Digital Drawing: Do it better edition
October 1, 2015 2:20 PM
I have a drawing tablet and I enjoy my hobby of designing prints, however I want to get better at it and am looking for the best resources. Specifically techniques I'm interested in and programs to help.
I'm using this Wacom tablet, which I love. I've gotten decent with it in the short amount of time that I've used it. I'm primarily interested in watercolor/illustration style like this and I really love hand-lettering like this. (I also love styles like this, but I think I can do that level currently.)
I managed to teach myself watercolor style in a few hours, and I've done some faux hand lettering type stuff just working with fonts. (You can see my posters at printwithlove.etsy.com - I don't want to self promote but that's where I'm at. I've got a couple watercolor ones that I've used the tablet with, but most are prior to me buying a tablet. I like having a variety of styles overall but want to perfect a few things to expand my skills.)
1) Are there more good sources on learning to digitally paint (specifically watercolor style) online? Free, video, walkthroughs, etc. I know HOW watercolor should look, it's just getting there with the tools. [I watched this series.]
2) A good, less expensive, or open source tool that can smooth lines? (Flash is an extra $20/month and I only pay $10/month for Photoshop and Lightroom.) I have a Mac on the latest OS.
I use Photoshop, though programs like Flash have very good line-smoothing for tablets that makes your hand lettering and lines look perfect. I'm fine with illustrative/not perfect style for painting, but if I want to do any hand-lettering, Photoshop doesn't smooth the lines enough. (Here's an example of the smooth lettering in Flash.) I'm most comfortable in Photoshop but wouldn't mind doing part of something in another program then finishing it in Photoshop.
3) Any other Wacom tablet tips. I have watched quite a few setup and tips videos including this series. I do have my active space set decently small so I just need to use smaller movements.
I've done art my whole life, and this is pretty much a matter of being able to do stuff on the tablet that I could do on paper. (Although I'm much happier with digital watercolor than physical watercolor - it has an undo button.)
I'm using this Wacom tablet, which I love. I've gotten decent with it in the short amount of time that I've used it. I'm primarily interested in watercolor/illustration style like this and I really love hand-lettering like this. (I also love styles like this, but I think I can do that level currently.)
I managed to teach myself watercolor style in a few hours, and I've done some faux hand lettering type stuff just working with fonts. (You can see my posters at printwithlove.etsy.com - I don't want to self promote but that's where I'm at. I've got a couple watercolor ones that I've used the tablet with, but most are prior to me buying a tablet. I like having a variety of styles overall but want to perfect a few things to expand my skills.)
1) Are there more good sources on learning to digitally paint (specifically watercolor style) online? Free, video, walkthroughs, etc. I know HOW watercolor should look, it's just getting there with the tools. [I watched this series.]
2) A good, less expensive, or open source tool that can smooth lines? (Flash is an extra $20/month and I only pay $10/month for Photoshop and Lightroom.) I have a Mac on the latest OS.
I use Photoshop, though programs like Flash have very good line-smoothing for tablets that makes your hand lettering and lines look perfect. I'm fine with illustrative/not perfect style for painting, but if I want to do any hand-lettering, Photoshop doesn't smooth the lines enough. (Here's an example of the smooth lettering in Flash.) I'm most comfortable in Photoshop but wouldn't mind doing part of something in another program then finishing it in Photoshop.
3) Any other Wacom tablet tips. I have watched quite a few setup and tips videos including this series. I do have my active space set decently small so I just need to use smaller movements.
I've done art my whole life, and this is pretty much a matter of being able to do stuff on the tablet that I could do on paper. (Although I'm much happier with digital watercolor than physical watercolor - it has an undo button.)
For smoothing lines, you should check out Clip Studio Paint. It's intended for comic book artists and digital comic creation, but it does smooth lines. I don't know about its ability to emulate watercolor effects, but I find it's a great tool, considering the price (base level is $49. Sometimes they run special deals; I got it for $15!)
posted by cleverevans at 4:31 PM on October 1, 2015
posted by cleverevans at 4:31 PM on October 1, 2015
Adobe Illustrator ultimately smooths lines out if you adjust the "Fidelity" setting by double-clicking on the pencil or paintbrush tool. With Illustrator you are then left with vectors which you can fine-tune to your heart's content - you can make them super-ultra-smooth by learning how to adjust the bezier curves.
posted by Slothrop at 4:47 PM on October 1, 2015
posted by Slothrop at 4:47 PM on October 1, 2015
Lazy Nezumi Pro looks exactly like what I want, but is only for Windows. The stuff for manga and anime looks promising. Does anyone know if there are photoshop plugins that do similar things?
