Hello there and thanks for joining me. I'm professional artist Aaron Rutten.
This video is a guide for artists who are completely new to digital art.
I'll show you what tools you'll need to make digital art.
And I'll answer some commonly asked questions
that beginners have about getting started with digital art.
(woosh sound)
First, let's start with the tools you'll need to create digital art.
Digital art is made on a computer, so you'll need a computer.
You probably have one if you're watching me right now.
Your computer can be a desktop, a laptop,
a mobile device such as a smartphone,
or a tablet computer like the iPad or the Surface Pro
A desktop or a laptop computer is better because
you'll be able to work on larger images, store a lot of artwork,
and because desktops can be far more powerful than a phone or tablet .
So there won't be as much lag while you're drawing.
The advantage to working with a mobile device is
that you aren't tethered to your home or office.
Now in addition to your computer, you'll also need some art software.
This is also known as a program or an app.
There's a few different categories of art software.
There's free art software and there's paid art software.
There's also software for desktop computers
and software for mobile devices.
Now I'm not going to go into a whole lot of detail
about all the different art applications
because there are a ton of them.
But I do have several videos which I'll link to
that will show you the different programs that I recommend,
depending on whether you're looking for free, paid, desktop or mobile art applications.
But I will say that out of all the applications I've tried,
Corel Painter is definitely my favorite
and that's the one that I use for the majority of my work.
I don't do a whole lot of painting on my phone,
but when I do, I like the Infinite Painter app and the ArtRage app
And I'll also mention that some drawing tablets come bundled with free or trial art software.
Drawing tablet?
What's a drawing tablet?
I'm sure if you're at the point of searching for digital art videos,
you've probably at least dabbled in Microsoft Paint
using your mouse to make crude drawings
that could be put to shame by any three-year-old.
And I'm sure that you notice that drawing with a mouse feels
a lot like drawing with a rock.
And that's really about how sophisticated drawing with a mouse is.
Now I don't mean to sound like I'm knocking rocks...
Rocks were very popular with prehistoric artists,
but eventually we invented the pencil and things got much easier.
The mouse is a rock.
It's crude and it's difficult to use,
but you can draw with a mouse. And some artists are quite good with it.
However, I wouldn't recommend it because a tablet is much easier to use
and you can do more with a tablet than you can do with a rock.
But I also know that not everyone has access to a tablet
so I don't want to discourage anyone from getting into digital art
if their only barrier is owning a tablet.
People made amazing artwork throughout the 1980s and 1990s,
using only a mouse
and continue to do so to this a day.
If you must draw with a mouse, that's perfectly fine,
but you should consider getting a vector program like Adobe Illustrator,
Inkscape or Microsoft Expression Design
because it will be much easier to control with your mouse.
So third on the list of things that you'll need is an input device.
That could be a mouse, that could be a tablet,
that could be a mobile device that has a pen built-in...
That could be your finger on your tablet
Regardless of which of these you choose, you'll need something that can function as your pen
So I'm going to break this down into two categories,
desktop and mobile.
Let's start with desktop.
If you're working on a desktop you'll be using a drawing tablet,
also known as a graphics tablet.
You may have heard them referred to as Wacom tablets.
Some popular models are the Intuos and the Cintiq.
A Windows or a Mac operating system are required for these kind of tablets.
Linux is also supported if you're computer savvy enough to install the special Linux driver.
The advantages to working on a tablet are that you'll have
way more control over your pen pressure sensitivity and opacity...
using the pen to change the width of your line or the opacity of your stroke,
rather than having to constantly change sliders
to choose the size of your brush and the opacity.
You'll also have a much larger drawing surface,
a better quality pen,
a tablet is more comfortable and more intuitive to draw with,
and in some cases, you might even have other features that are very handy
like express keys that you can assign to commonly used shortcuts.
So a drawing tablet will work really well
if you have a desktop or a laptop computer,
but what if you have a mobile device?
As mobile painting is becoming more capable,
a lot of artists are drawing on a phone
or a tablet computer such as the iPad.
