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How to Draw a Sardine

13 steps · Medium · about 10 min

Draw a sardine in 13 easy steps, about 10 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: slim body.

Step 1: Slim body
Start on the right, draw a low back to a pointy snout, then the tummy back, stopping under the start.
Tip About 3 times longer than it is tall, like a little silver cigar.
Step 2: Big eye and smile
Draw a big eye, a pupil and 2 shines. From the snout tip draw a smile, stopping before the eye.
Tip The eye is huge: almost as tall as the head.
Step 3: Forked tail
Start at the back's end. Draw a tail with 2 points and a V between. Stop at the tummy's end.
Step 4: Tiny back fin
Start on the middle of the back. Draw a tiny swept-back fin and stop on the back a finger along.
Step 5: Gill
A little behind the eye, start below the back. Draw 1 short C bowing back and stop above the tummy.
Step 6: Tiny side fin
Behind the gill, below the middle, draw a tiny leaf for the side fin pointing back.
Step 7: Tiny belly fin
Below the back fin, start on the tummy line. Draw a tiny swept-back fin and stop on the tummy.
Step 8: Silver band
Start on the gill, above the middle. Draw a long line back to the tail. Do another a bit lower.
Tip The band is the sardine's silver stripe along the whole body.
Step 9: Bubbles
Above the snout, draw 3 bubbles floating up, each bigger than the last.
Step 10: Sand and seaweed
Draw a wavy sand line edge to edge. Grow 3 tall pointy seaweed leaves from it, 2 on the left.
Step 11: Sandy floor, blue bubbles
Colour the floor under the sand line sandy, right to the edges. Colour the 3 bubbles light blue.
Step 12: Grey body, green seaweed
Colour the head and tummy grey around the side fin, and the seaweed green. Leave the eye and band white.
Step 13: Blue back, dark fins
Colour the back blue above the band, and the tail and fins dark grey. Your sardine is done!