How to Draw a Wave: An Easy Step-by-Step Guide

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Draw a simple or detailed ocean wave with pencil, pen, or marker
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Ocean waves are so beautiful to look at, but it can be challenging to recreate that free-flowing majesty with just a pen and paper! Fortunately, we’ve put together this easy, step-by-step guide for artists of any level to create a magnificent wave drawing. Whether you want to draw a simple wave , a realistic wave , a Japanese wave , or one that’s blended and shaded with markers , we’ve got the beginner-friendly steps for you!

Section 1 of 4:

How to Draw a Simple Wave

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  1. Place your pen and pencil on the paper, then draw a line that gently slopes upward to the right. Then, begin to curve your line downward and round the line. Curve the line under itself to create a small inward curl. [1]
  2. 2
    Draw a small semicircle off the curl of your first line. Draw an open semi-circle (or “C” shape) with one end of it touching near the end of your curled line. Angle the semi-circle or “C” shape so that the open section faces toward the upper-right corner of your paper. [2]
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  3. 3
    Draw a jagged, sloped line on the wave's left side and a curled one on the other. Now, we’ll start adding in smaller waves to frame the larger wave that you’ve just drawn. On the left, draw another upward sloping line, then sharply round it off and curve the line downward to connect with the large center wave. On the right side, draw a smaller version of your first line that connects with the large wave—draw a line that slopes slightly upward to the right, then curl the line in on itself. [3]
  4. 4
    Add random, squiggly lines to either side of your wave cluster. Add a combination of straighter and more curved lines to your central waves to extend them out to the sides. Draw horizontal, squiggly lines that have less of a crest (or vertical height) than your central waves. Make sure one end of each line connects to a line in your central wave cluster. This is the part that you can really make your own, and work with your own art style and what looks best next to your original waves. [4]
  5. 5
    Add more squiggly lines below your waves to add depth. To create more depth and detail in your wave drawing, draw small curved and squiggly lines underneath your waves. Keep them unconnected to any of the other lines in your drawing. These lines will give your waves more volume and make them look more like they’re part of a larger ocean. [5]
  6. 6
    Optionally, add details, like surfers, animals, or a background landscape. If you want to draw more than a wave, then you can add more context and action to your wave scene. Consider drawing a person surfing on a surfboard on top of your wave. Or, you can draw sea creatures like a dolphin , whale, shark , or mermaid coming up out of the waves. You might also want to draw a simple background with clouds , birds , the sun, an airplane , or anything else your mind can dream up! [6]
  7. 7
    Color in your waves in shades of blue, green, or grey. The most iconic (and cartoonish) color of a wave is a bright blue shade. However, depending on the weather, you could also opt for a greyish, light blue, or green-tinted wave. Choose whichever beautiful color you like best, then color in your waves with your preferred art medium—e.g., watercolor paints , colored pencils, markers, crayons, etc. [7]
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Section 2 of 4:

How to Draw a Realistic Wave

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  1. Turn your paper so that it’s in a landscape orientation. Find the approximate midpoint of your paper between the top and bottom edges. Use a ruler or straightedge and a pencil to lightly sketch a horizontal line across the entire paper. [8]
  2. 2
    Draw a sideways cylindrical shape that’s bisected by the horizontal line. Start by drawing one large circle over the horizontal line so that the horizontal line splits it in half. Move your pencil about 2–3 inches (51–76 mm) to the right. Then, draw a curved line that matches the height and curve angle of your circle. To create the cylinder, draw two horizontal lines to connect the top and bottom of the circle to the top and bottom of the curved line. [9]
    • If you want to lengthen your wave, simply draw another circle to the left of your original one. Then, extend the horizontal lines so that the new circle is connected to the cylinder.
  3. 3
    Draw squiggly lines on the horizon line to represent the wave's whitewater. Freehand a few sections of squiggly, scraggly lines along the horizontal line. Vary up the shape and placement, and make sure the lines aren’t purely horizontal—remember that you want them to look like free-flowing water. These lines will represent the tip of your wave, or the whitewater that appears when the wave has crested and is breaking over itself. [10]
  4. 4
    Draw curved lines to connect the scraggly lines to the cylinder. As you move into this next step, note that the horizontal line is being used to determine the curve of the wave—this line marks where the wave begins to “break,” “curve,” or overlap itself. The cylinder should also help you to determine where the wave is curving—visualize the cylinder as an empty toilet roll, and the lines you’re drawing as water flowing up against and wrapping around that roll. [11]
    • With that in mind, draw curved lines that extend from the scraggly lines at the horizon, backwards in a C shape, and down to the bottom of the page—-following the curve of the cylinder.
    • A lot of these next steps are freehand drawing. Follow the curve of your wave, adding simple lines to create the illusion that there is water cresting around the hollow cylinder.
  5. 5
    Sketch squiggly lines on a diagonal and horizontal line to extend the wave. Following the cylindrical shape, draw long, scratch-like lines along the horizontal plane to extend the bottom of the wave to the sides. Then, draw lines at the bottom of the wave on a diagonal to represent the ocean water drawing up into the wave. These lines should help to create the visual of the wave extending out into the greater ocean. [12]
  6. 6
    Add more linework to refine the look of the wave. Make scribble-like strokes that start from the inside of the wave and extend outward as they “flow” along the bottom of your drawing page. Refine the “crashing” part of your wave, or the outer edge of the wave’s curl, by making sure that it’s taken on a cloud-like shape with a squiggly outline. Maintain a contrast between the curving and crashing water by adding more zig-zagging lines to the curving water and a lighter, squiggly pattern to the crashing water. [13]
  7. 7
    Shade the wave so that the curving water is darker than the crashing water. Add darker shading to all of the water that’s curving around the bottom of the cylinder—aka, the water that’s in the nearby ocean and is being pulled up, but that hasn’t crested over into a curve yet. For the curling, crashing water, this water is usually quite bubbly and appears white in real life. For that reason, this part of the wave should appear lighter, so you don’t have to shade it too much. Instead, shade the curving water and add line work that flows with the curve of the wave, slightly extending the shading around the crash of the wave in a cylindrical shape. [14]
    • Add some loose zig-zagging lines to the edges of your foaming water to create more depth and shadow. Otherwise, leave them white.
    • Use artistic license in this step and follow your intuition to shade the wave in the most realistic manner, keeping in mind the instructions above. Once you’re satisfied with your shading, your wave is complete!
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Section 3 of 4:

