how to draw scales on a dragon

Snakes, lizards, crocodiles, alligators, and... dragons, they all have 1 thing in common—they're covered with a natural armor. There are many types of scales, but they all follow a special design that makes them so strong and protective. Once you acquire how to create such a pattern, you'll exist able to depict realistic scales on any beast!

What You Will Demand

HB pencil
2B pencil
5B pencil
8B pencil
Ruler
Pencil sharpener
Eraser (optionally)

Before you start, take a look at what we're going to describe. It's very of import to draw things as they really are, not how nosotros think they are!

Ophidian scales shut-upward
Lizard scales
Crocodile scales

ane. How to Draw Snake and Lizard Scales

The scales of snakes and lizards are very similar in structure, so I will show you them side by side. Feel gratuitous to choose the one you like ameliorate!

Step ane

Kickoff past drawing the boundaries of the trunk, with a line in the center. Use the HB pencil and the ruler for this, and don't press as well hard—these lines must be easy to encompass later.

Step ii

On the superlative, draw the first scale. Its shape and size will define the residue of the pattern. Snakes tend to take longer and smoother scales than lizards.

Step 3

Take the ruler again and draw a line across the "trunk", right under the scale.

Step 4

Dissever the trunk into identical segments. You can utilize the ruler to measure the superlative of the scales if you want, but it's not necessary—but make certain they look similar enough.

Step 5

Draw a bend beyond four segments.

Step half-dozen

Copy this curve all along the trunk. Be very careful—these curves must have the same shape, otherwise you'll go a chaotic design of scales of unlike sizes.

Step 7

Draw the aforementioned bend upside down...

... and again copy it all over the body. A pattern should announced!

Step viii

Draw a row of scales confined inside the boundaries of the guide lines. Beware the grab: don't outline each rhombus in the pattern, merely rather draw a rounded scale inside information technology, going out of it on the meridian.

Step nine

Depending on the species, scales can have diverse shapes. Some snakes have them rounded and convex, but they get flatter towards their base of operations. If the scales are non placed very tight, that apartment base of operations can be visible. Lizards, on the other mitt, oft have their scales keeled, with a "spike" on the end.

Step x

The pattern of the scales is done! Before we starting time shading, information technology's good to consider the color scheme first. Dark colors are shaded differently than bright ones. The pattern on a snake's body usually follows the pattern of scales. In lizards, the colors are often spread all effectually the body regardless of the individual scales. The scales tin exist likewise colored individually.

Use the HB pencil for a base of operations of vivid colors, and 2Bfor the night ones. Tilt the pencil and depict quite lightly.

Stride 11

Use the same pencils and press somewhat harder to make the sides darker, giving the texture a rounder look.

Pace 12

Shade the private scales now, keeping their 3D form in mind. Check the reference if y'all have problems imagining it.

Footstep 13

Have a pencil ane step softer for each shade to create a higher dissimilarity. Follow the pattern of the light.

Step 14

Take a skillful expect at your cartoon and decide what else needs work. Take your fourth dimension—this last stage should take the longest!

two. How to Draw Crocodile, Alligator, and Dinosaur Scales

Crocodiles and alligators take a very characteristic design of scales, but dinosaur scales are similar to them in ane aspect: they're not overlapping, only they're rather "calluses" on the pare, every bit if it was so hard it had to interruption to stay flexible (imagine cracked globe). To create dinosaur scales using this tutorial, just avert the pattern characteristic for crocodilians and become for something more similar this.

Step 1

Once again, start with the boundaries of the trunk using the ruler and the HB pencil.

Step 2

Create the rows of scales along the body—in the crocodilians they're rather even, especially in the big scale area (the more flexible the surface area must be, the smaller the scales). Arrange the width to the perspective of a rounded surface if you need.

Stride iii

Cross the rows with more lines to create the actual blueprint. Don't brand them too even—imagine they're running across the wrinkles on skin.

Footstep 4

Draw a roughly rounded shape within each cell. They should touch on each other with only a role of their side.

Stride 5

Fill the areas in between with little "scales". The more space, the more scale-shaped these structures may be.

Step 6

The bigger scales can also be thicker and keeled. In dinosaurs you tin can fifty-fifty turn them into spikes!

Step 7

The pattern is washed, then we tin can shade information technology now. Take the 2B pencil and accentuate the "cracks" between the scales—it's important to non lose them during the shading. Discover how some of the tiny scales seem to merge with the large ones, changing their perceived shape to a more elongated one.

Step 8

Take the HB pencil and shade the sides of the texture to create a 3D expect.

Step 9

Printing harder to shade one side even more than.

Step 10

Use the 2B pencil to shade the flat scales in a very specific way: depict a tilted "O" within them, creating 2 vivid edges on opposite sides. This will make them look slightly concave.

Step xi

The bigger scales may exist more than or less convex, with bumps and keels, so make sure that light hits these structures.

Step 12

Take the 5B pencil and add more contrast to the picture by shading the scales some more than. Apply this darker shade to add more than item to each calibration.

Footstep thirteen

Utilise the same pencil to accentuate the cracks one more time. The thicker the scales, the darker these cracks should be.

Footstep fourteen

Finally, apply all the pencils to add the finishing touches to the drawing.

how to draw crocodile alligator dinosaur scales

Expert Job!

Now you lot know how to depict beautiful, realistic calibration textures for your creatures, real and imagined. If you enjoyed this tutorial, you lot may too similar the others from this serial: