What are 10 mistakes artists make when shading???

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Question:

I need an accomplished artist to tell me 10 (more would be great) things that most students overlook or do incorrectly when shading a picture in terms of realism!.

I have the most problems with shading the human figure and face!. I can make a decent linear drawing of anything, but when it's time to shade I am lost!. Tell me 10 things most intermediate artists do wrong when shading, and not things I've heard thousands of times or things that are obvious!.

No "fluffy" answers allowed!. I want 100% information for best answer!

Thanks,
Jodie V!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

these are in no particular order
#1 over looking reflective light - a lot of novices only pay attention to to the main source of light and forget about light bouncing off of other objects

#2 hair should be treated as a single entity not individual strands of hair

#3 you can always go darker not vise versa - squint your eyes to see what your gradient values are in relationship to the surrounding area

#4 eye sockets should be viewed more like holes - I'm not saying to give your subject a black eye, but it's generally darker then the cheek bones and brow aea

#5 it's just as important to know what to leave out as to what to draw - for example, drawing every single tooth on a portrait generally gives the subject a 'toothy' look!. It should be treated more like a single entity with enough hints to know there are teeth

That's all I can think of for now, sorry it's not 10Www@QuestionHome@Com

Know where your light source is so you can do shading on everything that matches correctly!.

Don't overwork a drawing, too much is too much!.

Don't mix stipling with cross hatching with scribbles!. Stick with one form at least per surface (all rocks should be done the same way, brick buildings the same way, fabric the same way, etc!.)

When doing faces, you need to think in 3-D!. Cheek bones don't stand out when lit from certain angles, but are very prominent in other angles (think Blair Witch lit from below)!. This also affects the hollow of the eyes, brows, temples, etc!. It helps to see a skull from different directions to know where the bone pushes the skin out from underneath!. Most people don't have a lot of padding on their face unless they're obese or the skin is hanging baggy like (old)!.Www@QuestionHome@Com