Tracy Brady Cartoons

First off, it’s okay to have a hard time with drawing hands and arms. They often take a lot of practice and observation to get right but can be mastered with practice.

The body is made up of basic shapes. The hand can either be a circle or a square and the fingers be ovals or lines. The arm is a cylinder or rectangle that may be divided into two parts by an angle to show the upper arm, elbow and lower arm.

A quick tip is to look at your own hands when drawing. Pose your hand in the way you would like to draw it, then draw what you see.

In cartoon art, normal human characters often either have the regular amount of digits (4 fingers and a thumb) or 3 fingers and a thumb. Where relevant, draw the angles that indicate the presence of the knuckles and wrists even if you do not draw the fingernails. Palm lines should be included and at the very least be shown as the curve of the thumb and the line under the fingers.

Remember, the more realistic that your drawing is the more detailed your hands and arms will be.

Doodle some hands and arms and work on your proportions and positioning. Don’t shortcut on effort to get these right and remember too that the more you practice, the better you become.