These devices have their tablets built-in,
so you don't need to purchase one separately.
However, not all tablets and phones support pen pressure detection.
And that's really important for getting a natural drawing experience.
You can do all of your painting with your finger,
but that's barely a step up from a rock.
I recommend choosing a mobile device that recognizes pen pressure
and comes with a pressure-sensitive stylus.
Some tablets like the iPad (not counting the iPad Pro), do not support pen pressure by default.
But you can purchase a stylus that can sense pen pressure,
such as the Wacom Bamboo or the Wacom Fine Line.
Not all styli -- yes, "styli" not styluses,
can sense pen pressure.
So make sure to read the specs for your stylus
to make sure both your device and your art app are supported.
Now let's talk a little bit about drivers.
Drivers are the software that tells your computer how to make the tablet work.
If your drivers are missing or incompatible with your computer,
your tablet probably isn't going to work.
It's best to choose a newer tablet if you're using a newer computer
because older tablets may work on newer computers,
and newer tablets may work on older computers, but there's no guarantees.
There are lots of new and old drivers online,
so do your research first before choosing a tablet.
If the tablet you're considering has a description or a specifications area,
look for the supported operating systems
to make sure that your operating system will work with that tablet.
In the past, drivers used to come on a CD,
but since a lot of newer computers don't use CD drives anymore,
typically, you'll download those drivers from a website.
You'll want to go to the manufacturer's website for your tablet
and look on their Drivers page.
And make sure that the drivers are available for your operating system before you purchase your tablet.
It's also worth mentioning that, at a certain point, companies stop making drivers for
newer versions of Windows and Mac,
so you will want to keep that in mind.
You may find that your tablet was working fine with Windows 8,
but then you upgrade to Windows 10 and suddenly the tablet doesn't work.
And the company doesn't bother to put out a new driver for that operating system
because that tablet is no longer supported.
Now generally speaking, Wacom is really good about updating
their drivers all the time for new operating systems.
And it's pretty easy to find older versions of their drivers.
I can't say the same for other companies.
In my experience, most tablet driver support isn't nearly as good as Wacom's is.
Now let's talk about some optional things that you really don't need,
but they will make your life much easier.
The first is a secondary monitor or screen.
Having an extra screen will make it much easier to work
because you can distribute your work across multiple screens.
I use three screens. I have my digital art application on one screen,
a reference image on another screen
and if I want to have some notes or my email open on another screen, I can do that.
The second option is a computer that is optimized for digital art.
Optimizing your computer for digital art isn't very hard to do
if you have a list of what you need.
I have a great PDF guide that I will link to in the description of this video.
That will tell you about all the different parts that you'll need
to optimize your computer for digital painting.
And the last set of tools that you'll need to make digital art, are tutorials.
And fortunately for you,
you know a guy who makes tutorials...
(Clears throat) That's me.
You'll want to watch some tutorials that will teach you how to draw on a tablet,
tutorials that teach you how to use your software,
and you'll want to learn some of the important fundamentals for beginners.
I have a ton of videos for beginners.
The fundamentals that I would concentrate on starting out would be:
Layers,
how to choose color,
image size and resolution,
basic sketching with primitive shapes,
and saving, backing up and file management.
So those are all of the tools that you will need to make digital art.
Now let's answer a few commonly asked questions
that beginners might have about getting started with digital art.
First, how much does it cost?
Well, prices can vary quite a bit depending on what your needs are.
If you're on a really tight budget,
there are lots of free digital art apps.
You might be able to find a used tablet online,
or locally at a used computer store,
on Craigslist, or at a thrift store for under $50.
You might also be able to find a used computer.
I don't think anything running an operating system older than Windows 7 would be a good choice,
but I'll leave that up to you
If you do buy a used tablet or a used computer,
just make sure that the operating system you're using on that computer
is compatible with that particular tablet.
You may need to download the tablet drivers online to make the tablet work on your computer.
Now if you're not on a tight budget, but you don't want to spend a ton of money,
at a minimum, you'll probably need to spend about $80 for a decent entry-level tablet.
