To start off, it would be nice to be able to draw anything at all ... If it works, you can think about how to draw animals, which are very many around us, and they are very different and not very similar to each other. The fauna is too diverse, but it's worth trying. This, at least, is interesting and informative.
How to draw animals?
If it is short, then - with understanding. And the goal that we want to achieve, and the graphic techniques that will help us do this. It is necessary to be able then to explain how to draw animals, children, when they ask about it. But in any case - it's an exciting lesson, drawing. And anyone who has such a desire, is able to understand the correct sequence and answer the question of how to draw animals. For example, from all the diversity of the animal world, we will choose a small elephant. Why not? Any drawing begins with the correct layout - you need to imagine in general terms the desired result of your work and properly place your future drawing on a piece of paper. Light strokes denote the boundaries of the image and a certain semantic compositional center. It must in no case coincide with the geometric center of a sheet of paper, this is one of the laws of composition. Next, we perform the construction of the figure of the elephant. Highlighting the main volumes in it, we carefully compare their proportions with each other and with the whole figure as a whole. This is the most important time for building any animal, we will try not to be mistaken. Otherwise, we simply can not cope with the answer to the question: "How to draw animals?" Having dealt with the proportions, we study some of the details most interesting to us and generalize the drawn. We try to convey the general character, mood and dynamics of the figure. If necessary, we model the figure and the elements of chiaroscuro. We draw attention to the shading. It is useful to first practice and understand the arsenal of expressive possibilities of such a familiar instrument as a pencil. Well, almost ready ... In the process of drawing you need to be able to stop in time. We can say that in the first approximation we coped with the task and answered the question of how to draw animals. But do not stop there.
Let's dream up
Let's try to depict animals not in the way our eyes see them, but in the way we feel from the character. Let it be caricatured and cartoonish. Let's give the animals human traits. In the world of fine art, there are many examples. On this, in particular, the entire animation is based. How to draw a cartoon animal? For this, first of all, you should abandon the desire to depict them photographically. This is clearly not the case. You should start here with the possibilities of linear graphics. The line can convey any character and the whole range of moods. And to us first of all, it is not "similarity" that matters, but expressiveness. Here it should be sought. And before taking on a large drawing, it would be nice to look for the right line on a small sketch. It should be easy and uninhibited.