How to Draw a Nose from Multiple Angles (3 Easy Steps)

Interested in learning how to draw nose? If you’re anything like me when I first tried to do a nose drawing, it came out looking very cartoony and no where near realistic.

In terms of how to draw a simple nose and make it look realistic, we will break it down into 3 easy steps:

1. Using the planes of the nose, create guidelines for the shape
2. Tightening up the shape
3. Shading a nose

In this nose step by step guide, we have included how to draw a nose from the front, from the side and from a 3/4 view as well as how to draw a cute nose plus a simple guide on drawing noses for kids.

How to Draw a Nose – Key Takeaways

Each of the guides will follow the same steps shown below and here are some tips to keep in mind for each step:

1. Draw the basic shape
   • draw this step very loose and lightly since you will likely be erasing part of it
   • don’t worry about details in this step just aim for a general shape
2. Tighten up the nose shape
   • this will probably be the most frustrating and time consuming step
   • during this step you will try to
3. Shade the nose
   • this is the most enjoyable step when the nose really begins to take shape and pop
   • take your time in this step and continue to darken up the darker shades
   • add the highlights at the end by using a eraser

General tips

• I strongly recommend using a reference image. Using a reference image will help you get the proportions and details more accurate
• Take your time (each of the nose drawings I did for this post each took about 30 mins – 1 hour
• Stay calm in the beginning if your nose doesn’t look great while working on the shape/outline(especially in step 2)
• If you’re working on white sketch paper I strongly recommend using your finger or blending stick to get your entire nose drawing a light pencil shade (this will help with the ugly duckling phase in the beginning)

Tools You May Need to Draw a Nose

I did these nose drawings for this post in pencil on a sketch paper pad use the below items:

• Pencils (HB and 3B)
• Pencil Sharpener
• Erases (kneaded and regular)
• Tortillon (also known as blending stump)
• Reference image*

The Basic Shapes of the Nose

The nose is one of the most important facial features, but many people struggle with drawing it realistically. But don’t worry – it’s actually not as hard as you think!

All you need to do is start with basic shapes and then add some shading and value for extra realism.

Most noses can usually be broken down into:

• a triangle
• three circles

(*this is most easily done from a frontal nose view)

Whenever possible try to break the nose down into simple shapes first such as a triangle and circles. (What makes a nose a nose is all the shading and value that we will go over how to add later)

Understanding the Planes of the Nose

Next, learning to recognize the planes of the nose can help you draw it realistically and accurately. It may seem intimidating at first, but all you need to do is break down the nose into its basic planes – this will help us better add value and shading.

Breaking Down Values of the Nose

Using the planes of the nose as a guide, you now narrow down different tones and shading based on the different shapes of the nose and where the light source is coming from.

Lightest Shade: the light parts of the nose are generally reserved for the highlight or the are most exposed to the light source (in the image above you can see its the tip of the nose where the light is hitting

Mid Shade: the middle range shade will often make up atleast half the nose – this is the are that is not dark or heavily shaded but itsn’t as light as the highlight

Dark Shade: the darkest shades you will use on a nose usually are for inside the nostril or dark outlines around the nostril

*again, this all depends on the light source angle

The Importance of Observation and Proportion

One of the hardest concepts and skills to learn when drawing is observation and with that better replicating proportion of an object or figure.

Observation in art means your ability to see the differences in size, shape, and value.

With practice, your eyes will better be able to discern the differences in a drawings size, shape, and value.

This is the reason why when the first time you tried to draw a face or portrait of someone, you likely made the eyes to big and nose to small and ears way out of whack (I know I’ve been there).

Overtime, you will be able to see the subtle differences in your reference images and become better able to replicate them in your artwork.

So if your nose drawing doesn’t come out the way you’d like, understand that it will take time for your observation skills to grow and for you to better represent the correction proportion in your own drawings.

How to Draw a Nose from the Front

Before we get into the steps for how to draw a nose from the front first choose a reference photo of a nose you’d like to draw:

Step 1: Draw the Basic Nose Shape

Drawing the basic shape should be a few light lines, usually just the outline of the nose itself.

The shape doesn’t have to be exact – its just there to give you an overall idea of the shape for the next step.

Step 2: Tighten Up your Nose Outline

Once you have the basic shape quickly drawn, now its time to draw the other perceived lines of the nose that we will later use as guiding lines for adding value.

Along with drawing more lines to represent shape and value this step is also to make sure that your proportions and sizing is correct.

Some things to check to make sure your proportions are accurate are:

1. Consider size of the nostrils and how they align with the bridge of the nose
2. Consider the angle of the nostrils
3. Consider how large the middle “circle” of the nose is

While you may never get the lines and shape perfectly accurate when compared to your reference photo you should spend a large amount of time (~20-30 mins) making sure that your shape and sizing is accurate before moving onto the next step

Step 3: Shade the Nose

This is the third and final step (also the funnest step!). Once you have reached an acceptable accuracy to your reference photo, you can now begin to shade your nose.

This is another longer step that you should take your time in doing.

