Why do fabric folds look stiff in renders and how can I fix ambient occlusion?

[GeorgeFT]

I’ve been trying to get better at rendering realistic fabric folds in my character illustrations, but my attempts always look stiff and unnatural. I’m wondering if my approach to the ambient occlusion in the deep creases is part of the problem, making the shadows look muddy instead of soft.

[Ella.M]

I kept chasing realism and kept fighting with muddy shadows in the deep creases. When I finally separated the shading into layers, I put a dedicated ambient occlusion pass on its own low-opacity layer and kept the creases sharper on the base shading. It helped a little, but it still reads soft in some places and flat in others.

[Ryan73]

I wonder if the issue isn't the AO at all but the pose and fabric pull. The way the cloth folds when the arm moves reads differently in stills. Could the problem be the pose or the way the fabric is pulled?

[Adam.H]

I tried softening the overall shadows but kept the midtones intact, then layered a fine brush to hint the inner creases instead of slapping a broad shadow everywhere. It felt more alive, but the result swung with the fabric type and lighting.

[LoganEL]

I get the urge to rush through a draw and end up with a uniform line of folds, and I hate when the character still looks stiff. One time I drifted into shading tests on a blank canvas and almost forgot the silhouette that started the piece.