I recently re-started my way through Marshall Vandruff's Bridgman Bootcamp video series on YouTube to try to brush up on things I felt weak on after my attempts in December. One of those things was proportions. I've struggled for a long time with proportions - specifically with making the torso too long in relation to everything else.

Normally I use the method proposed by Loomis in his figure drawing book and using head-lengths to locate various points on the body. Unfortunately, this requires getting the 7-9 head-lengths mostly equal in size for it to work well. Even more unfortunately, I am very bad at this.

The method I'm adopting from Bridgman is a lot easier because it's a lot simpler. I draw two horizontal lines of equal length at the top and bottom of where I want my figure. I then connect the ends of either line to create an "X". The base of this X is approximately the bottom of the pelvis (or very slightly above).

This gives me a solid enough mid-point on the figure that I can eyeball the rest of the proportions and be mostly accurate. Or at least accurate enough that errors feels less obvious than a lot of the figures I draw and don't post here. That said, this method isn't without its limits. If the figure is posed in a way where the top and bottom halves aren't equal or are at an angle (someone who's crouched, leaning over, reclining), it quickly loses all value. Regardless, it's another step toward becoming a better artist!

(Also: I know the legs are a bit weird here. The pose I was using for reference was a photograph and unfortunately humans do not have digitigrade legs. Also my focus was more on doodling something to practice the proportion method and not on accurate animal anatomy.)

(Also-also: I don't know why she has horns and a fluffy tail. She must be a hybrid.)