This tutorial explains how to draw and shade a paw by providing detailed illustrations along with guidelines for estimating the various proportions of the hand such as the fingers and thumb.

Hand drawing step by step
Hand drawing footstep by stride

The hand is one of the most difficult body parts to depict and so budgeted the drawing procedure in the right fashion is essential.

Step i – Manus Proportions Sketch

Hand shape sketch
Mitt shape sketch

Offset your cartoon by starting time quickly sketching out the overall shape of the paw.

Be sure to compare each part of the hand such as the palm, thumb and fingers to one another and effort to correctly size and proportions them in relation to one other.

Keep in mind that this step is still a rough guess and yous can refine your drawing in the following steps.

Footstep two – Hand Outline Cartoon

Hand outline drawing
Hand outline drawing

After yous have your initial proportions sketch you can start refining information technology into an outline drawing of the manus. Be sure to tweak whatever proportions that seem out of identify. You lot tin approximate these based on the guidelines below.

Hand finger and thumb structure
Hand finger & pollex structure

Above you tin see a rough positioning of the joints of the fingers and thumb. Having an idea of where these are located can exist very helpful when cartoon. Notation thing to note that may not be obvious to new artist sis that the fingers curve from the knuckles that are nigh a quarter way down into the bodily palm and non from the edge of the palm of the hand.

Hand drawing finger proportions from knuckles
Finger proportions from knuckles

The altitude from the duke to the first joint of the finger is about the aforementioned as the distance from that joint to the tip.

Hand drawing finger proportions
Finger proportions

The distance from the tip of the fingers to the join is shorter then the distance from that join to the adjacent.

Hand drawing thumb from base proportions
Thumb from base proportions

The base of the pollex actually starts effectually the base of the palm of the mitt. The altitude from the base is about equal to the distance from the showtime join to the tip of the pollex when pollex is slightly aptitude. It's slightly smaller if the pollex is straightened out but that'due south non a natural position for a pollex to exist in therefore you lot can use the i/2 measurement.

Hand drawing thumb proportions
Hand drawing thumb proportions

Just like the fingers the tip of the thumb to joint altitude is shorter than from there to the next joint.

Step three – Basic Shading

Hand drawing basic shading
Hand drawing basic shading

The shadows will depend on the light source/sources. In this particular example the light is coming from the summit left.

The hand is mostly comprised of curves so you lot will eventually want to draw shine gradients for about of the shadows. But you lot can start the shading procedure by commencement doing fairly rigid shading of the darker areas of the paw. Endeavour and make the stroke in the directions that will help reinforce the shape of the paw.

Step four – Finished Cartoon

Hand open palm drawing
Hand open palm cartoon

Continue applying shading to your drawing to reinforce the darker shadows and to create polish gradients. Once more recall to make your strokes in a mode to that reinforces the shape of the hand. You do non need to make every stroke in the aforementioned direction for each function. Attempt and create a light cross hatch.

Conclusion

The hand is fairly difficult to draw and proportion correctly. It tin can be very convenient to look at your own easily to proceeds a better understanding of the proportions. At the same time be enlightened that manus proportions vary in different people.