Japanese pro Advice to students – Tips for drawing attractive poses

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Hello everyone,

Many people have the same problems when they draw. Let’s learn about drawing techniques again, this time by referring to advice given by a professional Japanese teacher in response to a question from a real student. Let’s use it as a reference when you draw illustrations and manga!

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Tips for drawing attractive poses

Student
Could you please give me some feedback on how to make this pose more appealing? Thank you!

Student’s drawing

Teacher
Love this pose – it’s really dynamic even in the gesture phase!
The arm being totally straight and stretched out makes sense for the pose, since it’s a tense action pose, but as you build on the rough, be sure to focus on making the arm and shoulder look natural. Tense but not stiff!
Keep this in mind and keep working hard! I think this will be a really nice action piece!

Student
Hello, this is a sketch of the character.
The drawing is still in progress, still not sure what kind of socks to draw for her. Please let me know if there’s any issue with the drawing before i finish it. Thanks!

Student’s drawing

Teacher
You’re making such great progress – amazing work again today! Your portrayal of her dynamic pose is well expressed through elements like the movement of her hair!

When drawing a pose with feet on the ground, it’s important to be mindful of the center of gravity. In this pose, it would look more natural if you show the weight being supported by the landing foot and the arm that’s ejecting the weapon. Therefore, you can create a sense of movement by bending the leg that isn’t bearing weight, as shown in the attached image. Also, by considering the pelvis during the rough sketch stage, you can place the base of the legs in a more natural position.

For her summer uniform, she wears what’s called “three-fold socks,” a style that serves as a symbol of a refined young lady in Japan. As the name suggests, it’s a way of wearing long socks folded over three times. Because Japan has a temperate climate and summers are hot, the skirts of summer uniforms are made of slightly lighter fabric compared to winter uniforms. If you draw her hair true to the original, it would be about shoulder-length. (Feel free to adjust it to your liking.)

Keep up the good work!

Teacher’s Advice

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