Although I was drawing since I remember myself, human drawing was always a pleasurable challenge for me. I spent most of my childhood drawing Cyclamens (because my mother liked them), and only when I was about 10 years old I actually faced the challenge of human drawing (human drawing made of five lines and a circle on top was out of question…).
Since I saw human drawing as a great challenge I would like to simplify it for anyone interested to learn human drawing without pain…
First it is important what you are drawing. If your human drawing is of an imaginary figure, it would be best to follow the standard proportions. If they are real persons, you will have to measure if they match the standard proportions, not all people do. I would recommend for beginners using photos as models for human drawing. Whether you draw a real person or imaginary one, using a photo as inspiration for your human drawing will make your life much easier. Of course, if your figure supposed to be imaginary change the details, yet it would be useful to have a photo of a figure in the same position as the one you want to draw.
Human proportions are measured with “head units” – the distance between the head’s top and the chin’s bottom. The length of an average human body (including the head) is 7.5 heads. The shoulders and hips are different between men and women and are 2 heads and 1 head and a half. While men have their shoulders wider (2 heads) and narrow hips (1 head and a half), women are just the opposites. So when you want to prepare your paper for human drawing, measure how much space you have for the head before starting to draw. Even if the person you’re drawing is not standard, 7.5-8 heads should be enough. Take in consideration that this proportion refers to a figure standing erect and may look differently in different poses.
To significantly improve your human drawing I would recommend learning, even superficially, about human anatomy – muscles, bones and the way they change in different positions.