Tablets for digital illustration

[Peter McCoy]

When I was in school I was very good at art. I used to love copying image sof my favourite characters from cartoons and videogames. Then during my GCSE years I studied Art in school which was mainly still life, things like fruit bowls and glasswear etc. To be honest it killed my love of art. I found it very dull and just not fun.

Since leaving school I've done very little in the way of drawing. I very briefly dabbled in wet-on-wet painting Bob Ross-style but gave up due to frustration that it was shite despite being my first attempt. I may return to that sometime.

But right now, I'm very much interested in getting back into drawing. More specifically, creating my own art rather than copying like when I was younger.

There's a program on sale on Steam right now called Black Ink (http://blackink.bleank.com/) which I'm planning on buying very soon. But I'm not even going to consider using a mouse for it. I plan to invest in a good graphics tablet but I honestly wouldn't know where to start. There's various magazines on the subject of digital illustration but I don't want to invest the money in those rather expensive magazines just to learn what expensive tablet I'm going to use with the already not-cheap software.

I've seen some tablets that have a high-definition screen so you actually look at the stylus as you draw and see it take shape right there, as opposed to drawing on the tablet with the stylus and having to look up at your screen to see the effect. Without knowing anything at all, I feel I'd prefer the tablet with the screen, but I assume a good one will be expensive. Is an iPad a good option for such a thing? Can it even interface with such software on a Windows PC? I really have no clue and wa shoping there would be some like-minded people on here (come on Christin!) to guide me in this endeavor.

[Calloway Sharr]

(This is Mitch, by the way)

Okay, in graphics tablets, Wacom is the brand to go for. They've diversified their range, which can be a bit misleading, but the upper end Bamboo series are still of amazing quality for a bargain price. Where you start getting more features is in their Intuos line, and you get invaluable things like extra hotkeys right on the tablet itself, which speeds up your work time.

If you want a tablet where you can draw on the screen, you'll want to look at the Wacom line of Cintiq tablets. These come in various sizes, all will work with PC perfectly, but they are very expensive. I don't know how much more markup they have in the UK, but here in the USA they start at $1000 for the small one, and $2000 for the large one. Unless you are a graphics professional, or will be making money off of your artwork, I don't think a Cintiq is quite worth it. I do a lot of digital artwork, and I just use a Wacom Intuos 5 normal tablet. I know that Andrew uses a Bamboo with the same technical specs as my Intuos, but his was much less expensive than my $300 big tablet.

An iPad can theoretically do digital art, but it has no pressure sensitivity, which is a must, and it cannot interface with a PC to be used as an art tablet.

The other option, however, is the new Microsoft Surface Pro 3, which has a full-fledged pressure-sensitve digitizer built right in, and you can use it just like a Wacom Cintiq, but the tablet IS the computer. Also available with more than enough power to run a powerful graphics suite like Photoshop. However, a good one is expensive, starting at $1500, here, for one I would consider adequate.

Bottom line, I recommend getting a Wacom Bamboo series tablet. Get one with a working area that fits the size you want to draw at. Most comics pros still use regular tablets instead of a monitor style tablet like a Cintiq, anyhow.

[Calloway Sharr]

Also, for digital sketching, I recommend the program Paint Tool SAI. It's cheap, and delivers some of the best digital lineart ability I've seen. Also, you can export with layers into most other graphics programs. I've been drawing in SAI, then exporting to Photoshop for coloring and other detail work. SAI is also made to work almost exclusively with a tablet, in its interface.

[Loklorien s'Ilancy]

I use a 9x12 Wacom Intuos 3, and I love it to DEATH. I know some folks have no problem with a smaller tablet, but for some reason the big ones are what I feel most comfortable with.

[Peter McCoy]

I've had a look at the Intuos tablets and they do seem ideal. Obviously you guys have been using that type for some time now. How easy do you think it would be for a beginner to use? My concern is that I'm drawing down on my desktop on the tablet while looking up at my monitor to see what I'm drawing. Not looking at the pen seems like it'll be quite difficult, but I won't know until I try it I suppose.

I've gone ahead and bought Black Ink while it's still discounted at 55% off. Had a play around with it last night, albeit with my mouse, and I'm very pleased with the default brushes and effects I can achieve. I think I'll take the time to learn all of the different features and options for tweaking and creating my own brushes so that when I do get my tablet I'll be ready to jump right in and start creating stuff. I expect it'll be extremely amateurish but I'm hoping the various effects and brush styles will allow me to hide my shoddy drawing underneath a unique "style".

[Loklorien s'Ilancy]

I had the same initial thoughts on where my eyes would go, but to be completely honest, it takes about 3 seconds to get used to looking at the screen rather than your hand :)

[Peter McCoy]

As you move the pen around the tablet is it possible to move the cursor without actually drawing? Might be a silly question but I've never used one so I don't know. Essentially is there a way to tell where you're going to draw without actually drawing something for the sake of seeing where your marks will go?

[Loklorien s'Ilancy]

You can most definitely use it as a mouse :) just keep the stylus a short bit away from the tablet and the cursor will move where you move the stylus.

[Peter McCoy]

Awesome, that was a concern.

Browsing random images on Google alongside playing with Black Ink, I'm drawn towards two things: vehicles and landscapes. I can see myself studying a lot of concept art for things like buildings, robots, spaceships, mechs, tanks etc as well as various vistas such as deserts, mountains, plains as well as space-themed backgrounds like nebulae and galaxies and other celestial phenomena.

Here's a good example of the kind of thing I'd like to be able to create:

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[Loklorien s'Ilancy]

For the vehicle, ships, mechs, and robots, I recommend checking out Chip Foose and Doug Chiang. Foose is mesmerizing to watch, and his prisma technique is amazing. Definitely check out youtube for videos of him drawing cars. Chiang is just plain awesome with his designs for mech, robots, and ships.

[Peter McCoy]

So the wife has offered to buy me my graphics tablet for my birthday in September since it's a big one - my 30th.

I mentioned the Intuos Pro - Medium which is on Amazon for £240. The Large version is £365 and I'm wondering if the larger screen is worth the extra £125. Any thoughts? I could always put the rest of the money towards it since I'd feel bad saying "Oh I changed my mind, I want the mor eexpensive one!"