Draw folded hands. The main thing is proportions

The image of hands, or rather hands, is quite a difficult task. Even many successful artists, with craftsmanship and landscapes, avoid compositions involving hands. Therefore, having set yourself the task of learning to draw hands correctly, you should understand that this is a long and painstaking work. First of all, you need to study the structure of the palm, the physiological basis - the skeleton. Most The best way for this purpose it is drawing from life.

Many people refuse to learn to draw. Fears that they will not be able to overcome difficulties, that they are not talented enough, prevent them from even trying to master basic drawing skills. They are looking for reasons and culprits, because it is easier to give up on an idea than to sweat a lot. And it's really sad. After all, you should understand that the learning process will not be easy. Some lessons are easier and it only takes a few hours of practice to get satisfactory results. And some points cannot be learned “at a glance; you need to work long and hard before the first ones appear.” positive results. Both in life and in drawing, it is easier to give up obstacles than to stress and move on.


In order to start drawing you will need: regular drawing paper, HB and 2B pencil, eraser. The first sketch is best done with a subtle HB pencil, and to further add tone and detail we use the 2B markings.

Step by step instructions

Turn the paper over horizontal position and divide it in half. Place your hand on one half and start drawing on the other. Imagine that your fingers are cylinders, your hands and wrists are geometric shapes. Thus, we can imagine the volumes that make up a human hand.

First, let's draw several straight lines repeating the axes of the fingers. Then install top part middle finger, little finger and thumb. Between extreme points draw a connecting line along the axes of the thumb and little finger to help calculate the distance and make it easier to evaluate in further calculations of the distance between the joints.

The sketches made may seem like nonsense, and you may have a question: “How will a hand come out of these lines and dashes?” Remember that even great things begin from small things, and it is impossible to correctly build a palm without referring to the physiological structure.

Draw the thickness of the fingers along the marked ellipses so that thin cylinders are formed.

Erase the dark construction lines and smooth out the image and add fine details such as nails, creases and wrinkles.

Then use the eraser to select bright hues and shades, wipe away the extra lines that are left from the sketches around the hand.

Remember that the attitude with which you start work determines the success or failure of your venture.

If you do not take into account a person’s face, then most of all a person’s emotions are conveyed by the position of his hands. The hands and fingers are very flexible and display perfectly emotional condition person. In this lesson we will draw a human hand with a pencil step by step, from simple to complex.

If you are learning to draw a person, portrait or figure correctly, you definitely need to know how to draw a hand, correctly and naturally, and this requires some knowledge and a little practice.

Proportions

In order to learn how to draw hands, first of all, you need to learn proportions and be able to apply your anatomical knowledge in practice. It's not as difficult as it might seem at first glance. Remembering just a few simple rules you will improve your drawing skills several times, and your hand drawings will miraculously acquire believability and naturalness.

General relationships

An interesting fact is that the hand is a bit like a shoulder blade, which consists of two parts: the metacarpus and the fingers.

The length of the fingers is equal to the length of the metacarpus.

This ratio must be respected. The drawing of a hand can be started from a schematic designation of its shape, and a line is used to show the line dividing the hand into two equal parts.

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The length of the entire brush can be completely different. There are people with short and long fingers and, accordingly, a square or elongated brush.

Fingers

Movable and flexible fingers consist of joints. The bones of the metacarpus are the largest and the longest, where the finger joints are attached. Each subsequent phalanx is smaller and thinner than the previous one.

Our hands are designed according to the principle of the golden ratio, which is why women’s hands attract the glances of surrounding men. The proportions of the phalanges are in the ratio of 2/3 of the length of the previous phalanx.

The picture below shows the first phalanx in red, the second in orange, and the third in yellow.

All fingers except the thumb consist of four joints: three phalanges and one joint in the metacarpus. Thumb set aside, slightly turned in relation to the other fingers and consists of three joints. Its length usually reaches the middle of the first phalanx index finger.

Drawing a human figure

Length little finger almost reaches the bend of the last phalanx of the ring finger. This is shown in the illustration above.

Directions

If you carefully observe your hands different people, another one will appear common feature, which also needs to be taken into account in your sketches. If we outline the brush from above with one line, we get small semicircle, the top of which is the middle finger.

Pay attention to the inside and outside of the palm. If we draw a conventional line at the base of the fingers, we will also see a small arc that goes from the index finger and goes down to the little finger.

