Digital Art Program Reccomendations

Welcome to part 2 of this three part art supply/program recommendation series. Last time, I talked about traditional art supplies. Today, I'll cover digital art, including free digital art programs. This should be helpful to new users looking for what digital art program to get, and for more experienced users, looking to see what other cool programs are out there.

Digital Art Supplies
When you're in art college, you'll mainly see Adobe products on your digital art supply lists. They're there for a reason: Adobe has a lot of great products (depending on what you plan to get, you can save some money by buying a bundle pack). However, I know of several other great programs that I'm going to point out. But first, lets talk about the obvious one: Adobe Photoshop.

Photoshop
I suggest that every artist, digital or not, own some copy of Photoshop. It can help a lot when your scanner sucks the color or contrast from your traditional piece, and you can use it to stitch a piece together if it was large and you had to take photographs of different sections. In general, if you want to make your traditional art digital for any reason, I think you should have Photoshop. And of course, CG artists need something to paint textures in, and Photoshop is great for that. However, not everyone needs what I call the "big" Photoshop (any of the CS series). When  I first started out, I had Photoshop Elements 5.0, and I would have kept using it for many years. I only got Photoshop CS5 Extended last year because I needed it for a college class. The main differences are that in the CS version you have the pen tool, finer control over color and value adjustments, easier control over making animations, brushes that are tilt sensitive (for graphics tablet users), better compatibility with 64-bit computers, and some sort of 3D thing that I've never looked into. Now that I have CS5, I only occasionally use Elements (usually just when I need to do something small and quick). However, I never felt that Elements was lacking (though it was difficult to follow a few tutorials because of the differences). So I say, start with Photoshop Elements (unless you know you'll need those added features), then move on to the CS series when you're ready (I suggest getting the Extended line, which is what I have).

Corel
Now, Corel has a variety of programs. I've only ever used Corel Painter Sketch Pad, which came free with my Intuos 4 and is a lot of fun. However, I believe that CorelDRAW(which is a vector program like Illustrator) and Corel Painter (a raster program like Photoshop) are the main Corel programs that artists using (Corel Paintshop actually seems to be photo-editing related, not painting related). Of those two, Corel Painter seems to be the most well loved (or at least the one I hear the most about). Painter is actually in my art program wishlist. I've seen some great art made with it, and never heard any major complaints about Corel, so I suggest both CorelDRAW and Painter (there appears to be an Essentials version of Painter available, just like with Photoshop).

Illustrator
I'm not much of a vector artist, but I've seen some stunning vector work. I've used Illustrator enough to be reasonably comfortable with it (it was part of my Advanced Computer Arts college class) and it seems to be pretty awesome. I don't have CorelDRAW, so I can't compare them, but I image they are similar enough. So I also reccomend Illustrator.

MyPaint
One of my personal favorites, this is a free open-source art program. Because it markets itself as a program that replicates traditional media (like Painter), I like to call it a poor-man's Corel Painter. It looks like it hasn't been updated since November 2011, but I'm fine with my current copy. It lacks a few things that would be nice, like to ability to make a selection and move it, or do simple contrast adjustments (which means that it's good if you have a copy of Photoshop on hand to tweak your work afterwards if necessary). But if you think about it, in traditional media you can't do any of that, so this is just a very realistic digital version of working in traditional media. I especially like to use it when I'm sketching, because it has an infinite canvas (that you can crop down if you like). There are tons of different brushes, for dry media and wet media, and they do a pretty good job of replicating their real-life counterparts. So if you're like me and can't get Corel Painter just yet, I definitely suggest downloading MyPaint.

GIMP
This free program is extremely popular as a Photoshop substitute (I've never used it). There are also tons of tutorials available for it. Personally, I would still suggest you get some version of Photoshop if you know you're going in the digital art direction, because when you become professional you'll probably want to use one of CS series and you'll be familiar with the software (I am not aware of any professionals who use GIMP, though I'm sure some exist). But if you're a traditional artist checking out what all the digital stuff is about, GIMP is a free way to try it out. And if you can't afford any of the Photoshops, then it appears to be a great substitute. You can download it here.