Some quick tips on this step are to:

• shade your entire nose with a light shade of graphite (this can be done with your finger or with a blending stump)
• then add in the darkest tones with your darker pencil – I’m using a 3B for this (this will usually be the nostrils or the lines that represent sharp changes in planes – like the outlines of the nostrils)
• next spend a good bit of time bringing out the middling tones of the nose
  • this can be done by drawing lightly with your HB pencil or by using your blending stump (get some graphite on your blending stump then rub it onto spots where you want to add graphite)
• finally, add any highlights that may be present by using an eraser to to expose the whiteness of the paper underneath

How Do You Draw a Nose from the Side View

To draw a nose from the side-view, we will follow the same basic steps as mentioned below but we will be breaking down the nose into different shapes:

Understanding the Shape and Planes of the Profile Nose

The shapes of a nose from the side can generally be broken down into:

• triangle
• two circles

Now if we look at the planes of the profile view nose we can better understand where to put our lightest and darkest shades:

Step 1: Draw the Basic Nose Shape

Again, in this first step we just want a general, light and simple shape for us to begin our drawing.

Don’t fret if the size and angles aren’t perfect this is just to get a general idea of the size and outline of our nose.

Here is my nose outline below with my reference image:

Step 2: Tighten Up your Nose Outline

Now is the hardest step, the one where we will begin to try to get our sizing, angles, and proportion as correct as possible when compared to our reference image.

In this step, you can also add more lines to better represent the shape of the nose.

Here are some times to help you better reach proper size, angle and proportion:

1. Consider the length of the nostril when compared to the rest of the nose
2. Consider how far the side of the nostril goes
3. Consider how large the middle “circle” of the nose is

Step 3: Shade the Nose

The steps to reach accurate shading are to consider:

• the shape of the nose from the side
• where the light source is coming from (on the other side of their face*)

Shading Tips:

• shade your entire nose with a light shade of graphite (this can be done with your finger or with a blending stump)
• then add in the darkest tones with your darker pencil – I’m using a 3B for this (this will usually be the nostrils or the lines that represent sharp changes in planes – like the outlines of the nostrils)
• next spend a good bit of time bringing out the middling tones of the nose
  • this can be done by drawing lightly with your HB pencil or by using your blending stump (get some graphite on your blending stump then rub it onto spots where you want to add graphite)
• finally, add any highlights that may be present by using an eraser to to expose the whiteness of the paper underneath

How Do You Draw a 3/4 Nose?

Now onto, how do draw a 3/4 nose:

Drawing a 3/4 nose may be considered the hardest angle to draw a nose since you are trying to represent both sides of the nose while one side is more visible than the other.

Step 1: Draw the Basic Nose Shape

Step 2: Tighten Up your Nose Outline

In this step, you are, once more, looking to make your nose outline more accurate as well as adding in some more lines.

Don’t be afraid if you have to erase quite a bit in this step or even redo your outline entirely thats totally normal!

Once you are happy with your outline and the proportions of it you can then move onto shading.

Step 3: Shade the Nose

This step should be done slowly, always take your time with shading.

The more time you put into shading, the more realistic your nose drawing will turn out.

Quick Tips:

• make sure one side of the nose is larger – that’s how angle is shown in a 3/4 nose drawing
• your nose may look “alien-like” that’s totally normal (noses really do like alien like)
• always try to put a base layer of shading on your drawing and leave only the highlight represented by empty space on the paper

How Do You Draw a Simple Nose?

To draw a simple nose, understand that less is more.

When attempting to draw a simple nose, you may have the urge to draw as many lines as possible but this will only leave you with a non realistic depiction.

You can actually a simple nose with very few lines depending on the angle you are drawing it.

Some lines to focus on drawing for a simple nose are:

1. nose bridge lines
2. nostrils
3. tip of the nose

How Do You Draw a Cute Nose Step by Step?

To draw a cute nose, in a cartoon or anime style try to keep the below points in mind:

• keep is small (especially when compared to the eyes
• only add details to the tip of the nose
• understand that you don’t need much detail

Steps:

1. Do an upside down triangle (with a short peak)
   • then use a blending stump to color it in
2. Draw a circle with the blending stump to represent the tip of the nose
3. Using your pencil shade where the nostrils are (both inside and outside)

Related: Click here to see how to draw anime for beginners (including how to draw a cute anime nose)

How Do You Draw a Real Nose for Kids?

Now for how to draw a real nose for kids, you can follow the same steps as how to draw a simple nose.

Again, following the same rules as above, less is more.

A nose actually doesn’t have a lot of specific hard lines, it has lines that represent angle and darker shades. So don’t feel pressure to draw every line you may see.

*you can also add some light lines to show the different dimensions of the nose

How to Draw a Nose – Final Thoughts

If you’re interested in learning how to draw a nose, don’t worry if your first attempts come out looking cartoony.

It takes practice to observe detailed differences in size, shape, and shading in your reference photo, but I promise if you commit to drawing 1 nose each day by the end of the week your final nose drawing will come out much more to your liking.

So choose some reference photos of different noses at different angles and try to break your drawing down into those three steps:

• start with a basic shape
• analyze the size, shape, angles to make your nose more proportionate
• then take your time adding in your shading

By following our three easy steps, with practice, you’ll be able to draw a simple nose that looks realistic.

Thanks for reading and check out some of our other drawing guides:

How to Draw Eyes (In 3 Easy Steps)

Facial Proportions for Drawing – Beginner’s Guide