In the illustration below this is indicated by red arrows. You can draw a hand starting from the mitten, which is shown in the corner brown, immediately outlining all directions.

The pads and folds on the inside of the palm also have one common direction; they seem to descend from index finger to little finger.

Fist

A little more information about directions that will help you draw a brush more quickly and correctly. Let's say you need to depict a hand clenched into a fist. Evenly bent fingers again form a certain arc, with general direction"down to the little finger".

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Notice the top part of the illustration - a small hand drawn in brown. Here is a schematic diagram of how it narrows width of fingers in each subsequent phalanx, take this into account and do not forget to show it in your works. Compare the lengths of the red, orange and green segments.

The hand clenched into a fist, on the outside, under the little finger, forms a fold; it is emphasized by a small green arc in the illustration above. By labeling it, you will be able to create a more realistic image of a hand holding something or clenched into a fist, etc.

Important Details

The picture below shows what the skeleton of a hand roughly looks like. The joints where they connect are slightly wider and thicker. We need to understand this in order to know how to draw a hand realistically. This is especially true for the hands of elderly and thin people. At the bends, the finger will be a little thicker, along the length of the phalanx - a little thinner.

Pay attention to how to draw a curved hand in profile. Look at the joint of the metacarpus and the first phalanx of the finger. In the picture above, the red line shows where the first phalanx attaches to the metacarpus joints. This is the beginning of the finger, it can be identified by the joint protruding upward - the knuckle. The green line indicates the place where there are membranes between them; they are often mistaken for the beginning of the first phalanx.

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If we look at the hand in profile, we will see that the outer side is quite flat, with only the knuckles protruding. The inner one, on the contrary, is soft; under each phalanx there is a protruding pad. There are two “pads” under the first phalanx, one under the joint is especially large and stands out well in everyone.

Drawing a hand step by step

Before drawing the hand, decide on the position of the forearm and wrist. To begin with, let's take the simplest example, use your brush as a nature, and do not redraw the picture below.


Human balance in motion

In general, drawing hands is a skill that needs to be constantly developed and improved. The hands are very plastic and can take on hundreds of different positions and angles.

Complex angles

Interesting angles in which the fingers are in different positions are more difficult to depict. There are several ways to help avoid mistakes.

One of the effective and most often used ways to depict a hand from a non-standard angle is to mark the position of each finger with a line:

Sometimes the line does not cope with the task and you have to use auxiliary shapes, cylinders or parallelepipeds to indicate the position of the phalanges:

In order to give the brush some intricate position, first try for yourself how comfortable, natural and generally possible it is. The hand, fingers and each joint are interconnected, changing the position of one element of this structure often changes their position and the rest.

The human hand seems to be the most difficult to learn to draw, as it can take many shapes and express different emotions. Animation is no exception. You will have to learn to draw hands from different angles so as to show them in dynamics and attract the viewer's attention to them. Don't underestimate the power of a well-drawn hand in animation - it will save your work from monotony!

What you need to know

In the comments to my courses, I was asked several times how I draw characters in different poses and with different expressions. The point is that with experience you will begin to develop your own drawing style. Without other people noticing, you will have your own little tricks. These tricks are the poses and expressions you'll use more often than others, as well as certain hairstyles and clothes you'll be best at drawing. This is quite common and professional artists resort to this secret all the time!


However, this is very difficult to achieve in hand drawings! Let's take the head as an example. The only moving part there is the lower jaw. We can change facial expressions, but the eyes, nose and mouth remain in place (at least in real life!) With the hand everything is different. With any new movement of the brush, everything changes radically. In fact, in a scene with dialogue, the facial expression may barely change, but the hands will move very actively and at different angles.

The goal of this activity is to turn a human hand into a cartoon hand, so let's not waste time learning the names of the bones and muscles of the hand. (On the Tuts+ platform, by the way, you will have extensive opportunities to learn this too). We, in turn, will try to find a simplified way to draw a hand in a way that is practical and effective.

1. The hand in its most simplified form


"Mom, hi! I'm on the Internet!"

The hand is made up of a variety of bones, especially in the fingers. This means that all fingers are different sizes and can bend in different ways. different directions. For this reason, it is important that you learn to draw a hand in the most simplified way possible and be able to look at it like a small puzzle with a few key pieces. Let's try to divide it into blocks:

Step 1

Let's start with back side palms. Let's draw a simple semicircle:


Step 2

Now let's draw a triangle that is attached to one of its sides. Like this:


Calm down: we are not drawing a cup of tea!

