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Description
For and others who would like a quick overview of the steps to construct a horse or other equine-shaped animal. This is a distillation of the important bits I have gleaned over the years.

Have reference material, either the real animal, a good photo, or a 3-D model is vital when you are learning. Once you have all the major anatomical "landmarks" in your memory, you can construct a horse without reference material. I'm not an uber-purist about such things -- use what works and helps to train your inner eye. I own a bunch of Breyer plastic model horses which I haul out and stare at when I'm trying a new angle or complex arrangement. Check out Wikipedia's great articles on equine anatomy and structure here: [link]

You can trace a photo -- but bear in mind photos distort, and the equine form can end up warped depending on the angle of the camera. As you gain experience you will be able to correct for distortion as you create your initial rough sketch.

Do take your camera to a horse show, track, or local stable and take lots of pictures. Sitting in a pasture and sketching is a lot of fun, just watch out for horsie-help!

Description
For and others who would like a quick overview of the steps to construct a horse or other equine-shaped animal. This is a distillation of the important bits I have gleaned over the years.

Have reference material, either the real animal, a good photo, or a 3-D model is vital when you are learning. Once you have all the major anatomical "landmarks" in your memory, you can construct a horse without reference material. I'm not an uber-purist about such things -- use what works and helps to train your inner eye. I own a bunch of Breyer plastic model horses which I haul out and stare at when I'm trying a new angle or complex arrangement. Check out Wikipedia's great articles on equine anatomy and structure here: [link]

You can trace a photo -- but bear in mind photos distort, and the equine form can end up warped depending on the angle of the camera. As you gain experience you will be able to correct for distortion as you create your initial rough sketch.

Do take your camera to a horse show, track, or local stable and take lots of pictures. Sitting in a pasture and sketching is a lot of fun, just watch out for horsie-help!