Need a drawing package

[Walsingham]

I've realised that for the last few years I've actually done a tonne of drawings, using just MS Paint. They have a certain rustic charm, but it's about time I got a good drawing package. Obviously I'd rather pay nothing, but I will be fine about paying to get something with neat features. Remember I'm new to sophisticated computer painting, so if it has good tutorials that's a bg bonus.

 

Thanks in advance for helping. It's one of the best things about these fora that one can always ask tech queries and get top answers.

[taks]

for artsy things, or block diagrams?

 

taks

[mkreku]

I would suggest Paint.NET since that's what I use myself. It's also very versatile, as it's quite bare-bones from the beginning and it's easy to install additional modules as the need arises.

 

Otherwise I'm sure someone will suggest GIMP.

[Gorgon]

There is Painter, which despite it's goal of emulating real life paining is very confusing and has thousands of custom brushes you will never ever use.

 

There is photoshop which you must already know. There have been very few real improvements in the last installations as the developer team is still struggling with rewriting the whole code base to 64 bit. Silly really, but I suppose they can't call themselves 'cutting edge' if they don't. It's quite good for drawing as well as editing.

 

For the free alternatives, Gimp. It's not as intuitive as photoshop and it doesn't have as many functions either. Again it's editing more than drawing, but actual full blood drawing programs usually just aren't that good.

[Spider]

Paint.NET is very good, and I think it's an easier transition from MS Paint.

 

GIMP is more powerful, but also more complex and harder to learn. Especially if you're a windows user, I think it's easier to learn if you're used to how the Mac does things.

 

Otherwise you have http://www.pixlr.com for an online app (as in in-browser). I haven't used it much, but what little I have done is very impressive. Very similar to Photoshop when it comes to interface.

[Walsingham]

Righto. paint.NET it is. The easy transition is what sealed it.

[Slowtrain]

There's also Google Sketch-Up and Inkscape.

 

 

Inkscape is vector graphics instead of raster. I haven't used Sketchup much but Inscape has some similiarities to Illustrator.

 

It works pretty well with a Wacom

[Kaftan Barlast]

There is Painter, which despite it's goal of emulating real life paining is very confusing and has thousands of custom brushes you will never ever use.

 

 

Painter is the best program for digital painting Ive ever seen, unlike Photoshop and so on it works just like drawing with a real pen(or brush) on real paper(or canvas). You dont have to spend a year just learning how to make the brushes not look fakey-blurry like in PS. You do have a crazy number of different tools/brushes but you can just put the 4-5 you use in the bottom of the screen for easy access.

 

Not free though, its like

[Gorgon]

I dislike everything about the painter interface except how the zoom function works on the canvas. I couldn't find a single brush I could use without modification out of the millions there for the picking. On the other hand Photoshop does not allow you to save detail settings like brush opacity, only the basic shape, pressure, and movement dynamics, which means you have to start over again every bleedin' time you need a new one.

 

Also I don't know what you mean by 'fake blurry', if anything looks fake it's all those gimmick brushes in painter. To top it all off each brush type is keyed to a specific 'canvas', the painter version of photoshop layers, and can't be used with other canvases without rasterising the entire file, destroying any option for later editing.

 

A computer program is not a piece of paper, I'd call that a strength rather than a weakness. You can get a canvas with infinitely better resolution at your local art supply store, and a lot cheaper too.

Edited September 21, 2009 by Gorgon

[Kaftan Barlast]

A computer program is not a piece of paper, I'd call that a strength rather than a weakness. You can get a canvas with infinitely better resolution at your local art supply store, and a lot cheaper too.

