Draw a portrait of a young child using three shading techniques to create the textures of the hat, hair, skin, and clothing
Supplies: drawing paper approximately 9 by 12 in (23 by 30 cm), 2H, HB, 2B, 4B, and 6B pencils, sharpener, sandpaper block, kneaded and vinyl erasers, small soft paintbrush for blending (optional)
Little Miss Sunshine
Level: Intermediate to AdvancedFlesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 6.86Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease score: 69.31Drawspace Curriculum 6.3.A13 – 12 Pages and 34 Illustrations
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This project has seven sections:• Plan the Portrait Pose• Establish Proportions and Values• Create Basic Textures with Shading• Complete the Sunhat and an Ear• Draw Hair and another Ear• Shade Facial Forms and Features• Fade Away with Final Details
Plan the Portrait Pose This photo was taken of Claire by her Mom and is used with her permission (Figure 1).
Modifications to a photo should always take place before you put pencil to paper.
In this case, Claire’s facial expression is enhanced by simply tilting the photo a little toward the left (Figure 2).
Figure 2
Figure 1
2 6.3.A13: Little Miss Sunshine
Figure 3 A viewfinder frame is placed on the photo and moved around to experiment with potential compositional options.
A portrait format is chosen rather than a landscape (Figure 3).
The angle of the neck and shoulders should be rendered from the original (not tilted) photo.
With a little Photoshop magic, the pose looks more natural (the lower photo in Figure 4).
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Figure 4
The contrast of the photo is adjusted to better see the details, especially the textures of the hat.
Finally, the file is changed to grayscale to better see the values (Figure 5).
Establish Proportions and Values 1. Use a 2H or HB pencil to lightly sketch Claire’s hat,
face, shoulder, and sundress (Figure 6).
This sketch was darkened in Photoshop so you can clearly see the sketch lines.
As an Aside
Three shading techniques are used to create this portrait:• Squirkling: the hat,
face, and neck.• Hatching: the hair
and eyebrows.• Crosshatching: the
dress.
As an Aside
The paper used for this drawing is more of a cream color than white. Hence, the scans are color rather than grayscale.
As an Aside
Your first goal is to sketch the proportions of the child. You then have two options:• neatly outline each
section just before you add shading.
• refine your entire sketch with detailed outlines before you add any shading (peek ahead to Figure 7).
36.3.A13: Little Miss Sunshine
Figure 6
2. Outline of the various parts of the eye on the right (Figure 8).
3. Use squirkles and all five grades of pencils to add shading to this eye (Figures 9 and 10).
At this stage, the goal is simply to establish a full range of values:• Light values are rendered with a
2H pencil.• Middle values, such as those used
for the iris, eyelashes, and upper eyelid crease, are created with HB and 2B pencils.
• The dark pupil is shaded with a 6B pencil.
4. Use curved hatching lines of various thicknesses and lengths to draw her eyelashes and eyebrows (Figures 10 and 11).
Note that her eyelashes appear thicker closer to the eyelids.
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Figure 8
Figure 9
Figure 10
Tip!
When drawing young children, use mostly light and middle values for their faces and features. Only the eyes need dark values for the pupils and the shadows on the upper sections of the irises.
5. Use light values to identify the locations of the facial forms around the eye (Figure 11).
Create Basic Textures with Shading6. Add light and middle values to
the upper section of the hat with 2H and HB pencils.
The hat’s bumpy texture is easily created with loosely rendered
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4 6.3.A13: Little Miss Sunshine
Figure 13squirkle graduations. Begin with the top section and work your way downward (Figure 12).
7. Outline the three embroidered flowers on the hat (Figure 13).
8. Continue shading downward on the left until you reach the brim of the hat.
9. Add numerous c-shapes throughout the fabric to enhance the texture (Figures 13 and 14).
The c-shapes are lighter in value wherever the base shading is light. Conversely, the c-shapes are more plentiful and darker in the shadow sections.
10. Shade Claire’s second eye in much the same way as the other (Figure 15).
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56.3.A13: Little Miss Sunshine
Figure 15Figure 14
11. Outline a few strands of hair (Figure 16).
12. Add a dark shadow on the left side of forehead under the brim of her hat.
13. Use finely-rendered squirkles to define the facial forms around the eye.
14. Use short curved hatching lines to enhance the texture of her eyebrows.
15. Add shading to the shadow side of her face and nose with HB and 2B pencils (Figure 16).
Take note of the thin section of light shading (reflected light) along the edge of her face.
