Consists of a "canvas" - a touch surface and a "pen" - a stylus. This device allows the artist to simulate drawing on paper. The picture drawn with the stylus on the surface of the tablet is displayed immediately on the computer. More expensive copies seem to allow you to see the image immediately on the tablet itself. But with this gadget everything is not so simple. Using it is not at all the same as drawing on paper. How to learn to draw with numbers - described in the article.

How to Learn to Draw on a Graphics Tablet: Basic Tips

It is much faster and more convenient to depict landscapes, portraits, anime, comics, and whatever, on a digitizer (for example) than on plain paper or using a mouse on a computer. Especially in the first case, speed helps out, especially if the gadget is used for work.

How do I start painting with a graphics tablet? Here are 3 top tips:

1. Learn to draw traditionally first. If you do not know how to draw pictures on paper, then even a "fancy" gadget will not help you draw beautifully. The more skillfully the images are obtained on paper, the easier it will be on digital.
2. Exercise regularly. You can watch various training videos on the net on how to draw correctly on a graphics tablet. The most difficult thing is to get used to the fact that the drawing is applied with strokes, and not by dragging your hand over the surface of the device. To begin with, it is worth practicing on the image of simple shapes (triangle, square, etc.), hatching them, writing the alphabet, then you can print the pictures on paper, put it on a tablet and draw outlines. The hand should get used to the pressure on the stylus pen.
3. Choose the drawing program you like. A convenient and understandable program is one of the main elements of drawing. For complex graphic designs, Adobe Photoshop is ideal. But you can use lighter and simpler software: GIMP, Paint Tool SAI or another utility. The program should be tested for convenience first on a computer, click the interface with the mouse to find out all the capabilities of the software.

Don't jump straight to complex technology and learn how to draw anime or comics on a graphics tablet. All this takes skill and practice. Here you need to follow the principle "from simple to complex".

How to set up your tablet for drawing on your computer

It is unlikely that beginners will be able to connect a new device and immediately start drawing on it: first, they will need to customize it for themselves. Where to start drawing on a graphics tablet (such as)? It is clear what to connect the gadget to a computer, laptop. This is done using the standard USB cable supplied. What to do next - we will consider in detail the points.

Step-by-step instruction

So, the configuration steps:

Installing Drivers	You can install the drivers using the included disk. If it was not there, you need to go to the official website of the manufacturer and download the necessary software (section "Support" - "Drivers"), run the installer and, following simple instructions, install the drivers.
For further settings, you need to run the corresponding program on the computer. For graphics, this is Wacom Tablet (on a computer: Menu - Start - Programs).
Orientation setting	By default, the settings are right-handed, but you can change the orientation of the digitizer control for left-handed users.
Pen customization	In this section, you can change the eraser pressure and pen sensitivity by moving the slider from “soft” to “hard”. Here you can also change the mode of operation from mouse to pen, if it was not set by default.
Touch setting	In this tab, you can adjust the settings of the touch surface: its sensitivity to touch, scrolling speed and pointer (slower / faster).
Sensory functions	This item contains settings for interaction when touching the surface. For example, one finger is dragging; three fingers - swipe right / left.

The settings should be adapted to suit your preferences, changing the indicators until they become as convenient as possible for work.

Common mistakes when drawing

Drawing through a graphic tablet like a model is quite unusual and difficult at first. Beginners may, for example, choose the wrong canvas size or use the wrong brushes. In order not to make common mistakes, it is worth studying the following sections of the article.

Wrong canvas size

There may be 2 problems here:

1. Too small sheet... An aspiring artist usually uses a sheet size to match the resolution of his screen. This is fundamentally wrong. It is impossible to know exactly on which display other users will later watch the created image. Therefore, you should not "save" on the resolution, the higher it is - the more pixels in the picture and the better the final resolution will be.
2. A very large leaf. For maximum resolution, you will need a powerful PC, which will have an equally powerful program for processing pictures. It should also be remembered that high resolution is best for detailed pictures. Drawings on a graphics tablet (for example, on) are not always needed just like that.

Is there a solution to these problems? Before saving the picture, you need to resize it. There is no ideal resolution setting that will suit absolutely everyone. But there is a general rule: the more detailed the result, the less chances it will be fuzzy and blurry at maximum resolution. But if, according to the idea, the picture is a little sketchy, then it is better to use a small resolution.

Avoiding Strong Contrast

It happens that the perception of shades is impaired due to the quality of the display itself. So how do you get the contrast you want to look the same on all screens? Photoshop has a dedicated Levels tool that shows you how much of each tone is used in the picture. You can change the levels by moving the sliders.

The level of contrast depends, of course, on the picture itself, but if there are no dark and light zones in the image at all, the picture will not look very good.

Before drawing, you need to plan the lighting on the sphere:

• draw a circle and shade it with a dark shade (not black);
• add a medium tone, then the lightest (not white);
• add 1-2 semitones;
• add a small amount of black and white;
• then connect everything and smooth out the transitions.

You can use this blank to shade other objects. You also need to act on the rest of the pictures: the darkest tone, semitone, the lightest, semitone, white and black tones.

