How to Draw a Woodpecker
Please PAUSE the "How to Draw a Woodpecker" video after each step to draw at your own pace.
For the first few steps, don't press down too hard with your pencil. Use light, smooth strokes to begin.
Step 1: Draw a circle as a guide for the woodpecker's head. The circle doesn't have to be perfect. It's just a guide. Leave enough room at the bottom for the body.
Step 2: Draw an angled line similar to a triangle on the right side of the head as a guide for the woodpecker's beak.
Step 3: Draw another circle under the head as a guide for the woodpecker's body. This circle should be bigger than the head and should be placed off to the right a bit.
Step 4: Add a few more lines to complete the guide for the woodpecker's body. Start with a couple of short, curved lines at the top for the neck. Then draw a big U- shaped arc at the bottom as a guide for the lower half of the body.
Step 5: Draw a series of lines on the lower right side of the body as guides for the woodpecker's feet. Add a few lines on the side as guides for the toes. The guide for the foot on this side should resemble the letter K.
Step 6: Draw a long, angled, V-shaped line under the body as a guide for the woodpecker's tail.
That's it for the initial sketch! From this point on, press harder with your pencil to get a more defined sketch.
Step 7: Draw the woodpecker's eye as a small circle inside the head on the upper right side. Add a tiny circle inside the eye, off to the side, to represent glare and a big dot in the middle for the pupil. Add a few lines around the outside of the eye for extra detail.
Step 8: Use the triangle-like shape on the right as a guide to draw the woodpecker's beak. First draw a zigzag line made up of quick, short strokes on the left side of the guide for the feathery base of the beak. Follow the basic path of the guide as you darken the lines to create the outside shape of the beak. Draw a long line in the middle of the shape for the mouth and a shorter line at the top for the nostril.
Step 9: Use the initial circle as a guide to draw the woodpecker's crested head. Follow the path of the circle as you darken the lines but add an extra bump on the upper left side for the crest. The crest is similar to a triangle with a rounded top. Use quick, short strokes for the feathery texture. Draw a line above the eye using quick, short strokes for the color separation of the red crest.
Step 10: Add the striped pattern in the woodpecker's head using a series of quick, short strokes. First add the stripe to the left of the eye that curves down toward the back of the head on the left. Now draw another line that starts at the beak and curves to the left and down toward the neck. Finally add a couple of lines under the beak that curve to the right toward the throat.
Step 11: Use the initial K-shaped line as a guide to draw the woodpecker's foot that's on this side of the body. Follow the basic path of the guide as you make the shape of the foot and toes thicker. Add the claws at the end using short, curved lines.
Step 12: Use the other set of lines as a guide to draw the woodpecker's other foot. Make the toes thicker and add the claws. Part of the foot is behind the foot on this side, so try to not overlap the lines.
Step 13: Draw the top portion of the woodpecker's wing using a series of curved lines inside the body. Draw the shape lightly at first to get the placement right. This portion of the wing should be as long as the body.
Step 14: Now draw the lower portion of the woodpecker's folded wing using more curved lines. First draw a thin arc below the first portion of the wing. Then add an even thinner arc for the tip of the wing.
Step 15: Use the initial lines as guide to draw the rest of the woodpecker's body. Follow the path of the guides and darken the lines. Extend the stripe on the head toward the wing.
Step 16: Use the long, thin arc below the body as a guide to draw the woodpecker's tail.
Step 17: Draw a series of vertical lines on the right to represent the side of a tree for the woodpecker to grab on to. First draw a long, vertical line aligned with the feet for the trunk. Then add a few smaller lines for the tree's texture.
Step 18 (optional): For a cleaner look, erase as much as you can of the initial guide lines. Don't worry about erasing all of the guides. It's okay to leave some behind. Re-draw any final sketch lines that you may have accidentally erased.
Final Step (optional): Some woodpeckers have brightly colored heads, so instead of the usual shading, try coloring your drawing. Start by adding a darker shade of red or brown to the bottom part of the head. Then use lighter shades of red, like red-orange, the closer you get to the top of the head. Continue adding the shades of red and blending them to the top of the head and the stripe next to the beak. Add some brown to the pupil, yellow to the iris and some gray to the beak and feet.
Start adding the black to the rest of the body. Add the black lightly at first, then build up to the level of darkness that you want. Be sure to leave the white parts of the woodpecker blank. Try to not overlap black color into these areas. There's a tiny, white stripe above the eye, a longer stripe next to the beak that moves down to the wing and a small stripe under the beak. Coloring can be time- consuming, so be patient and take breaks. Consider coloring separate sections at different times to break dwon the process. Continue adding black until you reach the level of darkness that you want. Push harder with your pencil for a richer shade.
Use some black for the tree trunk as well. Or you can just use brown on the tree for a simpler drawing. Add a few diagonal stripes using a dark brown to give the tree bark some texture. Then add different shades of brown to the tree trunk and slowly build up to the shade that you want. It's a good idea to use reference for a more accurate drawing. Remember to pause the "How to Draw a Woodpecker" video after each step to draw at your own pace.
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