# Any Digital art software for beginners?



## Kirkzer (Jan 17, 2017)

What is the best art software to learn to draw if you have practically never drawn in your life!?

Adobe Photoshop is the only one I know but I do not want to pay monthly for it. I don't mind spending money on the software.

 is there any software that teaches you how to draw/paint?


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## nerdbat (Jan 17, 2017)

(^:

(but yeah, as BlackDracon said, don't dive into digital art just yet - drawing on paper will be somewhat more comfortable and practical for your level of skill)


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## quoting_mungo (Jan 18, 2017)

Sketchbook Pro, which BlackDracon mentioned, is my favorite sketching software - most of my art uses Photoshop only to do the flat colors, and/or for color adjustments (Sketchbook Pro 6, which I run, can only have one file open at a time, so can be awkward if you need to eyedropper colors off a reference) and maybe some masking or other layer effect magic. 
There's also Paint Tool Sai, which is pretty decent, and Clip Studio Paint, which can also be remarkably cheap if you catch a sale. (Just wait for a sale. They seriously run sales all the freaking time.) I personally am not a huge fan of the GIMP, but I'm sure there are some people who use it to create art. Another option is to shop around and find a place that still has Photoshop CS6 (or earlier) in stock. (Insert massive hate for the software rental business model here.)

Notably, if you have a tablet, there's a free version of Autodesk's Sketchbook app at LEAST in Apple's App Store (or there was back when I got my iPad years ago). Main limitation is that you're constrained to three layers, which should still be fine when you're just getting started.


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## nerdbat (Jan 18, 2017)

BlackDracon said:


> Oh that's neat! Maybe a rom of that would be a fantastic way to get out of being stuck drawing on such a little screen.
> 
> Confining a drawing to such a small space isn't the best habit to build lol. I remember how wierd and liberating it was to draw on a 18x24 inch paper...and actually use my whole shoulder to draw..many art classes ago XD.


Well, you can stretch out the screen in emulator, but everything will still be blocky. Though while drawing space is indeed limited, at least this game/app gives a good understanding of basics in an entertaining form, yap

To be honest, I'm kinda baffled by lack of good sotware for studying the artwork. Musicians have all kind of stuff, from self-teaching software (Rocksmith, Yousician) to note/tablature visualisers (Synthesia, Guitar Pro), programmers have many simplified, designed-to-study programming languages with various interactive tests to boot (PascalABC, for example). With art it's like, "Want to be an artist? Well, good luck with that, go to an art school or study some Loomis, I dunno". Again, in modern age, we have many cool tutorials online, but difficulty curve and main focus is usually all over the place in those, so the best option for teaching yourself is still sticking to some good books, as it was many decades ago. Would be very cool to have some tool or interactive course for at least learning the basics or monitoring your training activity.


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## PlusThirtyOne (Jan 18, 2017)

nerdbat said:


>


No, seriously! Art Academy is a GREAT START for learning the fundamentals. You'll be drawing on a teeny screen but i can't recommend a better drawing teacher if you want to learn the basics of drawing. You can still apply what you learn to larger canvases. if you have a 3DS i recommend this program %1000! Don't know if there's anything on PC that's similar but i like how Art Academy doesn't talk down to you. it's slow, well paced and easy to learn from. There's one on the original DS (also playable on 3ds), another for 3DS and even a Pokemon Art Academy if you wanna go that route. Personally i like them all but i've only used the original DS one.


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## Kirkzer (Jan 18, 2017)

BlackDracon said:


> As far as I know, no software for drawing/painting is going to explicitly teach you how to draw.  They'll have basic tutorials on how to use the program.
> 
> If you've never drawn in your life, I'd suggest picking up a pencil and sketchbook over diving into digital art at the get go. New artists often forget it's a tool, it won't magically make your art fabulous from the get go... And potentially a source of headache and frustation.
> 
> ...


thank you a lot for your advice it is very much appreciated. What you say sounds logical I  will by some supplies and start drawing but first I think I will give Artrage a try. I will use YouTube videos for help. I want to start with digital art because I can quickly draw and not worry about mistakes just to get a feel for drawing because I practically never done it before!


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## Kirkzer (Jan 18, 2017)

quoting_mungo said:


> Sketchbook Pro, which BlackDracon mentioned, is my favorite sketching software - most of my art uses Photoshop only to do the flat colors, and/or for color adjustments (Sketchbook Pro 6, which I run, can only have one file open at a time, so can be awkward if you need to eyedropper colors off a reference) and maybe some masking or other layer effect magic.
> There's also Paint Tool Sai, which is pretty decent, and Clip Studio Paint, which can also be remarkably cheap if you catch a sale. (Just wait for a sale. They seriously run sales all the freaking time.) I personally am not a huge fan of the GIMP, but I'm sure there are some people who use it to create art. Another option is to shop around and find a place that still has Photoshop CS6 (or earlier) in stock. (Insert massive hate for the software rental business model here.)
> 
> Notably, if you have a tablet, there's a free version of Autodesk's Sketchbook app at LEAST in Apple's App Store (or there was back when I got my iPad years ago). Main limitation is that you're constrained to three layers, which should still be fine when you're just getting started.


Wow thanks your advice and recommendations I was struggling to find anything. Photoshop CS6 I will have a look for it! I wouldn't mind paying a lot of money for Photoshop but I don't like pay monthly especially when you are a new hobbyist.


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## Kirkzer (Jan 18, 2017)

PlusThirtyOne said:


> No, seriously! Art Academy is a GREAT START for learning the fundamentals. You'll be drawing on a teeny screen but i can't recommend a better drawing teacher if you want to learn the basics of drawing. You can still apply what you learn to larger canvases. if you have a 3DS i recommend this program %1000! Don't know if there's anything on PC that's similar but i like how Art Academy doesn't talk down to you. it's slow, well paced and easy to learn from. There's one on the original DS (also playable on 3ds), another for 3DS and even a Pokemon Art Academy if you wanna go that route. Personally i like them all but i've only used the original DS one.


You make it sound great I will definitely buy it


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## Xaroin (Jan 19, 2017)

Appearently paint.net is great, haven't used it but somebody I know has + it's free


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## Yarik (Jan 20, 2017)

There is a free software called Krita (Steam, but I think it also exists outside of it) Many Newcommers recommend it since it's free and has the most important functions Photoshop provides too. 
(I found the navigation a bit uncomfortable - but I'm also used to PhotoShop. Starting new with Krita and some tutorials should help you)

Other wise: Draw on paper for exercises! If you never drew before and are struggling with moving your hand properly I'd recommend the first lesson of this website: drawabox.com: Lección 1: Líneas, Elipses y Cajas
It explains how to practice with an aim and helps to improve quickly.


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## Cestrum (Feb 11, 2017)

Another free art software is Fire Alpaca, which is always free. (I made the switch from Paint Tool SAI)

It also has a neat Onion Skin mode to let you make animation files! 
You just need a video editing software to put it together though.


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