Too many complex brushes and large strokes

Professional artists perform most of the work with simple strokes, only occasionally using complex ones. When drawing on a digitizer, it seems that the selection of brushes is greatly simplified: there are brushes, for example, for creating fur or a brush. There is no need to practice drawing, there is already a ready-made solution.

Brushes for various designs are convenient. The problem arises if you use them as core skills. That is, do not look for ways to draw fur beautifully and accurately, but just take the right brush and paint. If this becomes a habit, then the user will stop learning altogether. For a start, you should use simple brushes, hone your drawing skills - and only then move on to complex ones.

Another problem with brushes is the use of very large strokes. When the picture is almost complete, there is a desire to get the finished result as soon as possible. And this is where the user resorts to big strokes. But it's not right. Large strokes should only be used at first to sketch out the shape, add colors, etc. Draw the details and finish the sketch with a small brush. This will help create very realistic and accurate pictures.

Lots of color

Novice artists can paint in shades that don't match at all, such as mixing blue and green. The variety of shades in programs installed on a graphics tablet (for example) is a huge field for creativity. The problem is that users need to understand where all these tones come from.

If you need to make the shade brighter, you need to increase the percentage of brightness or lower the same tone indicator. Red becomes warm or cold, depending on the hue that is next to it.

Novice artists who don't know this just fill the picture with a random set of tones, without thinking about their combination. It is imperative that you figure out the issues of shading, lighting and mixing tones, this is the only way to get a good drawing.

2D textures for 3D shapes

If the work has to be three-dimensional, it cannot be beautifully and efficiently covered with a 2D texture. It is necessary to change its shape in accordance with the object on which it will be applied.

There are 3 tools in Photoshop for this:

• Free transform in deformation mode;
• Filter - Plastic;
• Editing - Puppet Warp.

Texture - the roughness of the surface: if the surface is uneven, then the light falling on it creates many shadows. This is the texture. It is worth reducing or even completely removing the texture in the dark areas of the object. It is not enough to impose a texture - you still need to correctly process it in the picture.

For five years now I want to learn how to draw on a tablet. In January, there was a resolve to start finally moving in this direction. In this permanent author's column I will share my experience of mastering, useful books, tips and resources.

When you enter a new field, there are many questions in your head. Actually, they, sometimes even unconscious, are not verbally formed, and are not allowed to dream. And the first step is to write out all the questions. The second is to methodically look for answers to them and to comprehend a new skill step by step.

So which program to draw in? What stylus? How often? Where can you read about it?

I looked closely at the stylus for a long time. I have bamboo, 53 paper. But the most convenient was the apple pencil. It has a thin tip, is pleasant to hold in your hand, and stylish. And it makes the perfect match for a tablet - ipad pro. The thickness and saturation of the line reacts to how hard the pencil is pressed on the screen. Those. everything is just like with a regular instrument. For example, you press harder on the pencil, the line becomes thicker and brighter. Likewise with the apple pencil. Or, you start to press harder on the brush - the line becomes thicker, just like with the apple pencil stylus.

And here we can say a few words about the advantages of drawing on a tablet, as opposed to traditional tools:

• The art workshop is always with you. No need to carry a suitcase of tools, paints, markers and canvases.
• All drawing books are right there on the tablet.
• If the stroke of watercolors does not work out or the color is not successful, you can remove it by lightly pressing the button.
• Clothes and hands are clean.
• Don't wait for the paint to dry.
• When you erase a missing line, the paper does not deteriorate, everything just returns to its original form.
• Saves paper, saves trees.

There are also a couple of obvious downsides:

• If a pencil or tablet sits down, and there are no outlets nearby, then that's it, finish drawing.
• Never achieve such fancy watercolor stains on a tablet as on paper.

Let's leave the magic of whimsical watercolors to work on paper, but for now let's return to digital drawing.

I decided on the program quickly enough, focusing on the recommendations of itunes and reviews of sketching programs on the Internet. The choice fell on Tayasui Sketches. It has all the tools you need to get started. I especially liked the watercolor brush and the blotting ability. At first, the program seemed complicated. But this always happens until you start to understand and try.

At first, you are frightened by the abundance of tools, and then you begin to miss them.

The program has a convenient panel, a choice of colors, there is a constantly updated gallery of works from all over the world. Well, the developers are alive, they constantly screw up something in the program. This is what the screen looks like. And examples of inscriptions made with different tools.

About tools. It would be nice to understand what each tool in the program can do. I used five sheets for this, experimenting with intensity, size, different layers and tools.

The pencil is a stunning imitation, indistinguishable from a regular pencil.

The program also includes a gel pen, felt-tip pen, marker brush, pencil, acrylic brush, watercolor brush, airbrush.

A simple exercise is to draw many variations of one object. The tool is a pen.

The most difficult, as in life, turned out to be watercolor. Sometimes it gives completely unexpected effects when mixing, overlaying layers and blots.

With practice, you can make neat drawings with smooth transitions.

By the way, in the program you can change the canvas - watercolor grainy paper, ordinary landscape sheet, canvas, colored paper. And you can experiment with this, too.

