Learn to draw a fun and simple cartoon possum using this tutorial made for vector application users. Don't worry! Even if you don't own a vector software, you can still learn a lot while learning how to draw the possum found on this page.
This adorable cartoon animal is quite fun to create and hopefully once this tutorial is done, you will be able to create your own version of this animal without the need of following this lesson. For now, your goal is to create the possum found below using digital tools and simple special effects.
First, you can draw the possum using mostly outlines as shown below. No solid shapes are added yet, only lines. These lines are not too thick and all these lines are pointed on both ends. Even the circular shapes used to illustrate the eye and the nose are thick on the bottom and thin on top.
Next, you can draw solid shapes below the outlines and add colors to the character. For now, only plain colors are used. You can also take the time to adjust the colors of all lines. For instance, the outline of the nose can be colored with a dark brown color. The one used around the body can be grey. Black outlines are fine, but colored lines are even better!
Continue working on this cartoon possum by selecting the gradient fill tool in your vector software. In this step, you can add a second color on each shape to create a simple shadow. As you can see in the example below, the head seems darker on the bottom while the top of it is much brighter. Same thing for the body, the ear, the nose, the legs and the tail.
In this final step, draw additional shapes that are used to create stronger shadows. These new elements must be slightly darker. They can be drawn inside the ear, around the nose, below the mouth, on the back, near the legs and on the tail. You can compare the final illustration with the one found in step number three to see the differences.
Good job! This final illustration is visually very interesting and shows how drawing a possum using a vector application can be fun and easy once you know how to create cool shadows. Have fun and don't hesitate to practice as often as needed! :)