How to Draw a Boat

 

 

In this article, we will show you how to draw a boat.

There are several types of boats: cruise ships, yachts, ferries, barges... I have chosen to show you how to draw a sailboat because, in my opinion, it has the most interesting shape to deal with.

The other types of boats are mostly made up of a large rectangle for the base and many other rectangles for the cabins, whereas the sailboat is composed of several different shapes, such as triangles and trapezoids, which will allow you to practice drawing well.

 

Like every drawing, we will start with the basics ...

 

 

 

DRAWING THE BASE OF THE BOAT

 

 

 

Start your boat by drawing a trapezoid with the upper line longer than the lower line.

 

 

 

 

 

Once you've drawn the hull of the boat, add another trapezoid toward the left side of the hull, but this time with the top line shorter than the bottom line. This will be the cabin.

Next, draw 2 masts: a small one on the left and a larger one on the right. The larger mast should also be thicker than the smaller one.

 

 

 

 

 

Draw a barrier on the left side of the hull, starting from the end and going up to 1/3 of the cabin.

Then add some rectangles on the right side of the hull to "dress it up" and give some dimension to the sailboat.

 

 

 

 

 

Draw a barrier at the very end of the right side of the hull and add the sails. Add one small sail on the small mast and one on the left side of the mast. Draw a large sail on each side of the large mast.

 

 

 

 

 

Draw cables that connect the sails to the boat.

You will need at least 2 per sail.

Once you have drawn the cables, your base is finished! We can now move on to the line step.

 

 

 

 

 

NEATENING UP THE SAILBOAT

 

 

 

 

 

Once you've taken the time to create your base, and you're happy with how it looks, you can go over everything again with a darker color, even black if you'd like.

Use strokes of different thicknesses to add relief and life to your drawing. This will make it less "flat."

Consider removing unnecessary lines and taking the opportunity to clean up some uncertain or poorly drawn lines.

 

 

 

 

 

Now that you have retraced your lines, you can start adding some details like the bars on the left barrier, windows on the cabin, and caps on the masts.

 

 

 

 

 

To continue, add a few lines to the hull to divide it into several sections and add some decoration.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now, color some of the shell's elements in black to form patterns and add detail.

 

 

 

 

 

Now you can refine elements like the right barrier and add details to the entire boat.

You can add as many details and decorations as you wish, let your imagination run wild!

As for me, I chose to draw a relatively simple and uncluttered boat, but if you can add as many details as you like - just have fun with it!

 

 

 

 

 

ADDING SHADOWS, HIGHLIGHTS, AND COLOR

 

As mentioned above, I want to keep my drawing rather simple, so I'm opting to color my boat in different shades of gray.

If you'd like to add color to your boat, don't worry, the steps are the same!

 

 

 

 

 

I will start by applying a medium shade over the entire drawing. For me, it will be medium gray.

I chose to extend my hue and also use it as the background. You can just as easily use it for only the boat and choose other shades for the background.

 

 

 

 

 

Then, I will apply a slightly lighter shade to the areas I want to highlight.

I chose the sails, the barriers, and part of the hull.

 

 

 

 

Next, I will continue with a shade between the 1st and 2nd.

I will apply it to the cabin, the rest of my hull, the ends of the masts, and the front cable.

 

 

 

[/!\ before proceeding to the next step:

At the end of the drawing, I will blend my shadows and highlights, so for now, I just roughly sketch them.

If you are using a graphics tablet, graphite/colored pencils or watercolors, you will have no problem blending.

On the other hand, if you're working with tools such as pens, markers or acrylic paints, you will not be able to blend the colors (or at least with great difficulty), so make sure to draw your shadows and highlights clearly, and even gradually by making gradients of shades, especially if you're using color!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now that the main shades have been laid down, we will add shadows and highlights to give our drawing depth.

I will start by applying a dark shade to add contrast and simulate hollows, bringing in the shadows.

I will apply it on the folds of my sails, halfway up the masts, on the cabin, and all other areas that will be hidden or recessed.

 

 

 

 

 

I will accentuate the shadows using an even darker color.

 

 

 

 

 

I will then add highlights using a very light, almost white tint to the areas that are raised.

 

 

 

   

 

To finish, I will blend my shadows and highlights to soften everything.

Your drawing is now finished!

 

Don’t hesitate to add shadows and highlights. It changes the whole look and brings your drawing to life. :)

 

 

 

Illustrator and writer: Coralie