To get painting values right I often use photoshop's cutout filter to reduce the image to 4 or 5 values. This helps me find the lightest and darkest areas in the image and establish the relative values in between.
It makes we wish I could use a filter to simplify my life too. I think dealing with less in life could improve the overall quality a lot, but I just continually clutter up every corner of my existence, it seems. I love to fantasize about having a magic filter to erase everything except the very best parts: living, loving, creating, sharing. Wouldn't that be nice?

