How to Draw a Dog in Color Pencil

Drawing is fun. Some people do it as a hobby and others make a living at it. Animals, dogs in particular, are popular subjects for amateur and professional artists alike. Dogs make great subject matter for all types of artwork, whether they are the centerpiece or an addition to the scenery. Dogs are fairly simple to draw, so learn how to use color pencils to draw a dog.

Things You'll Need

• Color pencils
• Artist's sketch pad

Instructions

1. Use a lead pencil to begin. Find the basic shapes that comprise a dog. These shapes are the same for all dogs--only the proportions change, depending upon the breed of dog you want to draw. A lightly drawn triangle drawn upside down, with a smaller upside down triangle inside to define the snout area will give you a general idea of the space you'll occupy with the head. Add a couple of circles and you have the ears. Draw a square to represent the chest area, a rectangle for the rest of the body, and elongated circles for the legs. What you end up with doesn't look like much now except for a bunch of overlapping shapes. That's okay. Now it's time to refine the drawing.

2. Use a reference photo if you'd like. Begin erasing corners and edges and replacing them with lines. Use a color pencil now, the main color your dog's fur will be. Take away lines from the basic shapes and replace them with more refined canine shaping. The object is to use the basic shapes as place holders for the proportions as you gradually turn them into canine features.

3. Start on the features of the face when you have the outer shape of the dog roughed out. Work on the nose first, shaping the snout so it forms an angled line to the eyes. Use a light lead pencil line for these features. Draw the eyes and add the brow, then add shading to achieve the set of the eyes. You can use the same type of shading to bring the snout out and define the rest of the canine facial features.

4. Use color pencils to apply the fur. You can accent the fur coloring with light strokes of black or lead pencil, or you can draw short, heavier lines with the same color as the fur, making the lines stand out. Apply the colors necessary for the breed of dog you're drawing. One nice technique with color pencils, especially if they are oil based, is to smudge with your finger or an eraser to blend the various colors into softer lines, giving the dog's fur a more realistic effect. Make sure to add shading around your dogs midsection and leg joints to bring out the body tone. You don't want a flat dog. Use shadow to give the impression of three dimensions.

5. Let some of your coloring lines cross over the outer shape lines of the dog. This brings his fur to life. As you add colors, make sure you continue to darken the shadows around the brow, eyes and ears. Shadow around the outer perimeter of the inside of the dog's ears will give the ears a fuller more realistic shape. Even if your dog is primarily one color, using subtle variations of that single color will add lifelike qualities to your dog.

Resources

• Art Factory