3. “Art workshop. Graphics"

There is a small background for drawing on paper, thanks to the project. I will definitely participate in the100dayproject project, on April 4th it will be launched by El Luna, the author of our book "Between Needs and I Want". I plan to draw on my tablet every day.

I did not find books on digital photography on a tablet in Russian. Drawing without a tutorial is like learning to drive a car on your own. It is possible, but difficult. I bought a magazine on this topic in New York, I will tell about it in the next issue. By the way, one more of the advantages - you can draw on the plane, the screen is bright and a million colored pencils are at hand.

Postcard taken on a flight from New York to Moscow.

The following goals:

• learn digital lettering.
• keep mastering all the tools in Tayasui Sketches.
• draw whales, cats and space.
• work out a lot of drawings in the technique of visual notes.
• use layers more actively, it is very convenient.

Join if you are interested in this topic. Reviews and comments can be written to me by mail - [email protected]

Drawing on a tablet can be challenging at times. You have the necessary programs, and that's all, you can start drawing. All tools, even the most powerful, are at your fingertips. All colors are ready to use, no mixing required. If you've just switched from traditional painting to Photoshop, this isn't too difficult; you just need to find copies of your favorite instruments. However, if you are new to both types of drawing, the first stage turns into a nightmare in which you do not realize that this is a dream!

The trick of Photoshop lies in its obvious simplicity: here's a set of brushes, here's all the colors, here's an eraser, and here's the Undo command. You start drawing and the result doesn't look very good, and you start digging through the tools to try and fix it. And just look how many of these tools there are! You try them all, one by one, and the magic happens.

However, "magic" means you let Photoshop paint for you. You have no control over it, but the result looks better than you, a beginner, could (at least you think so). So you let things go, create a bunch of drawings in the hope that one day they will turn into works of art.

Professional tablet artists use Photoshop to make their fantasies come true, but they see it as just a tool, not a production machine. What is the difference?

• Professionals imagine the effect and force the program to recreate it
• Beginners force the program to create something, and if they are satisfied with the result, they leave the effect.

Does the second remind you of nothing? If so, keep reading. In this article, I'll show you how to improve ten aspects of your workflow to become a conscious Photoshop artist. With these ten simple tips, you will understand the mistakes that may have been holding you back for a long time!

Please note that the problems I described relate to situations where the artist achieves an effect unknowingly, trying to achieve a realistic style. If something was planned, then this is not a mistake!

1. Wrong canvas size

Starting a new job is easier than taking candy away from a child. You press File> New(File> New) or Control-N if you're more or less comfortable with Photoshop. It seems that everything is so simple that sometimes people do not notice mistakes at this stage.

And here are three aspects of this problem.

1. Canvas size is too small

Just like objects are made of atoms, every drawing in Photoshop is made up of pixels. You probably know that. But how many pixels do you need to create a detailed drawing? 200 to 200? 400 to 1000? 9999 to 9999?

A common beginner's mistake is to choose a canvas size that matches your screen resolution. The problem is, you never know what permission the reviewer will use!

Let's imagine that on your screen the drawing looks like Example 1. It is open to the full height of the screen, and you do not need to scroll to see it in full, and you are happy with that. This is the largest size for your resolution, 1024 by 600. Users with a screen resolution of 1280 by 720 (2) and 1366 by 738 (3) also have nothing to complain about. But note what happens for users with higher screen resolutions - 1920 by 1080 (4) and 1920 by 1200 (5). Drawing takes up less and less screen space. And for these users, you haven't really made the drawing long enough!

And it's not just the "white space" around your drawing. Higher resolution does not always mean larger screen. Your smartphone may have more pixels on its small screen than your computer! Just take a look:

1. Same size, different resolution
2. Different size, same resolution

What does this mean? For other observers who see your work, the entire screen might look like ... like this:

But the size of your drawing isn't just about that. The higher the resolution, the more pixels the screen has. In a small resolution, an eye can take up 20 pixels, while in a large one, it alone can take up 20,000 pixels! Imagine a bunch of cool details to create in such a large area!

Here's a cool trick for you: when you draw something small at high resolution, no matter how sloppy it turns out, there is a possibility that it will look great on purpose from afar. Try it!

Higher resolution will allow you to bring even the smallest details closer.

2. The canvas is too large

Does this mean that you should always use a huge permission to give yourself more freedom? In theory, yes. In practice, this is not always necessary, and sometimes even impossible.

The higher the resolution, the more pixels are contained in a regular stroke. And the more pixels it contains, the more difficult it is for your computer to process it, especially when it comes to pressure levels with variable amounts of paint. And this is a practical argument against such a decision - you need a very powerful computer to be comfortable working with high resolution.

The second argument has to do with the fact that large resolutions are needed for highly detailed work. Contrary to popular novice belief, not every job needs to be detailed. Even if you want to paint realistically, you can safely ignore the huge amount of information that is contained in the photograph, because what we see in life does not at all look like a photograph.

When you use more resolution than you need, you may want to add a couple of details here and there, just because you can. And if you start doing this, there will be no turning back. There are many levels of detail, but a particular drawing should only match one of them at a time. If you want to quickly create a beautiful coat, do not spend hours on the eyes and nose - it will make the whole drawing look fragmented and unfinished.

