Keep cartoon images simple but base them on real characteristics.
Drawing cartoons is a way of life for many illustrators. Cartoons are found in newspaper comics, children’s books, comic books and advertising. When drawing a cartoon image, the key is to borrow from the features of an actual person and distort those features. This type of cartooning is referred to as a caricature and often seen in political and editorial periodicals. Create a cartoon image of a person or animal by utilizing the basics of drawing and your own artistic flair.
Instructions
1. Look at the features of the person or animal in your photographic reference, if you are using one. Pay special attention to the eyes, mouth, ears and overall head shape. If you prefer, use a model or an image from your own mind instead of a photographic reference.
2. If your subject has a pudgy face, exaggerate this in your cartoon.
Draw the overall head shape of the person or animal. Use quick, fluid pencil strokes. If the subject has a square or pointed jaw, wide forehead or large chin, exaggerate those features in your cartoon’s head shape.
3. Draw the eyes so they look similar to your subject's real eyes.
Draw two shapes to represent the eyes of your cartoon subject. Since eyes come in a variety of sizes and shapes, avoid drawing simple ovals or circles. Stick with the overall shape of the subject’s eyes. If you are creating a different expression, change the shape of the eyes to represent surprise, anger or another expression.
4. Sketch your subject’s eyebrows in an exaggerated fashion. For example, if your subject has heavy eyebrows, make them even heavier in your cartoon.
5. Draw a side swoop nose similar to the cartoon footballer.
Draw a vertical line from one eye corner and extend it into a rounded curve at the bottom to represent a nose. If the subject has a large nose, or is an animal, draw the nose how it really appears but exaggerate it. Think rounded edges and swift, clean pencil strokes.
6. Draw a simple two-line smile for a mouth if desired.
Sketch the mouth of the subject. The mouth shape can be a small circle to represent surprise, a simple one- or two-line smile, or a more complex, exaggerated version of the subject’s real mouth.
7. Add the ears to your cartoon. You can draw nondescript ears simply as half-ovals at the sides of the cartoon’s head. If your subject has large ears, make them even larger in the drawing.
8. Draw the basic outlines of the subject's hair instead of individual strands.
Draw the hair in a similar style to the subject’s real hair, but do not draw every single strand. Instead, draw the basic outlines of the hair and add a few line strokes to the inside in the direction of hair growth.
9. Simplify the body of your subject.
Sketch the body of your subject in a rudimentary fashion, focusing not on exact curves or muscles but on a simplified version of the subject’s real body. Add simple clothing to the subject. Don't worry about erasing pencil lines "underneath" the clothing.
10. Trace over your cartoon with an ink pen. Do not trace over the lines of the body that appear "underneath" the clothes. Allow the ink to dry for 10 to 20 minutes, then erase over the image to remove the original pencil lines.
