How to draw a dragon: 31 interesting ways
Miscellaneous / / April 06, 2023
Cartoony and realistic, simple and detailed - choose the lizard to your taste.
How to draw a flying cartoon dragon
What you need
- Paper;
- felt-tip pen, pen or simple pencil;
- eraser rubber.
How to draw
This funny dragon will work even for those who can't draw. Let's get started!
Draw a circle. In its lower right part, draw the same figure, but smaller - this will be the pupil. There is another circle in it, the smallest one - this will be a highlight. Shade the pupil.
Draw a half circle on the left, just below the eye - this will be the muzzle. dragon.
Add another small curved line below the eye, ending with a short stroke - you get a slyly grinning mouth.
On the muzzle, draw two black dots and short curved lines above them, resembling brackets, and you will get nostrils. Draw a tooth sticking out of the mouth to make the dragon seem more mischievous.
Draw another half circle right under the eye - this is the dragon's lower jaw.
Let's finish the formation of the dragon's head. From the nose, draw a curved line - this will be the forehead of the dragon. Draw a small semi-circle where this new line will end - this will allow you to later add a horn to the dragon. And draw a pair of triangles on the back of the dragon's head - this will be a crest sticking out behind the head.
Finally, draw a slightly peeping second eye on the left - this will give the dragon volume.
Draw a dragon horns - one of them is partially hidden behind the head, and the second, which is closer to the observer, is placed in the same semicircle that we depicted earlier. Each horn is made up of two curved lines coming together. When you're done with them, add a raised eyebrow to the dragon in the form of a bracket above the eye.
Draw a curved line down from the point where the dragon's jaw and occipital crest meet. This will be his neck.
We begin to draw a wing. Keep in mind: it looks like a bat's wing. It is literally a hand with long fingers, between which membranes are stretched.
From the point where the neck ends, draw a slightly rounded line. This will be the forearm of the wing. And finally, another curved line will be his finger.
Now that we have the wing blank, we need to make it thicker. To do this, draw two more curved lines from the tip of the wing, repeating those that we depicted earlier.
Now, from the place where the lines that make up the forearm and finger connect, draw a couple more stripes - these will be other fingers. Between the fingers and the shoulder, add three connecting curved lines, and you get a web.
Draw a long, curved line from the dragon's chin. She will depict the abdomen.
Let's draw the front paws of the dragon - cute and rounded. Let's start with the one closest to us. Draw something like an open semicircle, resembling a six.
Add to this "six" another curved line, and you get a foot tucked in at the elbow. Only without fingers.
Using a curved line, draw the paw on the left. It is hidden behind the body, only a small part of it is visible.
Now draw claws in the form of small triangles on both paws.
Draw two small semi-circles below and to the right of the front paws - you will get a dragon thigh with a tucked foot.
Another curved line from the tip of the hind leg - and the leg takes on a clear outline.
Finish the dragon's belly by continuing the line to the very hind leg.
Let's add a tail to the dragon, consisting of two long curved lines that start at the dragon's leg and at the base of its wing. On the hind paw, draw the claws from small triangles.
Finally, add a second hind leg to the dragon, which should only be partially visible, as it is hidden by the body. To do this, draw a small semicircle under the foot. Add all the same triangular claws.
Draw a crest at the tip of the tail that looks like a slightly curved triangle.
Draw lines from the dragon's chin to its forearm, from the forearm to the knee, and from the thigh to the tip of the tail. Between them and the border of the abdomen, draw a curved segmented pattern resembling a rope ladder.
The dragon is ready. If desired, it can be colored with markers, paints, pencils or felt-tip pens. The master class can be viewed in its entirety here.
What other options are there
The previous drawing requires accuracy and smoothness in detail. If you want to draw something simpler, pay attention to this dragon.
If the previous options still seem too complicated, try repeating this drawing.
And here they show how to draw Toothless from the famous cartoon series "How to Train Your DragonA".
Finally, you can draw an anime-style dragon - here's a great option.
If you want to draw a cartoony, but at the same time convincing and well-designed dragon, here is a great step-by-step instruction.
If you are tired of these "baby" dragons, try drawing this one: this lizard is depicted in a cartoon style, but at the same time it has an original aggressive design. The artist draws it with a graphics tablet, but the same result can be obtained with a simple pencil or liner.
