7 Tips For Drawing Faces Better And Faster!

Drawing faces correctly can be quite hard, even for experienced artists! So today, I’ll share with you 7 tips on how can you draw a face better and faster.

From specific practice on drawing features, such as the head shape and the nose, to using (and finding) great photo references, there are many tips here to help you improve on your art journey.

No matter if you’re using traditional media such as pencil, chalk, or markers, or using digital media, all of these tips still apply!

So let’s go over the best tips for drawing faces better, especially if you’re a beginner artist!

Leave The Shading Of The Face For Later

While shading is a very important part of drawing in general, you should forget about shading when learning to draw something new.

The most important part about drawing faces is to get the basic shapes and facial features correctly drawn!

Pay attention to the proportions, watch some tutorials, and have an approach to drawing where you focus on one part at a time.

Then, you can focus on shading later on.

So, forget about the light source and the shadows of the face for now. Focus on drawing the features and the basic shapes first!

Use Great Portrait Reference Photos

This is one of the most essential tips on how to draw faces I can give you: use GREAT portrait reference photos.

To do a great portrait drawing, you need a great portrait reference!

Don’t settle for just a bad quality photo you found or with bad lighting just because it’s in the angle you wanted. You need to clearly see every feature of the face to draw portraits well!

Notice how the eye sockets are placed in the photo, draw the hair shape on top of the reference and even the construction lines!

Use references with different features so that you can draw lips, chins, and other parts of the face differently every time!

If you’re unsure of where you can get these photo references, here’s a list of the best Portrait Reference Photos for Artists.

Master Drawing The Facial Features First

Many artists want to draw male and female faces with LOTS of details right away. They want to go and do a complete portrait drawing without mastering the basics first, such as drawing eyes.

This is a big mistake.

Focus on how to draw each facial feature first, and then move on to putting them all together on a face drawing!

Master how to draw eyes, ears, mouths, hair, and noses, and then you can move on to drawing faces.

I have an entire section of my website dedicated to drawing anatomy, so check it out here.

This includes how to draw ears as well as drawing noses, for example.

P.S.: Remember that drawing a face in a profile view or 3/4 view is always different than a face staring straight at the viewer! So adapt the facial features accordingly.

Take A Course On Drawing Faces

Drawing faces is an artistic skill like any other, and so there are great courses and classes to master it!

You can, of course, learn to draw different faces on your own. But with help from an instructor, you’ll improve much faster.

I have an entire free guide on how to draw faces here that you can watch.

And if you prefer a video format, you can also take my complete figure drawing course, which covers the entire human body, including the face!

It has over 20 step-by-step videos just on drawing the head and its features (with assignments and downloadable resources).

Practice Your Value Drawing Skills

Value is an essential drawing skill for artists. It will help you create depth in your drawings and make them stand out!

Value refers to how dark and light each part of an area you’re drawing is. This is a very important element to incorporate when you draw a face, and it can be practiced by drawing value scales.

If you’d like to learn more about what exactly value drawing and value tone are, with several examples and different techniques, check out our article on Value Drawing.

With that said, this is a more advanced tip for drawing faces, so keep this one for later in your face-drawing journey!

Repeat Lines And Make Mistakes

Repeating lines is an essential part to learn how to draw anything! Your drawings won’t be perfect at the start, so you’ll need to practice drawing faces over and over again.

Go over your lines multiple times, erase features that didn’t turn out how you like them and redraw them again.

It takes time and mistakes to develop your artist skills. So don’t feel bad if you’re not drawing the entire face correctly right away. Practice makes perfect.

You can even have problems with specific face angles, it’s normal.

The 3/4 view face is especially hard, you can learn an easy step-by-step process here!

Use each mistake as an opportunity to learn and improve. You’ll get better at drawing each shape, and at art in general, by allowing yourself to make mistakes.

Experiment, Make Portrait Drawing Fun!

Drawing is a fun hobby that can be taken to a professional level. No matter your skill level, you should make all your practice fun!

Do you usually draw a face with a pencil? Then try just drawing with a pen or markers right from the start.

Experiment with new materials, try different techniques, use color in your studies, and try different drawing styles, such as realistic, cartoon or anime!

Try drawing different head shapes, different angles, hair, and noses, and just have fun with it!

You’ll learn to draw faces better and faster if you enjoy your practice. AND it will also help you figure out what you enjoy drawing the most on the face, in a stress-free way.

You might even prefer to draw faces from the side!

Related Questions On Tips For Drawing Faces

Got other questions about drawing faces? I’ll try to cover them here!

What tips do you have for drawing eyes?

Some tips I have for drawing eyes are:

• Always start by sketching an outline with shapes.
• Don’t forget to draw the tear duct!
• Try drawing different iris styles.
• The eyelashes should be curved around the eyes, not straight lines.

Take the time to study some different eyes, remember these tips and I’m sure you’ll improve fast!

You can check my How To Draw Eyes guide for a more in-depth step by step.

How do I draw a face with the right proportions?

To draw a face with the right proportions, use a guide for each facial feature!

Be sure to start with simple shapes before trying to add details, and pay attention to the angle you’re drawing the face. Different angles will make you draw the face with different proportions according to the perspective.

This can all be done by choosing good reference photos and practicing the main shapes!

How can I improve the way I draw people?

To improve on drawing people, learn to draw each body part one step at a time.

By focusing on each body part and feature, you’ll slowly but surely improve your understanding of anatomy and enhance your drawing skills.

Don’t worry if it’s not perfect at the start! Get feedback from other artists, join a class, and take your time.

I recommend you start with my Figure Drawing Basics guide.

How to draw faces from different angles?

Drawing faces from different angles involves understanding the structure of the skull and the shapes it’s made of!

The best way to learn to draw faces from different angles is to get good reference photos from different angles and focus on drawing them, especially the main shapes.

Set aside some time to draw only faces from the side, then front-view, then 3/4 view, then looking up or down, and so on!

It takes time, but it will build your visual library over time and make you a better artist.

How can I draw lips?

Drawing lips normally starts with a simple horizontal line for the mouth. The upper lip is often drawn as a M-like shape, and the lower lip is usually more rounded.

One common mistake many beginner artists make is forgetting to draw the part where the upper and lower lips meet.

Also, remember to add light on the upper lip and a shadow on the lower lip to give them depth and make them look more realistic. Of course, be sure to change it accordingly to your light source!

Finally, don’t forget the range of forms lips can take. Everyone’s facial features are unique, so observation and good reference photos will be your best guide!

This is a very basic guide, though, so I do recommend you check the complete guide on drawing lips here!

I hope the tips on drawing faces in this article have helped you!

If you want to take the next step and draw a complete face, I’ve written an entire guide on How To Draw Faces Step By Step here, so have fun!