A friend told me my digital paintings looked too 'flat' and it clicked

I was showing my latest cityscape piece to a buddy who does 3D modeling, and he pointed out that all my buildings had the same level of detail and sharpness. He said, 'Mark, you need to push the atmospheric perspective more, especially in the background.' I started using a softer brush at 30% opacity for distant elements in my next piece, a view of Seattle, and it made a huge difference. Has anyone else gotten a simple piece of advice that instantly leveled up their work?

3 comments

3 Comments

haydenj902mo ago

Always thought sharpness meant good work, but blurring the back really does add depth.

hayden_black292mo ago

Oh man, that reminds me of when I first tried portrait mode on my phone. I was so used to trying to get everything in focus, but that blur makes the person pop right out. Totally changed how I take pictures now.

hollyramirez1mo ago

Portrait mode was a game changer for me too. It forces you to think about the subject instead of the whole scene. My early shots were messy, but now I look for clean backgrounds to make the blur work better.