Free original lessons
Learn to place eyes on a front-facing face grid using the eye line, one-eye spacing, and iris guides. Includes rules, mistakes, and four practice tasks.
This lesson teaches a reliable method for placing eyes on a front-facing face grid. You will use two rules: the eye line (a horizontal guide at the vertical midpoint of the head) and the one-eye spacing rule (the gap between the eyes is about one eye width). You will also place irises with a simple guide. The lesson excludes three-quarter views, scaled eye ratios, and full facial feature construction. All measurements are checkable with a ruler or by counting grid squares. Numerical values are hypothetical examples unless you measure your own paper and grid.
Practice materials: Printable downloads are not available for this lesson yet. Use the instructions and four exercises below.
Use the stated measurements and conventions for each exercise.
Draw a front-facing oval or rectangle for the head. Mark the vertical midpoint from the top of the head to the chin; this is the eye line. On a grid, count squares to confirm the midpoint. For example, if the head spans 12 squares vertically, the eye line is at square 6 from the top.
Mark the total eye span across the eye line. A common rule is that the two eyes plus the gap between them fit within the width of the head, with about half an eye width of margin on each side. Using hypothetical values: if the head is 10 squares wide and each eye is 2 squares wide, then two eyes plus one gap equal 6 squares, leaving 4 squares total margin, or 2 squares per side. Adjust only after measuring your actual grid.
Draw each eye as a simple almond or oval centered on its marked width. Keep both eyes on the same eye line. The inner corners face the gap; the outer corners face the margins. Iris placement uses a guide: draw a light vertical line through the center of each eye socket, then place the iris center on that line at about the middle of the eye height. This is a convention, not a universal rule; valid alternatives include irises slightly toward the inner corners for a focused look, as long as you state the convention.
Use the grid to keep symmetry. Count squares from the center line to each iris center; the counts should match. If they do not, adjust the iris, not the eye line, unless the eye line itself was mismeasured.
A finished placement should pass three checks: both eyes sit on the eye line, the gap between the inner corners is about one eye width, and the margins are equal. Use simple arithmetic. If the head is 10 squares wide, each eye is 2 squares, and the gap is 2 squares, then margins are (10 - 6) / 2 = 2 squares each. If your numbers differ, recompute before erasing.
Handwriting and art conventions vary. X-height is measured from baseline to midline, and letter styles vary, so do not force a single universal eye shape. The rubric rewards consistent use of a stated convention and checkable spacing, not identical drawings.
A front-facing head is 12 squares wide at the eye line and 16 squares tall from top to chin. Using hypothetical values, place the eye line, two eyes of 2 squares each, a 2-square gap, and equal margins. State the margin and iris guide.
The eye line is at 8 squares from the top (16 / 2). Total eye span is 2 + 2 + 2 = 6 squares. Margins are (12 - 6) / 2 = 3 squares each. Mark left margin 3, left eye 2, gap 2, right eye 2, right margin 3. Iris centers sit on the vertical center of each eye socket at mid-height. Check: 3 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 3 = 12 squares.
A front-facing head is 10 squares wide at the eye line. Each eye is 2 squares wide and the gap is 2 squares. What is each margin?
Each margin is 2 squares.
Why: Total eye span is 2 + 2 + 2 = 6 squares. Head width minus span is 10 - 6 = 4 squares. Divide by two margins: 4 / 2 = 2 squares each.
Check: Add margins and span: 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 = 10 squares, matching the head width.
A head is 14 squares tall from top to chin. Where is the eye line, and how many squares from the top?
The eye line is at the vertical midpoint, 7 squares from the top.
Why: Midpoint is half the height: 14 / 2 = 7 squares.
Check: Count 7 squares down from the top and 7 squares up from the chin; both meet at the same line.
On an eye line 12 squares wide, a student marks a 3-square left margin, a 2-square left eye, a 3-square gap, a 2-square right eye, and a 2-square right margin. Does this satisfy the spacing rule? Explain.
No. The gap is 3 squares while each eye is 2 squares, and the margins are unequal (3 and 2).
Why: The gap should be about one eye width, which is 2 squares here. Margins should be equal. The total is 3 + 2 + 3 + 2 + 2 = 12, so the width fits, but the spacing rule is not met.
Check: Compare gap to eye width (3 vs 2) and compare margins (3 vs 2). Recompute equal margins as (12 - 6) / 2 = 3 squares each with a 2-square gap.
A student places irises on the vertical center of each eye socket but shifts both irises one square toward the inner corners. Is this acceptable? State what must be done.
Yes, if the student states the inward-shift convention and applies it consistently to both eyes.
Why: Iris placement is a convention, not a single universal rule. The rubric allows valid alternatives when labeled and consistent.
Check: Check that both irises are shifted by the same amount and that the convention is written next to the drawing.
A horizontal guide at the vertical midpoint of the head from top to chin. On a grid, count squares to confirm it.
About one eye width is a common convention. Measure your actual eye width and use that same width for the gap.
A simple guide is the vertical center of each eye socket at mid-height. You may state an alternative convention, such as irises shifted slightly inward, as long as it is consistent.
No. Use hypothetical example values only to practice the arithmetic, then measure your own paper and grid.