Why Your Composites Look Fake Before You Even Open Photoshop

I sketch every composite before I open Photoshop. Paper, pencil, sometimes a cheap ballpoint if that’s what’s nearby. The sketch isn’t about being precious. It’s about committing to a light source before I’ve spent three hours cutting out a figure, only to realize the stock image I chose has the sun coming from camera left and my background has it blazing in from the right. That’s a composite that can’t be saved.