Anatomy & Proportion

Learning how to draw the Human Form efficiently and effectively takes a lot of time, practice and

patience. Understanding the structure of the human body and its extents and limits is the key in

creating forms that are lifelike and realistic in a relative sense.

You could be doing life drawings and attempt to be infinitely realistic, or you may be making
simplistic cartoons or caricatures which should have some semblance of being anatomically correct.

Ideal male proportion

Let’s start by determining the height of male figure, Divide the height by 8, and work from there.
You’ll see there are specific ratios for certain areas of the body.

The measurements are determined by head units. One of the 8 divisions you set up is the size of the
human head – everything is in relation to that one size.

‣ The body width = 2 1/3 heads ‣ The body height = 8 heads

‣ Width of calf muscles together at lower

‣ Bottom of the knees = 2 heads from ground level

For women, the ratios differ slightly as the average form is smaller then the form of an average man.
The overall height is measured in 8 Head Units, but because the female head is proportionately
smaller, the figure will be smaller.

‣ The body width = 2 heads wide ‣ Waist = 1 head wide

‣ Width of calf muscles together at mid-

‣ Bottom of the knees = 2 heads from ground level

A well-proportioned figure, regardless of variations due to gender or such, is defined by the

The measurement (ideal male height = eight heads) was set down during the Renaissance as an
idealization of the human form.

It's rather obvious that very few people are actually eight heads tall (even Northern Europeans, who
served as basis for this model, are closer to seven heads), but this is still the best model to start with,
as it makes it easier to grasp the alignments.

The Pelvis

Add the pelvic bone next, simplified as a flattened circle between marks 3 and 4, with the hip joints
sitting on 4. Its width is roughly 1.5 to 2 head-widths.

You can now draw the spine connecting the head to this most important part of the body, its centre of
gravity and stability.

The Legs and Knees

Let's assume this figure is standing with feet vertically aligned with the hip joints.

The knee joints sit on mark 6, as that line corresponds to the bottom of the knee caps.

When the leg is stretched out, the knee joint is placed on a straight line with the hip and ankle (left).
But this straight line is virtual: to complete the leg, connect the hip joint to the inside of the knee cap,
and then again, the outside of the knee to the inside of the ankle (right).

This is a very simplified but accurate representation of the actual bone structure, and helps in
drawing the natural look of the human leg, which tapers in from the hip, then staggers out at the
knee and tapers in again.

It also helps with placing the muscles at a later stage.


The ribcage-lungs group is the third important volume of the body, after the head and the pelvis.

It is an oval that starts halfway between 1 and 2, down to mark 3; but it is best to chop off the lower
part of it as shown here to imitate the actual rib cage, as the empty part between the two volumes is
important: it is soft and subject to change (flat belly, soft belly, wasp waist) and it is also where the
most torsion and movement happens in the spine.

It's good to be aware of that and not attach torso and pelvis together like two blocks, as that would
"block" your drawing's range of motion. The width of the oval is roughly the same as the pelvis for
now.

The nipples fall on mark 2, just inside the sides of the head, and the belly button on mark 3.
The Shoulders

The shoulder line is about halfway between marks 1 and 2, with the shoulder width 2 to 3 head-
widths, but its apparent position can vary a great deal.

To begin with, it's slightly curved down, but in tension the shoulders tense up and the curve can itself
turn up and look higher.

Furthermore, the trapezius muscle, which from the front appears to connect the shoulder with the
neck, is highly individual; if it's very muscular, or carries much fat, it can make the shoulder line
look so high there's no neck; inversely, an underdeveloped trapezius, often seen in very young
women, gives the impression of a long neck.

This brief digression into non-skeletal details is to insure there is no confusion between the actual
position of the shoulder line and its apparent placement in a fleshed-out body

The Arm, Wrists and Hands

The arms: The wrists are on mark 4, slightly below the hip joints which sit on it (you can test it out
for yourself by standing up and pressing your wrists against your hips).

The fingers end roughly at mid-thigh, which is mark 5. The elbows are a slightly complicated joint
that we'll examine in detail later, but for now it's helpful to mark them as elongated ovals sitting on
level 3.

The Basic Profile

Start by drawing the head again, the same egg shape but with the end pointing diagonally down, and
drop a vertical line from the crown to the ground.

In an erect posture, you can place the pelvic bone the shoulder and knee roughly on this vertical
line. They are on the same level as before: all the joints are, but the others are not on the same plane
as these.

