Question

human anatomy references for art (not an expert by any means; creating this b/c I need to improve, too)

Answer 1

general proportions for the *average* realistic human being
couple of key pointers
> shoulders extend to about one head width on either side; tend to be a bit wider in men and narrower in women
> elbows naturally fall at about the waistline
> wrists are slightly past the hips and the tips of your fingers extend to about mid-thigh. very important to get arm length right; you don't want your person having t-rex or gorilla arms
> arms and legs bulge/curve to accomodate musculature, fat, and underlying bone structure. narrower near joints like the knees and wrists

Answer 2

most people don't naturally stand straight up; they'll put a bit more weight on one leg. however, in order to keep balanced, they will naturally accommodate this by shifting their body weight towards the weight-bearing appendage

Answer 3

dropping a couple more references for the natural curvature of the arm

Answer 4

hands are an absolute nightmare to draw but the usual method I've seen is to create a large rectangular prism where the palm is and extend the fingers from that. the palm takes up more than half of the whole hand



just remember that the fingers aren't just flat on each side; they taper in at the joints between the phalanges

Answer 5

the first joint from the knuckle (the largest joint on your finger) occurs a little less than halfway up the finger, then the second joint (which doesn't bend as easily) is about halfway up the next segment

Answer 6

I've found that legs tend to be a bit easier to draw than arms. just remember that the thigh curves outward a bit to accomodate your hamstrings/quadriceps, and narrows just before the kneecap

your calf muscles (particularly the soleus and gastrocnemius) are more pronounced especially if a person does weigh-bearing exercises, or carries more weight on their body



one particular thing to note, most people's thighs tend to spread out a bit when they sit down, appearing to have a flatter cross-section

Answer 7

I'll be perfectly honest, I have very little experience drawing bare feet, but the usual construction for feet is a pyramid for the main part of the foot and a box for the heel



I don't know how helpful this will be but generally your foot is around 1/6.5 of your total height, making your foot slightly longer than a head length

Answer 8

most people's feet have a slight arch rather than lying flat on the ground



when walking/standing, the big toe carries a good bulk of the weight (try walking without bearing weight on your big toe; it's very difficult)



in terms of the walking cycle, when your feet contact the ground they tend to contact heel first, then the sole, then the toes, which are then used to propel forward