How to draw a realistic flying dragon
What you need
- Paper;
- a simple pencil, colored pencils, felt-tip pen or liner;
- eraser rubber.
How to draw
Let's start with a simple sketch - this will allow us to estimate the proportions of the creature. It is worth doing it with light touches of a hard pencil like H2, so that later you can easily remove unsuccessful details.
Our reptiles there will be three main centers of mass: a small head, a large chest, and hips somewhat narrowed in comparison with it. Draw the first center of mass as a large circle in the middle of the bottom of the sheet.
To the right, draw a smaller circle - this will be the dragon's pelvis.
The third circle, the smallest, draw a little further to the left - this will be the head.
Now connect all the circles with lines to indicate the neck, belly and back of the dragon. And to the smallest circle head, add a half oval from the bottom left. This will be the muzzle.
On the right, draw two more curved lines. They start from the edges of the circle representing the pelvis and converge smoothly. This will be the tail. The body of the dragon is almost ready.
Now outline the front legs of the dragon with simple curved lines. Do not pay attention to details now - it is important to capture the shape itself so that you do not have to redraw something later.
From the middle of the largest circle, draw a short line to the right - this is the paw to the elbow. From the extreme point, draw another line to the left and down - this is the forearm. Finish it with a smooth bend to the right - this is a brush.
Draw the back leg. To do this, draw a line from the middle of the right circle - this will be the leg to the knee. The next zigzag figure is shorter - the lower leg. From its extreme point, another line goes down - this will be the stop.
Let's portray wings. To do this, from the top of the largest circle, draw a slightly curved line to the right. After a small "crease" continue it, shifting a little lower.
Similarly, draw the second wing a little to the left. It consists of two lines connected at a wide angle.
We begin to draw the head of the dragon. First draw an oval eye in the leftmost circle. The curved line above it is the eyelid. And another figure of an irregular wavy shape is the spiked eyebrow of a dragon.
Draw a broken line from the tip of the dragon's snout to the edge of the circle. It will be mouth with protruding teeth.
Draw the dragon's nostrils in the form of two lines. Under the one that is visible to the viewer, put another short line - this is the nasal opening.
Now draw the dragon's horns as shown in the picture. Each of them consists of two curved lines that converge smoothly at the top. The left horn should be slightly smaller than the right one. laws of perspective.
Draw crests on the back of the head and jaw of the dragon. They resemble horns, but are smaller. Do not draw them carefully - we will deal with the study later.
Now let's work on the front paw. Draw two more parallel smooth lines around its sketch - these will be the inner and outer parts of the paw, respectively. At the end of the brush, depict pursed fingers.
Similarly, we will work on the hind limb. Draw two zigzag parallel lines around her sketch, gradually narrowing towards the tip of the paw. At the end, depict the dragon's pursed fingers, as shown in the figure below.
Let's start working on the wing. Draw lines along its outline, gradually tapering towards the tip. And on the fold of the wing, draw a lonely protruding claw.
Now, from the fold of the wing, draw four lines that will serve as struts. The thin parts of the wing, between which are stretched membranes, are nothing more than the fingers of an animal, so there should not be too many of them.
Now make the wing fingers thicker by gently tracing them again.
Between the fingers, draw the membranes - to do this, draw curved lines between their tips. In the same way, connect the wing to the body, as shown in the figure.
Draw the paws that are hidden from the observer by the body - they will be slightly smaller than those that we depicted before. Draw a smooth curved line from the beginning of the muzzle to the tip of the tail to outline the belly.
Draw a series of short triangles along the backbone of the dragon - this will be the dorsal ridge. On the tail, draw a figure resembling an arrowhead. Finally, draw a series of short parallel lines on the belly, resembling a rope ladder.
Make the guides for the far wing thicker. Draw a small clawed finger on its fold.
Draw the membranes and fingers in the same way as you did above. But do not work them out so carefully: the far wing is turned back to us and should not be very detailed.
Outline the dragon with a soft pencil, pen, liner, or felt-tip pen. Go over the drawing with an eraser, removing all the circles, lines and other primitives that you used when creating the sketch.
