Please PAUSE the "How to Draw a Koi" video after each step to draw at your own pace.
For the first few steps, don't press down too hard with your pencil. Use light, smooth strokes to begin.
Step 1: Draw a circle as a guide for the koi fish's body. The circle doesn't have to be perfect. It's just a guide. Leave enough room on the sides for the tail and the head.
Step 2: Draw an arc on the left side of the circle as a guide for the koi's head. The length of the arc should be about the same as the width of the circle.
Step 3: Draw another arc on the right side of the circle as a guide for the back part of the koi fish's body. This arc should be a tiny bit longer and narrower than the first one.
Step 4: Draw a triangle-like shape on the right side as a guide for the koi's tail. To draw the tail, first draw a long line on the side, then connect the line to the body using smaller diagonal lines.
Step 5: Draw three small lines on the bottom left side as a guide for the koi's pectoral fin.
Step 6: Draw a long line on the top right side of the body as a guide for the koi's dorsal fin.
Step 7: Draw two more triangle-like shapes on the bottom right side of the body as a guide for the pelvic and anal fins.
That's it for the initial sketch! From this point on, press harder with your pencil to get a more defined sketch.
Step 8: Draw the koi fish's eye inside the arc close to the top. The eye is basically a circle with a smaller circle inside for the pupil. Shade the pupil.
Step 9: Use the tip of the arc as a guide to draw the koi's mouth. Follow the basic path of the arc as you darken the lines to create the top part of the mouth. Draw two long lines that come to a point on the right side of the mouth for the whisker-like barbels. Add another line at the bottom for the lower part of the koi's mouth.
Step 10: Draw the rest of the head using the initial arc as a guide. Darken the lines to form the koi's head and add a dot on top for the nostril.
Step 11: Draw a series of long curved lines on the right side of the head for the koi's gills.
Step 12: Use the shapes at the top and bottom as guides to draw the koi's dorsal and pectoral fins. Follow the basic path of the guide and darken the lines. Draw some lines within the shape for extra detail. Make the lines wavier to indicate motion as you darken the shape of the fish's pectoral fin. Add some lines inside too.
Step 13: Use the triangle-like shapes on the bottom as guides to draw the koi's pelvic and anal fins. Make the outer edges of the shapes wavier as you follow the guides and add some lines inside for detail.
Step 14: Use the remaining shapes and lines as guides to draw the rest of the koi's body and tail. Follow the path of the initial guides as you darken the lines to form the body. Darken the lines for the tail but make the middle portion indent in toward the koi's body. Add some lines inside the shape for the ridges on the tail.
Step 15 (optional): For a cleaner look, erase as much as you can of the initial guide lines. Don't worry about erasing all of the guides. It's okay to leave some behind. Re-draw any final sketch lines that you may have accidentally erased.
Final Step (optional): Koi can be colorful, so instead of the usual shading, try coloring your drawing. Add some shading first using gray to give the drawing more dimension and volume. Lightly draw a series of small curved lines overlapping each other for the scales. Don't draw every individual scale. Just a few for the basic semblance of scales. Pick the direction of the light source to draw the shadows consistently. Shadows are usually at the cool end of the color spectrum, so use some blue and purple on the shadows.
Here's the fun part! Color your koi drawing any way you'd like. Koi come in a variety of colors and patterns, each with an individual name. The most predominant colors are usually red, orange, white, black and yellow. Pick the colors you want your koi to have, and then block out the shapes lightly all over the body. Koi come in a wide variety of patterns, so the color shapes on the body don't have to be perfect. Just add them randomly. Continue building up the shapes on the body by gradually adding darker coats of color. Push harder on your pencil to achieve a richer hue. Use a different shades of a color too. Instead of just using red, try combining red, orange, brown, etc. Leave a portion across the middle of the entire body lighter for a shiny appearance. Continue adding color to the shapes gradually until you achieve the saturation you want.
Coloring can be very time-consuming, so be patient and take breaks. It's always a good idea to use reference for a more accurate drawing. If you have pet koi, try to duplicate their pattern on your drawing. Remember to pause the "How to Draw a Koi" video after each step to draw at your own pace.
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