How to Draw a Wave with Markers

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  1. 1
    Draw a long sloping line that curves upward, then down again. Using a black marker, draw a long line that moves from left to right. As you move to the right, slowly slope your line upward, round it off in a curve, then bring it back down to just above the same horizontal point where you started. [15]
  2. 2
    Draw another swooping line that connects both ends of your first line. Place your black marker at the right edge of the line you just drew. Then, swoop a new line in a curve that moves from right to left and follows the shape and curve of your first line. Have this new line meet the other end of the first line. You should be left with a tadpole-like shape that will represent the crest of your wave. [16]
  3. 3
    Draw a large C-shape extending from the right section of your crest. Place your black marker slightly to the left of the right end of your crest shape. Then, draw a large, wide “C” that extends backwards into your overall wave shape. Slope the bottom of the “C” gradually downward until it meets the bottom of your page. This is the portion of the wave that curls under itself. [17]
  4. 4
    Trace over the lines you’ve drawn to rough up the edges. Waves are moving water, so none of the lines should be crisp or clean. Sketch over all of your lines lightly with a pencil so that they have a more natural, rougher, and blended-out look to them. [18]
  5. 5
    Draw small, squiggly U-shapes side by side to create your whitewater. Starting at the rightmost end of your crest or “tadpole” shape, draw a series of small, irregular, U-shaped droplets. Continue working your way along the top of the wave to mimic the look of crashing whitewater in an ocean wave. As you reach the leftmost end of your wave, make your squiggly shapes smaller and less defined until they blend in with the beginning of the crest. [19]
  6. 6
    Sketch a few water droplets around the edges of your wave. To make your wave more fun and to give it a cartoonish look, add some drops of water around the crest. Draw 5-6 teardrop-shaped water droplets. Orient each droplet so that the narrow end is pointing toward the wave, and face them in different directions to create the illusion that they’re coming off the wave. [20]
  7. 7
    Draw some slightly curved lines inside your wave. Loosely and lightly sketch some lines that extend from the bottom of the crest, around the curve of the wave, and into the ocean below. These lines are optional, but they’ll give your wave drawing some more depth and volume. Don’t be afraid to put your own spin on this wave and trust your artistic instinct to make it look its best! [21]
  8. 8
    Choose three markers you want to use for shading and coloring. Choose one dark marker color, one light color, and one color that’s in the middle. It’s key to choose colors that are similar to each other if you want them to blend—e.g., three similar shades of blue, three similar shades of green, three similar shades of purple, etc. [22]
    • If you want to shade your waves with markers, it’s important to use markers that you’ll be able to blend together. Specifically, you’ll need to use alcohol-based markers (e..g, Bic , Sharpie , Copic , etc.).
    • You will also need to work quickly while each marker color is still wet. If the marker dries down, it won’t mix and blend with the other colors.
  9. 9
    Use your darkest marker to color the bottom of your wave and trace over the center lines. Take your darkest marker and sketch short lines to fill in the very bottom of your wave. Build upward until the bottom section of your wave is filled in with a hill-like shape. Then, trace over the vertically curved lines you drew in the inside of the wave with your darkest marker. [23]
  10. 10
    Use your two lighter markers to color in the remaining parts of the wave. Using short, squiggly strokes, alternate between your lightest and medium-toned markers to color in the uncolored parts of the wave. Blend the colors with the darkest one wherever they meet. [24]
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Section 4 of 4:

