Step-by-Step Bear Drawing Instructions

Because they are plantigrade, like humans, and because they are large and stocky, the grizzly bear is one of the most simple mammals to depict. To boot, their tiny eyes and massive muzzle make it simple to maintain accurate proportions when drawing them. You can trust me to guide you through the process of drawing a realistic bear even if you have never drawn before in your life.

Drawing a bear in a single pose will be the subject of this extremely elementary drawing tutorial. Check out this guide if you're interested in drawing bears of various species and learning more about their anatomy.

• 

  Animal Anatomy, Including Bears and Pandas

1 Methods for Bear Drawing Primitives

The key to creating a lifelike depiction of any animal is to pay close attention to its proportions. Even the most elaborate details won't save something with short legs and a big head.  

That's why, before spending any time perfecting the details, we should always begin with a quick sketch of the proportions. A rough sketch like this can show us the overall silhouette quickly and easily, allowing us to spot any errors while they're still easily corrected.

This preliminary drawing should have thin lines that can be easily erased. Don't alter your method of drawing until I tell you to.

Step 1

Draw an oval shape. It doesn't have to be neatly drawn or even have a single line running through it. Our enormous bear's body will look like this.

Step 2

Half the oval's height is the resulting division.

Step 3

Put a mark under the oval that is just under half its height. This will provide us with a sense of the body's elevation above the ground and help us strike the ideal balance between the upper and lower halves of the frame.

Step 4

Underneath this line, sketch a "perspective cross." By doing so, we can see the scene from a higher vantage point and better situate the body's various parts. The lack of which would make our bear look lifeless and uninteresting.

Step 5

Draw the legs in motion, with the "paws" resting on the perspective cross. Complete the back legs and the lower limbs of the front legs in your drawing.

Step 6

Draw a "6" for the gigantic arms and shoulders to convey the proportions.

Never forget the importance of context

Step 7

When it comes to depicting animal proportions, the length of the neck is one of the most difficult features to capture accurately. Borrow the leg's length to make the bear's neck the right length.

Step 8

The size of the head is another potential problem area. Although it may appear that bears have round heads, a simple outline will do for now.

Step 9

Let's determine the facial dimensions as well. To begin, draw a line across the center of the face. It's important to keep in mind that you're not drawing a flat head.

Step 10

Create the nose and its corresponding lining up.

Step 11

Create the sclera of the eyes At this stage, drawing the eyebrows and nose can give us a clearer picture of the entire face than the eyes alone can.

Step 12

Clearly depict the nose's width in your sketches.

Step 13

Make a teardrop for the nose.

Step 14

Drawing the muzzle's flat front helps you visualize its 3D shape.

2 Methods for Representing a Bear's Form in Art

Despite its lack of detail, your drawing should resemble a bear. Check it out and see if anything seems off. Last chance to adjust the proportions The big muscle and fur masses that add volume to the body can be added if you're happy with them.

Step 1

Doodle two large, inverted "cups" above each paw. The area will be the right width after this.

Step 2

Draw the paws' width from the correct angle.

Step 3

Roughly draw the paws

Step 4

Extra depth can be achieved by drawing in two of the feet's sides. Don't worry too much about accuracy when drawing them; the form is secondary.

Step 5

The simple part is over; now just draw the shape of the fat legs.

the thigh

including the hump in the shoulder

Step 6

Envision a headband with ears attached to it. Mount it high on your head, like so:

Step 7

Put in the facial hair that makes the head appear spherical.

Step 8

Complete the neck's form.

3 Instructions for Drawing Bear Paws

Bear paws are unlike any other animal's paws because they look so much like human feet. Due to this, depicting them is a breeze.

Step 1

In front of each paw, draw a circle.

Step 2

Outline two more concentric circles on either side of it. Focus on the viewpoint

Step 3

Roughly align two more circles behind the existing ones.

Step 4

Claw curves should be superimposed on each circle.

Step 5

Draw the claws and talons. Do not make them too pointy

Step 6

Include the paw pad that shields the animal's tender pads from harm. These details aren't always obvious, but they make the paws and the drawing more interesting overall and are worth including.

4 The Basics of Bear Head Drawing

The next step is to meticulously sketch a bear's face. It shouldn't be too difficult, so please bear with me (I'm sorry) as I lay out the steps. )

Step 1

Add a circle to the tip of the muzzle to serve as a guide for the nose's shape.

Step 2

Front "cut"

Step 3

Create openings for the nostrils

Step 4

Place a defining form beneath them for detail.

Step 5

Trace around your entire nose.

Step 6

Cut the bridge of your nose in half horizontally.

Step 7

To create a "heart" shape on the forehead, follow this guide.

Step 8

Make the eye sockets tiny by drawing them directly under the eyebrows.

Step 9

Getting down to the eyes now:

Step 10

To animate the eyelids, draw a circle around each eye.

Step 11

Make the eyelids a little bit thicker around the perimeter.

Step 12

Symbolize the spherical eyes by drawing the pupils

Step 13

Complete the eyelids.

Step 14

Create the "brows."

Step 15

Make a circle at the top of the muzzle, as this is where the whiskers will go.

Step 16

Create a smiley face with a mouth

Step 17

To finish the mouth, add some details.

Step 18

Apply a "butterfly" across the entire face as a starting point for the final form.

5 Composing a Bear's Head and Body

However intricate, these were only the rules. This phase of the process involves the actual execution of the drawing. Don't be afraid to put in more effort as we draw the clearly visible boundaries; sharpen your pencil or switch to a darker tool.

Step 1

Use fur-like short lines to sketch out the image. When drawing the fur, make sure to keep the shapes "open," as to not accidentally outline a closed shape. It will look better if you draw "fur masses" instead of trying to draw individual hairs and then "cutting" them occasionally.

Step 2

When you're done with the intricacies, go back and thicken the outer outline. Even without color, the picture will be more engaging with this.

Step 3

Color by shading some areas darker than others. The dark patches around a grizzly bear's eyes, for instance, are crucial to the animal's overall appearance.

Step 4

The first step in shading your bear is to lightly sketch in the shadowed areas. With this, you can organize everything and minimize potential blunders.

Step 5

Using straight lines for shading, we can highlight the bear's 3D form.

Step 6

Shading the "top" will give the entire body a more three-dimensional appearance.

Great Job

Drawing a bear has never been easier than after reading this. If you found this tutorial helpful and would like to see more like it, we have guides on how to draw a wide variety of animals simply:

• 

  This Step-by-Step Guide Will Teach You How to Draw a Realistic Deer.

• 

  Detailed Instructions on How to Draw a Fox

• 

  Instructive Guide on How to Draw an Elephant

• 

  An Detailed Explanation of How to Draw a Horse

• 

  Instructions for Sketching a Howling Wolf

Or maybe you just want to learn more about art in general These tutorials are great if you want to improve your drawing skills and learn new methods:

• 

  A Detailed Guide to Drawing Deer Antlers

• 

  Tutorial: Creating Realistic Eyes for Cartoons

• 

  The Easiest, Most Exact Method for Creating Lifelike Leaf Drawings

• 

  Instructions for a Simple Bird Drawing

• 

  Tutorial: Owl Sketching