If you want to leave the dragon unpainted, you can finish the drawing here. But if you want to make it colored, tint the spikes, horns and crests with a brown or gray pencil, and also make small shadows at the bottom of the belly and paws.
Color the belly and inside of the dragon's wings with a yellow pencil.
Start painting over the body and head with red.
Paint the back of the far wing and the tail of the dragon in the same way.
In principle, you can choose any colors - for example, gray, dark green, brown and bronze. Such a dragon will be less catchy, but more realistic.
You can find the full video tutorial below.
What other options are there
A similar dragon that even a beginner can draw.
If the previous drawing still seems complicated to you, here is a good simpler option. This dragon can be drawn with just a marker or pencil.
And this is a stylized drawing of a flying dragon. These are usually depicted in heraldry and logos. Great reference if you want to create your own coat of arms.
How to draw a realistic standing dragon
What you need
- Paper;
- simple pencil;
- colour pencils;
- eraser rubber.
How to draw
Sometimes dragons are depicted as creatures with massive paws and a large body, although they also have wings. Let's draw this fantasy beast.
Let's start with an outline. Draw a large circle in the middle of a sheet of paper. On the right, draw a smaller figure. Above the first circle on the left, draw the smallest circle. These will be the centers of mass of the dragon - its chest, pelvis and head.
To the left of the small circle, draw a small rectangular shape - this will be the face of the dragon. Then connect all the shapes with slightly curved lines.
Draw two slightly curved lines to the right, extending from the large circle. These will be the front paws of the dragon.
Draw a similar pair of lines, only shorter, from the smaller circle. These will be the hind legs. Please note that on the line that depicts the leg closest to the viewer, there should be a break to the left - this is the knee. It is not necessary to draw it on the far paw, because it will be hidden by the body.
From the right circle, draw two curved lines that converge smoothly together. This will be the tail.
Draw two lines going up from the big circle and connected at an obtuse angle. From them, draw a curved strip towards the tip of the tail. This will be the dragon's wing.
Let's start working on the face. Draw a small oval - this will be the eye. Above it, draw a slightly curved line, and a little higher - a jagged curve. This will be the brow ridge of the dragon.
From the tip of the rectangular figure, draw a broken jagged line to the middle of a small circle - you get the mouth of a dragon. The jaws of the lizard are closed. Just above the mouth, draw two small shapes that look like commas - you get nostrils. Circle the rectangular shape with a pencil, and the dragon's face is ready. On the chin, you can add a small ledge looking down.
At the back and top, add a few shapes on the dragon's head in the form of triangles with irregular, broken sides. These will be the combs.
With short, slightly curved lines, draw the near forepaw of the dragon - it should turn out to be muscular.
With short strokes, draw the fingers on the paw of the dragon. Claws can be depicted as small triangles. In the place where they are attached to the finger, the line should not be straight, but rounded to show the volume of the finger.
Draw the second paw in the same way, using the line we sketched earlier as a guide. Just do not depict the shoulder and elbow - they are hidden by the dragon's body.
Using slightly wavy lines, start drawing the shoulder of the wing around the sketch we made earlier.
Draw the claw on the fold of the wing in the form of a small sharp triangle with slightly curved sides. Then draw in a darker tone the outer side of the dragon's wing.
Draw the web of the dragon's wing in the form of a jerky, curved line in three or four places.
Using short, slightly curved lines, draw the back leg of the dragon. Her knee should be pointing forward and the base of her foot pointing back.
With short strokes, draw the fingers on the back paw of the dragon. Draw the claws in the form of small triangles. In the place where they are attached to the finger, the line should not be straight, but rounded.
Draw the other hind paw in the same way. Just don't draw the knee - it's hidden reptile body.
Outline the outlines of the dragon's body, and in the lower part of its body, along the entire length, draw a long, curved line. It will separate the lighter belly from the sides and back.
Draw stripes on the belly that run perpendicular to the dragon's body.
Draw a row of teeth not on the back of the dragon, but on the tail - a crest or a round bone club, as in ankylosaurus.
Draw the second wing of the dragon, almost completely hidden by the first. Just repeat the outlines of the shoulder and forearm of the wing we drew earlier, but make it a bit smaller as it is further away from the viewer.