3. Too large end size

Let's pretend you've found that perfect resolution for your job. It's not too big or too small, but just perfect for the level of detail you want. But there is still room for one more mistake - that resolution was your working size. It may have taken a lot of pixels to get to those tiny details in the eyes, but those details will be visible "from afar" too.

Why let them see these unpleasant details ...

… If you can only make visible what is to be seen?

Please resize the file before saving. I will not tell you the most optimal resolution, since it simply does not exist. The rule of thumb is that the more detailed an image is, the less detail will be lost when shown in high resolution. The more a drawing looks like a sketch, the better it will look at low resolution. If you want to know more about this, see what resolution your favorite artists are using when posting their work online.

And one more thing: when resizing an image, check which resampling algorithm works best for you. Some of them make the image sharper, and you may not want to.

2. Start with a white background

Perhaps this looks trivial - what's wrong with the white background? Well ... he's neutral, right? It looks like a sheet of paper.

The problem is that there are no “neutral” colors. "Transparent" is the closest thing to this, but it is impossible to draw it. Color is color. When two colors appear, a certain reaction itself occurs. For example, if it is white + color A, the ratio would be “color A dark”. No matter what you set out to do, you will start with a dark color just because you have chosen the brightest background possible! Everything looks dark in comparison.

The same color changes its relative brightness on each background

In traditional art we use a white background as it is technically easier to place dark on bright rather than the other way around. But there is no reason for this in drawing on a tablet! In fact, you can even start with a black background, but it's just as bad as a pure white. In practice, the most “neutral” color is 50% gray (# 808080).

Why? The background color transforms your vision of other colors. On a white background, dark colors will appear too dark and you will avoid them. On a black background, the same will happen, only with bright colors. The result in both cases will be weak contrast, which you will notice when trying to change the background. Here's the proof:

I started this drawing on a too dark background, and then I wanted to change to a brighter one, and it just blinded me!

Experienced artists can start with whatever background they want and get the most out of it, but if you don't feel confident in your knowledge of color theory, always start with something neutral - not too dark or too bright.

3. Avoiding strong contrast

Of course, sometimes your perception of bright and dark can be distorted by poor screen quality. If you are using a laptop, then you may have noticed how the contrast changes when you look at the screen from different angles. How do you achieve contrast that everyone sees right, regardless of the screen?

Even if you have a good screen, after a long period of time at work, your perception will not be perfect either. If you change tones gradually, step by step, contrast may look good just because it is better than five steps back. The subject below might look pretty good ...

... until you compare it to a subject with stronger contrast. And who knows, maybe if you would compare the second with the third, then maybe its contrast, as we perceive it, would decrease automatically?

Photoshop has a tool to help with this situation. It is called Levels(Levels) and this is actually a histogram - it shows how much of each color is in the image. You can open this window by clicking Image> Adjustments> Levels(Image> Adjustments> Levels) or the shortcut Control-L.

How it works? Take a look at these four samples:

• Almost the same amount of white, black and middle tones
• Black and midtones only
• White and mid tones only
• Only whites and blacks, almost no midtones

Can you read this from the histogram?

You can change the levels by pulling the sliders. While this reduces the total number of tones, it helps to put them in the right place in the histogram.

The histogram shows us that our subject has a lot of midtones, but also a visible lack of dark and light areas. It doesn't matter what we see - that's what our computer says! While there is no perfect recipe for levels (it depends on the lighting in the scene), a severe lack of dark and light areas is a bad sign.

Just watch what happens if we move the sliders closer to the center!

The contrast has changed well, but blending has suffered because of this, as there are now fewer midtones. But it's not hard to fix it manually!

Is there a way to use the right tones right from the start so that you don't have to? Yes, and in fact it will take you less time than usual! The solution is to use fewer tones - dark, bright, medium tone, and a little bit of black and white.

To do this in practice, before you start drawing, plan the lighting on the sphere:

• Draw a circle and fill it with the darkest color (black is not recommended).
• Add a medium tone.
• Add the brightest color (white is not recommended).
• Add one or two midtones in between.
• Add some white and black.

See all these parts on the histogram? When we combine them, this is what happens. Use this sphere as a set of swatches for your subject, shading it in the same way - darkest shadow, mid tone, brightest light, darkest spots, and brightest highlights. And then all this can be mixed!

And something else. If you compare these two heads again, one with the correct contrast from the beginning and the other with the corrected one, you will see the difference. Therefore, increasing the contrast actually cannot correct your drawing if you used the wrong colors initially - each material has its own range of tones. For example, the darkest part of a white surface will be much brighter than the darkest part of a black surface. This means that you should prepare as many spheres as possible, since there are many materials in your drawing.

Remember: a light object with a dark shadow is just as wrong as a dark object with light tones!

4. Using too complex brushes and too large strokes

When you compare traditional brushes to Photoshop brushes, the difference is so great that it may surprise you that they have the same names. After all, with classic brushes, you can only create more or less chaotic strokes, while brushes in Photoshop create a work of art by themselves.