Paint Tool SAI
I see Paint Tool SAI being used very often, and people really seem to like it. I've actually never used it, simply because I already have Photoshop and MyPaint, and Paint Tool SAI isn't free. It may appear that you can get an English version for free if you simply Google "Paint Tool SAI", but what you're getting isn't the full program, just parts that are edited to give the program a better translation (as clarified here) because the company is Japanese. You can get a trail/buy the program here and get the translation pack here.

Graphics Tablet
Now, while there are great examples of mouse-drawn digital art, I highly suggest that anyone who plans to even be simply a digital art hobbyist get a graphics tablet. They make the digital art process so much easier. Wacom rules the graphics tablet world, and for a good reason. I started out with a Wacom Graphire 4 without doing too much research into tablets, and loved it until the day I noticed it was dying (it wasn't very pressure sensitive anymore). I started researching other, cheaper brands, but couldn't find a single true competitor. The other brands are cheaper, sure, but they're not as good as a result. Luckily for me, my parents got my a Wacom Intuos 4 for Christmas, and it is wonderful! It's large (I have a dual-monitor setup, so it has to spread its control over a lot of pixels), it's wonderfully sensitive, has different pen nibs to allow it to feel more like a soft brush or firm pen (it came with a generous amount of replacement nibs, but I haven't had to use them yet), and I can use the tilt sensitivity features in Photoshop CS5. However, I am in art college, and plan on taking this tablet with me into the "real world" where I expect to put it to good serious use. If you are just a hobbyist or a beginner, one of the Bamboo versions will probably work fine for you (Bamboo is Wacom's newer version of the Graphire line). If you already have a tablet and are ready to step it up, then the Intuos is great. The legendary Cintiq is probably ten times greater (I've seen a few at my college, but never been able to use them). The tablets come in many different sizes, so make sure to measure your desk to make sure it'll fit. And one important tip: make sure to check the size of the tablet's "active area." This is the amount of space of the tablet that you actually have to draw on. A lot of the size of these tablets is inactive surface and button surface area.

I hope this was helpful! If you agree or disagree with my recommendations, feel free to leave me a comment!

Until next time!

Traditional Art Supply Recommendations

Hi again, everyone! This is the first part of a three part series of art supply recommendations I'm going to do. I'm going to say what I recommend, why I recommend it, and sometimes, who I recommend it for. Today I'm going to discuss traditional art supplies, tomorrow will be digital art programs, and Thursday will be CG art programs. Since I've made art in those three fields, I've researched and tried many different supplies and programs, so I feel that I know some that are worth trying out. Even if you're not a beginning artist wondering what art supplies or programs you should get, it never hurts to try out new media, brands, or programs, so I'm hoping this series will be helpful to many people. Feel free to skim through all of my commentary to just get to the links of what I recommend. Here we go!

Traditional Art Supplies
I may not be much of a traditional artist at the moment, but that is where I began. I don't think that I got my first copy of Photoshop until my freshman year of highschool, and I've had to use a lot of traditional materials in my 2 years of art school. By the way, the reason why I've had a chance to use so many of these supplies and brands is because they were on my college supply lists, which means that college art professors recommend them. Remember, with all of these supplies, you can buy them in higher-count or lower count packs depending on how many colors or shades you need.

Colored Pencils 
There are a number of wonderful colored pencil brands out there. If you're serious about making colored pencil art, I suggest moving on from RoseArt or Crayola ("scholasitic quality"), to at least student grade colored pencil. What are student grade colored pencils? They are colored pencils that have more filler in them, so their colors aren't as vibrant as "professional quality" pencils, and they fade quicker. However, professional colored pencils can be expensive, so if you're not sure if colored pencil art is really what you want to make, I suggest you start out with a nice pack of student grade pencils. You can always "upgrade" to the profesional pencils when you're ready. Here are the student grade color pencils that I recommend: Prismacolor Scholar Pencil 60 Color Set (this is what I first started out with). You might also want to give Prismacolor Col-Erase Erasable Colored Pencils, 24-Color Pencil Set a try, since they are erasable (I've only ever played a bit with these in the store, but they seem to have good reviews).