Outline the final silhouette of the dragon with a thicker pencil, pen or liner, and then erase all the primitives that we used to build the reptile.
Take a brown pencil and use it to color the crests on the head and back of the dragon, its claws, tail club and the edges of the wings. Also, with a brown pencil, draw the fingers of the wings in slightly curved thin lines from the edges of the membrane to the fold of the wing.
Paint over the dragon's body, legs, head, and outer side of the far wing with green felt-tip pen, but do not touch the belly, membranes, and crests.
Paint over the inside of the dragon's membranes and belly with a yellowish or cream shade.
With a brown pencil, draw shadows on the scales, belly and chin of the dragon to give it volume.
With a black pencil, draw randomly scattered thin veins on the wings of the dragon.
With the same black pencil, draw shadows under the dragon's paws so that it does not seem to be hanging in the air.
The dragon is ready. You can watch the drawing process in full here.
What other options are there
Another ground dragon, but this time icy and with a more developed system of crests on its head. It looks complicated, but even a beginner can draw it.
The water dragon, which combines the features of reptiles and fish, is also very interesting. character. Here's how to draw one.
Another interesting drawing sleeping dragon.
But this is a more difficult option. The dragon is drawn with a pencil, and to convey the shadows and depressions on its skin, you have to work hard.
Another meticulously crafted dragon with a huge amount of detail. Such drawings take a lot of time, but they are more interesting.
How to draw a realistic wyvern
What you need
- Paper;
- simple pencil;
- eraser rubber.
How to draw
A wyvern is a mythical creature that is a type of dragon. She has two legs and two wings, like bat. Let's try to draw this creature.
Let's start with an outline. Draw two circles - bigger and smaller. They must be located close to each other. In the larger circle, draw two smaller shapes. Divide each resulting circle with a vertical and horizontal line, and you will have a blank for the torso.
Draw a long broken line from the upper left edge of the large circle. This will be the shoulder and forearm of the wing.
At the tip of the line you just made, draw five thin curved lines pointing to the right. These are the fingers of the dragon's wing, between which the membrane is stretched.
Draw a similar long line to the left. This will be the forearm of the second dragon wing.
Draw five similar broken lines from the tip of the dragon's forearm. Add one very short line to the fold of the wing - there will be a claw.
Draw a long, curved line from the top edge of the wyvern's body. This will be the tail. Draw a shorter line from the larger circle to the left - this is the neck.
Draw the dragon's hind legs in the form of short, almost right-angled lines. At the tips of the paws, do not forget to sketch the fingers.
To the end of the short line on the left, draw a circle and two trapezoidal figures - this is a sketch of a head with an open mouth.
Connect the bottom of the head to the body with a short, smooth line to form the neck.
Using thicker lines draw the back legs of the dragon. Note: the dragon's knee is forward, and the metatarsus (the part between the heel and toes) is back, like birds.
Now with darker, but smoother lines, draw the tail, repeating the sketch made earlier.
Using smoothly curved lines, depict the webs between the fingers of the dragon's wing.
Draw more clearly the fingers of the dragon's wing, between which the membrane is stretched.
In the same way, draw a webbing between the fingers of the far wing of the wyvern.
Make the fingers on the far wing darker, more visible and voluminous.
Pressing a little harder with a pencil, circle the contours of the dragon's head. In the same way, draw a crest behind the head, resembling a small sharp triangle, and two rows of spikes on the neck.
Place the same spikes in the form of short lines on the tail. Then erase the circles that we used when sketching the reptile.
Draw more clearly the spikes on the dragon's neck, add teeth to the mouth and paint over the mouth with a dark tone. Cover the neck with small, slightly curved strokes for a scale texture.
Similarly, cover the chest of the dragon with many small, jerky lines. The very bottom of it needs to be made darker than usual, because this is the least illuminated part. In the same places where the wing is attached to the body, it is not necessary to add a lot of scales.
Shade the sides of the dragon's thigh with short lines. Don't touch the front end yet.
Outline more clearly the tail of the dragon. Draw fragments of the ridge along its entire length in the form of short triangles of irregular shape.
Make the fingers and tips of the dragon's membranes darker and more distinct, and then depict thin lines barely visible on the last - these will be folds and blood vessels.
