- //coughs
tfw u don't follow your own advice
I...Did not use a reference for this
But that's because I've been drawing for a LONG time now and I've drawn from references in the past, so I'm more confident in my knowledge of canine anatomy!! There are probably mistakes here, which is why you should use references, but I did my best to show you my sketching process!
As you can see, it's pretty rough. It's lots of separate lines rather than a few continuous ones. This is mostly because I use a drawing tablet on my computer, so my drawings look more hand drawn, but you can create similar effects with a mouse!
Also, I know you drew a husky, but most canine anatomy is very similar, especially concerning wolves and huskies, so I just sort of went with it and drew a generic wolf/dog/canine, but I'm just going to refer to it as a wolf.
But, yeah, so here are my steps, expanded on:
1. I use very basic shapes to map out generally where things need to go in relationship with each other. This is a very rough guideline and I don't follow it very exactly, but you'll notice that my sketch and the anatomy of the wolf remain within the parameters set by the circles! The head it built around the first circle, the ribcage/abdomen is built around the second, and the hind legs are built around the third!
I judge this distance based off of references. A reference is an image that depicts whatever you're drawing. It could be of an animal, or even of a pose for a human character. For this drawing, if I had used a reference, I would have searched 'wolf side view' or 'wolf profile image' to get a view of a wolf from the side.
2. The rough sketch is loosely based around the three original circles. It doesn't have to be perfect. You're just setting up guidelines for your final sketch!
3. Your final sketch is a cleaner, more accurate representation of what the line art will look like. It is still rough, but not as much as the rough sketch. The cleaner your final sketch, the easier it will be to draw the final lines for the character! Sometimes I even use the lines from my final sketch as my final lines if I'm feeling extra lazy ;P
4. I added this bit in because it's a personal preference of mine. It sort of follows the same concept as when you draw humans. You draw the basic structure before you put clothes on them! It's the same way here. I drew the basic structure and body of the wolf, then I added fur. I add it in a separate layer so it's easier to erase, since I will only be erasing the lines of the fur and not those of the final sketch. You could draw it in the same layer as the final sketch, and sometimes I do, I just find it easier to do it this way.
Extra tips:
-Use layers! It's super helpful to take advantage of the layers feature in oekaki. It's the box located in the bottom right corner of the window when you're drawing. You can click the plus button to add a layer, or the minus to remove a layer. I find this convenient because it means I can do several different drawings on the same image, and if I want to erase lines or color in one layer I won't end up having to go back and fix something that I accidentally erased elsewhere in the image!
-Don't draw on the background layer, or Layer 1. This layer is not transparent. It's easiest to make a new layer (Layer 2), and draw there, and leave the white background. This way, if you need to move part of your sketch or drawing, you won't be moving the whole background!
-I already said this a few times, but I can't stress it enough. Use References!! Especially if you are looking to improve your art! You can't make progress if you aren't learning new things. Look at images of the thing you want to draw, but also look at muscles and skeletons of animals and people to figure out just how they're built!
tl;dr?
Use References
Use Layers
Use Sketches
Sorry I sort of wrote a novel here. I'm probably going to end up using this as an example if anyone ever needs some tips on improving their art.