To keep the shading soft in the shadow sections, use mostly light and middle values.
Dark values are added very sparingly.
Figure 16
16. Use crosshatching to shade the visible section of her sundress (Figure 17).
Squirkling, hatching, and crosshatching are now represented in the shading. Going forward, the focus is to complete one section of the drawing at a time.
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6 6.3.A13: Little Miss Sunshine
Figure 17
Figure 18
Figure 19
Figure 20
17. Use squirkling to add light values to the section of the hat surrounding the embroidered flowers (Figure 18).
18. Draw directional guidelines on the embroidery to create a shading map.
19. Use an HB pencil and hatching to help bring out the texture and forms of the flowers and leaves (Figure 19).
Hatching lines are perfect for capturing the texture of an embroidered satin stitch.
20. Use a combination of squirkles and c-shapes to complete the shading of the upper right section of the hat (Figure 20).
The hatching of the embroidered flowers provides a distinctive contrast in textures.
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76.3.A13: Little Miss Sunshine
21. Refer to Figures 21 to 29 to add shading to the ear on the left and the brim of the hat.
The shading of the hat is completed with 2H, HB, 2B, and 4B pencils.
The darkest shadows on the hat are under the brim on the left (Figures 21 and 22).
Figure 21
Figure 22
Figure 23
This shading needs to illustrate the soft folds and bends of the fabric.
At first glance, the stitching appears rather large for the hat.
However, keep in mind that the hat is on the tiny head of a baby.
The brim of the hat on the left is made up of mostly middle and dark values (Figure 23).
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8 6.3.A13: Little Miss Sunshine
A shading map is sketched for the complex section on the right that has her ear and fine strands of hair overlapping the hat (Figure 24).
Dark values are used for sections of hair and hat in shadow under the brim on the right (Figure 25).
Figure 24
Figure 25
Figure 26
Figure 27
The center section of the brim is rendered with mostly light values (Figure 26).
A full range of values creates the illusion of a three-dimensional hat (Figure 27)
Draw Hair and another Ear 22. Add shading to the
ear on the right and the hair below the brim of the hat (Figures 28 and 29).
The strands of hair on her forehead are light in value.
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96.3.A13: Little Miss Sunshine
The ear on the right is shaded softly with 2H and HB pencils, so as to not take attention away from the eyes.
Curved lines complete the hair and squirkling brings out the forms of the ear (Figure 28).
Shadows on the center sections of her forehead are not as wide or dark as the shadows on the sides (Figures 29).
Figure 28
Figure 29
Shade Facial Forms and Features 23. Use 2H, HB, and 2B pencils to add mostly light and middle values to the
face, nose, lips, and mouth (Figures 30 and 31).
The outlines around the lips and teeth are lightened before adding shading (Figure 30).
A rim of light values around her mouth, especially on the right, accentuates the forms of the mouth and lips.
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10 6.3.A13: Little Miss Sunshine
Figure 30
Figure 31
The two front teeth are very light in value.
Shading accentuates the three-dimensional forms of the lower sections of the face (Figure 31).
Fade Away with Final Details24. Complete the shading of her neck, upper body, and dress (Figure 32).
2H and HB pencils are used to graduate light values downward and outward from the neck. Very little shading is added to her dress and upper body. Gradations of light values gently fade away into the cream-colored paper.
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116.3.A13: Little Miss Sunshine
25. Check over your drawing and make adjustments to sections that don’t look quite right.
Examine Figures 33 (below) and 34 (on the next page), and compare your drawing to these illustrations.
Pay special attention to the following:
• Light values create a foundation for shading the forms of her upper body.
• Darker values create the cast shadows under her chin.
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12 6.3.A13: Little Miss Sunshine
• The lower edge of the cheek on the left is slightly smaller.
• The left side of the mouth has been lightened.
• A kneaded eraser was used to soften the shading on the outer corners of the eyes.
Figure 34
Challenge!
Render a head and shoulders portrait from life or a photograph, using the technique of fading out the lower sections. One of the most common problems with portraits is created when the lower section of the portrait comes to an abrupt stop, rather than fading into the nothingness of the paper. This abrupt stop often creates a visual line that takes attention away from more important aspects of the drawing.
