<p>Creating detailed outlines of features and then fleshing them out can often lead you to draw yourself into a corner - you'll put a lot of detail into a particular spot and find that it's off (I've done this countless of times, it never gets any less frustrating).</p>

<p>You asked if you should try to plot shadows and shapes and this is a great way to work -- instead of trying to find the outline of a face for portraits, which can be difficult with severe or unusual lighting, it can be far more helpful to hatch out shadows, thus more easily capturing the overall shape of whatever face you happen to be drawing. </p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-12-29T13:10:47.617Z
I was going to say something similar. I draw blobby outlines of the shadows on their face and flesh out the placement of their features. This helps get both right which leads to more likeness in your drawing. I also do this with super fine lines so that when I start layering detail, it's easy to cover or move or blend out my old lines.
EmRoBeau
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-06-03T14:32:27.340Z
2016-06-03T14:32:27.340Z
jackwise
<p>The answers already here are great, but I want to call out one specific point that I haven't seen addressed yet.</p>

<p>We tend to think of faces as being 'made up' of the collection of features, and so when most people start drawing faces, they focus on putting the features onto the face first, in the correct places, and only relatively late in the drawing do they start shading the cheeks, jawbone etc.</p>

<p>If you look at the work of artists who are more advanced, you will find that they most likely don't outline the features at all - instead they focus on the shapes and shadows, which makes it more realistic.</p>

<p>The human brain has an amazing ability to detect faces and will see them even in random patterns, so don't worry about making your drawing look face-like.  It's finding the patterns of light and shade that are unique to <em>this specific face</em> that will help you create a true likeness of a particular person.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-12-29T15:41:26.610Z
2016-12-29T15:41:26.610Z
Tara Hanratty
<p>I would advise against starting with the features or even the shadows first. I have found from experience that it is the "general shape" of the head that houses all of the other features in some kind of semblance. For instance, if the shape of the head is slightly widened, it will affect the length and shape of the nose in relation to other features. Which, in turn will detract from a sense of "likeness". Drawing from life or personally knowing them also helps.</p>

<p>If you're drawing in pencil, I would suggest fleshing out the beginning stages with a harder led (3H, 4H). Also, you could try this technique of gesturing the general shape(s) with your non-dominant hand. </p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-22T03:49:22.350Z
2017-09-22T18:24:14.550Z
2017-09-22T18:24:14.550Z
Kingstinky
<p>Blocking in features will only take you so far.  Use the Reilly Head Abstraction (also called the Reilly Method) to capture the rhythms and features of the face.  This will give your faces dimensionality and the features will blend with each other harmoniously.</p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/LHRc8.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/LHRc8.jpg" alt="Reilly Head Abstraction."></a></p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/GQW3J.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/GQW3J.jpg" alt="enter image description here"></a></p>

<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQ5ZaK1XExE" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQ5ZaK1XExE" alt="A good video demonstrating the Reilly Method."></a></p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-03T03:24:41.467Z
2017-09-03T03:35:33.503Z
2017-09-03T03:35:33.503Z
empty
<p>I enjoy drawing head portraits in pencil, but I've found that sketching an outline of the prominent features often lead me astray. For example, due to shadows my eye is sometimes approximating the feature boundaries. This then impacts shading, and may lead to an amateurish feel and mean having to rework large portions of the piece.</p>

<p>Most of the best portraits I've seen are not necessarily precise but instantly identifiable as the person and also capture their 'look'.</p>

<p>Is there a better way to start the portrait than trying to capture the outline of the features? Should I be trying to plot the shadows/shapes or start in detail in one area and work out?</p>

<drawing><pencil-shading><portrait-drawing>
How to start a pencil portrait without using an outline of features?
BeaglesEnd
# How to start a pencil portrait without using an outline of features?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-06-03)

I enjoy drawing head portraits in pencil, but I've found that sketching an outline of the prominent features often lead me astray. For example, due to shadows my eye is sometimes approximating the feature boundaries. This then impacts shading, and may lead to an amateurish feel and mean having to rework large portions of the piece.

Most of the best portraits I've seen are not necessarily precise but instantly identifiable as the person and also capture their 'look'.

Is there a better way to start the portrait than trying to capture the outline of the features? Should I be trying to plot the shadows/shapes or start in detail in one area and work out?

**Tags:** drawing, pencil-shading, portrait-drawing


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## 4 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2016-06-03. Score: 4

Creating detailed outlines of features and then fleshing them out can often lead you to draw yourself into a corner - you'll put a lot of detail into a particular spot and find that it's off (I've done this countless of times, it never gets any less frustrating).

You asked if you should try to plot shadows and shapes and this is a great way to work -- instead of trying to find the outline of a face for portraits, which can be difficult with severe or unusual lighting, it can be far more helpful to hatch out shadows, thus more easily capturing the overall shape of whatever face you happen to be drawing.

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: I was going to say something similar. I draw blobby outlines of the shadows on their face and flesh out the placement of their features. This helps get both right which leads to more likeness in your drawing. I also do this with super fine lines so that when I start layering detail, it's easy to cover or move or blend out my old lines.  

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### Answer by username_3 on 2016-12-29. Score: 1

The answers already here are great, but I want to call out one specific point that I haven't seen addressed yet.

We tend to think of faces as being 'made up' of the collection of features, and so when most people start drawing faces, they focus on putting the features onto the face first, in the correct places, and only relatively late in the drawing do they start shading the cheeks, jawbone etc.

If you look at the work of artists who are more advanced, you will find that they most likely don't outline the features at all - instead they focus on the shapes and shadows, which makes it more realistic.

The human brain has an amazing ability to detect faces and will see them even in random patterns, so don't worry about making your drawing look face-like. It's finding the patterns of light and shade that are unique to *this specific face* that will help you create a true likeness of a particular person.


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### Answer by username_4 on 2017-09-22. Score: 1

I would advise against starting with the features or even the shadows first. I have found from experience that it is the "general shape" of the head that houses all of the other features in some kind of semblance. For instance, if the shape of the head is slightly widened, it will affect the length and shape of the nose in relation to other features. Which, in turn will detract from a sense of "likeness". Drawing from life or personally knowing them also helps.

If you're drawing in pencil, I would suggest fleshing out the beginning stages with a harder led (3H, 4H). Also, you could try this technique of gesturing the general shape(s) with your non-dominant hand.


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### Answer by username_5 on 2017-09-03. Score: 0

Blocking in features will only take you so far. Use the Reilly Head Abstraction (also called the Reilly Method) to capture the rhythms and features of the face. This will give your faces dimensionality and the features will blend with each other harmoniously.

[![Reilly Head Abstraction.](https://i.sstatic.net/LHRc8.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/LHRc8.jpg)

[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/GQW3J.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/GQW3J.jpg)

[![A good video demonstrating the Reilly Method.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQ5ZaK1XExE)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQ5ZaK1XExE)


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