I'm not sure if you answer questions from this, but I was wondering, how are you so good at rendering? I'd there any specific app/stylus that you recommend? Tyty :3
Ah thank you! I wouldn't say I'm /that/ good tho :')) I can be quite lazy with it
There are some things that always work for me:
(not always but often) Using dark shading. It gives a nice contrast which makes it more eye-catching. I recommend trying out shading on a separate layer (if you haven't done so already), and go darker than you initially would. For practice maybe use 1 base/flat colour and then this layer on top.
Use of hard and soft edges with shading
I enjoy using both to make the shading more dynamic, but it honestly depends on your preference. For example, you can also use just hard shading (cel shading).
bouncing off light and rim
Bouncing light is very sexy. For example, it's a sunny day and this orb is laying on grass. The sun rays are so strong that they beam onto the grass causing to reflect its light/colour (in this case green) back onto the orb. This can be any colour, depending on what you have as background or just /vibes/.
Also the rim here is a border between your base colour and the shading. It's most common with skin as it shines the blood through which colours that rim red. -> This is a great way to give more life to skin btw. I often just try out colours to see which I like best.
texture/material
This is not really an easy tip or hack, but understanding how materials reflect light/are shaded greatly helps with making your rendering more appealing. For example, gold and silver are very reflective, causing to react more to bounced off light and highlights and, in most cases, only have hard shading.
volume
Another 'knowledge' thing. Volume determines how the shading is applied to the object; it doesn't have to be accurate, it's art anyway. See the head as a sphere, arms as tubes, etc.
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Don't have much to say regarding apps or the like. I started out with Gimp (maybe a bit of an oof moment haha) and then Clip Studio Paint. CSP has a brush (and more) library where ppl upload various brushes they made which is very neat.
