How to Draw Insects

Insects make up the largest group of species in nature. The first step to drawing them realistically is planning (choosing a subject) and composition.

Note:

If you are new to realistic drawing, you may want to read my guide for realistic pencil drawing first.

Composition tip:

In most cases, try to avoid side views. Although they are easier and faster to draw, they create a less interesting composition.

Being right-handed, I draw from left to right to avoid smearing what I have already drawn.

Drawing insects from a three-quarters angle creates a much more engaging view for the observer.

Problem:

Houseflies are attracted to human food and bare skin, which allows them to easily spread pathogens they carry on their bodies.

Solution:

Use window nets to keep them out.

Front and top views are similar to side views, meaning they are less interesting.

To learn more about composition, visit my composition drawing guide.

Basic drawing steps:

To draw any insect, start by drawing its form (structure) accurately.

Tip:

Draw lines gently so you can draw over them or erase them.

There are no lines in nature, so you do not want lines in your final drawing.

I usually prefer drawing the background elements first, such as the plant stem. As you work, pay close attention to brightness values and soft or hard edges.

While most insect bodies feature sharp, defined edges, their cast shadows tend to have soft, gradual edges.

Problem:

Aphids damage plants by sucking their sap.

Solution:

Ladybugs are natural predators that feed on aphids.

If you struggle with accuracy, here is how to draw from photos (from observation).

Drawing Bee Hair Strands

As mentioned earlier, there are no lines in nature. To draw a single realistic hair strand, start your pencil stroke with firm pressure and gently release it as you pull away.

This single motion creates both a smooth transition in tonal value (from dark to light) and a natural taper (from thick to thin).

Clustering Hair Strands

Instead of drawing each hair individually, treat groups of hair as surfaces or areas with varying brightness values.

Many insects feature hair or fine fuzz. A classic example is the bee, whose body is covered in soft, dense hairs that catch pollen.

In the example above, I drew the back part of the bee lighter, with soft edges, lower contrast, and fewer details.

Although a bee’s body is very small, this technique mimics the effect of atmospheric perspective typically seen in landscapes.

You can learn more about linear and atmospheric perspective in my perspective drawing guide.

Problem:

Bees play a vital ecological role in pollinating plants, but their populations are steadily declining due to a variety of environmental factors.

Solution:

You can support local bees by planting nectar-rich flowers and avoiding harmful chemical sprays or pesticides in your garden and planters.

How to Draw Moth Fur Texture

When rendering fur or fine hair, working in layers yields the best result.

Start with a soft, light base layer and gradually build up finer details on top. As you add texture, keep the big picture in mind by focusing on the overall light and dark values of each area rather than getting lost in individual strands.

Finally, pay close attention to your edges. Fur should always have soft edges, creating a natural contrast against sharper features like the moth’s eyes.

Note:

In the example below, I chose to add a thin layer of color using a marker.

I generally advise against applying marker directly over graphite. The wet ink can smudge the pencil shading and blur fine details.

Here is a moth drawn entirely from imagination using colored pencils, inspired by the vibrant rosy maple moth.

If you are new to drawing from imagination, be sure to check out my imagination drawing guide.

Problem:

Moth caterpillars can devastate farm crops, while household moth larvae destroy fabric and clothes.

Solution:

Bats play a vital role in keeping moth populations in check by feeding on them and other nocturnal insects.

How to draw light fur?

When drawing big, I use a small eraser to draw light fur.

For small drawings, the key is to draw the negative space, meaning the dark areas around the light fur.

By drawing toward the light area (penetrating the light area with dark values), it looks like the light areas are above the dark areas.

If you want to see how I draw different types of textures, visit my texture drawing guide.

How to draw a shiny surface?

There are two things to look for.

First, pay attention to edges. Edges are how each area ends and how two areas are connected to each other.

Some edge types are: hard (1), soft (2), less defined (3), and reflection (4), meaning how an edge looks on a reflective surface, like water or glass.

Next, pay attention to contrast.

A shiny surface usually has bright highlights and a strong contrast.

For a strong contrast, you can draw the dark area darker, the light area lighter, or both.

Now you can draw insects with a shiny or reflective surface, like ants, beetles, and wasps.

Problem:

Ants follow chemical traces left by a scouting ant when it finds food stock.

Solution:

Keeping a house clean of breadcrumbs, dirt, and scraps of food.

Problem:

The female mosquito, when it needs proteins for its eggs, is looking for a live source to suck blood from.

Solution:

In the case of an occasional mosquito, you can use an electric bat.

For recommended paper types for drawing and sketching, visit my drawing paper brands review.

How to draw transparency?

Some insects' body parts, especially wings, can have different levels of transparency.

To draw that, look at the brightness value of anything behind the transparent part.

In the example below, the cockroach wing is semi-transparent. The area behind it is quite light, except for the leg, which has a darker value.

In addition, pay attention to edges located below the transparent surface.

In the examples above and below, the edges of the leg part located under the wing are both soft and distorted (less defined).

Note:

For insects with fully transparent wings, there may be no distortion to the edges.

Problem:

Cockroaches can live without food for several days to a month; thus, even if you do not see them at home, that does not mean they are not there!

Solution:

Ensure the house is clean and, if necessary, spray pesticides in the area in which they are located.

Problem:

There are too many insects!

Solution:

Spiders (which are not insects) eat many insects.

Most spiders are harmless to humans, so it is best to let them do what they do best.

For the drawing equipment I use, check out my guide to pencil drawing materials.

Ecological importance:

• Insects are of primary importance in the pollination of flowering plants. Insects pollinate a significant percentage of the human food supply.
• Insects have a significant importance in the food chain. For quite a few animals, such as amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals, insects are the only source of food.

• In addition, they dismantle organic waste, such as dead animals and plants, thereby enriching the soil.

Economic importance:

• Insects produce useful products, which are traded among people.
• Among the beneficial substances created by insects are honey, silk, lacquer, and wax.

Beeswax is used for making candles.

Here is a review for my recommended markers for artists.

Insects as food:

• In some cultures, insects are used as food.
• Insects as food are rich in proteins, vitamins, and minerals.

Other:

• Forensic entomology (the study of insects) is used to determine the time of death at a crime scene.

Flies and mosquitoes have great ecological importance and are the second most important pollinators after the bees.

Mosquitoes are the most lethal family of animals because they transmit parasites and viruses.

The cockroach has a high resistance to radiation but has no exceptional resistance compared to other insects such as the fruit fly.

Where to go next?

To understand how to use depth when drawing, visit my 15 ways to draw depth.

For learning to draw online, check out my list of YouTube drawing tutorials.