This tutorial shows how to depict a female anime or manga mode elf character with several variations of the ears, face and colors.

Anime elf girl drawing step by step
Anime elf girl drawing step past step

The primary affair that sets anime/manga elves apart from man characters are of class the ears. The pointy ears may besides be drawn on other fantasy or sci-fi blazon graphic symbol types.

This tutorial provides the following:

  • A step past step breakdown of drawing an anime elf's confront
  • Four unlike ways of drawing elf ears
  • Two variations of drawing the face
  • 2 different color combinations (for regular or dark elf character)

If you lot are going to be drawing using pencil and paper be sure to start with light lines that you lot can easily erase. You volition need to exercise so in between some of the steps. You tin trace over your line with a darker stroke after you finish placing the various parts of the caput/confront.

Pace one – Draw the Center Guide Line & Top of the Head

Anime elf girl head top drawing
Anime elf girl head top drawing

Begin past making a vertical line through the center of your drawing area. This line can help you see if both halves of the head are equal in width.

Side by side draw a circle that volition represent the top role of the caput.

Step 2 – Draw the Lesser of the Caput

Anime elf girl head bottom drawing
Anime elf girl head bottom drawing

Going downwardly from the circle draw the bottom part of the head. As shown in the above example the bottom portion should start with a pair of lines that so curve into another pair that finally joins with a small curve to grade the chin.

Step 3 – Depict the Neck & Shoulders

Anime elf girl neck and shoulders drawing
Anime elf girl neck and shoulders drawing

From the bottom portion of the face depict the lines for the neck going down into the shoulders. Adding a bit of the shoulders volition make the cartoon wait more similar an actual portrait instead of only a "floating" caput.

For more on drawing necks and shoulders run into:

How to Draw Anime Neck & Shoulders

Pace four – Position & Draw the Eyes

Vertical Heart Positioning

Anime elf girl inner angled eyes drawing
Anime elf girl inner angled optics drawing

To place the eyes commencement divide the face in half with a straight horizontal line. This line can too help you lot make certain that both eyes are on the aforementioned level.

In this case the eyes will exist adequately narrow so depict them slightly beneath the line.

For this first case depict the optics with their inner ends angled slightly down (towards the nose).

For now leave out the smaller details such as the eyelashes, pupils and reflections. These will be added in a subsequently step.

Horizontal Heart Spacing

Anime elf girl eye spacing
Anime elf daughter centre spacing

Space the optics about far enough apart that you can fit some other eye between them.

Different Center Types

Anime elf girl outer angled eyes drawing
Anime elf girl outer angled optics drawing

Depending on the type of character you desire to have you tin draw some other variation of the eyes as shown above. This item one can exist for a more "mild" personality.

For this set of eyes depict them with their outer ends (towards the sides of the face) angled downward.

For drawing unlike middle expressions encounter:

How to Depict Anime Eyes and Centre Expressions

Step v – Position & Draw the Eyebrows

Anime elf girl lowered eyebrows drawing
Anime elf girl lowered eyebrows drawing

A slight altitude higher up the eyes draw the eyebrows. For this fix of eyes draw the eyebrows angled downwardly towards the nose (aforementioned every bit the eyes).

For drawing different types of eyebrows as well see:

How to Draw Anime & Manga Eyebrows

Different Eyebrow Types

Anime elf girl raised eyebrows drawing
Anime elf girl raised eyebrows drawing

If you chose the second way of optics in the previous step you tin draw the eyebrows slightly raised and angled the other style.

Footstep 6 – Position & Describe the Olfactory organ

Anime elf girl nose drawing
Anime elf girl nose drawing

Draw the nose as pretty much simply a dot or tiny vertical dash. For this particular face up position the nose slightly above the halfway point between the line used for placing the optics and the bottom of the chin.

For more ways to draw noses come across:

How to Depict Anime and Manga Noses

Footstep vii – Position & Draw the Mouth

Anime elf girl mouth drawing
Anime elf girl oral cavity drawing

The lesser lip of the mouth (non actually drawn) will exist roughly halfway between the lesser of the nose and the bottom of the chin. You tin can draw the actual mouth just a tiny bit above that betoken.

In this case the grapheme will accept a fleck of a smiling so yous can depict the mouth slightly loner and more curved than in it's natural state.

For more than on mouth expressions see:

  • How to Draw Anime Mouths Tutorial
  • How to Describe Anime and Manga Oral cavity Expressions
  • 12 Anime Facial Expressions Chart & Drawing Tutorial

Step 8 – Position & Draw the Elf Ears

Anime elf ears drawing different types
Anime elf ears drawing different types

The fashion elf ears are drawn can sometimes just be a style decision but other times they tin besides help emphasize a character's personality. For case more upwards pointing ears can mean a more "upbeat" personality. Downward pointed ears on the other hand tin be attributed to characters with a more a more mild or shy personality.

One explanation for this can exist that animals tend to raise their ears when alert/on guard and lower them when scared. This is something that pretty much everyone knows and is used to. Therefore drawing pointy anime/manga ears in a item means tin help send a visual message most the character they are attributed to.

You can apply the first two pairs in the instance for the regular/upbeat face and the last set for the mild/shy one.

For drawing normal ears run across:

How to Depict Anime and Manga Ears

Cartoon Raised Ears

Anime raised elf ears drawing
Anime raised elf ears drawing

While quite oft the base of operations of the the ears is hidden backside pilus its a good idea to know how to identify them on the head for times when you do want to show them fully and to assistance avert mistakes.

For this first set of ears y'all tin can draw them with their tips raised fairly high upwardly (past the eyebrows).

Generally you tin can either place the base of the ears with the bottom at the same level as the lesser of the nose or slightly below information technology. The peak can exist around the top of the eyes.

Since this is both a stylized and a fantasy character the ear placement is not that of import but if you are way off then your drawing can cease up looking weird.

For some common drawing mistakes and tips on fugitive them see:

Common Mistakes When Drawing Anime & Manga

Drawing Medium Raised Ears

Anime medium raised elf ears drawing
Anime medium raised elf ears drawing

As an alternative to the previous example yous can draw the ears with their ends slightly lower downwards.

Position the base of these ears the same way equally the previous instance. You can do this for the next 2 sets as well.

Drawing Medium Lowered Ears

Anime medium lowered elf ears drawing
Anime medium lowered elf ears drawing

You tin describe the ears with their ends even lower down and combine them with the second set up of optics from step four for the "mild personality" await.

Drawing Lowered Ears

Anime lowered elf ears drawing
Anime lowered elf ears drawing

Finally you can describe the "reversed" ears where they curve in the opposite direction and hang fairly far downwardly.

Stride 9 – Describe the Hair

When drawing hair you lot can think of it as existence split into the front, sides and back sections equally shown below.

For a more detailed explanation of this as well every bit examples of other hairstyles run across:

How to Depict Anime and Manga Hair – Female

Draw the Forepart Section of the Hair

Anime elf girl front hair drawing
Anime elf girl front hair drawing

For this particular hairstyle start with the front section as shown higher up. There volition exist a flake of a dodder in the middle with the rest of the hair swept to each side.

Depict the Side Sections of the Hair

Anime elf girl sides hair drawing
Anime elf girl sides hair drawing

Onto the "front hair" add together the sides. By and large hair of this length will tend to "hug" the head/face up so draw each side with a calorie-free curve.

Describe the Back Department of the Hair

Anime elf girl back hair drawing
Anime elf daughter dorsum pilus drawing

Finally add the back/pinnacle section section equally shown in a higher place.

Step 10 – Add the Minor Details of the Facial Features

Anime elf girl raised ears drawing
Anime elf girl raised ears drawing

To end the line drawing add all of the smaller details.

These include the following:

  • Hints of the eyelids (between the eyebrows and eyes)
  • Eyelashes
  • Inner details of the eyes
  • Inner Details of the Ears
  • Hair folds
  • Hints of neck muscles/collar bones

Eye Details Drawing

Anime elf eyes drawing step by step
Anime elf eyes cartoon stride by step

You can see a shut up step past step breakdown of drawing the eyes above.