The Spine in Profile

From the side, the spine is revealed as being shaped like a flattened "S". From the base of the skull, it
moves down and back till it reaches its furthest point at the level of the shoulders (between the
shoulder blades).

The spine then comes back forward, and peaks again (inward) a little above the pelvis (the small of
the back, which varies in depth and can make for arched back).

The Ribcage and Legs in Profile

The ribcage is closely attached to the spine, and, in a reasonably fit body standing erect, the chest is
naturally pushed forward.

The hip joint is ahead of our vertical axis, and this is counterbalanced by the ankle being a bit behind
it. So our hip-knee-ankle line is slanted backward, and staggered again: from hip joint to front of
knee joint, and from back of knee joint to ankle.

The overall effect of this posture is a visual arc from head to chest to feet (in green), and when it's
flattened or reversed, we perceive an uncertainty or slouch in the posture.

The Arms in Profile

The upper arm falls fairly straight from the shoulder, so the elbow can be aligned with the latter (or
fall slightly backward).

The arm is never fully stretched when at rest, so the forearm is not vertical: the arm is slightly bend
and the wrist falls forward, right over the hip bone. (Also when the hand is relaxed, fingers curl a
little as shown here).

Male & Female Proportion

Male and female proportions are so different that even a skeleton (or certain parts of it) betrays its
sex. However, that on a vertical axis there is no real difference: the joints don't move up or down.

The variations are almost entirely on the horizontal axis, i.e. in the width of certain parts of the body.
So how do we feminize or masculinize our basic figure?

On the structural level we're still working on, there's actually just one big difference to master, and
the rest are small helpful details.

The Shoulders/Hips Ratio

The primary difference is the relationship of shoulder width to hips.

Women have a much broader pelvic bone than men, since they need to be able to bear and give birth
to a child.

This one, central fact has consequences throughout the body. It means that in women the hip line is
the broadest part of the body, and a narrower waist appears by contrast, while in men the broadest
part is the shoulder line, and the waist is hardly different from the hips.

The overall female silhouette, then, is an hourglass as opposed to the male trapeze.

The Arms in Profile

On (middle) basic figure, There is guidelines from the sides of the head, and then again from a
distance equivalent to one head from the central axis. These lines define two yellow zones where the
figure's shoulder and hip bones are contained.

To make this neutral figure female, the pelvic bone is broadened so that the hip joints are closer to
the outer side of the yellow area.

To make the neutral figure male, the pelvic bone remains narrow while the shoulders joints are
actually just outside the yellow area.

Waist Line and Elbows

A woman's waist line is level with the belly button but a man's appears much lower.

This makes the torso on a male look longer.

Be careful not to align the elbows with this apparently lower waist!

The reference for the elbow joint remains the belly button, so that unlike the female figure, if the
impression we have of a man's waist is where his trousers start, the elbows will look much higher.

Rounded / Angular

In anticipation of the fleshed-out body we'll eventually be drawing, it can be useful to sketch women
with rounded shapes and men with more angular trapeze shapes as this reflects the general
impression of each body type.

Generally speaking, a woman's body is made up of soft rounded shapes: breasts and buttocks but
also the fact that when not modified, the female body stocks more fat under the skin. Men's bodies
are more angular and have harsher lines when they are muscular.

The Hip Joints

A small detail, but significant: draw a woman's hip joints outside the pelvic bone.

They jut out visibly in the body and this helps to capture this feature. In contrast, keep a man's hip
joints inside the pelvic bone.

Other details

In both sexes, the palm of the hand and sole of the foot are about half as wide as the face. But they
are longer, relative to the face, in men than they are in women.

A woman's spine tends to be more flexible, and is visibly more arched, than a man's.

On average, men are taller than women.


The line of action goes hand in hand with making a character's pose easier to read. Think of the line
of action as an imaginary line running down a character's spine. The line of action is a curved line.

Making the line of action curved, as opposed to drawing it as a straight line, gives your character's
pose more force and attitude which, in turn, aids in making your character's poses more visually
interesting to the viewer.

Line of Action – Gesture Drawing

The line of action is a simple curved line that evokes movement. Avoid making your line of action S-
shaped or straight - it will hinder the overall force and make the resulting pose look less dynamic.

Drawing Motion of shapes and human figure

Once you have learned to see and know shapes, the next most important thing is learning to see and
know the movements of shapes. Each thing, each person moves in a way all his own. We all walk,
but we all walk in our own way.

You can recognize a friend by the way he walks, even though he may be in disguise. Animals walk,
run, and move each in its own way. Even trees move in their own way as they grow or when the
wind tosses them.