How to Draw Cartoon People? (from Reference), by KeshArt on YouTube. 7 min 8 s.
- Video length
- 7 min 8 s
- Time to do it
- 30 minutes
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Steps
- 8
What you need
Steps
Pick one clear reference photo with the face at eye level and good lighting. Avoid blurry shots or heavy shadows so you can read the shapes easily.
Study the photo before drawing. Look for the big shapes first: the head as an oval, the jaw, the hair mass and the neck.
Lightly sketch the head shape and a centre line down the face. Mark where the eyes, nose and mouth sit along that line.
Break each feature into simple shapes. Draw eyes as circles or ovals, the nose as a triangle or wedge and the mouth as a curved line.
Simplify and exaggerate. Make the eyes bigger, the chin smaller or the hair bolder than in the photo so the face reads as a cartoon.
Check the proportions against your reference. Hold the sketch at arm's length or flip it to spot anything that looks off.
Clean up the drawing by erasing construction lines. Darken the final outlines with your pencil or a fineliner.
Repeat the same five steps with three more photos. Doing it often is what trains your eye to spot shapes faster.
Tips and common mistakes
Start with light pencil lines so mistakes are easy to erase.
Draw the whole head before adding detail to any single feature.
Exaggerate one or two features only, or the face stops looking like the person.
Use a mirror or flip your sketch to catch lopsided proportions.
Questions
Do I need to be good at realistic drawing first?
No. The method works by reducing faces to simple shapes, so beginners can start straight away. Accuracy improves with repeated practice.
Can I do this digitally?
Yes. Use the same steps in any drawing app, keeping construction lines on a separate layer you can hide later.
How long should each practice sketch take?
Aim for 10 to 20 minutes per face. Short, frequent sessions teach you more than one long, careful drawing.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
