South Shelby County, AL

Here's South Shelby County:

My orders on this one were, "No funny stuff." I guess these towns wanted a more serious tone or something. So, I avoided any overly silly details, like I had in the Monteagle map. I also used a less cartoony palette, with more tasteful colors.

I needed to turn this one out quickly, so I skipped some of the hard stuff (art vs. commerce, you know). This time, I didn't do: The horizon and sky, the curve of the earth, the shadows, the oval signs, the snazzy gradients and fonts on the signs, the hand-lettered town names, the complicated trees, or the extra detail I was putting into each building. But I did use a more painterly technique on the greenery and the lake, and I added a texture that sort of makes it look like watercolor paper. And I put some fancy doodads in the corners.

Here's the Coosa Valley Academy Rebel:
It's weird to have a plantation owner as a mascot. Maybe they didn't get the news about our having lost the War Between the States.

Meanwhile, this guy's on a Sea-Doo: