In this free art lesson, you’ll learn how to draw a Full Body Manga Boy (Three-Quarter View) step-by-step. All of the tutorials on How2DrawManga.com are good drawing tutorials for beginners and experienced artists alike. The online tutorials are easy to follow; they teach you the how to draw basics while showing you how to draw manga step by step.
To draw this Manga Boy (Full Body), follow the step-by-step drawings below. The new lines in each step are shown in red, so you’ll know exactly what to draw next. Take your time and draw at your own pace.
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Intro: Start off with a pencil sketch. In the beginning stages, don’t press down too hard. For every step, sketch lightly at first so that it’s easy to erase if you make a mistake.
Step 1: Draw a small circle near the top of the paper as a guide for the top of the manga boy’s head. To draw the circle, first make four marks to determine the height and width. Then connect the marks using curved lines. If you’re struggling to draw the circle, just trace the outer rim of a circular object like a coin or a bottle cap.
Below the circle, and off to the left, draw an angled line as a guide for the lower part of the manga boy’s head. This will be the guide for the jaw and chin. Pay attention to the length of this guide in relation to the circle. If you draw this line too low, the head will be too long. The pointy bottom shouldn’t be directly in the center, draw it off to the left side a bit.
Step 1b: The height of a young boy will be roughly six heads tall. That means that however tall you drew the head, his proportionate body should be about six of those same-sized heads stacked up on top of each other. A younger boy’s body would be fewer heads in height. An average full grown man’s body would be seven or eight heads high, depending on how tall you want to draw him.
Drawing six head can be tedious, so you can just roughly estimate what six heads is or make horizontal marks all the way down to help you determine the height. You can also use a ruler for a more accurate measurement.
Step 2: Half way between the top and bottom of the head, draw a curved, horizontal line as a construction guide that will help you place the boy’s facial features later. Draw a long, curved, vertical line across the entire head for another construction guide. The vertical line should be closer to the left side to indicate the head at three-quarters view. Below the head, draw a two short vertical lines as guides for the neck. On the sides of the neck, draw a couple of sloping lines to indicate the trapezius muscles.
Step 3: Below the neck, draw a big, rectangular shape as a guide for the boy’s upper torso. The top and bottom sides should be longer than the sides. Curve the lines so that the shape bulges out a bit. The bottom edge of this shape should be at about the mark for two heads high.
Step 4: Below the previous shape, draw a square-like shape as a guide for the middle part of the boy’s torso. The sides of this shape should slope inward a bit. Curve the bottom of this shape a bit. The bottom edge of this guide should be at about halfway above the third head height mark.
Step 5: Below the previous shape, draw a triangular shape as a guide for the lower part of the boy’s torso. The sides of this guide should be short, vertical lines. The bottom part of this guide should be similar to a wide letter V. The bottom tip of this guide should be at around the mark for three heads high.
Step 6: Under the torso, on the right side, draw two long, curved lines as a guide for the boy’s first leg. These lines should end below the line for four heads high. Directly under the two lines, draw small oval as a guide for the knee. Pay attention to the size of this oval in relation to the top of the leg. Don’t draw it too big. The top part of the leg shape should be wide and it should gradually get narrower toward the bottom.
Step 7: Under the leg on the left, draw two more lines as guides for the lower part of the boy’s first leg. These lines should be almost as long as the lines for the top part of the leg. The top part of the shape should bulge outward for the calf muscle. The bottom part of this shape should be narrower. Under this shape, draw a small rectangular shape as a guide for the first foot. The sides of this shape should slope toward the lower, left side and they should be long. The bottom edge of the foot should be at the bottom-most mark.
On the left side, draw a series of similar shapes to finish the boy’s other leg and foot. Draw two long, curved lines below the knee. Make the top part wide and the bottom part narrow. Add a rectangular shape at the bottom as a guide for the foot. Pay attention to how this foot slopes down differently from the first foot. This foot should also be higher up than the first foot.
Step 8: On the top, right corner of the torso, draw a small oval as a guide for the girl’s first shoulder. Pay attention to the size of this oval in relation to the torso. Below the oval, draw two long, vertical lines as guides for the arm. Don’t draw these lines too far apart. Keep them close together so that the arm is skinny. Under the lines, draw a small circle as a guide for the elbow. This circle should be smaller than the oval for the shoulder. The elbow circle should be slightly below the guide line for two heads high.
