Digital Art
4d
Tim Norris
I know literally nothing about digital art. Until about five minutes ago, procreate was just something I've done with my wife. I'm starting to see the benefits (and beauty) of it. How can I get into it affordably without shooting too low and missing the stuff that would be really effective for my growth? I like the idea of expediting failures and experimentation. I've heard several artists talk about using it to develop traditional pieces. It seems like a reasonable way to start playing with color before making the leap to paint. I'm also inspired by the digital work of Josh Black and Melanie Scearce. There are several kids books I enjoy with my daughter that seem to have been created digitally, as well. I've tried studies in graphite, but it doesn't seem to translate quite right... Grumpy Monkey and The Rabbit Listened both seem like digital art to my eye.
All advice and resources appreciated. I have a 2020 iMac running Sonoma 14.5. Is there an accessory that would be good or is the best bet a new tablet/ipad? Are there apps that are easiest to use with good functionality? I don't want to spend much, but I also don't want to lose the powerful elements of the medium by being a cheap ass. I'm particularly worried about the tactile element not being there. It should feel more or less like drawing, neh?
Just remembered that Josh Black was kind enough to offer this answer to me a while back:
"of course! They are usually 10000 by 7000 pixels is what I like for sketching in Photoshop with a Wacom cintiq 24 hd"
I forgot because at the time I didn't understand!
@Melanie Scearce Forgive me for being needy once more... When you have a moment, would you please shed some light on your digital rig?
Krita. It's free, open source, powerful, free, versatile, and awesome and free. Works on Mac and PC. Quite user friendly. Shouldn't have any issue running it on your system. There is a very active user community attached to it, as well, offering lots of free brush packs, resources, tutorials, updated features, etc. It's my favorite since the old Corel Painter went by the way of the dodo. Did I mention it's free??
You can pick up a cheap USB Wacom Intuos pen tablet for $50-$60, if you don't want a heavy investment ($$$ and space) in a big screen tablet or a new iPad and pen or something. The setup is simple and quick and gets you painting right away. There is that disconnect between your hand moving over here and the mark happening over there that takes some getting used to, but it's not too bad.
Shoot, you could use your mouse if you really wanted to just cheap out and play haha. But a simple pen tablet will get you the most out of any app.
I just looked and it's $12.99 on my app store... Not sure why. Still a worthy investment?