If you want to stop at a line cartoon it'due south recommended that you still add bit of shading to the eyes (equally shown in the instance). If you are going to motility onto the coloring function and then you can add color instead of the grayness.

For a detailed explanation of cartoon anime eyes run across:

How to Draw Female Anime Optics Tutorial

For more than variations of eyelashes see:

How to Depict Anime Eyelashes Step by Footstep

In one case washed adding the pocket-size details (if y'all were drawing in pencil and fabricated light lines as was suggested at the start of the tutorial) you can now trace over your drawing with a darker stroke. Alternatively you lot can also use a blackness pen or marker, merely be conscientious not to brand a mistake.

Alternative Face Details

Anime elf girl lowered ears drawing
Anime elf girl lowered ears drawing

Above you can also see what the alternative version of this grapheme with the slightly dissimilar prepare of ears/facial features tin can look like.

Step eleven – Apply Colour

Anime elf girl coloring
Anime elf girl coloring

This item character volition use merely two main colors. I for the skin and the other for the pilus, eyebrows and eyes.

Greenish is a fairly mutual anime hair colour. It can also exist a practiced pick for an elf every bit they are ofttimes associated with forests and nature.

Delight note that if y'all are coloring on paper you may want to leave the pilus highlights white (run across terminal step of tutorial) and colour around them. If you are coloring digitally you tin can add them in over top of the hair color. You lot can also add them with a white correction pen or white paints.

Dark Elf Colour Variation

Anime dark elf girl coloring
Anime dark elf girl coloring

Alternatively yous can also brand the character a night elf by changing up the colors similar to the example above.

Step 12 – Finish the Elf Character Drawing

Anime elves drawing
Anime elves drawing

To cease the elf drawing add some basic shading. In this particular instance the graphic symbol volition have very generalized shadows that tend to occur in well-nigh common lighting conditions.

Add together the shadows equally follows:

  • On the head/face cast past the hair
  • Around the eyelids (really small)
  • At the top of the eyes (from the eyelashes)
  • Inner parts of the ears
  • To one side of the nose
  • Below the bottom lip (lip itself not actually drawn)
  • On the cervix from the head/hair

For examples of shading a face in different types of lighting see:

How to Shade an Anime Confront in Different Lighting

You can add the shadow in exactly the same places for the dark elf.

Later yous finish the shadows you can also add some highlights to the hair. In this example they volition be washed as a series of lines/zigzags only you can also do other simpler types of highlights.

There is no need to add highlights for the nighttime elf as the hair is pure white and they wont be visible.

For examples of other types of hair highlights see:

Different Ways to Describe Anime Pilus Highlights

Normal Elf Graphic symbol

Anime elf girl drawing
Anime elf daughter drawing

You lot can see a big finished cartoon of the first version of the elf girl above.

Alternative Elf Character

Anime elf girl ears down drawing
Anime elf girl ears downwards drawing

An alternative version for the "balmy personality" wait.

Night Elf Character

Anime dark elf girl drawing
Anime dark elf girl cartoon

The night elf version is pretty much the aforementioned only with a different colour template.

Shy Dark Elf Character

Anime dark elf girl ears down drawing
Anime night elf daughter ears down drawing

And finally for the last example the dark elf version of the "mild personality".

For more than on picking colors for an anime character besides meet:

Beginner Guide to Picking Colors When Drawing Anime & Manga

Conclusion

Cartoon an anime/manga style elf character is pretty much the aforementioned as drawing a human. Nonetheless with an elf you can employ the ears to requite them a bit of added personality as shown with the four dissimilar ear types.

For more on cartoon fantasy characters see:

  • How to Depict an Anime Vampire Girl Step by Step
  • How to Draw Anime Wolf Girl Step past Step
  • How to Describe an Anime Fox Girl Step by Step
  • How to Draw an Anime Panda Girl Pace by Step
  • How to Draw an Anime Cat Step past Stride

For more on showing personality and drawing different types of characters meet:

  • How to Draw Anime Characters Tutorial
  • How to Draw a Beautiful Anime Girl Step past Step