Why Side Portraits Feel So Hard (And How to Fix It)" #artshorts #art #

Most people think side portraits are difficult, but honestly, they only feel hard because most methods make them too complicated. So let's start with the first stage. This is much simpler than it probably looks. First, I start with a simple cross, because this helps me control the placement of the entire portrait. Then, I place a rectangle right in the center, just like this. Now here's the key part. I divide this rectangle into three equal sections. Next, I add a vertical line through the left section, and this becomes very useful later because it helps determine the chin placement and makes placing the features much easier. Finally, I begin placing simple circles for the main features. The eyes, the nose, the mouth, and the ear. Nothing complicated yet. I'm only trying to understand where everything belongs. Then, I add a few simple lines to suggest the outer shape of the face. And just like that, the first stage is complete. Think of this stage as building the rules first, because the next stage is where everything starts making more sense. And honestly, at this point, you've already built almost 40% of the portrait. So don't overcomplicate it. Drawing is much easier when you stop making it feel difficult. And now, we move into the second stage. This is where I start simplifying those circles into slightly more accurate forms. For example, this oval shape for the nose, I split it into two smaller forms so I can better understand the structure of the nose. Then, I add a simple straight line upward, because this helps me place the left eye much more accurately. And once that feels right, adding the eyebrow becomes much easier too. But keep something in mind. These are still very small details. Maybe 20% at most. So don't expect the portrait to look realistic yet. If it still feels a little strange, that's completely normal. It doesn't mean you're doing anything wrong. And now, we're finally moving into the most important stage. This is where most of the real work happens. So really try to focus here. And if something feels unclear, don't hesitate to go back and watch that section again, because every stage here builds on the one before it. And as usual, if you've watched my videos before, you already know I always begin with the nose, because it controls the structure of the whole face and makes building everything else much easier. Now, if you notice, I'm only focusing on the darker areas first. This is the real secret to shading. You don't start with the lighter areas. Every good shading process starts from dark and slowly moves toward light. Once the nose is finished, I move directly to the left eyebrow, because it naturally connects to the nose area. And I still avoid drawing the outer eye shape first, because if you rush it, the eye can easily end up too wide or too narrow. So instead, I shade the inner areas first, and those shadows naturally guide me to the outer edges later. And honestly, once you understand this technique, this whole section becomes much easier than people usually think. It might feel difficult at first, but with practice, you'll notice yourself getting comfortable with it much faster than expected. Before moving to the mouth, I shaded the area right underneath the nose first, because that shadow helps me naturally understand where the upper lip should sit and where the mouth ends. Here, I compare it mainly using two things. The slight curve relationship between the mouth and the side of the nose. And honestly, this part becomes more about observation than exact measurements. But if you remember the first stage, most of these placements were already simplified for us through the structure lines. And this is exactly why every stage matters. Once I define the mouth placement, I move into the teeth area. Pay attention here. The shape follows a soft curved flow, but stretches slightly more toward the right side. Then I shade the area underneath and move into the lower lip, while paying close attention to the tilt of the mouth. Because even small mistakes here can completely change the feeling of the portrait. And this is where you start understanding something important. Shading naturally leads you from one section to another, almost without realizing it. Once the mouth is finished, only then does it make sense to move into the chin area. Because honestly, it would be very difficult to place the chin correctly before the mouth is fully established. This process is really about order, not random drawing. Now here's a very important part. Because if you don't get this distance right, the whole portrait can start feeling completely off. I'm talking about the space between the ear and the face itself. Because if this area becomes too wide or too narrow, the face proportions change immediately. But for now, I'm actually going to leave that area. Because later, I'll show you a simple way to double check it. For now, I move into the right eyebrow. And notice here, this eyebrow appears wider than the other one, simply because of the side angle of the face. The same thing happens with the eye too. The starting point of this eye matters a lot. Because even a small shift here can completely change the likeness of the portrait. To place it correctly, I use the side of the nose as my main reference point, while still respecting the horizontal alignment with the other eye. And just like that, the placement becomes much easier to control. Also remember, both eyes still need to follow the same horizontal flow. If one starts drifting, the portrait immediately starts feeling wrong. From here, I work on the upper eyelid, then the lash line, and finally the lower lash line. And now, I come back to the ear placement. Because honestly, if I had placed it earlier, there's a good chance the portrait would have looked wrong later. Before placing it, I always compare distances. Look at the space between the nose and the ear, then compare it to the overall width between the eyes. And here's the interesting part. In this portrait, that distance is almost the same. And this is where comparison becomes incredibly useful. In fact, I made an entire video about this comparison technique. So if you want to learn it deeper, you'll find it on my channel. Once I determine where the ear begins, I pay attention to its angle too. Because the ear here isn't perfectly vertical, it leans slightly at around three to four degrees. Then I begin with a few simple lines, add small details, and finally shading, which is basically the exact same three stages we already used for the other features. And now, we're finally ready for the hair. The hair here, it is actually much simpler than it probably looks. You only really need to understand two things. First, pay attention to where the light hits the hair. Because hair naturally forms curves and flowing shapes, so those highlighted areas matter a lot. Second, focus on the direction of the hair strands. Because every section of hair moves differently and follows its own direction. And just like before, when shading, always move from the darker areas first, then gradually toward the lighter ones. It's the same shading rule we've been using throughout the whole portrait. I also tried to keep this process simple, so it doesn't feel overwhelming. In fact, for most of the shading, I mainly use just one pencil, the Staedtler Black 8B. I really wanted this video to feel as simple as possible. Once the hair is finished, I move into the neck and clothing area. First, I define the clothing shape, then I use charcoal powder, mainly to speed up the process. But if you don't have it, you can absolutely get a very similar result using only a pencil. There's also a lighter section here because the hair falls over dark clothing, so the contrast becomes much softer. The neck area, however, becomes much darker because almost no light is reaching it. And now, we finally arrive at the last stage, the eyes. For the eyes here, I mainly focus on the angle and shape of the pupil first. Then, if anything around the eye needs adjustment, more lashes, deeper shading, I simply refine it afterward. And if you have a white gel pen or even a white pencil, you can use it for the small highlights. But if you don't have one, you can simply leave those highlighted areas blank while shading, and you'll still get a very similar result. If you enjoyed this method, let me know in the comments. And if you want more videos like this, don't forget to like and subscribe. It really helps me keep creating new videos every week while keeping them simple and easy to follow. And if you'd like to watch another drawing video, I highly recommend the video on your screen because it uses a completely different method, and I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy it.