As far as professional colored pencils go, Prismacolor is certainly one of the most well-known, and for a good reason. For Christmas one year, I got a box of Prismacolor Premiers, and I was blown away. They are so smooth, they leave Crayolas miles behind in the dust. Prismacolor also has a firmer type of pencil, called Verithins, that I got a free sample of. They were also great to use, and I can see them becoming the favorite tool of people who like to shade and color by hatching colors together (the Premier Prismacolors are smoother, so can be blended by smudging easier). I suggest getting a pack of each, and seeing which blending method you like best. Derwent is another great colored pencil brand. I don't have any myself, but I know some people in my art classes who swear by them. So the professional grade colored pencils that I suggest are: Sanford Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencil Set, 48/Tin (this is what I have), Sanfrd Verithin Colored Art Woodcase Pencils, 24 Assorted Colors/Set, and Derwent Coloursoft Pencils with Metal Tin - Set of 24 - Assorted Colors.

Watercolor Pencils 
Something that is a lot of fun to work with is watercolor pencils. These are pencils that you can work with normally, then add water to afterwards. You can also wet their tips and work with them that way. I personally like them because of the amount of control they offer. I love the way watercolor looks, but I have never been able to control them the way I like. With these, I don't have as much of a control problem. I have worked with these a decent amount, and would suggest them: Prismacolor 36 Watercolor Pencil Set.

Graphite Pencils 
These have been required in almost every class I've taken that had any sort of traditional art component. For beginning artists, remember that "H" pencils are harder (and produce a lighter line) while B pencils are softer (and produce a darker line). "F" is sort of inbetween. I've only rarely found myself using the Hs. Normally, I start with 2B and work my way up the pencils as I add shading, ending with 8B. However, this is partly because I know I have a problem with not making my drawings dark enough, so you may find that you use the Hs plenty in your work. A lot of the fancy pencil brands make graphite drawing pencils. However, I have always been plenty happy with my General Pencil Co. Classic Graphite Set (this is the set I own). It even comes with graphite sticks, which can be great for doing large gesture drawings, or shading in big areas.

Charcoal
I'm not a big charcoal user, but I've had fun with it on the few assignments where I used it. I love how dark it can get! If you are going to work with charcoal, in order to keep yourself from fighting with your materials, I suggest getting three kinds of charcoal: compressed, vine, and pencil. Compressed charcoal looks similar to graphite sticks, and is equally good at covering large areas. It comes in different softness (B values), so make sure to get some of different ones. Vine charcoal is a strange sort, and I found it often squeaks when I use it. It quickly forms into a dust as you move it around and try to blend it, so work in a well ventilated area when using it. However, it is great at laying down light tones. Finally, charcoal pencils are just that: pencils. You can use them much like you would use a graphite pencil. I always had to buy my charcoal supplies separately, and that may be a good idea if you have a certain type that you like to use. In that case, I would suggest any of General's charcoal products. And if you like using pre-made sets, I would suggest General 32-Piece Classic Charcoal Drawing Set. I've never used that set, but I've never had any problems with General's products before. And remember, for a bit of fun, you can buy white charcoal tools, too.

Pastels
I've only dabbled in pastels on two projects, but I think they are awesome! I really enjoyed using them, and felt very artsy when working with them. They are messy, but it's that good, arty kind of messy. I especially like how vibrant the colors are, and how you can blend them. I've only used one brand, so they are the one I reccomend: Rembrandt Soft Pastels Cardboard Box Set of 30 Full Sticks - Assorted Colors. They are expensive, but they're quality supplies. You can also get lower counts, and half sticks for cheaper.

