#fat photo ref

[fugitiverabbit]

Add some fat characters to your roster of OCs with fatphotoref! Visit fatphotoref dot com for more poses from me and other folks

Note, the website is password protected so you will have to apply for access first, but I’m trying to get through requests daily. 

[maridotnet]

some sketchbook pages from today’s anatomy practice (and one from yesterday!) thanks to fatphotoref.com for the references :) model credit to @fugitiverabbit and other site submitters

[millieindeed]

Some recent drawings.

Top is based on a ref from the excellent Fat Photo Ref

[sewageskullz]

hi fryeposting + some big man and shiver i suppose

[dandyshucks]

me: okay just ONE quick cartoony silly facial expression drawing and nothing else, i need to sleep decently tonight for once and getting to sleep on time would help a lot with that

the drawingS (emphasis on the s):

(its been... just over an hour since i started)

[pansyfemme]

the pain of trying to find decent refs of fat people and searching ‘double chin’ but only getting weight loss tips, plastic surgery before and afters and skinny people contorting their faces to look sooooo ugly and fat and funny haha

[bloodanddiscoballs]

just learn how to draw fat people. please? it's actually not that hard. the internet is at your fingertips. you can look up refs right now literally right now and start practicing. hell if you're a tablet user trace over photos for a bit. if you're a traditional artist do the lightbox method or print them out and trace over them. get comfortable with it. now have those pics next to you and draw them.

practice drawing ALL body types; fat people, muscular people, old people, disabled people, very young people, people of color.

the world is not exclusively made up of 21 yr old skinny white people. get comfortable drawing diverse bodies.

[adorkastock]

Hi! I was wondering if you had more sharable posts with references for drawing fat people. I managed to find two posts and then a few with a single photo of a fat model. It's very difficult to find representation of fat people in general, most of my attempts on this website feeling like an hour long treasure hunt, so I'd love to share more posts of yours with those reference photos if possible!

Sure thing! Here's a collection of refs. Also on DeviantArt, Patreon, and my site gallery you can search by model name and there's a guide on DA for who is who. (The site gallery will also let you sort by body type, this is kind of a WIP). My Tumblr is usually tagged with the model names too so if you don't want to endless scroll that might help narrow it down. I also use the fat model tag usually, too. If you aren't familiar yet with FatPhotoRef.com def check that out! @fugitiverabbit runs it and it's a fantastic resource for artists. Happy drawing!

[sergle]

People are failing to realize that clothing, and cameras for that matter, can be fairly deceptive. I don't wanna say deceptive because it carries a certain connotation, but I hope you'll know what I mean. I look fairly "thin/avg" with a shirt on, but without it it's rolls and folds lol

Furthermore, it's wild to assume someone who's pretty passionate about accurate plus-size rep would be stick thin. Maybe their metric of "average" is skewed or something, but it's still weird to just show up in a strangers Asks and assume things about them and their bodies.

sorry for answering an ask about this like 4 days later but I'M STILL THINKING ABOUT THIS... this person is talking about these asks btw.

FIRST OF ALL, thank you so much for the ask, it really is good to know that other ppl are aware of the Covering Of Fat With Clothing. Like. hi. my body is obscured. people are just noticing my torso for the first time bc there isn't 5lbs of breast tissue hanging off of it. SECOND OF ALL. This is still making me insane. I am still thinking about it so I'm gonna completely just do a brick of text to talk about it. Like, there's the first part of this, right? The fact that, all of these people who were sending asks like these, are the same people who came to my account because they liked the body positivity stuff or they related to the proportions of the girls I draw, right? And yet somehow managed to miss that ALL OF MY ART IS ME. So you're relating to MY body, AGREEING that this is plus sized art, then turning towards moi and saying, okay but you're skinny though. HUH? HMM??? I literally made a 12-part series of self portraits that have been like, my most seen, most stolen, reposted, enjoyed, stolen again, pieces. And I've been so crystal clear that these are literally me. Once again, I'm pointing at the aforementioned MATERIAL.

Pictured above: a thin, skinny woman who just happens to have large breasts, ig! And outside of those, which are *literal* self portraits, I've spoken lots of times before about how I make girls of a certain size and shape because I'm modeling them off myself. Or as close as I can get, depending on how good/bad I feel and if I took a photo to ref or not. It really couldn't be clearer that this is obviously me being self-serving, I do it when I feel like I need to see it. So the thing being implied here, or flat out accused in a handful of messages, is that I'm drawing fat girls forrr clout? AWESOME. I didn't want to dignify every message but that did seem to be the rough consensus. BUT I WANT TO TALK ABOUT THAT ONE TOO. WHEN would it become a bad thing for a skinny person to draw body positive art? In a positive light? Even if it was for clout? Am I going insane? That would be Good. It honestly might be even more meaningful than what I'm doing now. If I was actually 115 pounds soaking wet, if I looked like that one girl from ANTM with the like 14 inch waist, and I was out here making the exact same art, would that make the art LESS meaningful to other fat girls? That someone who doesn't have this body type or relate to it at all found it beautiful enough to draw it so many times, treating the subject with respect? Fat people being the subject of art again? The cycling of a trend that's been gone too long? That is, I thought, what we've literally been begging to see. I have been thinking about this. And finally, the last part of it that's been vexing and haunting me:

Is it supposed to be my responsibility that someone gets dysmorphic LOOKING AT ME. HUHHHH. On the art account where I draw a lot of Me. HUH. I was meant to anticipate this? Looking at pictures of me. And that makes you feel dysmorphic. and that is my fault. I'm just double checking. On the account where I draw bodies that I relate to, that you followed because you relate to. And then seeing me. Makes you dysmorphic. Whew. Got it.

I'm putting a bow on my insane winding ramble about this. Or at least trying to, now. It is wild to have my body commented on so much. This year, bc of the breast reduction, comments on my body have increased a hundredfold. Positive, negative, passive aggressive, predatory, all of the ways it can go. There was a really obvious way to rebuff these particular comments, which would be to post a picture of myself where my body ISN'T mostly obscured. But hey, those aren't free. The art will have to do for now. I wouldn't be that surprised if half the messages were jokes meant to see if I'd post pics "proving" that I look how I look. I also thought briefly about like, what if my body did change that drastically? Would some ppl's immediate reaction be betrayal, disgust, anger? I've been sick in my life before and lost weight at alarming speeds. But I've still been fat all my life. I've gotten sick and gained weight at alarming speeds. Does my presence as a "body positive artist" mean that my body gets to be put on trial anytime it changes? Does the switch flip from "your fat art means so much to me" to "you're not in the club anymore, since you got rid of your breasts, you look different"

Anyway I thought it would be funny to draw a thin girl "drawing" a scrap sketch I already have on hand. And imagining someone's response being fully negative, bc a thin person drawing fat ppl would be somehow dishonest lmao. Look how evil this bitch is. Her body doesn't match her art.

[jijidraws]

Hey where do you go for references of big women? Fat is so pretty but hard to draw ;-;

Stealing this from my twitter thread!

Here's some of the MOST BASIC resources I use to reference fat models!

❥ Pinterest (I generally just search 'plus size model' or 'plus fashion') ❥ Tumblr (Again, search term plus size model) ❥ @fugitiverabbit's amazing http://fatphotoref.com

If I cannot find a pose with a fat model already, I use straight size/skinny ref. I've learned a lot from not only my own body but also the book "Morpho: Fat and Skin Folds: Anatomy for Artists" so I can turn any skinny ref into a plus size ref for myself.

And here's examples of what I come across on pinterest. These are all great starting points for poses! All you need is practise to slim and fatten as necessary to fit whatever picture you have in your head. ♡

I will not share these photos here but sometimes I will sit for my own reference. I am what I draw!! So I am my best frame point when it comes to having a live model to observe. :D Get friends to pose for you! Or sometimes, you can hire a model.

THAT BEING SAID: CAM GIRLS/NSFW MODELS ARE YOUR BEST FRIENDS TBH. There are so many out there that either HAVE reference packs for sale already or would LOVE to model for you for a fair fee!!! And that's reference you can keep FOREVER. ♡

I hope this helps! :'D

[fugitiverabbit]

I know its been a long time, but fat photo ref just updated! Check it out or request access to the site at fatphotoref.com 

I’ll be approving folks later today! There’s also a substack now if you want a newsletter when I update the site. 

[yugimoto]

I just organised my art reference folder so here’s a list of them for anyone who needs it!

character design references (pinterest boards)

japanese outfit references (school uniform, swimsuits, kimono, maid costume)

couples pose references (imgur album of book scans)

style arena (street snap search, good for outfit references)

street girls snap (generally more colourful than style arena)

twin outfits (pinterest board, lots of matching outfits)

generate colour palette from single colour

another palette generator

royalty free stock photos - one, two

fat photo ref (tumblr blog, non-fetishized depictions of fat people)

reference angle (generates photos of faces at any angle)

animal photo references search (same thing but with animals) 

the pose tool (lots of nude pose refs) 

[madameberry]

This was originally a thread I made on twitter of drawing reference packs of nonwhite and/or body-diverse people. I made this out of spite after hours of googling trying to find fair-use reference for RGB/hue lights on dark skin (which I still haven't found!). With twitter going the way that it is, I'm crossposting this here in case it gets nuked. This thread originally focused on packs that are specifically uploaded for drawing reference that have licenses for artist use, though later I did branch out a bit with suggestions from others. I'd love to see more added to this.

This is gonna be long so I'm putting it under the fold. Let's get into it.

