The eyes are
the big deal. If you ask anyone about the style of anime/manga
they always comment on the eyes. I put this tutorial together
as a primer. There are literally thousands of styles of "Manga
Eyes" so there is no set rules for drawing them..just a few
consistant traits. Below is an approach to a broadly used generic
style. Adapt it to suit your own needs.
(eye side view tutorial to follow)
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Step 1:
Ball
As with most
things..the eye also starts as a circle. This represents the orb
of the eye and helps with the general placement of the eye in
the skull.
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Step 2:
Lids
Here's where
most budding artist go wrong. The Lids wrap around the contour
of the orb. Imagine streching a sheet of rubber over a cue ball.
The Eyelid hugs the curvature of the eye.
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Step 3:
the Pupil
The eye in
a relaxed state hides some of the pupil and iris behind the lids.
Notice how the iris takes up most of the surface area of the orb.
This occurs only in Anime/Manga and a few black velvet posters
from the 60's.
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Step 4:
Long, Lush Lashes
Up until now the eye was kinda "Blah". Flesh out the
eyelids with some heavy duty, fluttering lashes. This adds weight
to the eye so it's not ust floating around on the face. It also
draws the viewers attention. The thickness of the lashes will
depend on a character. Obviously Male characters won't have this
trait and younger females should also have a thinner line. This
eye is more for the sexy adult female
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Stroke
Order:
I didn't really have this part down until I started studying "Kanji".
Japanese Kanji is produced by a series of strokes in a specific
order and pattern. I find this order also works well for eyes.
1) start light and press harder as you move to the outside.
2) Start harder and lighten pressure as you move down
3) Start medium and lighten pressure as you move down
4) Start light and increase pressure as you move to the outside.
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Step 5:
Spectacuar Speculars
A "Specular" is the reflection of light on a reflective
surface. In this case, the eye. The placement of the specular
on the eye should be indicative of the light source..If the light
is coming from the upper left..the specular should be on the upper
left of the iris. in this case, The light enters the eye from
the upper left and exits through the lower right.
In Manga, Speculars are also used to add emotion to the character.
It adds sparkling life to happy eyes and quivering tears to sad
eyes..
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