How to Draw Anime Eyes for Beginners
Today’s lesson is going to be a step by step how to draw anime eyes for beginners. We’ll cover both male and female eyes. As well as showing you how to add color using markers.
You’ll learn some different styles for your anime eyes, and how to draw them with some variation. Like with anything, there are many different ways to draw anime eyes. Have fun, practice, and work on developing your own style.
Learning to draw takes practice and repetition. But the good news is that anyone can learn to draw.
What’s the Difference Between Anime and Manga?
The difference between manga and anime is that manga is seen in comics and graphic novels. And anime is seen on movies and shows. The characteristics of the two are basically the same. How they are presented is the only real difference.
The two are used interchangeably by the general public. Referring to these types of drawings as anime seems to be the most popular though.
Characteristics of Anime Eyes
Generally speaking, anime eyes are typically big and friendly. Female eyes especially, are larger and look more innocent and friendly than male eyes.
Manga and anime eyes also have an exaggerated amount of highlights. Often there are four or five highlights added to the eye. And sometimes more than that.
Male anime eyes are more narrow, but are still friendly. They can still be exaggerated and larger than standard eyes. But they should be drawn smaller than your female anime eyes.
Anime eyes that do not look friendly will be perceived as a villain or a character that is evil.
Take a look at this Manga Iconography to learn more about this Japanese art form.
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Art Supplies
Get Your FREE Beginner’s Guide to Using Markers
There are many options when it comes to what supplies to use. You should use whatever you feel comfortable with, or that you have available to you to use.
The above list are the supplies I prefer to use when creating drawings and works of art.
How to Draw Anime Eyes (Step by Step)
When drawing manga eyes, or anime eyes, you want to keep in mind what an actual eye looks like. When drawing things that come from a fantasy world, you want to develop them from reality.
The process to drawing an anime eye is very similar to how you draw a realistic eye.
Begin by drawing the shape of the eyeball. Circles are great starting points for drawing eyes. You can change the shape with the eyelids, but starting with a circle as your guide will make things easier.
Next, add the upper eyelid by drawing a curved line.
Now draw the lower eyelid. If you want your character to look friendly, keep your lines curved and avoid sharp edges and points.
The upper eyelid determines a lot of the personality of your manga character. There are many different ways to draw your eyes. Since they only take a few minutes to draw, don’t be afraid to try out different things.
Small changes can completely change how your character looks. The more you practice, the better you will get.
Draw a line that angles up from the end of your curved line that you drew for the upper eyelid.
Next, draw another curved line to add some thickness. Draw your line so the shape gets thinner at the ends, and wider in the middle.
Now, do the same thing for the lower eyelid. Make sure your lines get more narrow at the ends, and thicker in the middle.
Draw another circle for the pupil of your eye.
Add in a couple of circles for highlights in your anime eye.
Anime Eye Outline
Begin inking your anime eye drawing using your favorite black pen or marker. I like using Pitt Artist Pens, but any black marker or pen will work. Just use whatever you have available and are comfortable using.
Trace over all of your pencil lines, except for the highlights.
Using the same black marker, fill in the pupil. Also fill in the upper and lower eyelids. Allow your ink to dry for a few minutes, then use a Pink Pearl eraser to get rid of your pencil lines and clean your drawing up.
Don’t erase your highlights at this time.
Anime Eye Color
Markers work best for coloring anime and manga eyes. Which markers you use is up to you. I’ve been using Bic Intensity markers for a lot of my work lately. They are cheaper than a lot of the markers out there, but work really well. They last for several drawings before running out of ink.
And there is a good selection of colors available in the set. When using markers for anime eyes, or any other type of drawing, you want to use two or three different values for each color. You’ll want to make sure whatever markers you’re using, they have a variety of colors available.
Begin by filling in the iris of your eye using your lightest value of whatever color you want to use. This eye will be blue, so the lightest blue is used first (Oceanview Blue).
Highlights
When adding your color, fill in around the highlights that you drew earlier. Just leave those areas white.
Next, add in the mid tone for your color. Blue Skies Blue is what I’m using today. Fill in the upper part of the eye with the mid tone color. Then use the lighter value to blend the two markers together.
We have a full tutorial on blending markers if you need help with this technique.
Using the darkest value of your color, add some color to the top of your eye drawing. Again, use your other values of markers to blend the colors together.
You want to make sure you get a smooth transition of color.
You can use a white Gelly Roll pen to clean up your highlights, if needed. As an option for adding highlights, you could also use Posca paint pens. These work really well for going over markers or colored pencils.
How to Draw Anime Eyes Female
There are so many ways to vary how you do your female manga or anime eyes. The shape of the eyeball in this drawing is an oval, instead of a circle.
The upper eyelid was drawn with more eyelashes. And there was an additional line added above that for the eyelid fold.
Also, the lower eyelid was drawn slightly away from the eyeball. The eye itself was drawn using four highlights, and green was used for the color. Again, three shades of green were used.
Notice how on this drawing, the highlights were outlined using a thin black marker. And the darker greens were added around the highlights.
There are many other variations as well. And as you practice drawing you anime eyes, you’ll start to develop your own style.
How to Draw Anime Eyes Male for Beginners
Male manga and anime eyes look quite a bit different from female eyes. They are narrower, and lack the extra eyelashes. However, the process is very much the same.
Begin with a circle for the eyeball. Then add in the upper and lower eyelids. For the male anime eyes, draw the eyelids so they overlap your eyeball. This will make them more narrow.
Finish drawing your male anime eye using the same steps that you used for the female eye. Then use your black pen or marker to ink your drawing.
Add an eyebrow as well. And color your eye drawing the same way as described in the female eye drawing process.
Just like with the female anime eyes, the male eyes can be drawn in many different ways as well. Experiment with different ways to draw the male eyes, and see what style you like most.
Experiment with using different colors for your eyes as well. Don’t feel like they always have to be blue or green. They can be purple, pink, brown, or any other color you want to use.
How to Draw Anime Eyes Better
The only way to get better at anything is with practice. And a lot of it. It doesn’t matter if it’s drawing, cooking, playing sports, or a musical instrument. You’ll never get better at anything, unless you practice whatever it is you want to get good at.
So, if you want to get really good at drawing anime eyes, draw as many of them as possible. Fill pages of your sketchbook, like discussed in the 100 drawing challenge.
Draw as many anime or manga eyes that you can. Try drawing them with different types of pens and pencils. Use a brush pen or dip pen for your line work. Try capturing different types of emotion.
Just draw anime eyes. If you want to get better at drawing anime eyes. Just draw them.
How to Draw Anime Eyes for Beginners
Learning how to draw anime eyes is a pretty simple process. Start doing some drawings, and practice drawing as often as you can. It really only takes a few minutes a day to start seeing improvements.
Have fun and don’t be afraid to experiment and try new things. Use artist trading cards to save time, even you don’t want to participate in trades. And don’t forget to grab your FREE guide to using markers.
I suggest this for beginners cause it is very easy to draw but very very detailed i love it so much
I’m so glad you liked it.
I loved it its very useful I do make tons of anime drawings
I like this it was simple but detailed
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!