Had to pick between a big, detailed background or a simple one for my latest piece

I was working on a new digital painting of a city street at night, and I got stuck on the background. I could either spend maybe 10 more hours adding every single window, sign, and car, or I could blur it out and keep it simple to make the main character stand out. I went with the simple blur, which felt like cheating at first. But when I showed it to my friend, she said, 'My eyes go right to the person, that's perfect.' It taught me that sometimes less detail is better if it helps the story. I'm happy with how it turned out, but I wonder if I should have added just a little more texture. Has anyone else had to make a choice like that and regretted going too simple?

3 comments

3 Comments

blair_martin1mo ago

Nice! That blur trick is a classic for a reason. Your friend's reaction proves it worked, so why second guess it now? Do you ever go back to old pieces and add more detail, or do you leave them as they are?

patricialee1mo ago

My last painting had a background so detailed it looked like a map. Spent a week on a brick wall that nobody even noticed. Your blur was the right call for sure.

faith_king1mo ago

My 2019 sketchbook has a whole page of perfectly drawn individual pine needles. It taught me that sometimes the best detail is knowing when to stop.