Step 3

Above the triangle we will draw something resembling the tip of a knife.


Step 4

It's time to draw the fingers. IN mirror image draw the first shape at the top. "Puzzle from the hand" is ready:


Step 5

Great! All that remains is to fill in the missing details with soft contours:


The outline of the thumb is the trickiest - it needs to be gently combined with the center of the palm.

Note that the fingers have different formats due to differences in their sizes.

2. At a glance

You need to know a few more details of the palm. Let's take a look at them:

Step 1

Again we repeat the process above, following the basic pattern:


Step 2

Something new appears - the palm now looks a little more complex, and there are characteristic differences in its shape that need to be taken into account. Fortunately, a few simplified forms are enough to show it.


Step 3

Now we can add outlines to complete the drawing with the necessary details.


Please note that we end the sketch with soft, rounded lines. Think of the palm of your hand as a delicate sculpture.

Profile view

When the hand is turned in profile, we can see the prominence of the muscle at the base of the thumb.



The more “childish” your drawing style is, the simpler and smoother your lines will be. Here are my little secrets that helped me understand that hands can be drawn based on simplified shapes. The most important thing is to strive for a style that will reflect personality and dynamics in the drawings at the final stage.

3. More shapes and a 3D hand

Now you can draw a flat hand for the rest of your life, right? If you want to draw hands with convincing depth, use the same technique above, just change the camera angle! Play with this technique until you feel confident.



To form your fingers, imagine them as cylinders stacked on top of each other. This technique will help us draw fingers from different angles, because with its help it is easier to “see” the hand in space.


Hand or robot?

The shapes into which a human hand can be formed are countless. When the palm is open, the same rules apply; when closed - others! The same thing happens when the hand holds an object, and it must adapt to its shape.

Let's learn how to draw a fist. A slightly different process, but in the end you will see that it all comes down to a simplified drawing of the main geometric shapes.


Step 1

To begin with, we simplify the bend of the little finger, draw something similar to the letter “u”.


Step 2

We kind of “wrap” the little finger around the letter “y”. Don't forget to highlight the curve that goes from the little finger to the wrist.


Step 3

We continue to draw fingers in space. This time we draw only three fingers. I'll explain why later.


Step 4

Lastly, draw the thumb and the protruding muscle at the base of the thumb.


Step 5

Fine! In a few steps we have completed a simplified drawing of a fist on one side. See how the shape of a fist can be roughly depicted using “boxes” different sizes.


Notice how you can fit the outline of a fist into three-dimensional rectangular shapes in space.

Obviously, if we try to simplify each hand position using various techniques, we will get tired quickly. Therefore, remember that the real secret to simplifying a hand drawing is observations from life.


View from the opposite side: simplified drawing.

4. The Fab Four

It is common in animation to draw characters' hands with only four fingers. This allows, in addition to enhancing the character’s dynamics, to make the artist’s life easier. This way he doesn't have to worry about too many details.


Hands with four fingers of different styles and sizes.

Note: When using this technique, you will need to adapt your knowledge of a five-fingered hand to a four-fingered one. Concepts need to be adapted to achieve a suitable and interesting result.

It is worth paying attention to your fingertips. In animation, the more rounded and movable the fingertips are, the more interesting and dynamic they are. When you create characters, think of their hands as if they were individual characters!


See how this hand has its own character?

Another good reason to draw hands with four fingers: in this case, you have the opportunity to increase the size of the fingers, which means making them more expressive! Whole line Famous cartoon characters were able to stand out thanks to this technique: The Simpsons, Bugs Bunny, The Flintstones and Mickey Mouse.

The Mystery of the Little Finger

One of the most big secrets The design of such a brush is to make maximum use of the little finger! If you place it at a different angle in relation to the other fingers, you will break up the monotony in the perception of your hand.




Highlight the position of the little finger in the frame. See how the nature of the action changes with this technique. The viewer's attention is now focused on the main subject in the frame, and the character's personality is given a special twist.

5. Talk to your hand

When we need to express emotions in an animation drawing, the role of hands is irreplaceable! Look at the images below: the hands visually support and echo the characters' facial expressions and body language.