And here is the key point. If they create something on their own, you are no longer in control. Professional artists work with simple strokes most of the time, periodically supporting themselves with more complex ones. Using complex brushes on a daily basis will not only make you lazier - it will also prevent you from learning how to achieve the effect yourself, since there is no such need!

At the start of your tablet drawing adventure, it's natural to try to grow as fast as possible. You want results here and now. Custom brushes are the answer to this question. If you want fur, here's a fur brush; if you want scales - here is a brush for you. You cannot draw something - download a tool that can.

Custom brushes are not bad, and they are actually very useful. The problem arises when you use them as the basis of your "abilities." If you've really taken the time trying to figure out how to draw fur quickly, you would realize that it doesn't really consist of hairs that need to be drawn one at a time. You would understand that our vision of something often does not coincide with reality. You would learn how to look and how to create what you see, not what you think you see.

Instead, you give up after spending half an hour painting hairs and look for a brush that does it for you. You find it, you are happy, you are ready to move on. It's so easy it becomes a habit and you stop learning altogether - you'd better download all the chips if you could.

But how do artists overcome this? They don't have that big set of brushes. How do they draw fur? The answer is simple - just as you would have done if there were no matching brushes. If you want improvements, if you want to overcome this curse of a beginner, forget about complex brushes for a while. Work with a simple set like this and learn to get the best out of it. Don't look for easy ways when things get tough. Get through this and you will have invaluable experience instead of cheap tricks.

No fur brush used here

Too big strokes

Another common mistake with brushes is using oversized strokes. This, again, has to do with impatience. The rule is that 80% of the work takes 20% of the time spent on it, which means that you need to spend 80% of the work time completing your drawing. If you created the sketch, base, flat colors, and basic shading in two hours, there are still eight left. Moreover, during those eight hours you will see less progress than in the first two! How discouraging does that sound?

You can clearly see this in the intermediate parts of the work that artists sometimes show to their audience. The first steps are huge - something is created from nothing. And then the process slows down. You can barely see the difference between the last few steps, and yet this tiny change may have taken longer than all the previous ones!

Where would you be?

That is the problem. When your drawing almost completed, you feel the urge to finish it as soon as possible and look at the result. But at this point, in fact, it follows begin! I remember one comment under the screenshot of the process: "I would stop at the fourth step [out of ten]." This is the difference between a beginner and a professional! Since the second part of the rule is as follows: these last, slow and imperceptible 20% of the work affects 80% of the final effect.

The solution is simple. You shouldn't end up with large strokes (unless you're painting for speed). They are appropriate in the beginning, for that 20% of the time. Use them to sketch out shapes, define lighting, and add large areas of color. And then gradually reduce the size, zoom in, clean up, add details. You will see that the work comes to an end when you work with a very small brush with a very enlarged pattern. In general, the more areas of your drawing you touch with the brush (and the more you change them, for example, adding a slight difference in brightness or hue with a very small stroke), the more perfect it will appear.

There is a nice side to this rule. Since 80% of the work does not really affect the final effect, there is no need to concentrate too much on them. Get started quickly, easily, and save your efforts for later. Remember: not every drawing needs to be completed just because you started it. Dropping something you don’t believe in will save you four times more time than you’ve already spent!

5. Using too many colors

There are not so many “ready-made” colors in traditional art. Artists need to learn how to mix these colors in order to achieve the desired effect. This inconvenience is actually wonderful. They have no choice and have to master color theory. As a novice tablet artist, you have access to all colors in all their glory. And this is a curse!

We do not understand colors intuitively - there is no need for this in our daily life. But as an artist, you have to completely change your perspective. You can no longer rely on intuition, as it does not work well in this topic. You need to stop thinking about color the way you're used to and understand the concepts of hue, saturation, brightness, and lightness.

Colors don't exist on their own. They are based on relationships. For example, if you want to make a color brighter, you can either increase their brightness or lower the brightness of the background. Red, being a warm color, becomes warm or cold depending on the neighboring color. Even saturation changes due to relationships!

Even the color tone can change depending on the environment. And this knowledge is very important for drawing, and not just for design, as you might think!

The beginner, who does not know all this, fills his drawing with a set of random colors. They choose some blue then some green, completely unaware that they are choosing from thousands of other colors with a greenish and bluish tint, and that they all have a certain strength!

This is how a beginner sees colors:

1. Blue
2. Dirty blue
3. Gray
4. Black

But ... why do we need so many colors at all if they are useless? The answer is that they are not at all useless. You just need to understand where they come from and what they mean. Let's take a look at an example of professional color matching:

1. Desaturated blue
2. Saturated blue
3. Bright blue
4. Dark blue

Looks too complicated? Maybe, but this is not a reason to ignore this aspect! If this is too difficult, stop at grayscale for a while. Understand lighting, shading and blending and you have a good base for the future. What's more, the colors (or rather the color tones) are the icing on the cake called your piece of art. They can make it sweeter, but they cannot be its base. No amount of frosting will make a good cake out of a bad cake!

6. Choosing colors straight from the source

It is very difficult not to succumb to this temptation, so difficult that you want to cry. This is familiar to me. However, if you really want to learn how to draw on a tablet, you should not use tool Eyedropper(Eyedropper) to select a color from the source. Why is this so important?

