If you’re caricaturing yourself, ask someone to take a photo of you instead of taking a selfie. Holding the camera close to your face for a selfie will cause distortion which makes it hard to see your actual likeness.
Creating a rough outline for your thumbnail sketch will make it easier for you to emphasize some shapes and fill in details.
For example, if you’re caricaturing Barack Obama, you might choose to exaggerate his ears, chin, or forehead.
For example, for your Barack Obama sketch, start by drawing a large forehead. Then, instead of making the eyes higher and larger near the forehead, keep them small and lower on the face. This will make the forehead stand out even more. Go back and sketch glasses or accessories after you’ve finished drawing the features.
Sketch your subject showing different moods to see which captures the likeness you’re going for. For example, you might sketch comedian Jim Carrey looking serious or thoughtful, but a sketch of Carrey with a wacky expression will be more recognizable.
Keep the other sketches close by to use as references for the rough sketch. You should also have the reference photo at your work station so you can glance at it as you sketch.
Take more time doing the rough sketch. This is your chance to improve and expand on the thumbnail sketches you made.
Include all of the facial features in your rough sketch. At this point, the subject should be completely recognizable with exaggerated features.
It may be tempting to add small details, but try to focus just on quickly finishing the rough sketch before moving on to your final caricature drawing. Once you’ve finished your rough sketch, decide if you’re happy with it and want to move on or if you’d like to try another rough sketch.
Drawing the abstraction will help you catch any drawing errors. For example, you might find that the eyes were too far apart when you made your rough sketch or maybe you see that you want to exaggerate a person’s chin even more.
There’s no right or wrong way to finish your caricature. Some artists prefer to work on facial features, such as the eyes or mouth, before moving on to hair or ears. Draw in any order you like.
Spend as much time as you want when drawing your final caricature.
