How to Draw a Manga Illustration in Five Easy Steps!

Manga is another word for Japanese comics. While American's may know it as one of the centuries latest fads, Manga has been an important part of Japanese culture for years, and brings in billions of dollars in revenue. From the kid friendly Pokémon to the more mature and dramatic Sanctuary, there is something for every age group and walk of life that covers many subjects: romance, action, comedy and adventure. This is what makes Manga so popular and why so many people want to create their own Manga illustrations. For an easy how-to guide to proper Manga drawing, follow the steps below.

1. Have supplies on hand. Before sitting down and getting started, you'll want to make sure to have all the supplies on hand that you'll need for a successful Manga drawing lesson. Since art supplies can be expensive, and you'll be doing quite a bit of erasing at the beginning, practice drawing on multi-purpose white paper, and with plenty of #2 pencils. A ruler, eraser and sketch pad will come in handy as well.

2. Become familiar with the basic shapes. The key to construct Manga learning and accurate drawing is to get the head shape right. As the most difficult part of the figure, the head is crucial and may require the most time you'll need to spend. It could help to buy a Manga drawing book from a local bookstore or from an online tutorial. Practice drawing spheres, cones, cubes and cylinders.

3. Start with an oval. Once you have a basic understanding of the supplies you'll need and the shapes you'll be drawing, you can get ready, get set, and draw! Here's our strategy for a easy step by step plan for successful manga drawing. First, start by drawing an oval shape for the head. Outline the shape by connecting a simple skeletal line for the body, making sure it is 6-7 heads tall. Then, begin to add cylinder shapes to the body for the arms, legs, shoulders, muscles and joints. Lastly, connect the joints by adding facial features and other fine details.

4. Concentrate on the eyes. Drawing your character's eyes is one of the most important parts of Manga drawing. You'll want to begin by drawing an upward curving line for the upper eyelid, and draw diagonal lines that come to a point. Make a circle within the eye to draw the iris, and draw a circular pupil and eyelashes that follow the curve of the eyelid. Darken the pupil until its black in color, add eyelashes and an eyebrow.

5. Apply the final touches. Lastly, you'll want to finish your manga character's face. Start with a circle and divide it into thirds with simple, straight lines. Draw a line underneath the circle, and this will be its chin. Along the second line, draw your nose and below it your mouth. Lastly, erase the lines and add facial details. Now you're perfectly drawn manga character is complete!