The wyvern is ready. You can watch the painting process in its entirety here.
What other options are there
Another great wyvern drawing done in pencil.
Dragons from Game of Thrones are also wyverns because they only have one pair of legs. This video shows how to draw Viserion.
In this video the artist shows how to draw Caraxes, the Blood Serpent of Daemon Targaryen from "dragon houses». It has an elongated body, and on the hind legs there are additional webs to stabilize the flight. Drawing is done on a graphics tablet, but it can also be done with a pen, liner or pencil.
If the drawings shown seem complicated to you, here is another wyvern that even a beginner can handle. This is Vhagar from the House of the Dragon, drawn with felt-tip pens.
And another simple option, in which the wyvern is depicted spewing flames.
How to Draw an Exotic Chinese Dragon
What you need
- Paper;
- simple pencil;
- colour pencils;
- eraser rubber.
How to draw
Let's try to draw something more exotic like the Chinese dragon. It has an elongated body and short legs, and no wings.
Let's start with an outline. With a simple pencil, draw a circle on the right side of the sheet and draw two curved lines through it - vertical and horizontal. They will help to roughly imagine the direction of the dragon's gaze. The resulting figure will be somewhat reminiscent of a cap, but in fact it is a blank muzzle.
When you're done, draw two more of the same circles below and to the right - these will be the places where the dragon's body bends.
Connect the shapes with smooth, slightly curved lines, and you get a snake-like figure. From the last circle, draw to the right and up two curved lines converging at one point - this will be the tail.
From the larger circle and from the bend of the tail - the two lowest points of the dragon - draw short lines sticking out in different directions. Draw a couple more shorter lines to the tip of each of them. These will be blanks for the short, splayed legs of the dragon.
We begin to work out the face. At Chinese dragon eyes are located not on the sides of the head, as in European ones, but in front. Draw two bracket-like lines on the muzzle, and short teeth above them. These will be the eyebrows of our dragon. When drawing, be guided by the vertical line that we drew in the sketching stage, as the central axis of the dragon's head. And keep in mind that the far eyebrow should be less than the near one - this is the law of perspective.
Draw two small ovals under the eyebrows - the far one should be slightly smaller. In each figure, draw half a circle - these will be the eyes and pupils of the dragon. Under each eye, draw a short line - this is the lower crease of the eyelid.
Using short, jerky lines, draw more clearly the tip of the dragon's muzzle. Add winding lines there - mustaches sticking out in different directions. And on the top of the muzzle, draw two semi-ovals, above which one short, curved line is placed. This is the nose of a dragon, which in Chinese monsters resembles tiger.
Based on the sketch we made earlier, draw the lower jaw of the dragon. To do this, draw something like two horseshoes connected by ends - larger and smaller - under his muzzle.
Draw a few protruding short rectangles in the dragon's mouth above and below - these will be the teeth.
Outline more clearly the contours of the dragon's head and add an uneven tongue consisting of two short connected lines.
Under the lower jaw, draw a pattern of jerky wavy lines - this is a dragon's beard, reminiscent of a fringe. And on the right side of the head, draw two elongated ovals nested into each other - this is the ear.
With the same jerky lines draw the crests behind the dragon's head. And add short horns to it, reminiscent of reindeer: their tips should be smooth and rounded.
Let's start drawing the paws of the dragon. They should be short and splayed, with the thumb set back. Use short, straight lines to represent the individual toes of the reptile. The angle between them should be approximately 20–30°. The limbs of Chinese dragons resemble those of a bird.
In the place where the dragon's limb connects to the body, draw a few chaotic, curved lines sticking up, the tips of which are connected. It will flames. However, you can also decorate the dragon with tufts of fur or even feathers if you like.
Draw the remaining limbs of the dragon in the same way - they are the same for Chinese reptiles. Just do not forget that the far legs are partially hidden from the viewer by the body.
Add short triangular teeth to the back of the dragon along its entire length. At the tip of the tail, draw a crest of the same shape, but larger.
Draw the contours of the dragon's body more clearly using a darker pencil, felt-tip pen or liner. Erase the circles we used when building the reptile.
Color in the dragon's belly, mane and crests with a yellow pencil.
