How to Draw a Snowy Owl
Please PAUSE the "How to Draw a Snowy Owl" 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 snowy owl's head. The circle doesn't have to be perfect. It's just a guide. Leave enough room on the bottom for the body.
Step 2: Draw two intersecting lines inside the circle. These lines will help you place the snowy owl's facial features later on.
Step 3: Draw another circle on the bottom left side of the head as a guide for the top part of the snowy owl's body. This circle should be bigger than the head, and the edges of the circles should just barely touch.
Step 4: Add a few more lines to finish the guide for the snowy owl's body. Draw a couple of lines to connect the head to the body at the top and a curved line at the bottom.
Step 5: Draw a few small lines under the body as a guide for the snowy owl's feet.
Step 6: Draw a short arc on the lower left side of the body as a guide for the snowy owl'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: Lightly sketch the snowy owl's eyes inside the head as small half-circles using the initial lines as guides for placement. Darken the outline of the eyes when you get the shapes right. Darken the sides of the eyes using a thicker line. This thicker, darker edge helps define the shape of the eyeball inside. Add a tiny circle inside each eye, off to the side, to represent glare. In the middle of each eye, draw a big dot for the pupils. Add some shading at the top of each eye using a value that's lighter than the pupils.
Step 8: Draw the snowy owl's beak under the eyes using an angled line similar to the letter V. Add a few lines above and to the sides of the beak for the feathers. Use quick, short strokes to give the lines a feathery texture.
Step 9: Draw the rest of the snowy owl's head using the initial circle as a guide. Follow the basic path of the circle as you darken the lines to create the shape of the head. Add a few more quick, short strokes inside the head for a more feathery texture.
Step 10: Draw the top part of the snowy owl's folded wing inside the body as a series of curved lines. Use a series of short J-shaped lines along the pottom part of the body to represent the wing's feathers. These J-shaped lines should get longer and straighter the closer they get to the top. Add a curved line on the right side of the body for the folded wing that's on the other side.
Step 11: Draw the bottom part of the snowy owl's folded wing using more curved lines under the first part of the wing. These lines should be longer and spaced closer together than the lines above them. Add another row of long feathers below. Notice that the whole wing shape becomes narrower closer to the bottom.
Step 12: Use the initial lines and shapes as guides to draw the snowy owl's body. Follow the basic path of the guides as you darken the lines to create the shape of the body.
Step 13: Use the short lines under the body as guides to draw the snowy owl's feet. Use quick, short strokes to draw the outline of the feet for the fluffy feathers. At the end of each guide line, draw a pointy triangle-like shape for the sharp talons.
Step 14: Draw the visible portion of the snowy owl's foot and talons on the other side of the body the same way.
Step 15: Add a few lines within the shape of the arc at the bottom for the snowy owl's tail feathers.
Step 16 (optional): Add a few lines under the snowy owl's feet to create a rock so that the owl doesn't appear to be floating.
Step 17 (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 of the final sketch lines that you may have accidentally erased.
Final Step (optional): Add some shading to your snowy owl drawing to give it more dimension and volume. Pick the direction of the light source when shading so that the shadows are consistent with it. Add the value lightly at first, then gradually build up to the level of darkness that you want. As you shade, try to use smooth strokes that go in the general direction of the feathers. Shading can be time- consuming, so be patient and take breaks. Use a darker value on the snowy owl's beak and talons by pushing harder on your pencil.
Male snowy owls have a few spots on their feathers (females have a lot more). You can add some spots to your owl drawing or leave it all white. Don't worry too much about the placement of the spots. Just add them randomly on the body.
It's always a good idea to use reference for a more accurate drawing. Don't forget to pause the "How to Draw a Snowy Owl" video after each step to draw at your own pace.
Snowy owls have bright yellow eyes. If you'd like, you can add some yellow to them.
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