So, we got the small fish out of the way in the last tutorial.  In this one, we’ll take on a much larger fish – the great white shark.  Drawing a great white shark is actually fairly easy.  It’s not made up of very complicated shapes.  The challenge here will rest on the angle of the shark, this is the trickiest part of the drawing.

Here’s how to draw a great white shark, step by step…

Step 1 – Draw the Main Body of the Shark

Begin by drawing an oval for the main part of the shark.  This shape may be drawn at a slight diagonal, which will make the shark look as if it is in motion. Then draw two fairly simple shapes coming off of the oval.  The shape on the left of the oval will become the nose of the shark, while the shape on the right of the oval will become the tail of the animal. Both shapes are similar to triangles, but each have a slight curve on the end.

Step 2 – Add Some Fins

Now that we have the basic shape of the body of the shark in place, the next step is to add a few fins. Great white sharks have a distinctive dorsal fin, so we’ll start there. Notice how the shape drawn for the dorsal fin is positioned rather far back on the body. This is because the shark is swimming towards the viewer. If we were drawing the shark strictly from a side view, then the fin would be placed closer to the middle of the back.

After adding the dorsal fin, we’ll draw a shape for the tail fin. This shape should connect with rear portion of the body that we drew in step 1. We’ll also add the side fin that on the side of the body that is mostly hidden from view with this angle.

Step 3 – Draw Another Fin, the Mouth, and an Eye

We’ll add a second fin, opposite from the one drawn extending out of the bottom of the body of the shark. Notice how far back on the body it should be drawn and the length of the fin. This second fin is drawn in this way because of the angle of the shark. Since the shark is swimming towards (and hopefully not going to eat us), some distortion happens in the drawing.

We’ll also draw in a line for the mouth in this step. This line begins at the front of the body, extends back into the body, and then connects close to the edge of the oval that we drew in the first step.  A circle is drawn for the eye and is positioned near the top of the body. It may be helpful to compare the location of the eye with the location of the mouth to ensure that you get these features in the correct location.

Step 4 – Draw a Line for the Gray Section and a Couple More Fins

We’ll curve out the bottom portion of the mouth with a small line.  This line curves slightly upward, back towards the eye. A couple of very small fins are added to back half of the shark’s body. Simple triangles will do for these fins.

One of the distinctive features of a great white shark is the upper gray portion of the body. The “white” part of the body is basically found on the belly of the shark. We’ll draw a line with an irregular pattern that extends down the entire side of the body to differentiate the gray section from the lighter underbelly.

Step 5 – Finish the Drawing by Adding Details

We’ll finish off the drawing by using the shapes that we have already drawn as a guide.  The basic structure of the shark is already in place. We simply need to strengthen up the outlines and add a few details. You can go over your lines with a heavier mark here or perhaps with ink to make the contrast a bit stronger. You can also add a bit of shading with hatching and cross hatching.  Be sure to make the eye as dark as possible.  Add a few gills on the side of the body and draw those menacing teeth – the sharper, the better. Any stray pencil lines can be erased after your ink has dried.

Here are the steps to draw a great white shark in one image…