@AdorkaStock has tons of body-diverse reference packs, including probably the only trans or disabled models in a reference pack I've found. Oh, and the best part about adorkastock: most packs are free with attribution! Some faves:

https://www.deviantart.com/adorkastock/art/Wing-Pack-Preview-891765898

https://www.deviantart.com/adorkastock/art/Sailor-Starlight-and-Prince-Nova-Highlight-Pack-842015663

Faestock on Artstation has a few packs. I like that these packs have costume references too, since I struggle with clothing a lot.

https://www.artstation.com/marketplace/p/VXDqy/x113-stella-fantasy-queen-reference-pack

https://www.artstation.com/marketplace/p/v9bPA/x120-genie-pose-reference-pack

https://www.artstation.com/marketplace/p/1V0aw/x120-christine-action-reference-pack

https://www.artstation.com/marketplace/p/LpWb0/x120-gown-sword-pose-reference-pack

Grafit Studio has a few good packs if you're willing to pick through their selection. Here's a free pack with a variety of models, and an expressions pack I've used a few times.

Sample pack: https://grafitschool.gumroad.com/l/IoHbY

Expressions Pack: https://grafitschool.gumroad.com/l/LPpjT

Satine Zillah on Artstation has a number of packs. Anyway here's a nice one of an older black gentleman, a variety portrait pack, and one costumed pack that I included in my original thread, but I can't speak on the accuracy of the depictions:

https://www.artstation.com/marketplace/p/J25K/portraits-vol-2-model-ali-260-jpegs-photo-reference-pack-for-artists

https://www.artstation.com/marketplace/p/yJ72/portraits-photo-reference-pack-255-jpegs

https://www.artstation.com/marketplace/p/9NdV/culture-of-the-steppe-760-jpegs-photo-reference-pack-for-artists

Cathleen Tarawhiti on Deviantart has a number of stock options sorted by model. They normally do book cover shoots, but they're seemingly free for personal use, which I assume includes study.

https://www.deviantart.com/cathleentarawhiti/gallery/55170611/zabeen

https://www.deviantart.com/cathleentarawhiti/gallery/65446765/whitney-marie

photoref.org has a number of shoots of diverse models. The pinup shoot and the skate party shoot are great, I love the outfit inspo!

Pinup Pack: https://jennravenna.gumroad.com/l/vwAsi

Skate Party Pack: https://jennravenna.gumroad.com/l/EGpIk

@ fugitiverabbit on Twitter is running this resource of fat photo references that's (so-far) volunteer-run:

This site was suggested to me and it's just good and fun and wholesome.

There are a number of Tiktok users who pose for reference use. I can't include all of them individually, but here's the one that was brought to my attention:

r/drawme and /rdrawmensfw subreddits were suggested to me as places where people have given permission to be drawn. This can be a good source of refs for different body types as well!

And finally, two book recommendations:

Morpho Anatomy for Artists - Fat and Skin Folds by Michel Lauricella So many anatomy study sources focus on idealized proportions. This is one of the few resources I've found that goes deep into how fat and skin lays on the body in different locations.

and How to Draw Black People by Malik Shabazz

That's all from my original thread, but feel free to add more!

[excali8ur]

How did you get so good at drawing? And do you have any tips??? (Pls I'm a beginner help)

Honestly dude you never get good at art. It's sweet that people like my stuff but I still feel like most of it sucks and I think that's sort of an inherent part of drawing lmao. You've just gotta decide to keep doing it anyway because it matters to you

I do have a few tips for improving your technical drawing though:

Do figure sketching. If you can go to in-person life drawing classes that's great, and there'll usually be at least a few running if you live in a city/big town, but you can do it online too. Here are some websites I use: Line of Action / SketchDaily / Quick Poses. Try drawing with different lengths of time (so start with poses appearing for 30 seconds, then move up to 1 minute, then 2, then 5, then 10). Also don't feel too bad if the first few times you try it and the sketches don't turn out quite right or the proportions get messed up or you run out of time. It's part of the process & you'll improve the longer you keep at it. Just try to use longer & messier lines and don't focus on the details until you have basic shapes blocked out. (This is literally what I tell anyone who asks me for art advice because it's about the only drawing exercise I ever deliberately do lmao)

Draw real life subjects and not just from photos- it's more challenging but helps you develop your observation & sketching skills. This includes still life and landscapes/architecture as well as living things btw

Use references as much as you can. I suck at this but it'll genuinely make you improve faster if you do lmao. You can find loads of references on Google or DeviantArt but I also have some specific places I get them from: JookpubStock / Fat Photo Ref (requires registering but I can verify they're legit) / AdorkaStock / Teamwarchicken (actually my blog that I use for collecting images)

When you're learning to shade remember that you're shading a 3 dimensional object, and try to avoid just doing shading around the very edges of things. Same goes for highlights.