Also Illustrator is also an extra $20/month.
posted by Crystalinne at 5:09 PM on October 1, 2015
Also Illustrator is also an extra $20/month.
posted by Crystalinne at 5:09 PM on October 1, 2015
2) I can second the recommendation for Clip Studio Paint (it's often on sale for $15 or $20), it's line smoothing is so much better than Photoshop's (CSP has a bunch more settings to fine tune it) and it's vector tools are pretty good too, which might help with lettering. (CSP is marketed outside of Japan [and Europe maybe?] as Manga Studio 5, exact same program, different name for some reason)
Here's a comparison video I came across for line smoothing.
Demo vid of "watercolor" in MS5. You can get a much stronger watercolor effect than this video shows, especially with the DAUB brush set.
Paint Tool SAI is another program that I've heard has great line smoothing.
Here's an example of "watercolor" in SAI.
Brushes and process links for above.
Both of these programs have free month long trials on their websites.
3) There's totally a few month learning curve (which is super frustrating) with using a digital tablet. You might want to look in your tablet's settings and fiddle around with them (especially the Tip Feel setting) if you haven't yet, some settings work better than others for some people.
posted by Chicoreus at 6:24 PM on October 1, 2015
Here's a comparison video I came across for line smoothing.
Demo vid of "watercolor" in MS5. You can get a much stronger watercolor effect than this video shows, especially with the DAUB brush set.
Paint Tool SAI is another program that I've heard has great line smoothing.
Here's an example of "watercolor" in SAI.
Brushes and process links for above.
Both of these programs have free month long trials on their websites.
3) There's totally a few month learning curve (which is super frustrating) with using a digital tablet. You might want to look in your tablet's settings and fiddle around with them (especially the Tip Feel setting) if you haven't yet, some settings work better than others for some people.
posted by Chicoreus at 6:24 PM on October 1, 2015
I've heard a lot of good buzz lately about Krita, which is a digital-painting focused open source app. It does have line smoothing, but I can't vouch for its quality as an end-user.
posted by Alterscape at 6:32 PM on October 1, 2015
posted by Alterscape at 6:32 PM on October 1, 2015
Artrage is also an exceptional painting program and rather inexpensive...great for traditional media like watercolor, oil, and acrylic...even mixing them, which is difficult in the real world.
posted by sexyrobot at 6:44 PM on October 1, 2015
posted by sexyrobot at 6:44 PM on October 1, 2015
If you're using a Mac with a Retina screen, be aware that Manga Studio 5 is not Retina-ready. (So you can't really tell if what you're looking at is jagged or not. :/ )
posted by wintersweet at 9:16 PM on October 1, 2015
posted by wintersweet at 9:16 PM on October 1, 2015
If you are on a Mac then I recommend Artrage for painting/drawing, Affinity Designer for illustration.
posted by 73pctGeek at 1:49 AM on October 2, 2015
posted by 73pctGeek at 1:49 AM on October 2, 2015
A few of my friends (and a lot of their friends) have sworn on using regular paper and putting it over their tablet for smooth lines. These are very impressive art students. Try it out?
posted by yueliang at 2:11 AM on October 2, 2015
posted by yueliang at 2:11 AM on October 2, 2015
I was in a bit of a rush when I answered last night... My cred (for what it's worth): I do digital illustration, use a cheapy Wacom Bamboo tablet, teach University-level Graphic Design and have used Mac/Adobe stuff since 1997.
If you have a Mac and want free, then download Inkscape. It's a vector tool that is as good as Illustrator in my opinion. In fact, it did a few things better last time I used it. I am pretty sure that it has a similar function as Illustrator, in that you can set a "Fidelity" on a sliding scale for the brush and pencil tools. The higher the number on the Fidelity setting, the fewer points the software uses to represent your lines and the smoother it becomes. After a certain point, keep in mind that the software will re-proportion your drawing in its quest for smoothness, so there is a balance to finding a setting that works for your specific drawing input. Inkscape is free, but you might also look for CS5 or CS6 install dvds on Craigslist or eBay. I bought CS5 to have an official copy, but honestly I could make my professional client work with CS1 or probably even Illustrator 9 and Photoshop 5. The real core drawing aspects of these software tools haven't changed in awhile. Creative Cloud is a straight up money grab by Adobe and I advise my students to look for CS5 or 6 dvds.
I also second yueliang and recommend that you layer a piece of paper over your tablet. I have a piece of colored construction paper on mine because it's the most toothy paper I could find without being bumpy. I don't know why the tablet manufacturers haven't figured out that a nearly glass smooth surface with a smooth-tipped stylus is not conducive to precise drawing. If you learned to draw on paper (as I did), then using the stylus is like suddenly trying to ice skate. The stylus slides much, much more on the tablet surface than a pencil lead will on paper. That means that much slighter muscle movements in your hand translate to tremors and exaggerated distortions on the tablet. For me, a piece of construction paper between the stylus and the tablet keeps the stylus from "tremoring" or sliding and thus I get smoother lines that way.
