Leg and foot skeleton (femur, patella, tibia/fibula, foot)
Use the leg and foot skeleton to construct, pose, and simplify the lower body from different angles.
What it is
Identify the femur, patella, tibia, fibula, and main blocks of the foot by name, shape, and function. Simplify them as basic forms, including the femur, kneecap, shin bones, heel, midfoot, and toe segments.
Build the leg as a connected structure from the pelvis to the foot. Place the knee between the femur and tibia, angle the lower leg for support, and align the heel, arch, and ball of the foot under the figure’s center of gravity.
Use the skeleton’s asymmetries to construct the leg under muscle, fat, or clothing. The femur angles inward, the tibia bears weight on the inner side, the fibula sits on the outer side, and the foot has a higher inner arch and a lower outer edge.
Why it matters
A sound leg and foot structure helps you keep joints, weight, proportions, and ground contact consistent across poses. Weak control can cause knees to shift, lower legs to twist, and feet to appear flat, short, or poorly planted.
You can check it when
- ✓Draw a simplified femur, patella, tibia, fibula, and foot from imagination in front, side, and 3/4 views.
- ✓Mark the knee, ankle, heel, and main foot bones in a reference image, including the inner and outer ankle bumps.
- ✓Construct posed feet with a heel block, an arch, a ball of the foot, and toes that follow the underlying bone structure.