Do you want to simplify the face of a certain character, but still capture the likeness? I’ve put together a list of tips for you :)
5. MODELLING THE FACE…
- Start with getting the proper skin colour. If you are having trouble getting the correct colour check out my Colour Mixing Tutorial. It should help ;)
- Make the proper shape of the face. Since you want to simplify the face, you can simplify the shape of the head as well. Check the shape with the reference photos you’ve printed out. I usually make the face using the same techniques as f.ex. in these tutorials: Basic Body & Face Tutorial or Cute Girls Tutorial (this one has a bit more detailed mouth/lips). You can make small adjustments like f.ex. change the shape of chin (pointy, round, square).
- I usually start with positioning the eyes, but sometimes (if the distance from the chin and the smile seems to be a key feature) I start with with positioning the smile (f.ex. Maui from ‘Moana’ movie)
- Since I like cute faces I usually make the eyes a bit bigger and lower than they really are ;) I also make the nose a bit higher and a bit smaller than it actually is. So you don’t have to stick to the distances and proportions mentioned in the beginning. Just remember to capture the likeness of the character (f.ex. if the character has a huge nose, don’t make it tiny; you can make it smaller, but not tiny).
- A simple smile (mouth not opened) is the quickest and easiest to make. So if that kind of mouth suits the character I usually stick with that kind of smile.
- Notice that most characters usually have the irises and pupils partly covered by the bottom eyelid (or by the top eyelid if the character is gazing upwards). If you position them in the centre of the eye, the character will look surprised or scared. So keep that in mind when making the eyes.
- The positioning of the eyebrows is quite important as it goes for the face expression. Click here for examples.
- When making the hair make sure you keep the proper height of the forehead and the shape of the hairline. Once again – you don’t need to make any precise measurements… it’s more about not making a shallow forehead when the character has a deep one and not making a pointy hairline if it’s supposed to be straight ;)