Welcome, my dear friends, to this new lesson in which we will delve together into the world of drawing anime hair in an attractive and smooth style suitable for beginners and professionals. Many of you love drawing anime and manga characters, but find the greatest difficulty in drawing hair correctly and in harmony with the different angles of the head.
My Patreon account where you can find a detailed screenshot of the animation
In this lesson, I'll show you tried-and-tested techniques for drawing anime hair quickly and professionally, along with methods for creating various hairstyles and easily adding details without any complications or worries about mistakes. Learning to draw anime hair will no longer be difficult with me; instead, it will be an enjoyable experience that helps you develop your own style. Grab your pencils or open your drawing software and get started with me step by step.
First step
First, we draw the head of the character to whom we want to add hair, while defining the body in a simplified way only to support the balance of the drawing.
Important tip: When drawing the head, don't forget to determine the hairline. Start by drawing a point at the top of the head, and from there draw curved lines branching out in different directions according to the hairstyle you've chosen. This method helps determine the direction of the strands and the correct distribution of the hair before starting with the details.
Step two
Now we draw scattered lines starting from the hairline, following the direction of the hairstyle you want. If the hairstyle is short, the lines should be short and relatively straight; if it's long or wavy, draw wavy, zigzag lines.
Make sure that the hair lines are in harmony with the hairline you have defined, as this is the basis that will ultimately reveal the beauty of the anime hair drawing.
Step three
We now begin to add details of the strands, such as the gaps between the hair strands and the wave lines, if any, clearly showing the beginning and end of each strand.
We must always remember to start from the base of the head, i.e., from the middle, so that the drawing looks closer to reality. It is important to take into account that each anime character has their own hairstyle.
Step four
We move on to the inking stage, where we thin the initial sketch layer, then add a new layer and begin drawing the hair and edges with black ink, using a suitable brush in the program or a pen if you are drawing by hand.
Make sure to keep the outer lines strong and clear while maintaining the softness of the inner detail lines of the strands.
Practical examples of drawing anime hair from multiple angles
From the side:
Define the hairline slightly at the back of the head, then let the front strands point towards the forehead and the side strands fall smoothly.
Here we fill in and draw the hair completely.
From behind:
Start by drawing the hairline from the middle of the head, then draw the strands downwards on the sides in a symmetrical or varied manner depending on the hairstyle, and don't forget to leave a distance of 2-3 cm from the skull to show the volume of the hair.
The best ways to color long hair in an attractive anime style
To draw a small bun hairstyle:
- After drawing the head, mark the location of the cake with an asymmetrical circle in the middle of the head.
- Draw spiral lines inside the bun to show the curling of the strands.
- Make sure the bun is attached to the hairline so it looks natural.
How to color anime hair
After inking, we begin coloring the anime hair by choosing colors that suit the hairstyle and the character. I recommend choosing a base color and then adding darker and lighter shades to create highlights and shadows.
- Add shadows to the side of the head and under the strands.
- Add shine (highlight) using a light color such as white or light yellow in places where light reflection is expected.
- If you want a professional look, use a soft brush to add shadows with a natural wave.
And so together we have finished this detailed lesson on how to draw anime hair in an attractive and simple style, while learning hair drawing techniques from multiple angles and dealing with coloring and inking professionally, which will make your drawings appear more realistic and beautiful.
This method will work for you with any anime character, and even with the manga characters you are working on, because it will save you time while drawing chapters and paintings, and the best part is that it is easy to memorize. All you have to do is repeat reading the lesson more than once to understand it.
Thank you for following the lesson closely. Now I leave you with the hope that I will meet you in the next lesson, God willing.