Try drawing in different styles and subjects you don't usually draw. If you can afford it try out different physical art materials too. It helps keep the art block at bay if nothing else lmao

Don't be a perfectionist. Learn to just say "good enough" and not obsess over mistakes. It's better to draw lots of slightly wonky things than one thing that you freaked out about getting perfect.

If anyone else has any other advice/resources then please add them! I do not know as much about art as people think I do hjfgjkhdf

[wachtelspinat]

I have a serious question! What references did you use to learn to draw Roadhog's body type? It's my first time trying to draw a body like his and I'm STRUGGLING. I'm using your art as reference because your depictions of him are godly, but I could use any tips you have. He's my babygirl and I want to be able to do him justice 💓

hey ! good question and thank you very much for your kind words <3

i've been drawing body types like his not enough to say very comfortably that i know what i'm doing, this is mostly due to me not having done a lot of studies in this regards (i wanna change that)... but i've been trying to push it ever since the midnight crew days (since i love drawing our fabulous boy hearts boxcars and he's kinda the same category)...

i kind of looked at various references through out the years, starting with concept art from bioshock 2...

... to pictures of strongmen (they sometimes lack roadie's gut but pictures of them are amazing for arms, the chest area, necks, backs and all that)

(these are dennis kohlruss, eddie hall and rongo keene as examples)

this is older but you get the idea, just to see how things flow when there is more than just skinny muscles and skin.

sometimes it helps just tracing their ingame models, altho i'm more often changing a bit here and there (mostly roadie's giant hands... they’re just not... they just don't go with my stupid idea to go more realistic lol) but i think it's a good way to get a feeling of his body dimensions, especially length of legs, torso etc.

as a general tip i'd say don't be afraid to experiment! you know how to draw a skinny leaf of a guy? try adding more volume to it, try defining muscles through layers of skin. always google ref if you need, you don't know how a double chin rounds exactly? or how some skin folds at the sides move when twisting the torso? google it, or make ref yourself, see what your body does. because in the end we're all consistent of the same parts, it's just a matter of dimensions and volume i think

there are also a LOT of amazing artists out there i draw inspiration from drawing the best, beefiest bears... and yes i mean that in a literal way... they are mostly furry artists on the nsfw side of things, hence i'm not linking them here (i'm sorry)... but in general... idk if you're on twitter or what your preferences are, but a lot of artists specialize in drawing roadhog-type-o-guys and they're so much better at this than i am. and it's not just artists... to be perfectly honest a lot of people upload very good ref on twitter in form of photos of them it's just... mostly... nsfw x') last but not least, i can always recommend the book "morpho fat and skin folds" for certain things

hope this helped a little and if you got any more questions or idk, need help with a certain pose?? feel free to ask

[macomico]

I've always wanted to learn how to draw bigger people but I often only find tutorials for like muscular men with six-packs and stuff so I was wondering if you have any tips or tutorials or something because the way you draw both men and women has me in a chokehold ahshdj they all look so good and soft and like they'd give the best hugs!!!

aww thank you so much! 💖🤧 and i can definitely help you my dear, i've been in the same spot as you - its really hard to find good references of fat bodies without encountering heavily edited pictures or ads about how to loose weight. you really need to have luck or know people who can help you. but ur in luck, i got some pointers for you >:)

Look for pictures of athletes, preferably of sports that require body mass such as rugby, american football, any throw sport (shot put, discus, hammer, javelin), wrestlers commonly have some body fat on them, POWER LIFTERS. I would avoid (fashion) models because the pictures are often edited heavily and thus warp your perceiption of fat distribution, but they're not too bad for ordinary fullbody poses, so we gotta work with what we got. I have a pin board i made for myself with various bodytypes, consisting of athletes and plus size models that i hope can help you!

What really helped me to really emulate and portray mass on bodies is simply drawing rounded shapes (NOT circles. rather egg/soft trapezoid shapes, overlapping with each other). Fat stacks ONTO your muscles, it will make everything rounder and softer. You can play with the shapes to create different fat distribution. Here is a post from hometownrockstar on tumblr about this topic thats very insightful with sketches explaining everything.

Morpho: Fat and Skin Folds: Anatomy for Artists by Michel Lauricella. this book is the holy grail i swear. i finally purchased a real copy of the book not too long ago and i use translucent paper and simply trace the sketches from the book for practice and its a GODSENT. definitely worth an investment. I previously only owned it as a pdf, which i will gladly send to anyone who sends me a dm or an ask :) for copyright reasons i wont distribute it openly. and zlibrary recently got shut down so lmfao we gotta help each other out

Drawing from life! there's this awesome site with homemade photographic references for artists of fat bodies called fat photo ref. you'll need to ask for admittance via email but they usually respond fairly quickly, took 2-3 days for me. :) its all organized in tags so you can quickly sort and browse.

Hope this helps! <3