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The Secrets to Drawing: Facial Proportions

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Lesson Description

Lesson Twenty-One of The Secrets to Drawing Course introduces students to the foundational principles of facial proportions. Learning accurate facial proportions is essential for drawing realistic faces, whether from observation, imagination, or reference. In this lesson, students explore key guidelines for placing facial features correctly, and they apply these principles by creating two drawings: one of an imagined face from a straight-on view and a second from a profile view.

Introduction to Facial Proportions

The lesson begins by discussing the importance of understanding facial proportions. Matt Fussell explains that the human face follows general patterns that can be broken down into measurable relationships, which help artists create balanced and believable portraits. While every face is unique, these proportions serve as a framework for achieving accuracy and consistency.

Students learn that facial proportions are not just about technical correctness—they also help convey character, expression, and realism. By mastering basic guidelines, artists gain confidence in constructing faces that look natural, whether they are drawing from imagination or reference.

Key Guidelines for the Frontal View

Students first explore facial proportions from a straight-on view. Matt introduces several key guidelines:

  • The face is divided vertically and horizontally to help place features symmetrically.
  • The eyes are positioned roughly halfway between the top of the head and the chin.
  • The space between the eyes is approximately the width of one eye.
  • The bottom of the nose typically aligns with the bottom of the ears.
  • The mouth generally falls about one-third of the distance from the nose to the chin.

These proportional relationships provide a framework for arranging the eyes, nose, mouth, ears, and hairline. Students practice lightly sketching these guidelines before adding individual features, learning to adjust proportions for age, gender, or stylized effects.

Creating a Face from the Frontal View

Using the guidelines, students create a drawing of an imagined face from a straight-on view. Matt emphasizes starting with simple shapes—ovals for the head, lines for feature placement—before refining contours and details. Students then add the eyes, nose, mouth, and ears, ensuring each feature aligns with the proportional framework.

Shading and subtle line work are introduced to suggest form and volume, giving the face a three-dimensional appearance. Students practice observing relationships between features to maintain balance and realism, developing both accuracy and confidence in constructing a frontal portrait.

Key Guidelines for the Profile View

Next, students explore facial proportions from a profile view. While some guidelines are similar to the frontal view, drawing in profile introduces new considerations:

  • The forehead, nose, lips, and chin form a characteristic contour line that defines the face’s side profile.
  • The eyes are placed approximately halfway between the top of the head and the chin, similar to the frontal view, but the shape and placement shift according to the side plane of the skull.
  • The ear is aligned with the brow line and the bottom of the nose, projecting slightly backward on the skull.
  • The jawline, cheekbone, and neck angles must be observed carefully to maintain proportional accuracy.

Matt demonstrates these relationships, highlighting how subtle changes in angles and spacing can dramatically affect likeness and realism. Students practice lightly sketching the profile framework before adding facial features.

Creating a Face from the Profile View

Students then create a second drawing of an imagined face from a profile view. Using the proportional guidelines, they map out the forehead, nose, lips, chin, and jawline. Attention is given to the curvature of the skull, placement of the ear, and alignment of features along the side plane.

Shading and contour lines are used to define form and suggest volume, helping the profile appear three-dimensional. By practicing both frontal and profile views, students gain a more comprehensive understanding of facial structure and proportions, preparing them for more complex portrait drawing.

Benefits of Studying Facial Proportions

Understanding basic facial proportions is essential for creating realistic, balanced, and expressive portraits. This lesson provides students with a systematic approach to constructing faces, whether drawing from imagination or reference. Mastery of these guidelines enhances observation skills, builds confidence in rendering features accurately, and lays the groundwork for exploring more advanced portrait techniques, such as expression, age, and perspective.

Mastery of Facial Proportions

By the end of Lesson Twenty-One, students have gained a solid foundation in facial proportions for both frontal and profile views. They have applied this knowledge to create two drawings of imagined faces, practicing accuracy, alignment, and volume. This lesson equips students with essential skills for portrait drawing, enabling them to approach future portrait projects with confidence, technical understanding, and creative expression.

Lesson Materials

Graphite, white drawing paper.

Lesson Resources

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Course Curriculum

Lesson 1: Introduction (5:03) Lesson 2: Line (14:25) Lesson 3: Shape (8:19) Lesson 4: Form (13:00) Lesson 5: Value (11:59) Lesson 6: Space (6:13) Lesson 7: One Point Perspective (12:58) Lesson 8: Two Point Perspective (12:13) Lesson 9: Three Point Perspective (10:27) Lesson 10: Basic Drawing Techniques (15:03) Lesson 11: Drawing From Life (9:01) Lesson 12: Drawing From Photos (15:25) Lesson 13: Composition (12:20) Lesson 14: Graphite (9:00) Lesson 15: Charcoal (10:32) Lesson 16: Ink (9:00) Lesson 17: Color (14:28) Lesson 18: Colored Pencils (11:56) Lesson 19: Oil Pastels (11:51) Lesson 20: Soft Pastels (11:21) Lesson 21: Facial Proportions (13:56) Lesson 22: The Eye (14:05) Lesson 23: The Nose and Mouth (12:24) Lesson 24: The Ear (4:51) Lesson 25: Hair (14:02) Lesson 26: Figure Drawing (20:00) Lesson 27: Foreshortening (12:54) Lesson 28: Conclusion (2:58)

Your Instructor
Matt Fussell - Instructor
Matt Fussell

Founder of The Virtual Instructor, artist and teacher. Matt makes learning art easy to understand and enjoyable.

