Landscapes and Value

I have two landscape studies that I completed recently nearing Christmas of 2024.    One is Spring in Summit County, this is a view over Dillon Lake Toward Peak One of Ten Mile Range, and the second is a Winter Creek in Morning Light, a copy of a small Matt Smith piece.   I took a zoom class in Mid-November from the Tucson Art Academy Online by Matt Smith called "5 Key Steps to Achieving Convincing Values."   With his teaching insight in mind:

1)  have a value plan -- and paint from dark to lighter structures

2)  attend to value before color foundations

3) master simple subjects before doing complex paintings

4)  if the painting is more about color...simplify value, if the painting is more about value...simplify color  (Would be interesting to hear from you -- whether these two paintings each fall into a separate category!)

5)  get the value structure into the painting early on; moving from large to small; thin to thick; and dark to light.