Tips from Jesse Hammさんのイラストまとめ

Notable exceptions to this approach:
LITTLE NEMO: opened up sumptuous vistas.
KRAZY KAT: unconventional formatting
GASOLINE ALLEY: ditto

You're going to draw people shaking hands dozens of times. Skip guesswork: take 5 minutes to sketch these and lock down that knowledge now.

For example: compare the distance between the eyes and nose in the first image with that in the second.

Generally, the larger the eyes, & the closer the facial features are grouped, the cuter the character.
(Image from https://t.co/IvOWWNP16M)

Frazetta groups most of the dark at the bottom, a band of grey along the top, with a path (see arrow) of darks & lights to the focal point.

Squint and compare these compositions. The Frazetta (capeless) groups darks/greys/lights simply, and centers attention on the hero figure.

To show what I mean:
(1) would be ideal for lefties.
Righties should flip it (2), or
(if working on paper) turn it (3) to find a good curve.

Ernest Shepard fades out the branch behind the child, adding depth without making it look like branches are growing through the kid's head.

A word of advice about self promotion:

@AbelUndercity SINCE YOU ASKED...the female Phantom was a character in my recent #FlashGordonKingsCross miniseries.