Beginners often use a desaturated orange / pink as their skin color. This seems obvious, but the effect is far from natural. However, if you use the source ... a completely different story! Almost every pixel has its own color, not just pink - you can find reds, yellows, oranges, and even cool purples, greens, and blues. Saturation and brightness can change all the time, and yet the final effect doesn't look like chaos.

When you pick colors from a source, your drawing gets new life. The problem is, it's not that much different from direct copying. As a result of copying, you get lines that you yourself would not repeat, and when you take colors from the source, you get beautiful shades that you yourself could not have picked up. The effect is stunning, but this is not your merit.

There is something else. This color matching slows down your progress. You can “buy” a set of colors instead of learning how to create them yourself. You have a color wheel with all sliders; every color that you choose can be repeated by yourself, without prompts. But you still decide to use the ones that have already been created - it's fast and efficient, but you know which is even faster and more efficient? To photograph.

To become source independent one day, you need to learn to see colors. Look at any object near you - what is its color tone, brightness, saturation? Incredibly difficult to say, isn't it? But if you keep picking colors with the eyedropper, you will never learn to do this. You cannot start a race if the training rubber is still on the car.

All these materials were drawn by me from the source, but without an eyedropper. As a beginner, start with simple things - the fewer colors the better.

7. Adding colors to grayscale with incorrect brightness

I drew this picture in 2011. It is, of course, a cute, kind picture, and I still like it. I remember painting it in grayscale and then adding colors using maybe a couple of blending modes ( Color, Multiply, Overlay) (Color, Multiply, Overlap). I also remember that I had one nasty problem - how do I get the correct yellow by painting over grayscale?

I have not preserved the original, but this is how the drawing most likely looked in shades of gray. Note that both the yellow and green areas are equally dark. In reality, this is not the case!

When I was a newbie like you, I thought that light makes all colors lighter the same way, and shadows make all colors equally dark. That's why the grayscale drawing seemed so compelling. I could concentrate on shading and add colors later. Unfortunately this trick didn't work, and understanding why it took so long (mostly because I wasn't trying hard) to figure out why.

The simple answer is that different colors have different brightness, which is independent of lighting. When you ignore this, you end up with muddy colors. Colors that you add directly to a grayscale drawing lack an important component.

Both heads have the same colors added using the color mode. Please note that it is not the layer with the color that is important, but what is under it.

8. Shading with the Dodge and Burn tools

Instruments Dodge(Clarifier) ​​and Burn(Dimmer) are almost always beginner's favorites. These tools are in line with the belief that Photoshop is a “painting program”. You just need to select the primary colors and then the areas you want to shade. The rest is controlled by complex algorithms, and not by you, which is great - you wouldn't know what to do anyway.

However, this is not easy. These tools are not entirely useless, but if you are a beginner it is best to stay away from them. These are not "shading tools". The Dodge tool does not equal "add light" and the Burn tool does not equal "add shadow". The problem is that they match the beginner's vision of shading so well that it is very difficult to avoid temptation.

The problem is not with the tools, but with the misunderstanding of shading itself. Beginners often assume that objects have a certain color, and that color becomes darker in shade and brighter in light. It is not so easy. It might work with cell shading or when drawing cartoons, but even then it's just a little trick.

If it "seems to" work, why not use it?

• This is another technique that inhibits your progress. When you use it, you don’t even notice what you’re missing. Shading is a tricky question, and you limit it to the lighter-darker rule because it’s easier. Photoshop needed to work for you and not instead of you. Don't let this stop you from learning.
• This makes the object flat. It doesn't matter how many textures you add after, it works exactly like a large brush, which means you can start with it, but definitely not finish it that way.
• This distorts colors; they should be dependent on the environment (direct light, ambient light), but neither Dodge nor Dimmer have any idea of ​​the background you are using. They shade everything the same!

There is a year difference between these pictures. The first one I shaded with the Brightener and Burner, and the second only with the understanding of color.

Shading with white and black

An extension of this technique is shading with white for highlights and black for shadows. This is due to the belief that each color starts in black (in the shade) and ends in white (in the light). While this may be true for under- or overexposed photographs, it should not be a rule that applies to painting.

We are all looking for simple rules, something easy to remember and use. But that doesn't mean that we should invent simple rules that have nothing to do with reality, like: "add white to make it brighter and add black to make it darker." It only applies to grayscale designs!

Monotonous shading

When you have dealt with the previous problem, you may face another one. Let's imagine that you have chosen orange as the main color for your character. You also decided that the light source would be yellow and the ambient light would be blue (sky). According to this, you shift the hue of the base color to yellow in highlights and blue in shadows, that's all. Of course, the shading will be much more interesting if you use black and white, but this is still a trick and not the fact that it will lead to the desired result.

Why is this a trick? By choosing only three primary colors for your character, you automatically place him in an artificial environment where everything reflects color 100% predictably.

In reality, light is constantly bouncing off everything around it, including the “hills and valleys” of your 3D object. Consequently, shading can rarely be limited to a couple of colors. The blue color of the sky can make some shadows on the subject appear blue, but in other dark places they can appear greenish due to the light reflecting off the grass. Moreover, some shadows may even be bright and saturated due to the light that has passed through through obstacle in the "shadow".

