Hi Gale- the cast shadow is positioned perfectly. I would just lighten it a little. The shadow fades as it moves away from the subject. Your color selection is also great! If the pear had a shiny surface, the highlights are okay, but I would expect them to be toned down a little by adding some color to them. I think the leaves have too many individual highlights. Highlights can be large (comparatively) areas which are lighter colors of the leaf. They don’t have to be a strong white if they don’t have a shiny surface. There are some basic things to do when illustrating leaves, but they also vary greatly from plant to plant and require a lot of study. Leaves can often be trickier to draw than a flower.
Hi Gale- the cast shadow is positioned perfectly. I would just lighten it a little. The shadow fades as it moves away from the subject. Your color selection is also great! If the pear had a shiny surface, the highlights are okay, but I would expect them to be toned down a little by adding some color to them. I think the leaves have too many individual highlights. Highlights can be large (comparatively) areas which are lighter colors of the leaf. They don’t have to be a strong white if they don’t have a shiny surface. There are some basic things to do when illustrating leaves, but they also vary greatly from plant to plant and require a lot of study. Leaves can often be trickier to draw than a flower.