How to Draw a Japanese Wave

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  1. To form the peak of your largest wave, draw a line that slopes gradually upward as it moves from right to left. Curve the line at the peak so that it slightly turns in on itself at the end. [25]
  2. 2
    Draw a series of small curvy lines below your swooping line. Below your first line, sketch out small, curved lines one after the other—almost like very tiny waves. Curve the line of miniature waves so that they roughly follow the slope of your first line until they reach the left edge of the page. You’ve now created the crest and peak of your largest wave! [26]
  3. 3
    Draw a long, curved line from the tip of the crest to the right edge of the page. Place your drawing utensil about one fingertip’s width in from the tip of your crest. From there, draw a long, swooping line that first curves to the left, then downward, then up to end on the right edge of the page. [27]
  4. 4
    Below the wave, draw a small peak that swoops from both edges of the page. Now, you’re going to outline the smaller wave that sits below the large one. Starting on the left edge of the page, draw a line that swoops upward into a rounded, mountain-like peak. Bring the peak down on the right side, and swoop it downward, then upward in a curve that ends on the right side of the page. [28]
  5. 5
    Repeat the line of small, curvy lines under your new peak. Just like you did with the larger wave, draw a line of small mini waves that curve along the bottom of your swooping line. The shape of these mini waves should match up with the swooping line to create the crest of your wave. [29]
  6. 6
    Draw a long line curving from the small wave’s crest to the right edge of the paper. Place your drawing utensil on one of the middle mini-waves under your smaller peak. Draw a line that curves downward and then up again. Extend the line to the end of the right side of the page. [30]
  7. 7
    Draw three curved triangular shapes to create the boats. For the first boat, draw a long, curved crescent-like shape emerging from the downward-swooping section of the biggest wave. For the second boat, draw a similar shape that emerges from the left side of the smaller wave. Draw a curved line that splits this boat in half lengthwise—the bottom half will be the outside of the boat, and the top half will be the inside. For the third boat, repeat the design of the second boat, but place it above the long line you drew in the previous step. [31]
  8. 8
    Behind the waves, draw a small triangle with a zigzag line across it. To complete the background of “The Great Wave off Kanagawa” by Hokusai, the artwork on which these steps are based, you should draw Mount Fuji in the background behind your waves. In the downward curve of the largest wave, draw a small triangle with inward-sloped sides. Then, sketch a zigzag line across the top of the triangle to create the mountain’s ice cap. [32]
  9. 9
    Draw several lines that follow the curve of the waves to create currents. To add more detail and depth to your waves, draw curved lines inside each wave that follow the slope of each wave’s shape. Keep these lines inside the curving waves only—don’t extend them into the crests or peaks of the waves. [33]
  10. Color the peaks and crests of each wave with white or light blue crayons (or colored pencils). Then, use a darker blue shade to color in the rest of the wave. Color the outside of each boat (the bottom half) with a dark yellow, then use a lighter shade or color more lightly for the inside (top half) of each boat. Then, shade the base of Mt. Fuji with a dark blue and its ice cap with a white color. Finally, color the sky (the background of the image) yellow. [34]
    • If you sketched your drawing with a pencil, go over the lines with a black marker.
    • This step follows the traditional colors of this artwork, but you can do whatever you want! If you want to be more imaginative or bold, use other colors like pink, purple, green, or red!
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      References

      1. ↑ https://iheartcraftythings.com/wave-drawing.html
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      8. ↑ https://artincontext.org/how-to-draw-waves/
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      13. ↑ https://artbyro.com/how-to-draw-waves/
      14. ↑ https://artbyro.com/how-to-draw-waves/
      15. ↑ https://artbyro.com/how-to-draw-waves/
      16. ↑ https://helloartsy.com/how-to-draw-a-japanese-wave/
      17. ↑ https://helloartsy.com/how-to-draw-a-japanese-wave/
      18. ↑ https://helloartsy.com/how-to-draw-a-japanese-wave/
      19. ↑ https://helloartsy.com/how-to-draw-a-japanese-wave/
      20. ↑ https://helloartsy.com/how-to-draw-a-japanese-wave/
      21. ↑ https://helloartsy.com/how-to-draw-a-japanese-wave/
      22. ↑ https://helloartsy.com/how-to-draw-a-japanese-wave/
      23. ↑ https://helloartsy.com/how-to-draw-a-japanese-wave/
      24. ↑ https://helloartsy.com/how-to-draw-a-japanese-wave/
      25. ↑ https://helloartsy.com/how-to-draw-a-japanese-wave/

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