 

 

Yeah, but if your digital work looks digital, you're doing it wrong. You want people to look at the painting, not the tech that created it. And art supplies are anything but cheap, especially not canvases. One fun thing about digital painting is that you stop being afraid to ruin that expensive

[Gorgon]

Painter doesn't make it look more 'natural', it makes it look painterish rather than photoshoppy. Things like the pretty, and also recognizable, algorithms like water paining. If your work looks a certain way because you are using photoshop, you don't know what you are doing

Edited September 22, 2009 by Gorgon

[Gorgon]

Not to say that photoshop is a better drawing program, it's not, and for people who aren't used to juggling 10 layers painter is maybe the better option, there are just a lot of things about it I don't like.

Edited September 22, 2009 by Gorgon

[Slowtrain]

You guys should post some of your stuff. This forum could use some more art.

[Kaftan Barlast]

We could do that, but in another thread maybe.

[Humodour]

I've realised that for the last few years I've actually done a tonne of drawings, using just MS Paint. They have a certain rustic charm, but it's about time I got a good drawing package. Obviously I'd rather pay nothing, but I will be fine about paying to get something with neat features. Remember I'm new to sophisticated computer painting, so if it has good tutorials that's a bg bonus.

 

Thanks in advance for helping. It's one of the best things about these fora that one can always ask tech queries and get top answers.

 

There's Gimp which is an open source (free) alternative to Photoshop. It's as hard to use as photoshop, and if you know Photoshop there's no guarantee that'll help you know Gimp, but it's very powerful and heavily supported since it's what Hollywood and all *NIX distros use.

 

http://www.gimp.org/

[Slowtrain]

I've realised that for the last few years I've actually done a tonne of drawings, using just MS Paint. They have a certain rustic charm, but it's about time I got a good drawing package. Obviously I'd rather pay nothing, but I will be fine about paying to get something with neat features. Remember I'm new to sophisticated computer painting, so if it has good tutorials that's a bg bonus.

 

Thanks in advance for helping. It's one of the best things about these fora that one can always ask tech queries and get top answers.

 

There's Gimp which is an open source (free) alternative to Photoshop. It's as hard to use as photoshop, and if you know Photoshop there's no guarantee that'll help you know Gimp, but it's very powerful and heavily supported since it's what Hollywood and all *NIX distros use.

 

http://www.gimp.org/

 

 

lol. You didn't even read the thread did you, Krezzie?

[Humodour]

I've realised that for the last few years I've actually done a tonne of drawings, using just MS Paint. They have a certain rustic charm, but it's about time I got a good drawing package. Obviously I'd rather pay nothing, but I will be fine about paying to get something with neat features. Remember I'm new to sophisticated computer painting, so if it has good tutorials that's a bg bonus.

 

Thanks in advance for helping. It's one of the best things about these fora that one can always ask tech queries and get top answers.

 

There's Gimp which is an open source (free) alternative to Photoshop. It's as hard to use as photoshop, and if you know Photoshop there's no guarantee that'll help you know Gimp, but it's very powerful and heavily supported since it's what Hollywood and all *NIX distros use.

 

http://www.gimp.org/

 

 

lol. You didn't even read the thread did you, Krezzie?

 

I read the thread. Is there a problem with me repeating another person's recommendation? I should think the more voices the better.

[Slowtrain]

I've realised that for the last few years I've actually done a tonne of drawings, using just MS Paint. They have a certain rustic charm, but it's about time I got a good drawing package. Obviously I'd rather pay nothing, but I will be fine about paying to get something with neat features. Remember I'm new to sophisticated computer painting, so if it has good tutorials that's a bg bonus.

 

Thanks in advance for helping. It's one of the best things about these fora that one can always ask tech queries and get top answers.

 

There's Gimp which is an open source (free) alternative to Photoshop. It's as hard to use as photoshop, and if you know Photoshop there's no guarantee that'll help you know Gimp, but it's very powerful and heavily supported since it's what Hollywood and all *NIX distros use.

 

http://www.gimp.org/

 

 

lol. You didn't even read the thread did you, Krezzie?

 

I read the thread. Is there a problem with me repeating another person's recommendation? I should think the more voices the better.

 

 

No, of course not. The way you responded just struck me as humorous for some reason. No offense meant.