are they in, and of what shapes are they made of?
1)
(Rinji, Bleach OC)
2)
(Rinji)
3)
(Random character sketch)
