Did you spend hours on the face, only to rush the body again?

Why your brain tricks you into ruining proportions (and how to fix it).

Hello, Artists!

Have you ever spent an hour perfectly rendering a beautiful face, only to feel completely lost when it's time to draw the body?

By the time you force the body to match the head, it often looks like a detailed face glued onto an awkward mannequin. The proportions fall apart, and you end up putting your pen down in frustration.

If this sounds familiar, don't blame your drawing skills. Blame your brain.

🧠 The "Face First" Trap (A Brain Science Problem)

As humans, our brains use a massive amount of energy to read information from the faces of others—it's a survival instinct.

Unfortunately, this instinct kicks in when we draw, too. Your brain constantly whispers, "Let's make the face pretty first!" But if you exhaust all your energy and focus on the face right from the start, you lose sight of the overall gesture and structure.

To professionals, the face isn't the main character; it is just one "piece" of the overall silhouette. You must build the underlying structure first, saving that beautifully rendered face as your "final reward."

🖌️ The 4-Step Cure (Using Procreate)

Our eyes naturally want to zoom in on the face. To fight this instinct, I use this specific workflow to force myself to see the big picture:

Step 1: The Big Flow (Extreme Zoom Out) Shrink your canvas size significantly and use your largest brush. Make it physically impossible to draw details like eyes or a nose. Focus strictly on capturing the overall flow and silhouette of the figure.

Step 2: Gradual Scaling Slightly zoom in on the canvas and reduce your brush size by about 20%. Now, establish the larger masses—the torso, the pelvis, and the angles of the limbs.

Step 3: Solidifying the Structure Repeat this process 4 to 5 times. Slowly zoom in and decrease your brush size, refining the anatomy and locking in the core structural lines.

Step 4: The Final Reward Only at the very end, zoom in as much as you need, pick a small brush, and render the face. Because the underlying body is already rock-solid, that beautifully detailed face will now serve as the perfect focal point, not a floating distraction.

If you simply shift your mindset from "drawing a face" to "building a body," the way you approach the blank canvas will completely change.

Open up a tiny canvas with a giant brush today, and try capturing just the silhouette!

P.S. Is there a specific drawing struggle or topic you'd like me to cover in future newsletters? Simply reply to this email or reach out to [email protected] and let me know. I'd love to hear your thoughts and help you on your art journey!