You haven't really indicated whether you are comfortable with the difference between vector (Illustrator, Flash, Affinity Designer, Inkscape) and bitmap software (Photoshop, Gimp), but you mention hand lettering. Most professional lettering and all typeface design is done in vector software. This is the work of one of my former students. He creates his lettering by hand, scans it in, then creates a vector version in Illustrator depending on the final outcome.
And then finally, you haven't mentioned whether you have taken art classes. One skill that is practiced in University-level painting and drawing classes is transitioning from drawing with your fingers or your wrist to drawing with your elbow or shoulder. I'm not great at it, frankly, since I started drawing at age 5 and never stopped, but when I practice drawing with the larger muscles in my arm, I can make smoother lines.
Good luck!
posted by Slothrop at 5:41 AM on October 2, 2015
If you have a Mac and want free, then download Inkscape. It's a vector tool that is as good as Illustrator in my opinion. In fact, it did a few things better last time I used it. I am pretty sure that it has a similar function as Illustrator, in that you can set a "Fidelity" on a sliding scale for the brush and pencil tools. The higher the number on the Fidelity setting, the fewer points the software uses to represent your lines and the smoother it becomes. After a certain point, keep in mind that the software will re-proportion your drawing in its quest for smoothness, so there is a balance to finding a setting that works for your specific drawing input. Inkscape is free, but you might also look for CS5 or CS6 install dvds on Craigslist or eBay. I bought CS5 to have an official copy, but honestly I could make my professional client work with CS1 or probably even Illustrator 9 and Photoshop 5. The real core drawing aspects of these software tools haven't changed in awhile. Creative Cloud is a straight up money grab by Adobe and I advise my students to look for CS5 or 6 dvds.
I also second yueliang and recommend that you layer a piece of paper over your tablet. I have a piece of colored construction paper on mine because it's the most toothy paper I could find without being bumpy. I don't know why the tablet manufacturers haven't figured out that a nearly glass smooth surface with a smooth-tipped stylus is not conducive to precise drawing. If you learned to draw on paper (as I did), then using the stylus is like suddenly trying to ice skate. The stylus slides much, much more on the tablet surface than a pencil lead will on paper. That means that much slighter muscle movements in your hand translate to tremors and exaggerated distortions on the tablet. For me, a piece of construction paper between the stylus and the tablet keeps the stylus from "tremoring" or sliding and thus I get smoother lines that way.
You haven't really indicated whether you are comfortable with the difference between vector (Illustrator, Flash, Affinity Designer, Inkscape) and bitmap software (Photoshop, Gimp), but you mention hand lettering. Most professional lettering and all typeface design is done in vector software. This is the work of one of my former students. He creates his lettering by hand, scans it in, then creates a vector version in Illustrator depending on the final outcome.
And then finally, you haven't mentioned whether you have taken art classes. One skill that is practiced in University-level painting and drawing classes is transitioning from drawing with your fingers or your wrist to drawing with your elbow or shoulder. I'm not great at it, frankly, since I started drawing at age 5 and never stopped, but when I practice drawing with the larger muscles in my arm, I can make smoother lines.
Good luck!
posted by Slothrop at 5:41 AM on October 2, 2015
It looks like Inkscape is available for Windows now, btw.
posted by Slothrop at 5:44 AM on October 2, 2015
posted by Slothrop at 5:44 AM on October 2, 2015
I highly recommend picking up some good brushes. Kyle T. Webster's Megapack ($14, sometimes goes on sale) is used by lots of professional illustrators and you can use them for everything from watercolor to hand-lettering. His watercolor brushes are the best I've found online and he has some video demos too.
posted by sonmi at 5:54 AM on October 2, 2015
posted by sonmi at 5:54 AM on October 2, 2015
Thanks all. I tried Clip Studio Paint, but I'm not completely sold on it yet - and I'm not sure if it will have issues as I am on a retina display. I'm going to try Inkscape (it was my husband's suggestion, but he wasn't sure if it had line smoothing.) In general I don't mind things looking sketchy - as I kinda like the carefree style of them, but some ideas I have need really clean lines. Plus I've only used to tablet for maybe 15 hours total. (Here's the little guy I made today.)
posted by Crystalinne at 6:27 PM on October 2, 2015
posted by Crystalinne at 6:27 PM on October 2, 2015
As an update, I have switched to Affinity Designer in combo with Photoshop, and it's amazing. (Mac only.)
posted by Crystalinne at 12:15 PM on November 17, 2015
posted by Crystalinne at 12:15 PM on November 17, 2015
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by buriednexttoyou at 4:10 PM on October 1, 2015