If you take note of this and decide to use indirect light sources to make the shading more varied, you will have to paint more deliberately - which is great! Avoid using a large brush here as it will mix colors and you will lose them as a result. And a small brush means you are creating texture on the fly!

9. Mixing with a soft brush

There are two main methods that beginners use to blend shades, and both are designed to create a quick effect:

1. Blending with a soft brush
2. Mixing tools Smudge / Blur(Finger / Blur)

As we have already learned, quick effect often means a lack of control. In this case, blending with large strokes makes the object flatter and unnaturally smooth. Even if you add a photo texture after, it will not hide this "plastic" effect. Again, this method is only good for the initial stage.

If you want a cool, invisible texture (which is good for almost all natural materials), use a harder brush that controls the amount of paint using the pressure of the pen (the harder you press, the denser the stroke will be).

This type of brush allows you to control the amount of color you need.

Thanks to this property, you don't need to blend the border between the two colors. You just start with a base color and then slightly cover it with others. Then you can add another layer of the same color, making it denser.

If you want to make it all smoother, just pick a color somewhere in the middle and lightly brush around the border between the colors.

Use a textured brush (hard edges) to enhance the texture.

According to the 80-20 rule, don't worry about mixing initially. Use a large brush and sharpen the edges, creating a kind of exaggerated shading.

Later, you can use a smaller, textured brush to blend the borders of the colors. No tool Smudge(Finger), no soft brush, just a tool Eyedropper(Eyedropper) and your hard brush with variable amount of paint. Remember: blending depends on the surface texture, so you cannot use the same blend type for all materials!

10. Using 2D textures for 3D shapes

Photo texture for a beginner is the most extreme measure, when the object is theoretically finished, painted over and shaded, but still looks like a plastic toy. However, the texture itself can only make things worse.

Let's imagine we want to add texture to this big cat.

The object must be shaded before we add the texture. The subtlety is that it doesn't have to be full shading. The blending method depends on the texture - if you blend without thinking about texture, you will get a blend type without texture (smooth surface).

You can download a texture from the Internet or use a Photoshop pattern - there are many pre-installed sets. This is my favorite pattern for making scales texture - inverted window mesh ( translator's note: we are talking about the texture of a door with a mesh, which in Americans in homes is usually located in front of the front door, the texture is equivalent to an anti-mosquito net).

If you change the texture blend mode to Overlay(Overlay), you will see how it works with shading. Note, however, that some parts are brighter. You might find it helpful if you haven't done a very good job with shading, but this is another example of losing control of the situation. In most cases, we don't want the texture to create its own shading. While the Overlay mode is not the best solution, it allows you to see how the texture looks on the object.

Now, the most important part that is always overlooked. If an object has to be three-dimensional, it cannot be nicely covered with a two-dimensional texture. We need to change its shape, according to the figure on which it lies. There are three main ways to do this - experiment and you will find your favorite:

• Tool Free Transform(Free Transform) (Control-T) in mode Warp(Deformation)
• Filter> Liquify(Filter> Plastic)
• Edit> Puppet Warp(Editing> Puppet Warp)

For spheres, it is best to use Filter> Distort> Spherize(Filter> Distort> Spherize)

Before using puppet warp

After using puppet warp

The Overlay mode brightens the parts of the layer that are covered with white areas of the texture. We could use the mode instead Multiply(Multiplication) (it makes the white areas more transparent), but it would make the grays darker than necessary. There is another tool for adjusting the transparency of the texture.

Double click on the layer and play with the sliders Blend If(Overlay if). In short, with them you can adjust the opacity of the white and black.

Hold Alt to "break" the slider for a softer effect

We need to understand what texture is. This is not a "rough pattern" placed directly on an object. In fact, this is the unevenness of the surface. When light hits a smooth surface, it is reflected as a whole. If the surface is rough, for example, consists of small bumps and depressions, the light falling on it will create many tiny shadows - this is the texture that we see.

One more conclusion can be drawn from this. If light creates a visible texture, without light there can be no texture. And what is a shadow if not a lack of light? Therefore, we need to reduce the visibility of the texture in dark areas (if there is reflected light), or remove it altogether (no light - no texture). You can use a layer mask for this or play with the sliders. Blend If(Overlay if) (second row). Remember that the indentations in the texture are actually shadows, so they shouldn't be darker than the “normal” shadow area.

Mapping a texture will be quick and easy once you figure out what to do after you select it. However, this is not the end. All textures are different, and if some of them look great in direct overlay, most still have to work with.

Here again the 80-20 rule applies. Adding texture is easy, but it will take time to make it look pretty. In my example, I blended the edges of the shading with separate scales. Things like these are very time consuming, but they change. all!

On the first sphere of the blend, the texture in the Overlay mode with low transparency, so that it is not too noticeable; same with the second, but with distortion applied. Compare this to the last one, which applied a custom Blend If setting and manually corrected the blending.

