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How to Draw a Flying Fish

12 steps · Medium · about 9 min

Draw a flying fish in 12 easy steps, about 9 minutes. Free, with a printable worksheet.

Each picture adds one red line. Draw that line, then scroll to the next picture. Rub out any dashed helper lines at the end. First up: eye and smile.

Step 1: Eye and smile
Left of the middle, draw one huge round eye. In front of it, add a small open smile.
Tip Make the eye really big, and leave lots of room on the right.
Step 2: Long slim body
Left of the smile, start a long rainbow over the eye, down to a thin neck. Draw the same below.
Step 3: Bow-tie tail
From the back, draw a C up and a C down to the belly. Close the neck with a curve.
Tip The tail is a sideways bow tie. Add 2 thin lines from the neck, one up and one down.
Step 4: Big lower wing
From the belly past the middle, sweep a huge wing down to a point, and up to the belly again.
Tip The wing grows out of the belly, well behind the eye. Add one thin line down the middle of the wing.
Step 5: Gill
Behind the eye, start below the back. Draw a short C bowing towards the tail, stopping above the belly.
Step 6: Big upper wing
Behind the gill, sweep a huge wing from the back up to a point, and down to the back again.
Tip Both wings root behind the gill, like a glider. Add one thin line up the middle of the wing.
Step 7: Small top fin
Near the tail, draw a tiny sail fin from the back up and down to it, clear of the wing.
Step 8: Splash drops
Behind the tail, near the bottom, draw 3 round water drops flying up, getting bigger to the right.
Step 9: The water
Low on the page, draw a wavy water line from edge to edge, under the 3 drops.
Step 10: Sky blue and pink
Colour the wings, tail, top fin and drops light sky blue, and the smile pink.
Step 11: Blue water
Colour the water blue under the wavy line, all the way across.
Step 12: Navy body
Colour the body dark navy blue, going around the eye and smile. Leave the eye white.