Related Courses and Classes
Portrait Drawing The Smart Way
Portrait Drawing with Graphite
Portrait Drawing with Charcoal

Lesson Discussion

  3. I’m really happy with my first attempt. My drawings look a little ‘cartoonish’ though. I’m sure they will become more realistic overtime.

  6. Fab lesson as always Matt, it was great to know generally where the facial features lie, this course ends great for me because for all I want to do animal portraits, which I’ve practiced a few and of course the dog portrait I did for my friend which you gave a good critique for, I do want to do people portraits too, so these last lessons run into me starting your portrait course 🙂👍👍.
    And to be honest it will be a nice change to do people 😉
    I’m actually on a dog portrait again, this also for a gift which is nearly finished and I’m pleased with it so might send it in for another critique 🙂.
    Cheers Matt 🙂

  7. Hello Matt sorry but I can’t draw the proportions of the profile view. Please help me. The problem is that I cannot find the approximate location of the bottom of the chin. Doing that in the wrong way, then the whole proportions are wrong. My profile face is too long . Do I have to divide the size of the profile view in half? Do the 2 halves have the same size? Thanks for your reply

  8. I am not sure how to word my comment. There are 360 degrees and i can infer at least 360 positions to draw the same head. But what is the actual number of positions for surely some angles a change is hardly negligible?

  9. this will not help my students I need or we need a breakdown of the proportions using GUIDE LINES. not yelling just emphasizing. if i followed this, my kids would fail

    • Hi Krista, I’m not sure I understand your comment. This approach does use guidelines. It discusses the relationships of the placement of the facial features using measurements and lines. If this approach is too general for you and your students, you may also check out the course “Portrait Drawing The Smart Way” http://thevirtualinstructor.com/members/portrait-drawing-the-smart-way/ You are a member, so you have access to it. It covers drawing the face in great detail. There are several different approaches covered as well. You may take a close look at Module 4 specifically. It is a slightly different approach but uses quite a number of guidelines.

  10. Hi Matt. I have two questions. First, on drawing the frontal face, I am not clear how you measured where the chin line goes. Is there a general rule, or do you go strictly by observation?
    Secondly, regarding the profile drawing, If I start with a “circle” for the cranium, my head will not come out right. When I observed your video for the second time closely, it seemed that you moved the line representing the back of the head way back, making your circle more like an oval or an egg, which gave it much better proportions. Wouldn’t it be better to start with an “egg shape” then, rather than a circle when you do a profile?
    Thanks very much.

  13. Hi Matt, have just joined. Am enjoying your lessons! If I am drawing a portrait and want realistic proportions and features of a particular face so it looks like the person, is it better to use a grid? As I’ve only checked out this set of videos so far I’m not sure if you’ve spoken about this anywhere. If you have please could you tell me which of your lessons covers this? I realise that in time and with practice I will, hopefully, be able to draw and observe a face accurately but as I’m so new to portrait drawing, I want to start the right way. Thanks:)

  14. Hi Matt, If I am drawing a portrait and want realistic proportions and features of a particular face so it looks like the person, is it better to use a grid? As I’ve only checked out this set of videos so far I’m not sure if you’ve spoken about this anywhere. If you have please could you tell me which of your lessons covers this? I realise that in time and with practice I will, hopefully, be able to draw and observe a face accurately but as I’m so new to portrait drawing, I want to start the right way. Thanks:)

  15. On facial proportions, How do you determine the length of the line drawn from top of head( your circle) to
    the bottom of the chin? Many people have asked this question.
    Please advise proper approach.
    Without the proper
    line to determine length of the face, the drawing ends up too elongated or too short, disproportionate.

    While you are doing drawing lessons, can you also show the photo you are working on to help us better understand
    the final outcome and draw along with you

    Thanks for all the drawing tips.Love the program. I am improving dramatically

  20. Hi Matt. Thank you so much for your videos. All of a sudden everything that I’ve been reading about is starting to make sense. I’m nearly 64 and from an early age I decided I couldn’t draw. Now I want to live long enough to prove myself wrong. In the meantime it’s absolutely wonderful watching you create magic on paper. Thanks again.

  21. Hi Matt:

    You mention in the video that the nose is generally halfway between the eyes and the chin, but the text on the video reads “The nose is generally halfway between the eyes and the mouth”.

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