Post by @theartcoach

Tap the link in my bio to start the drawing drills course. Ever finish a drawing you love… and then get nervous to shade it because you might ruin it? The solution isn’t to avoid the shadows. It’s to simplify them. In this landscape, I’m thinking about three things: A consistent direction for my marks. One clear direction for the light. Three simple values: light, midtone, and darkest dark. That’s enough to start creating depth. Instead of fully rendering one tree, rock, or cloud before moving on, I work across the entire drawing and gradually build the darks together. This helps keep every shadow connected to the same light source and prevents one area from accidentally becoming much darker than everything around it. And notice how much information you can communicate with only three values. You don’t need dozens of perfectly blended tones to create convincing form. You need clear relationships between light and dark. Learning to simplify what you see, control your marks, and build values intentionally is exactly the kind of skill we practice in Drawing Drills. Just 10 minutes of focused practice a day can completely change the way you approach a drawing.