My art teacher told me to stop using the smudge tool for everything

Back in my first digital art class, my teacher Ms. Ellis saw my work and said, 'You're using the smudge tool as a crutch, and it makes your shading look muddy.' I was mad because I thought my art looked soft and blended. For my next project, a character portrait, I forced myself to only use a hard round brush for shading. It took three times longer, but the result was way sharper and had more depth. I had to really think about where the light was hitting instead of just smudging colors together. That one piece got into a small online show last month. I still use the smudge tool sometimes, but now I know it's a specific choice, not the only way to blend. Has anyone else had a teacher give you advice that you hated at first but later saved your style?

3 comments

3 Comments

nancy_smith1d agoMost Upvoted

My photography teacher made me shoot film for a year, no delete button.

wilson.sam11d ago

Using it as a crutch" is such a real thing. I read a comic artist say the same about undo, that overusing it kills the energy of a line.

irismartinez11d ago

Oh wow, that comic artist is onto something. I used to think undo was just a handy tool, no big deal. But I tried drawing without it once, and my sketches had a totally different feel. They were looser, more alive, even with the mistakes left in. It made me see how constantly fixing every little line can really stiffen things up.