I posted most of this before, but it applies here
If you're going for realism, there are very few "hard" lines. Everything that has an edge, one side or the other should have shading, so that the edge fades into the color.
If something is behind or under something, the shading falls on it. You can imagine where the light source is if you want to.
A light object on a dark ground, the ground would be darkest right against the outside of the image and fade out farther away.
A dark image on a light ground, the image would be darkest right against the inside of the outline, then fade towards the inside.
These rules will also help things appear 3-dimensional.
If you are not dealing with a medium that lets you create darker areas by more concentrated application, try adding a little of the complimentary color or choosing that type of color for shadows.
Compliments:
Red--Green
Yellow--purple
Blue--orange
So, if you have a yellow object, and you can't blend a little purple with your color, look for a tannish or ocher color for the shadow.
I would stamp the image in whatever color you're going to predominantly color it in. For instance, if I'm going to do a pink pickup truck, I would use pink, red, or magenta. I usually use colored pencils for realism. You can try markers. Dried up markers re-moistened with a damp paper towel will allow you to do subtler colors with regular markers (Crayola Supertips). You can also try watercolor paint or pencils. Paint the color in lightly, then go back with a drier brush (less water & more paint) to paint shadows.
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