Acrylics
I've never used oils, and only played with children's watercolors, so as far as paint goes, I only know acrylics. Acrylics are great, though. However, there is a lot to consider when buying acrylic paints. Here's my first tip: buy the primary colors (red, yellow, and blue), black, and white. With these, you can technically make any color. I say technically, because you can go to a lot of trouble trying to mix your own colors (I know because I took a color theory class, and half of it was about how to mix colors). Making green, purple, and orange (the secondary colors) is easy. But if you plan on making blue green, be aware you may spend some time trying to make it more blue than green, or vice versa. Because of that, I suggest getting mixed colors that you plan on using often. You can also wait until you've been painting for a bit, then purchase your favorite mixed colors. Or you can just get really good at mixing your own colors. But be aware that you may use a lot of paint trying to make the right color, which leads to my next tip: buy the big tubes.

Little tubes, in my opinion, are for people who are either painting professionals, or are just making small postcard sized art. Until you get comfortable, buy the big tubes. Also, don't buy any paint that is really expensive until you know what you're doing. Student grade has more fillers (like student grade colored pencils) and also is less lightfast (which measures how much the color will change after exposure to light), but they'll be fine to get you started learning all those arcylic techniques. You can buy gallery quality paint when you're ready to start making gallery quality art. This is what I started with, and highly recommend to beginning painters: Reeves Acrylic Paint Sets set of 24. The tubes may seem small, but they lasted me long enough as I got the hang of everything. Also, this size is good if you're not sure if this is the media you want to use. When you're ready to step it up a notch, I suggest any of the Liquitex Basic paints . I've never used any of the really fancy paints, so my brand recommendation stops there.

Traditional Art Accessories

Don't forget all your art accessories! Colored pencils tend to come with sharpeners and colorless blenders if you get the medium sized packs, but you can also buy them seperately. Sanford Prism Color Premier Pencil Sharpener and Prismacolor Premier Colorless Blender Pencil, 2 Pencils should do it (remember that colored pencils are a special sort of pencil and shouldn't be sharpened in your typical electric pencil sharpener). Traditional artists should also have some good art erasers (get a couple of different ones, one of which should probably be Staedtler Mars Plastic Eraser - Color: White because it tends to erase very well). A kneaded eraser , which you can mold to into small or big shapes, is self-cleaning, and which you can use to just lightly erase something, is key (they also come in different sizes, and I suggest large). You should also have some tortillons (which you use to blend) and blending stumps , in different sizes. Pretty much any brand will suffice for these. And of course you'll need paper. With these, I usually just follow the suggestions on the front of the pack of paper or skechbook. If it says it's good for a certain type of dry or wet media, it probably is. I know this because I've never painted with acrylics on canvas, just on acrylic paper , and not had any problems. Though I don't suggest using pencils on newsprint (a cheap sort of paper, good for planning or doing gesture sketches), unless you are using 4B or above, simply because your marks may be too light otherwise. Canson and Strathmore seem to be good paper/sketchbook brands, but anything that isn't suspiciously cheap should be fine. I suggest getting a spiral-bound sketchbook, though, because I find it harder to keep hardbound book-like ones open. Also, don't get one that's too big if you plan on scanning your sketches (all-in-one printers usually don't have very large scanning beds) or carrying the sketchbook around. As far as painting supplies go, you'll need mixing plates, a good water cup (or plastic or paper drinking cups), palette knives (which I think are great for mixing and also for placing big splotches of color), paint cups to hold your paint until your next painting session (so it doesn't dry out), and plenty of paper towels to blot your brush. As far as brushes go, don't buy the really cheap ones. In a few weeks you'll wind up with hairs falling out of the brush and pieces of the handle chipping off, which will all fall into your paint, adding some unintended texture to your work. It doesn't hurt to spend some money on these, since they should last a while. I suggest using either synthetic or hog bristle brushes (other types may not work ideally with acrylics), and get some different sized ones.

So, I hope this was helpful! If you agree or disagree with my recommendations, or if you think I left a cool product out, feel free to leave a comment!

Until next time!