Learn to Draw Facial Angle Poses!

In this lesson, we will learn about facial angle poses. That is, we will focus on how a human head will look like when you're on a higher (and lower) elevation than the other person.

As an artist, you need to know as many facial angle positions as possible to show potential clients your level of flexibility. This lesson will get you started on the more common ones.

The challenge here is to make sure all the facial features are shown in the right perspective as you learn how to draw heads in each particular profile. It's not easy but we'll get through it.

We will be using a three point perspective grid for this lesson. In two specific directions, the grid in this lesson will be pointing up as well as pointing down.

1. The skull diagram

We will not get anywhere without the skull diagram as it's our main source of reference. The guide lines are an invaluable source of information to know where to start drawing from.

What we are looking for is the sphere which will contain the skull and the various '+' intersections.

One problem that the skull diagram doesn't offer too much hints on is the nose. Since it's just an empty hole, you have to image the nose in its proper three dimensional forms.

facial angle

At the same time, draw up your three point perspective grid if you haven't already as that will help you out with looking at the face looking up.

For learning purposes, feel free to download the perspective guide lines I have done for you if you're still having trouble. You can find it under the perspective section under perspective diagrams.

2. The front facial angle

From your three point perspective guide lines, use a small sized digital brush and begin drawing your face looking down line sketch.

Keep in mind that there are a few characteristics to notice. First of all, you can't really draw the eyes as you could. Instead, you're left with a bulge of where the eyes are.

Secondly, the nose is the main protruding feature. The lips itself are not visible. Instead, it is also a protrusion. As well, the overall head becomes like an elongated egg.

facial angle

On the other side of things, the face looking up presents one big problem when drawing it from the front profile: you no longer have a perfect spherical shape to work with anymore.

This is due to the protrusion of the chin and the fact that the face doesn't follow the curvature of the sphere. What this means that you will have to imagine a semi-flat cube form to work from.

Moreover, you will need to restructure how you will draw the nose. Ask yourself how the nose will look like in that position. Some tips will be to use the hole in the skull where the nose is and build on that triangular shape.

Also look at the ears and the mouth. The upper lips will show up more while the ears are curved downwards.

3. The side facial angle

With the side profile, the bridge of the eye is the most noticeable starting point. Use your '+' intersection and build upon it. You may want to refer back to the skull diagram to help you out.

Then, continue to focus on the nose. Make sure it protrudes out. As well, make sure it's a triangle shapes dimensions as you won't be able to see the nostrils.

The next part is the lips. Be careful, though. You want to angle everything to the shape of the sphere. This should also be done with the chin. The only noticeable feature that doesn't change much is the ears. You can still make out the majority of the ear anatomy.

facial angle

When looking up, the main challenges on the side profile are drawing the underside of the chin, the alignment of the eyes and the nose, the relationship with the upper lip and the lower lip, and the head's general curvature.

Another concern is the back of the head. You will need to draw more of the back where the hair meets the head. This is possibly by compressing the ears slightly where the '+' intersection is.

One more difficult objective to note is the rest of the body. Due to the position, you will see the character's shoulders. This means a part of the neck will be covered up.

4. The three-quarter facial angle

The last perspective point that we will deal with is that elusive three-quarter facial angle. As always, begin using the '+' intersections as your starting point.

One of the hardest parts about the three-quarter perspective is figuring out the curves that the facial features must meet inside the sphere. Yet, at the same time, also look at the features that protrude out.

The other part is to look at the angle of approach of the rest of the body. If you haven't noticed yet, you will need to start and consider how the rest of the body is shaped.

The digital art drawings that I have so far include a bit of the upper body and how it will be displayed in this perspective. If you're having difficulties with this perspective, have a look at real life references.

facial angle

When looking up in this facial angle, the focus here is to look at how the cheeks protrude from the face. To make it a little bit easier, if you look at the features, most of it is very similar to the head in the side profile diagram.

The only difference is adding that extra dimension where the other eye, the other part of the lips, the partial nostril openings on the other side, and the cheek bones. Remember to keep the same curvature of the sphere when you are drawing the face looking up in this profile.

You may want to consider looking at references if you need help with this perspective. The more you draw these difficult perspectives, the more your brain and your mind can relate to it.

With that said, drawing these facial angle poses is something you want to have a good grasp of as it is very helpful in the long run! I hope you enjoyed this lesson on facial angle positions. Make sure to submit any related drawings to the gallery as I would love to see your progress!