A manta ray can fill an entire drawing with the movement of its two enormous fins. One wingtip may rise toward the light while the other curves away beneath the water. Capturing that difference is the key to drawing a manta ray that feels like a living animal instead of a flat diamond.
In this tutorial, I work from a photograph of a manta ray swimming at a slight angle. I draw directly from what I can see, allowing earlier lines to remain when they help describe the movement. You can use pencil, pen or charcoal. The important decisions concern proportion and direction rather than the drawing material.
The first two marks establish the wingspan
Find a reference in which both wingtips are visible. A manta ray photographed from directly above can be useful for studying its overall shape, but a slightly angled view makes a more interesting drawing because the wings no longer appear identical.
Before drawing, look at the distance between the wingtips. Then compare their positions with the head. Is one tip higher? Does one extend farther from the body? Is the nearer fin broader because of perspective?
Place a short mark for each wingtip. These marks establish the size and direction of the drawing without enclosing the animal in a preliminary shape.
Now look at the front of the head, between the wings. Begin there and follow the leading edge of one pectoral fin toward its tip. Notice where the contour changes direction. It may leave the head in a broad sweep, straighten briefly and then curve sharply near the end.
Return to the head and draw toward the opposite wingtip. Resist the urge to reproduce the same curve in reverse. The second fin may be foreshortened, tilted upward or turned partly away from you.
At this point, you have only a few lines on the paper, but they should already suggest the ray’s direction through the water. If they feel too symmetrical, compare the two sides with your reference before going further.
Watch how the wings change width
The broad pectoral fins give a manta ray its distinctive silhouette. Their front edges are important, but the shape is incomplete until you observe the trailing edges.
Starting from one wingtip, follow the rear contour inward toward the central body. Pay attention to the distance between this line and the leading edge you have already drawn.
That distance does not remain constant. The fin may widen toward the middle and narrow dramatically at its tip. Where the wing bends, its apparent width can change again because you are seeing it from a different angle.
Repeat the observation on the other side. If the manta ray is banking, one wing may show a broad surface while the other becomes a narrow, curved strip. Drawing both fins with equal width would flatten the pose.
I sometimes add another contour beside an earlier one when I discover a better direction. I leave the first mark visible if it adds to the sense of a flexible fin moving through the water. The lines do not all need to resolve into a single polished outline.
Look at the open water surrounding the wings as well. The space beneath a lifted wingtip may form a wide opening, while the other tip nearly meets the body from your viewpoint. These negative spaces are useful proportion checks because they are often easier to compare than the curves themselves.
The manta ray’s head is wider than a point
A common mistake in a manta ray drawing is to bring both front edges together at a pointed nose. A manta ray has a broad mouth at the front of its head and two specialized cephalic fins, sometimes called head fins, on either side.
The cephalic fins may extend forward like short curved projections or roll inward into compact shapes. Their appearance depends on the animal’s position and whether it is feeding.
Look for the break in the leading edge where a cephalic fin separates from the main wing. Draw that change in contour rather than attaching two identical horn shapes to the head.
Next, observe the mouth. Its opening may be prominent in a frontal photograph but much less obvious when viewed from above. Do not invent a dark, smiling mouth if it is hidden by the angle.
The eyes are positioned toward the sides of the head. In some photographs, they appear as small dark marks near the base of the cephalic fins. Their placement matters more than their size.
Be careful with other anatomical details. Manta rays have gill slits on their undersides. If you are drawing the animal from above, those slits should not suddenly appear across its back. In an underside view, however, the gills may be an important part of the drawing.
If the head becomes confusing, stop concentrating on the small features and return to the overall front contour. The cephalic fins, mouth and eyes should fit within the broad movement already established by the wings.
A heavy middle and a thin tail
Although its fins are extremely broad, the manta ray’s central body has more thickness. You can often see this through a subtle change in shading or the way the back rises between the wings.
Study the direction running from the head through the middle of the body. That line of movement may angle across the page if the animal is turning. The tail should follow this direction rather than automatically pointing straight down.
Find where the trailing edges of the fins approach the rear of the body. A small dorsal fin may be visible near the base of the tail, depending on the viewpoint. Draw it only if it appears in your reference.
From there, carry a narrow line outward to describe the tail. It should feel like a continuation of the central body, not an unrelated line added to a completed diamond.
Compare the tail’s length with the wingspan. Its apparent length varies with the species and viewing angle, so the photograph is more useful than a fixed proportion. If part of it disappears into dark water, allow that section to remain indistinct.
Shading should show which wing is turning
Before adding tone, look at how the light falls across each fin. A wing turning toward the surface may catch more light than the opposite wing, which curves away from it. Those differences are an opportunity to describe the manta ray’s form.
Begin with the largest dark area. In a photograph taken from above, the back may form a broad dark shape against brighter water. Avoid making that entire area one uniform tone. Changes in reflected light and the angle of the fins create variations across the surface.
With graphite, I would shade the central body first and let the value become more open toward a brightly lit wingtip. With pen, I would group marks in the darker areas and change their spacing as the fin turns. Neither approach requires outlining every part of the animal with equal pressure.
Pay particular attention to the edges that nearly disappear. A dark wing against dark water may have little visible separation. Elsewhere, the pale edge of a fin might be clearer if you shade the surrounding water and leave the fin itself untouched.
The surrounding water only needs enough attention to support the animal. A few areas of reflected light or darker water can make the fins appear to occupy different depths. Bubbles and decorative wave lines are unnecessary unless they are genuinely part of the reference.
Try the silhouette without any detail
If your manta ray still looks like a kite, cover the facial details and ignore the shading for a moment. Study only the outline.
- Are the two wings too similar? Compare their lengths, widths and angles. The reference may show one fin turning away from the viewer.
- Are the edges too straight? Look for the subtle bends along both the leading and trailing contours, especially near the wingtips.
- Does the head end in a point? Revisit the broad mouth and cephalic fins. Their shapes interrupt the front outline.
- Is the tail disconnected from the body? Follow the direction of the central mass toward the rear and adjust where the tail begins.
Make the correction that will have the greatest effect. You may only need to widen one wing or move a tip to a different height. More surface detail will not compensate for a silhouette that has lost the animal’s proportions.
This is also why I prefer a reference showing a particular turn or change in direction. You are drawing something more specific than a manta ray symbol. You are recording the shape of one animal at one moment.
For more practice with changing contours and directional lines, see my tutorial on how to draw movement. You can also find related subjects in the sea animal drawing collection.