Basics of constructing a landscape illustration?

Question

I tried to illustrate a landscape, and I am very unsatisfied as it is

I think it lacks depth, I think the lighting is weak and and I just... I don't know. I don't what it all lacks, but I am just not satisfied.

What can I do to improve this? What are the basics of illustrating a nice landscape?

Also, might sound annoying but could you guys not use terms that are too high caliber? I am just a hobbyist, not a professional.

Answer 1

Changes:

First thing that comes to my mind; it isn't landscape orientation. I would definitely start with making it landscape proportions.

Add some more color to the trees.

The snowflakes should be more spread out (like real snowflakes) and they should vary in size and shape significantly, don't just use circles.

The moon looks a bit like a sun (because it's yellow and lacks texture). To make it clearer that it's the moon, add some "craters" to the moon.

Consider changing the color to a bit less yellow - unless you want a supermoon. In that case, you can probably make it a bit more orange.

Add more trees, snowflakes and stars which should get smaller as they move "further" from wherever the illustration is staged from.

The image has a roundish feel to it, but the trees are very pointy. Round 'em up

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Other:

• I think you should remove the clouds, they are unnecessary.
• You can add in shadows behind the mountains if you'd like.
• If you're making this in Illustrator, make the shapes which you will be duplicating a lot into symbols (snowflakes and stars and maybe even the trees - if you are going to place a great amount). Now just duplicate the symbols as many times as you want, this will save faster and use a significantly smaller file size.

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I made my own version following most of my input mentioned above, here's my result: [GIF]

Notes:

• I did a ratio of 3:2 to look like a postcard.
• I made the mountains more like triangles to match the trees and to fit better in the landscape orientation.
• I also made some of the trees snow covered, which I think adds a nice touch.

• My final .ai file size is less than 1 mb because I used symbols.

Answer 2

First of all, I will try to maintain the original image's look.

Composition

Explore some basics of composition. In photography, a basic one is the rule of thirds.

This means that if you divide your frame in a 3x3 grid, some elements should be in those lines.

Look how none of your elements follow this composition rule.

If you place some elements on these lines, the image starts to look more interesting. It is regardless of any additional detail, maintaining the same style.

Planes

You probably want your image as it is, but to add more interest you can put elements of different sizes, making them appear as different planes, front, medium, back plane.

Point of interest

Add something to draw attention into. Something simple is ok, but to add context to your scene.

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Besides that, you can try different styles, but that is another topic. Add gradients, textures or more detail to the images.

@Welz answer comments these points, but the truth is that those are changes in the style you have. The composition is the first thing you want to work with. Leave the details for later.

Answer 3

When I was studying in fine art college, we had a task to make copy of some old artist. It's really help to gain skills and right vision. So I suggest you to visit Pinterest get there a lot of inspiration and make copy of some illustration you'll like.