Hi!!
So if you're aiming for realism, the biggest things to work on are lighting and texture. I love the yellow highlights you have on the left side of the horse, they're really beautiful ^^
However, there are some really dark shadows on the face that don't quite make sense. Especially looking at the bridge of his nose and his cheekbone below the eye. I definitely agree there should be shadows there but they're a bit too dark as is with the entire face in light. Same with the top of the mane and his back, although there is a light source from the left, the entire sky is still light so I'd definitely curve the highlights over the rest of him a bit more.
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Regarding the texture, if you want a super realistic look, I don't this smudging is quite the way to go. I'm not the best artist to ask for techniques on this one because I repaint everything but I'm imagining something more like
Charmed Acres
Or my absolutely favorite artists for texture that aren't super active anymore are HRS and Breezie - both of which I have examples of in my bio
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And I guess these might be personal touches but I would love to see more depth in the eye. Currently it looks very flat/black which takes away from the lifelike-ness. I would suggest at least adding a highlight if not an iris. (This could be the result of the image quality, in which case a larger canvas size may help too :D)
Last thing, I personally would probably add a shadow that the horse is casting onto the plants on the right. Yes this could be argued that the plants are behind where the horse is standing but at least some of them would likely be less bright.
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In general, great work with the colors and excellent start on the lighting. The tail looks wonderful!! I hope this helps and please feel free to let me know if you'd like clarification or more help with anything <3
Heavy Downpours, Flood Warning
