If you’re a nature lover who enjoys the great outdoors, drawing a cardinal can be a fun way to connect with nature.

These iconic birds with their bright red feathers, shining yellow beaks, and strong stances are a joy to draw.

With this easy-to-follow guide, you can learn how to draw a cardinal step-by-step and create your own beautiful rendition of this magnificent creature on any creative surface you prefer.

Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced bird artist, Rush Philanthropic will guide you through the basics and provide expert tips to help you master cardinal drawing in no time!

What will you learn in this tutorial on How To Draw A Cardinal Step By Step?

• In this tutorial, you will learn how to draw a cardinal step-by-step.
• We will cover such topics as sketching the outline of the body, adding color and details to the feathers, and rendering the facial features of the cardinal.
• You will also get tips on how to properly shade your drawings for a realistic look.
• By following along in this tutorial, you should gain enough knowledge to be able to draw your own cardinals confidently!

These are the materials we will use.

• Pencils
• Paper
• Eraser
• Crayons
• Markers

How To Draw A Cardinal Step By Step?

Step 1 – Draw the Eyes

• To begin drawing eyes, position them slightly to the right but towards the center of the paper.
• Then, draw a small circle for the iris and include a tiny reflection of light by adding another circle.
• Finally, fill in the remaining area of the eyes with color.

Step 2 – Bird’s beak

• Drawing a cardinal’s beak is the fun part because it has a unique shape compared to other bird beaks.
• To draw it, start by sketching a large “V” shape that is positioned sideways.
• Then, draw a downward curve for the top part of the beak and a straight line for the bottom.
• Connect the vertex of the “V” shape to the front of the beak. Make sure to make the beak much thicker than other parts of the bird’s body.

Step 3 – Top of the head

• To draw the top of the head, begin by sketching the messy hair on top of its head.
• The hair is reminiscent of bed hair and is often seen as two horns pointing upward.
• Draw a zigzag line that comes down and stops just above the bird’s eye level.
• Next, draw a small line going down to end at the back of the head.

Step 4 – How do you draw the wings of a cardinal?

• To continue drawing the cardinal, draw a straight line pointing downwards for the bird’s wings.
• Then, draw another line that goes back up to create the bottom part of the wings.
• To make the wings appear thick, add a downward curve for the bird’s shoulders.

Step 5 – Draw some details on the wings.

• To add some details to the cardinal’s wings, draw a zigzag or curved line similar to what was done earlier for the other bird’s feathers.
• If the lines are not already connected, connect them to complete the feathers.
• Make the feathers longer by drawing additional lines and connecting them to the previous ones.

Step 6 – Draw the belly.

• To draw the cardinal’s belly, start by drawing a small line that curves inwards towards its head, just below the neck.
• Then, continue downwards to draw the belly by curving outwards and downwards towards the tail or wings.

Step 7 – Draw the face

• To draw the cardinal’s face, we can create a distinguishing feature by drawing a small black mask on its face.
• To do this, start by drawing a line from the cardinal’s forehead, then creating a curved line around its eyes.
• Finally, bend the line down toward the belly.

Step 8 – Draw the tail

• To draw the tail, start by drawing a curve on the cardinal’s back, then add another line next to it that curls into his tail.
• Connect the ends of these two lines with a slight curve.
• Finally, add some detail to the feathers by drawing additional lines.

Step 9 – Draw the branches

• Let’s draw the branch on which the cardinal is standing.
• Start by making a slightly wavy line that goes up from the left side of the paper and then a little higher on the right side.
• Then, draw another line right next to it to fit it.

Step 10 – Draw the legs

• Let’s draw the cardinal’s feet. We’ll start with two lines, one going down and bending slightly to create a knee, and the other going straight down the branch.
• Now let’s add some small claws by drawing thick lines that look like they’re grabbing a branch.

Step 11 – Add leaves

• To give our twig a more realistic look, we should add some green leaves.
• We can draw additional branches that extend from the original one and seem to grow out of the paper.
• For example, we can add another branch here and have some leaves growing in that direction too.

Step 12 – Color

• Let’s begin coloring the bird by filling in its entire body with the color red.

Step 13 – add shadow

• Next, we will add some depth to Cardinal by creating shadows.
• We can use a dark brown color and apply it under the body, wings, belly, and tail to create the effect of light shining down from above.
• We can also use black to fill in the mask on its face.
• Moving on, let’s use orange to add a layer of light on its head, leaving a bit of white on its beak to indicate where the light shines.
• Then, we can go back in with red to blend the colors and make the orange appear more red.
• Now, let’s work on the branch that the cardinal is sitting on.
• Using a light brown color, we can color the branch in its entirety and leave a bit of light on the top to show where the light source is coming from.
• Finally, let’s add some leaves using light blue and dark blue colors.
• We can fill in one leaf completely with light blue and then use dark blue to add some shadow.
• This will create a nice contrast with the cardinal’s red color and make it stand out more.
• It’s looking 3D with the shadows, and the contrast between the red and green is really nice!

Conclusion

In conclusion, learning how to draw a cardinal step by step can be an engaging and rewarding experience for all levels of artists.

With minimal supplies and some patience, you can create a beautiful and unique representation of one of nature’s most colorful birds.

By understanding the different shapes and forms, the color blending techniques, and the importance of value contrast, your cardinal drawing will emerge before your eyes.

Taking into account all these steps we have discussed might feel intimidating at first, but remember that it is a continuous process with trial and error as part of the package, so don’t hesitate to keep practicing!

And now you can get out there and challenge yourself—go ahead, draw that cardinal!