First You need decent Art Supplies. I Prefer Graphite pencils, A hard and soft graphite. Because you can sketch Lightly with a Graphite #2H & Darken with A Graphite HB. Also Purchase a gum eraser, Because it will keep your art clean an wont rip the paper.A Good pencil Sharpener, Preferably an Electric or battery operated.
Ok lets get started.
Step #1 Make sure if drawing a portrait the head is centered. Now,Lightly sketch what you want to draw. Not perfect just the basic shape. Dont worry about detail that comes later. Ever draw a picture only to find out the head is too big or something is not proportioned correctly? This is because You focused on the head the arms then continue on without looking at the Whole picture, Thats why you need to lightly sketch the basic struture first.
Step #2 Now start adding features, nose eyes hair ect. Make sure you are using the lighter graphite pencil.
Step #3 Shading time. Now darken the areas that need darkening add shadows,and light shading using your HB graphite pencil.
Make sure to keep area clean by using the gum eraser.
Ok sounds simple right? Well it takes practice and a few rules to follow.
Rule #1 Never Trace a picture, if you do you will never learn to draw on your own.
Rule #2 If you have trouble drawing something like hands dont hide them as Some artists will tell you. Study hands and practice drawing just them, Look at different hand positions and practice until you master it.
Rule #3 Print lots of pictures of picture you like as a reference guide. Study each one. I have pictures of anime art i found on the web of characters i like. Some have great hair ideas others have eyes ,Or body position. TTake what you like from each picture and draw what you like. For example i Combined two pictures i liked. I loved the pose of one and i liked the eyes on the other so i drew the eyes i liked with the pose i liked. I even changed the picture of the girl holding a book to holding a cat. Example Below.
Photoshop is a great tool to clean up pictures, Add color or new backgrounds. If you do decide to use photo make sure you get a good scan of your art and dont make the mistake of using paint fill as most of us do the first time. Examples Below :(
Photoshop can be a great tool once you know how to use it. Most computers have Adobe Photoshop 2.0 Installed on their computer. It probably came bundled with some software. Get familiar with the program. Dont be afraid to try different things.
Ok Below are two Examples of using Paint Fill and smudging tool. Not bad, but needs more shading, and lacks Detail. Detail makes the picture!
For Pencil Sketching,...Shading ,Detail & Proportion are everything!
For this drawing I sketched lightly the basic outline and slowly added detail. Using a very sharp graphite pencil darkening lines and adding fine detail. You will need to keep your pencil pin point sharp to accomplish this. A sharp pencil can add great detail to a picture, from a small crack in a vase to a few strands of hair in a face. A dull pencil will make lines thick and unclean looking.
Sound Advice.
Try not to rely on pictures. Draw your own creations. Try different Art styles, Like Oil,Water Color, Pencil,Paints, Photoshop. You might find you have are better in one area more than you thought. At first you might use pictures as a reference tool to help you draw anime faces or eyes. After some time you should have the basics mastered and you will be able to draw Anime faces without looking at a picture for reference. I found I had trouble drawing eyes at first and would need to look at pictures as a reference. Now I can draw them from memory.