Free software is fine to use and hopefully you already have a computer.
If not, you'll have to spend a little bit more for the computer.
If you want a more professional set up,
you're looking at about $500 to $4,000 dollars,
depending on what you buy.
And that's including the tablet, the software,
and whether or not you have to buy a computer.
Now I know the next question on your mind is,
"What tablet should I buy?"
First, let me say that I get this question
multiple times a day.
And it kind of irritates me because I've put so much time
into creating videos that help to answer that question.
So, please, do not ask me which tablet to buy...
ever.
Because, honestly, I can't really answer that question.
Only you can decide what is best for you.
So you'll need to do some research
and decide for yourself which tablet is best, based on your needs.
Fortunately, I make that research easy because I have several videos
that recommend tablets.
If you watch those videos,
you'll have a much better idea of what to buy.
There's also a store on my website
which lists all the digital art products that I recommend.
Here are some quick tips you can use when shopping for a tablet.
Don't buy the cheapest tablet.
There are lots of imitation brands that are poor quality,
buggy, and frustrating to install.
And they may not work with your computer.
If you can afford it, buy a Wacom tablet.
Wacom makes the best quality tablets and has excellent customer support.
And they update their drivers often.
Buy the largest tablet you can afford,
if you have the room for it.
because a large drawing surface is much easier to draw on.
Don't be fooled by all the numbers that are thrown at you.
You'll see numbers for the tablet resolution,
pen pressure levels, the report rate,
all of these different things.
And these specs are slightly important
but not as important as the size or the quality of the tablet.
Obviously larger numbers are better,
but don't let that be the main reason you're choosing that particular tablet.
You would have to pay really close attention while you're drawing
to notice a difference between a tablet with
1024 levels or 2048 levels of pen pressure.
If you can't afford the tablet that you want,
get something similar or less expensive to use
until you can afford something better.
If you're new to digital art
and you're not sure that it's something you'll stick with,
consider getting a small or less expensive tablet.
And then upgrade later if you decide to continue working digitally.
So now you have a good idea of what to buy,
where can you buy a tablet?
You can buy them online which might be the easiest,
on Amazon or on eBay.
Or they are sold in some retail stores,
for example, Best Buy carries Wacom tablets.
The next commonly asked question is,
"How long does it take to get used to drawing on a tablet?"
Everyone is different, but I would say
about 2 weeks to 2 months of consistent practice
will get you on track with drawing on your tablet.
It really isn't that difficult,
but it does take a little bit of practice.
If you want a little bit of help building up your hand-eye coordination,
consider tracing over images because that works really well.
The next question is,
"How is it working digitally different than working traditionally?"
There's no need to replenish your materials and art supplies,
it's easy to begin work with minimal setup,
there's no messy cleanup,
it's easy to take a break and resume work on your painting later,
you can correct mistakes more easily,
there's less risk of messing up your art when you're experimenting,
and it's easier to make prints because you don't have to photograph or scan anything.
Another question that I get asked a lot is,
"Do I have to choose between digital or traditional or can I do both?"
No. You don't have to choose. You can do both.
Digital art is just a medium.
Chalk is a medium,
watercolor is a medium,
pencil is a medium.
And you don't have to choose between one or the other.
you can use any medium you want to make your art.
You can even combine digital with traditional art,
which is really fun.
And the last question is,
"Do you have any tips for getting better at drawing in general?"
Yes, I do. I have two great videos,
one is called '10 Drawing Tips for Digital Artists'.
And the other is called '10 Mistakes Digital Artists Make'.
Those videos will be very helpful.
Alright, so that brings us to the end of this video.
I hope by now you have a better understanding of what you'll need
to make digital art and how to get started creating it.
If this video was helpful to you,
please return the favor by buying your tablet and software
from the store on my website.
I get credit for all sales made through my store or product links
and this revenue helps me continue making free videos like this.
And if you're new to my channel, subscribe now for more digital art tips and tutorials.
Thanks for watching
and I wish you the best on your new journey as a digital artist.
(large rock hitting the ground)
you