On the left side of the torso, draw similar lines and shape as guides for the other arm. The torso will be blocking a big part of this arm, so only draw the visible sections. The small half-circle for the elbow should be higher than the elbow circle on the right side.
Step 9: Under the elbow on the right, draw two long, sloping lines as a guide for the boy’s first forearm. The bottoms of these lines should overlap the top of the leg on the right. The bottoms of these lines should end just below the mark for three heads height. Under the lines, draw a small hexagonal shape as a guide for the first hand. This shape should be pointy at the bottom. Pay attention to how big it is. The hand shape should fit inside the shape of the leg.
On the left side, draw a series of similar shapes as guides for the boy’s other forearm and hand. The body will be blocking a big part of this forearm and hand, so only draw the visible sections. The small hexagonal shape for this hand should be higher than the hexagonal shape for the hand on the right.
That’s it for the guides! From this point on, press harder with your pencil for a more defined drawing. Remember to keep your overall body shape at about six heads high. If you used lines as guides for the head height, you can erase them at this point.
This tutorial focuses on how to draw a boy body, so for a more detailed, step-by-step explanation on how to draw a boy head (3/4 view), check out this tutorial: How to Draw a Manga Boy Head (3/4 View). Once you complete the head, continue below to step 10.
Step 10: Darken the lines under the head to create the neck and trapezius muscles. Curve the lines more as you darken the guides. Below the neck, draw two short lines for the collarbone.
Step 11: Use the shapes to the right of the torso as guides to draw the boy’s first arm. Simply darken the outer edges of the guides to create the shape of the arm. The shape curves inward in the middle a bit to create the elbow section.
Step 12: Draw the shape of the boy’s hand inside the initial hexagonal guide at the bottom. At the bottom of the hexagonal guide, draw a series of short, curved lines for the fingers. The fingers toward the right should be smaller. On the left side of the guide, draw the thumb the same way but make the shape shorter.
Step 13: Darken the initial lines in the middle to create the sides of the boy’s torso. Make the top, left edge of the torso curvier to emphasize the pectoral muscle. Inside the initial rectangular guide, draw a series of lines to divide the pectoral muscles. At the bottom of the torso, draw a tiny line for the navel or belly button.
Step 14: Darken the initial triangular shape at the bottom to finish with the boy’s torso. Make the lines curvier as you darken the shape.
Step 15: Use the shapes on the left as guides to draw the boy’s other arm the same way. Darken the outer edges of the guides to create the shape of the arm. Make the middle and bottom areas thin for the elbow and wrist. At the bottom, draw the hand within the shape of the hexagonal guide. Draw the fingers at the bottom as a thin, long shapes that curve inward. Most of the fingers will be hidden behind the leg. Don’t overlap the leg. In the middle of the shape, draw a curved line for the thumb.
Step 16: Use the shapes that are on the lower, right side of the torso as guides to draw the first leg. Just like with the arms, darken the outer edges of the initial guides to create the shape of the leg. Curve the middle section to create the knee. The top of the leg should be wide and then thin near the knee. It should also be thick below the knee for the calf muscle and then thin at the bottom for the ankle.
Step 17: Draw the boy’s foot within the rectangular shape at the bottom. Darken the outer edges of the guide but make the shape curvier. On the right side, draw a short, curved line for the ankle joint. At the bottom draw a series of short lines to separate the toes. Make the left-most shape wider for the big toe. Don’t worry about adding too much detail to the toes.
Step 18: Use the shapes on the left as guides to draw the boy’s other leg the same way. Darken the outer edges of the guides to create the shape of the leg. Make the middle and bottom areas thin for the knee and ankle. At the bottom, draw the foot within the shape of the rectangular guide. Split the toes at the bottom using short lines and make the right-most shape thicker for the big toe.
Step 19: For a cleaner look, erase as much as you can of the initial guide lines. Don’t worry about erasing all of the guides. It’s okay to leave some behind. Re-draw any final sketch lines you may have accidentally erased.
Final Step: If you’d like, you can add hair to your drawing so that your boy isn’t bald! For a detailed, step-by-step explanation on how to draw shaggy hair for a boy, check out this tutorial: How to Draw a Manga Boy with Shaggy Hair (3/4 View).
That’s it! Keep practicing until you get the body and proportions right. Draw it again and again and eventually you’ll get better!