How to Draw a Deer: blocking in the basic shape

Deer stand on their toenails in an ungulagrade stance. This means that the heel and the wrist are about half way up the portion of the leg that is visible below the line of the belly. Capture the posture, proportions, and angles of the deer with light quick lines. Check your proportions and then go back and add your details. Do not rush into the detailed drawing too soon. To accurately draw a deer, details must be supported by a solid and anatomically correct structure.

In the drawings below I use a compleated drawing of the deer to show what I am moving toward in the steps. The blue lines represent my first guide lines that I would use to block in the body before drawing the details. In a real practice, the guide lines come before the detail lines.

Click the first image to start the slideshow.