Paint the rest of the dragon's body orange, and fur or make the flames around his paws red.
Put another layer of orange on top of the dragon's body, and then draw in the scales with a brown pencil.
The drawing is ready. You can see the process of drawing the dragon in its entirety here.
What other options are there
Here is another Chinese dragon created with great attention to detail. It is drawn with felt-tip pens.
If all of the listed dragons seem too primitive to you, pay attention to this option. Here the lizard is depicted in the original pose and carefully worked out.
And finally, here is an ink drawing of an oriental dragon. If you want to make a really unusual painting, this is the option for you. If there is no ink on hand, not very diluted watercolor and gouache will do.
How to draw a realistic dragon head
What you need
- Paper;
- hard and soft simple pencils;
- eraser rubber.
How to draw
Let's start by building a primitive. Draw a barely visible circle in the middle of the sheet with a hard pencil. At the top, make a half oval representing the eye. Inside it draw the same figure, but smaller, it will be the pupil.
Divide the circle in half with a curved line, as shown in the illustration, the line will help guide you when drawing the jaws of the dragon.
Attach to the circle on the right two curved figures depicting the jaws of a dragon. And use sharp, slightly curved lines.
Draw three or four long, slightly curved, irregular shapes behind the dragon. These will be his combs.
Draw five or six straight lines extending from the dragon's head to the left and down. This will be the base of his neck ridges.
Draw short curved lines between these bases - you get a dragon neck crest, reminiscent of fish fins or jewelry. lizards.
Draw two curved lines to the left and bottom of the head - this will be the neck.
Now draw on the top of the dragon's head and neck a few large scales, as if dividing his skin into segments. Use long, slightly curved smooth lines when drawing.
Add some details - draw the dragon's nostril as two converging curved lines at the tip of the muzzle. And don't forget the spikes on the top and bottom of his head - these are elongated triangles with an acute angle, pointing to the left.
The sketch is ready, now we move on to a more thorough drawing. Fill in the depression around the dragon's eye with a softer pencil and add shadow under the scales on the top of its snout.
Fill in the nostril with black and mark the folds above and below it with two smooth lines. Then mark more clearly the outlines of the dragon with a softer pencil.
Draw the dragon's teeth. Each consists of two short, slightly curved converging lines. Don't make your teeth the same.
Outline more clearly the contours of the dragon's head, and erase the unsuccessful lines and circles used in the construction of the sketch.
Let's start shading. Shade the creases between the neck ridges using bracket lines. Use a softer pencil so that the tone is even.
Put shadows on the bottom of the horns, on the bottom of the neck and chin, and on the front of the nose.
Take a softer pencil and apply darker shadows around the dragon's eyes and around its scales on its head.
Cover with hatching his jaws, tongue and chin. Especially dark shading should be applied in the mouth, around the eye and nostrils - in those places where the dragon has depressions. And the topmost part of the tongue should not be painted over - this will show that it is wet and slightly shiny.
Circle the neck ridges more clearly and apply shading to them too. But the protruding spacers between the ridges do not need to be painted over - this way you will show their volume.
Draw short dark lines on the top of the dragon's head - these are the shadows on its scales.
Circle the horns on the dragon's head with a darker color, shade the lower half of each darker - this will show their volume.
Draw darker shading on the lower part of the dragon's neck - there will be a shadow from the neck ridges and chin.
As a final chord, you can add strands of saliva that hang from the reptile's mouth. The dragon is ready.
You can see the full process of drawing a dragon here.
What other options are there
Another dragon head from the same artist. It looks just as realistic, but less detailed. If you can’t get the previous version, try drawing it.
If you want to draw not some abstract dragon, but Smaug from Peter Jackson's film series "The Hobbit", then here is a great reference.
Another extremely popular character among the winged fire-breathing creatures is Drogon from "Game of Thrones”, owned by Daenerys Targaryen. Here is his extremely detailed charcoal drawing. You will have to sweat over it, but the result is worth it.
And finally, the colored head of the dragon, which is made of hot lava. To achieve the shine of his scales, the artist applies colors with felt-tip pens in layers.
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Text worked on: author Dmitry Sazhko, editor Natalya Murakhtanova, proofreader Elena Gritsun