How to draw a Tetra

Tetras are bright and beautiful fish. If you want to make your own school of them, here’s how to draw them!

Step 1:

First draw a curve however long you want the fish’s back to be. At the end you want to be the nose, curve sharply down.

Step 2:

Add a second curve on the bottom.

Step 3:

Draw two parallel lines at the back of the fish to start the tail. Create a circle that takes up about 2/4ths of the top to bottom space to make an eye.

Step 4:

Draw a smaller circle inside the eye to make the pupil. A small triangle near the chin will make the mouth. Halfway down the fish, draw two lines at a 45 degree angle away from the body on the back and belly. Draw a second line on the belly halfway between the line and the start of the tail. At the tip of the tail draw two 45 degree lines in opposite directions. All of these lines should be the same length.

Step 5:

Connect each of these lines to the body (or in the case of the tail, each other) with a curve.

Step 6:

Draw a series of lines within the fins.

Step 7:

Draw a line from the eye to just past the start of the tail down the middle of the body.
Erase the line in front of the mouth.
Draw an oval missing one side in front of the bottom fin, and fill it with lines.

Step 8:

Add color. The fish are slightly transparent, so tint everything grey whatever color the background is but less saturated(to contrast the iridescent parts). Dots of varying brightness and saturated colors in the colored areas are key to make the illusion of iridescent scales.

Step 9:

Finally add shading.

So that’s how you draw a Tetra!