How to draw a Koi
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Here we sketch out the basic shape of the Koi. My apology on the image being dark, but my outline was pretty light so I had to darken everything. Quick point of interest, if the Koi is drawn swimming upward, it means you are enduring a hardship, when
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Here we shape out the head, Koi have odd angular heads with alot of curves. Also, draw the "whiskers" in such a way that suggests movement rather than straight for some more realism.
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Here we Sketch out the eye, and add some lining to the head which suggests depth and curves. Note that there is a small highlight in the pupil of the eye, details like this make alot of difference.
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Here we work the side fins. Here, when adding the lines in the fin, curve them to suggest forward movement.
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Here we work the back fin. This fin stretches from the upper body towards the tail. Again here, we are going to angle the lines in the fin back, to suggest forward movement.
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Time for the tail area. Note that the left fin of the tail is drawn in such a way to show the tail curving around on itself.
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Here is the part most people hate the most, the scales, but for me it is the easiest. A tip to help with nice smooth rounded curves that are the same size is to use a coin and trace the edge. I used a penny here, and used "in god we trust" as a guide
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If you have gotten this far, and are satisfied with your sketch it is time to darken it up. Go over your design with a fine point marker or black colored pencil. We are almost done here.
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Now its time for the coloring, my favorite part. Here, you can be as creative as you like. Japanese artwork uses different colors and patterns. You could go a simpler route, using a nice orange and yellow as your colors. You can use your own favorite
