i agree.

 at CGsociety there are not only realistic renders. there are a lot ''artistic'' renders. renders that are fantasy but they still look  alive.

i have been reading the book by Jeremy Birn. shadows are important. shadows make a big difference. in paintings,renders,.....
back in he 90's it was almost impossible to do soft shadows. now they have the tools to make them. soft shadows make everyhtihng better IMO.

Caroda your renders are not alwys photorealistic. but dear god are they good. you really know how to play with shadows,lighting,shaders to make your idea to work. but how long does it take for you to make good soft shadows? long right?
imagine samples in the RT settings. imagine an area light. we still wouldnt make realistic humans. but it would be easier,faster to set up. and it would look better. even for cartoony,anime characters.

having bad shadows is bad.( i am also having sometimes bad ahsows) but not having shadows is just wrong. without shadows your figure looks like its floating. how can anyone think that without shadows it looks good is something i will never understand. even f.... default shadows are better.

Jeremy Birn
''The most basic use of shadows is to show spatial relationships between objects,''