  1. "I have an amazing idea!"
  2. "How do I look, honey?"
  3. "I can't believe...I'm being awarded an Oscar!"
  4. “I don’t understand anything... he was just here!”
  5. "Ahhh! My head is pounding!"

No matter how strange it may seem, hands have their own character! Not only do they maintain facial expressions and body language, they can express their own emotions!


Do you see the greatness in these gestures above?

However, you will often find yourself in a situation where your hands should not distract attention. In this case they should be minor character. Characters in action scenes tend to be exaggerated more than characters in quiet scenes.


Notice that in the dramatic scene there is little movement. There is no room for exaggeration here. Hands must emphasize the feelings of the characters - this is one of the most difficult processes in design.

6. Test of knowledge

I have prepared a short test to test your powers of observation. Analyze the pictures below and try to determine what feeling the best way describes each. Can you guess everything correctly?


Can you guess what the hand expresses in each of the drawings?

Raise a hand!

Now you know all the secrets of the art of drawing cartoon hands, Congratulations!



Although hands are a very fun part of the body to draw, the ability to create hand designs in different styles is not so simple, and only with the help of hard training can you achieve natural results. Even if your goal is to draw for animation, it doesn't hurt to buy a good anatomical atlas to understand how the muscles and bones in the hands work. There is no need to memorize each one in detail. It is enough to understand how the hand works in motion. Remember that a character's expressions are much more important than what's underneath the skin.

One last tip: when you need to draw hands, place your own hands in front of a mirror, or just watch your hands. One of them will remain stationary while you draw (unless you've learned to draw with both hands at the same time!)


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His hands can tell a lot about a person. It is very difficult to depict them on paper. But the problem of how to draw a hand can be solved with work and diligence.

Anatomy to help

A complex system is the human body. The hands alone consist of several dozen elements. And in order to draw them correctly, you need to know the structure of the hands. Conventionally, hands can be divided into three main parts: wrist, metacarpus and fingers.

  • The wrist is the part closest to the forearm. It is responsible for the movement of the hand, but all its elements work as a single whole.
  • Pastern - itself wide part brushes - palm.
  • The fingers are mobile due to the phalanges. Four fingers (index, middle, ring and little fingers) have 3 phalanges, but the thumb consists of only two phalanges.

Knowledge of the basics of anatomy will allow you to correctly draw the hands step by step so that they turn out to be “talking”.

It will be easier to draw if, while sketching a sketch, you decide what the subject of the image looks like - something simple, even primitive. Do you agree that the human hand is similar to a shovel not only in appearance, but also in functionality? You can start a sketch with this - draw a contour similar to a shovel: the wrist is the handle of the shovel, and the contour of the palm with fingers is its canvas. It’s difficult to immediately decide how to draw a hand with a pencil step by step, which is why it’s worth starting with a basic sketch.

The main thing is proportions

To draw any object or detail correctly and beautifully, you must maintain proportions - ratio different parts together. This rule also applies to the image of a person.

So, how to draw a hand? We start by determining the correct proportions. The ratio of the length of the metacarpus and fingers is on average 1:1. Naturally, this ratio will vary slightly among different people, because some have long fingers and others do not. But on average the proportions will be equal.

Depending on the length of the fingers, the outline of the palm will be either more elongated or square. Thin lines(even before drawing the hand) draw the outline of the hand according to the proportions. The thumb does not fit into the overall silhouette; it is always somewhat apart from the other four “brothers”.

Drawing fingers

The fingers are mobile and flexible due to their articular structure, each of three or two phalanges, if we're talking about about the thumb, attached to each other using joints and tendons. The bones of the phalanges, located one after the other, become shorter and thinner, so the fingers gradually become thinner.

Ideally, each phalanx is 2/3 the length of the previous one. These proportions are called the golden ratio - it is perceived by the eye as the most perfect.

Again, when drawing details, you need to make allowances for individual characteristics- not every person has hands harmonious proportions. It should also be remembered that the fingers are not the same in length: the most long finger- middle, index and approximately the same and shorter than the middle finger, the smallest are the little finger and thumb. Although the big one is rather the thickest. Its length corresponds to the length of the little finger.

Lines are the basis of authenticity

Before drawing a human hand, analyze again what parts the hand consists of. Remember that the contours of the palm and fingers, taking on specific shapes in the drawing, become more and more rounded. For example, the line connecting the fingers and palm is shaped like an arc, as is the outline of the hand itself - different lengths of the fingers allow you to create a semicircle when drawing fingers pressed together. The thumb is slightly turned in relation to the rest of the palm; its contour will not be straight, but somewhat rounded.

Small details matter

We have sketched out the outline of the palm, then we begin to work on the details. So, how to draw a hand authentically? This is impossible without drawing small parts- folds, thickenings, fold lines, the contour of the nail plate on each finger. These seemingly insignificant touches will make the drawing more realistic.

Let's start with the fold lines on the fingers. As already mentioned, the wrist, palm and fingers consist of many elements. They allow the fingers to perform the functionality for which they are given to a person. How to draw a hand so that it looks as natural as possible? By drawing all the nuances. In places where the bones are connected by joints, there will definitely be folds on both the inside and outside of the palm. If the hand is drawn with inside, it is also necessary to draw the so-called “life lines” - fairly deep grooves in the places where the joints of the palm work.

Each finger at the end is protected by a nail - a hard plate that must be drawn for a realistic image. The nail plate is another one essential element in solving the problem of how to draw a hand. Nails may have different shapes- from elongated almond-shaped to almost square.

Fingers indicate a person's age. Children's fingers are rounded, with uniform thinning along the entire length. How older man becomes, the more clearly the traces of time appear on the hands. For example, in older people, the thickness of the fingers will be uneven - the joints become increasingly swollen with age, which is affected by many years of work and illness. Also, joints are very visible in thin people.

How to draw a hand in different positions?

Hands not only gradually participate in the conversation, but also often serve as a “language” themselves, for example, when communicating in sign language. Palms and fingers will clearly tell what a person is thinking about this moment time, what his mood is, what he does. How to draw a hand so that it truthfully reveals all the secrets?

When depicting the human body, it is always necessary to rely on the basics of anatomy. Hands are no exception. The size of the fist, for example, is determined by the length of the fingers. And the rule of the golden ratio will be important in any position of the fingers, even clenched into a fist. When drawing an open palm, you must Special attention pay attention to drawing the lines of the metacarpus and slightly bent fingers.

How to draw a hand from the side? In this case, it will be important to draw the viewer’s attention to the fact that on the back side the palm and fingers will be drawn in almost straight lines, but on the inside, both the fingers and the palm itself have pads, which must be drawn with rounded, smooth lines.

Step-by-step drawing of human hands, with a systematic transition from a sketch to drawing small details, however, like any other object, will allow you to get a realistic drawing.

How to draw hands with a pencil?

Hands are a personal and unique part of the body. They can often tell a story about a person's life through their shape and size. Long years people study their lines and structure, trying to read the future from the lines. Today we will learn draw hands with a simple pencil by using step by step lesson. We will pay special attention to their construction and the application of shadows so that the drawing comes out as realistic as possible.

Tools and materials:

  1. White sheet of paper;
  2. Eraser;
  3. Hard simple pencil;
  4. Two soft simple pencils.

Stages of work:

Photo 1. The picture will show two hands. One lies on top of the other. Let's start with the hand that will be on top. To build we use hard pencil. Let's denote simple lines first hand shape:

Photo 2. Place the second hand on the bottom left. She will be turned sideways. We are in no hurry to draw the fingers. Let's just outline the wrist and hand:

Photo 3. On the left hand we will draw the fingers and folds on the bends. We don’t put pressure on the pencil in a stylish way; the pressure should be weak at the first stage. Otherwise, later the contours will not stand out naturally. The fingers are spaced slightly unevenly so that they peek out from behind each other. The small finger has the most folds because it is the most bent:

Photo 4. Now let's move on to the right hand. She lies on the top left. Add fingers and two parallel lines at the level of the bones, at the level of the bends. Thanks to this, it will be easier to navigate when building:

Photo 6. We continue to shade gradually adding more volume. Let's outline the outline a little and work it out right hand. The little finger and ring finger are on the curve, so we add more shadow to them than to the others:



Photo 7. Add folds and contour to the bends. Let's draw the details of the upper hand, and at the same time create volume on the lower one:

Photo 8. Let's add more shadow, but try not to over-dark it. The strokes are applied gradually. This trick helps make hands look realistic:

Photo 9. Let's add more contrast. We continue adding shadow:

Photo 10. Let's refine the outline again, it will highlight the foreground. We leave the remaining places untouched.