Hello artists! I hope you’re doing great.
If you’ve landed on this page, it probably means you’ve never drawn before and want to learn how to draw an eye as a complete beginner.
Welcome — you’ve found the perfect place to start!
Don’t worry, I’ll make this eye tutorial engaging and inspiring for you, so you’ll always come back, longing to learn and draw even more.
Eyes are truly the most beautiful part of the human body. Learning to draw them is a natural instinct because we’re drawn to beauty — and when that beauty carries emotion, an artist’s heart can’t resist picking up a pencil and creating.
Enough chit-chat! Let’s begin.
Basic Anatomy of an Eye:
Before drawing, let’s take a moment to understand the structure of the human eye.
This will help you draw it more realistically, instead of just copying lines from a picture.
First, remember this: an eye isn’t flat. It’s a 3D sphere that sits inside the eye socket.
Imagine the eye socket as a circle holding the eyeball inside. Now, divide that circle in half — you’ll notice the tear duct sits slightly below that line. Keep that in mind as you draw.
Next, draw two arcs (half circles) around the middle line. These will form the upper and lower eyelids.
The iris, which is the colored part of the eye, is a full circle — but it’s partly covered by the eyelids. When viewed from the front, the iris appears mostly circular but the top part is hidden by the upper lid.
The pupil lies right in the center of the iris (not in the center of the whole eye). That’s an important distinction!
Understanding this 3D structure before drawing helps you avoid flat, cartoon-like eyes and gives your drawing depth and realism.
Tools You’ll Need for This Tutorial:
You don’t need fancy materials — just a few basics. Here’s what I used:
- H pencil – for light guidelines
- 2B pencil – for mid-tone shading and outlines
- 4B pencil – for darker shading
- 6B pencil (optional) – for deep shadows and pupils
- Eraser – for highlights and corrections
- Sharpener – to keep your pencils crisp
- Ruler (optional) – to help align shapes
- Paper – any will do for practice; I’m using a simple 70gsm printing sheet
If you’re unsure about graphite pencil shades and how to use them, check out my full guide on pencil grades and their uses before continuing!
All set? Great. Let’s start drawing.
How to Draw an Eye Step by Step:
Step 1: Draw the Base Circle
Start by drawing a simple circle using your H pencil. Keep it light — this will serve as your base for the eyeball and will be easy to erase later.
Step 2: Add the Guideline
Draw a horizontal line right through the middle of the circle. This helps you align the eye’s elements correctly.
Step 3: Draw the Eyelid Arcs
Sketch two arcs around the middle line — one above and one below. These represent the upper and lower eyelids.
Step 4: Draw the Iris
Inside the circle, draw another circle for the iris. It should overlap the upper arc slightly — remember, the eyelid covers a small portion of the iris.
Step 5: Add the Eyelids
Now, use the top of your iris as a guide to draw the natural folds of the eyelids. These small details make a big difference in how realistic the eye looks.
Step 6: Add the Pupil and Highlight
Draw a smaller circle inside the iris — that’s your pupil.
Right next to it, draw a smaller circle or organic shape to represent the highlight (the reflection of light in the eye). This will bring your drawing to life later.
Step 7: Draw the Tear Duct
Remember from the structure study — the tear duct sits slightly lower than the outer corner of the eye. Draw that shape gently.
Step 8: Erase the Guidelines
Carefully erase your guiding lines without smudging your drawing.
Once you’ve cleaned it up, switch to your 2B pencil to darken the main outlines.
Step 9: Shade Under the Eyelid
The upper eyelid casts a shadow on the eyeball. Use your 2B pencil to shade this softly.
Then, use a 4B or 6B pencil for the iris, since it usually appears darker under this shadow.
Step 10: Shade the Iris and Pupil
Now, shade the iris and pupil while keeping your highlight untouched.
The pupil should be the darkest part of the drawing.
For the iris, draw thin “string-like” lines radiating from the outer edge toward the pupil. They don’t have to be perfect — just have fun with them!
Step 11: Soften the White of the Eye
The white part of the eye (the sclera) is never pure white.
Add a light tone of shading to make the highlight stand out more, but keep it subtle.
Step 12: Shade the Eyelids
Use a 2B pencil to gently shade both the upper and lower eyelids.
Focus more on the outer corners and leave the middle areas lighter — it helps create depth.
Step 13: Add the Eyelashes
Finally, draw the eyelashes. Here’s a tip:Don’t draw every lash individually — group them in small bunches. This makes them look much more natural.To finish, lightly darken the outer edge of the eye to give the illusion of a soft cast shadow from the lashes.And you’re done!
Take a step back and admire your work — you just learned how to draw an eye realistically.
Final Thoughts:
I hope this eye drawing tutorial helped you understand both the structure and the shading techniques that make eyes so expressive.
If you found this guide helpful, share it with your friends who love to draw too!
I’ll be uploading more tutorials soon — from beginner-friendly sketches to advanced portrait details — so stay tuned and keep practicing.
And remember: every great artist started with a single line.
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