How to Create an Anime Avatar

Have you ever watched an anime like Naruto, Dragonball Z, or Sailor Moon, and wondered what you would look like as one of the characters? If so, this is the tutorial for you.
Anime is a type of animated cartoon that originated in Japan. The first anime was created in the 1960s by Osamu Tezuka. Influenced by Walt Disney cartoons like Snow White, Tezuka developed the "wide eye" style most widely associated with anime.
There are many ways to create your own avatar in the anime style. One of the easiest ways is to use an avatar maker. If you're interested in a more unique look, and you're good at drawing, you can also design an avatar from scratch.

Things You'll Need

• Adobe Photoshop

Instructions

Use an Avatar Program

1. 

   Go to Face Your Manga. Select the language from the Flags below the logo.

2. 

   Click on "Face Your Manga" option from the menu bar. Press "Create!"

3. 

   Select your gender.

4. 

   Personalize your avatar. Remember your selections, because you will need to re-do them later. Create an avatar with open eyes and closed lips. Press "Finish."

5. 

   Select "Download the avatar" and enter your valid email address. The newly created avatar will be sent to this email address.

6. 

   Repeat the entire process. This time, create an avatar with closed eyes and a big smile, showing lots of teeth, as in the example.

7. Check your email. You should receive 2 emails from Face Your Manga containing the avatars you just created. Download the photos to your computer.

8. 

   Go to Gif Up.

9. 

   Choose the avatar file from your computer and upload. Repeat. You will now see the frames below. Keep the option at 200 pixels (medium), and change the speed to slow, and check fit proportionally. Now click the "let's see what you get :)" button.

10. Choose to edit or save at this point. If you're happy with the animation, save it.

11. Save the gif animation to your computer. Upload to the sites that accept gif animations, and you're done!

Create an Avatar in Photosho

1. Download brush sets for hair and eyes (see Resources). Also download a "lips" file to complete face. After downloading, unzip files and install into Photoshop's Preset folder on your hard drive.

2. 

   Open Adobe Photoshop. Create a new document by going to "File" from the menu bar and selecting "New." Enter in the size 400 x 400 pixels. Name it Anime-Avatar.

3. 

   Create a new layer by selecting the new layer icon on the bottom of the layers box.

4. 

   Select the Elliptical Marquee Tool (U) from the tool bar, and change the color to #D99781. Use the paint bucket to fill the elliptical with the color.

5. 

   Turn on the grid by pressing Ctrl + ' on the keyboard.

6. 

   Create a new layer. Select the Brush tool from the tool bar. On the Brush tool bar, select the brush's drop-down arrow. Access more brushes by pressing the right arrow button. Select the "Anime Eyes" brush from the list of available brushes. Select the eye of your choice and click once on the document, aligning with the grid. Adjust the size larger, depending on the size of the face. The brush in this tutorial is set to 124 pixels.

7. 

   Go to the brushes tab at the right of the screen. In "Brush Tip Shape," activate the "Flip X" option by checking it. This flips the eye brush, allowing you to make an easy duplicate. Click once on the screen to add the second eye.

8. 

   Create a new layer. Open the "lips" file. Find the layer containing the lips image you'd like to use. While holding the Ctrl key, click on the layer and then copy b y pressing Ctrl + C. Go back to the Anime-Avatar file. Paste the lips into the new layer by clicking Ctrl + V.

9. 

   Go to "Edit" from the menu bar, and select "Transform," then "Scale." Scale the lips to fit the image.

10. Right click on the lips layer. Select "Blending Options" and then "Color Overlay." Change color to a red hue, like #E11C41 at 50%.

11. Create a new layer. Reset the brushes, and use a regular round brush to draw a line for the nose. In traditional anime, the nose is downplayed, and the eyes are emphasized.

12. Create another layer. Go back to the brushes, and select the "anime hair" brush from the drop-down menu. Find a hair brush suitable for the drawing and click once on the document to add the hair.

13. Create another layer underneath the hair layer. Reset the brushes again, this time use a soft round brush. Change color to #5A439A. Begin to paint under the hair brush layer.

14. Embellish eyes, check, and hair bows by coloring in underneath the respective layers.

15. Edit the image further by erasing some of the roundness from the face, adding highlights to the face, and a shadow around the cheeks.

16. Create a new layer. Draw the lower half of the anime avatar.

17. Create a background by creating a new layer, and adding colors and shapes like clouds to it. Save.

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Tips & Warnings

• If you don't have Adobe Photoshop, try free software like Gimp, or the online programs like Sumo Paint and Aviary.

• Instead of using the lips reference file, search for a brush that takes out the extra step of copy and pasting.

• Be sure to save your work as you go to avoid losing progress in Adobe Photoshop.

Resources

• More Information About Japanese Anime
• Anime Hair Brush Set
• Anime Eyes Brush Set
• http://lilnymph.deviantart.com/art/Lips-and-Lashes-psd-files-65791901