Conclusion

As we have noticed, most of the problems for newbies stem from a desire to achieve great results, effortlessly, and as quickly as possible. So it's not a lack of skill - rather, it's about the belief that Photoshop is an art-making program. This leads to a constant search for tools and tricks, instead of putting in more effort and trying to understand and solve the problem.

You cannot become a digital artist overnight just because you bought professional image editors. Photoshop is just a tool, it is certainly more convenient to use than brushes and paints, but it is still a tool. He can do more than you want! If you want to get the most out of it, treat it like a digital canvas for digital paints. Forget all those fancy tools, filters, brushes or blend modes. Just draw as you would on paper.

Learn color theory, perspective, anatomy - all of these things that “ordinary” artists need to understand. Over time, you'll figure out how to use Photoshop's tools to do the same things easier and faster - but don't run ahead of the train trying to create cool effects without completely understanding them. Patience is the key!

A graphics tablet is a powerful creative tool. It is suitable for experienced artists who want to move from using traditional materials to creating artwork on a computer, as well as those who are just about to learn how to draw. The obvious advantages of digital works are safety, as well as the absence of constant spending on expensive art tools, constantly consumed materials. For a beginner, however, drawing on a tablet may not be so easy at first.

The process of working with the device

Any model comes with a USB cable, which is required in order to connect it to a computer. In addition, other accessories may be included.

Types of graphic tablets

There are two types most often used by artists:

• desktop tablet
• interactive pen display

Let's consider the advantages and disadvantages of both options.

Desktop Graphics Tablet

The tabletop device is a plastic frame with a work area around which additional elements (for example, buttons or a light indicator) can be placed. The size of the work area varies, but it usually matches the standard size of the sheet of paper. The most common are A4 and A5, which can be conveniently placed on the desktop in front of the keyboard. However, sometimes there are models of A3 and A6 sizes. The set comes with a stylus, which, in turn, is equipped with one or more buttons, as well as an "eraser" on the top.

Desktop type. The picture is displayed on the computer screen

This option is suitable for beginners - those who just want to learn how to draw on a graphics tablet. It is inexpensive and also comes in many models that vary in size and feature set. However, styluses suitable for these models have a built-in nib that will wear off over time. Usually, a set of spare tips is included with the stylus, but if you use the device for a very long time, you may have to buy additional leads separately.

Interactive pen display

This type is visually similar to a screen with a stylus. Pen displays are connected to the computer, displaying everything that happens on the monitor screen. They usually come with a stylus and stand. By connecting such a tablet, the artist can draw directly on his screen.

Interactive pen display from Wacom. The image is brought to the surface directly.

These devices are suitable for creating high-quality detailed work, but their cost is much higher, so you need to be careful when choosing this option. In addition, they are often quite bulky, so before buying, make sure that there is enough space on your desktop in order to mark the new purchase and work on it with ease.

Important: when choosing a graphics tablet, you should not be guided by the price or popularity of the model, but by the level of development of your artistic skill and your needs.

Drawing programs

Anyone who wants to learn how to draw on a graphics tablet needs high-quality, user-friendly software.

The most popular choice is classic Adobe Photoshop. The program has many versions for operating systems, and you can find drawing tutorials on the net. However, this option is suitable only for those who have a sufficiently powerful computer - even the light version of the program consumes a lot of resources, heavily loading the device. Photoshop is useful for those who want to use professional image processing tools in their work.

Loading screen and interface of Adobe Photoshop CS6

Another popular program among digital artists is the Easy Paint Tool SAI (and its augmented, newer version, SAI 2). Unlike Photoshop, AIS is extremely easy to understand and opens in a few seconds. Many artists prefer it for quick sketching. It will also appeal to those whose style is minimalistic and does not require complex tools.

Both programs can work with a raster or vector image, support the function of pressing the stylus, and also have the ability to customize the brushes in detail, which will be useful when drawing. It is worth taking care of finding a suitable program, as well as setting it up immediately after purchasing a new device - this will help you quickly get used to it and start being creative.

If none of these programs are convenient for you, do not despair, because there are many other image editors - for example, designed for specific work like creating comics.

Helpful hint: when drawing in any of the programs, it will be useful to learn its hotkeys or even set your own. You can also assign specific functions to buttons on the stylus and on the tablet.

Graphics Tablet Settings

In order to make your work more productive, it is worth setting up your device before starting drawing. Most tablets - for example, products from the well-known company Wacom - come with a driver disc, along with instructions for installing them. In case these things were not found in the box, both can be found and downloaded online.

The interface of the Wacom Desktop Center program, through which Wacom products are configured

One of the important steps in preparing for drawing on a graphics tablet is adapting the device based on which hand you are drawing with. When installing drivers for the device, the program will prompt you to choose whether you are right-handed or left-handed, but it is better to prepare a workplace in advance in order to place the device on it.

Accessories

The graphics tablet can be used as standard, but additional accessories can be purchased:

• The tablet glove is a version of the regular glove made of thin gliding material, but only covers two fingers - the pinky and ring fingers. It prevents hand skin contact with the work surface. This keeps the screen or work surface clean while you work. Many artists prefer to purchase specialized gloves and use them during their work. However, there are those who make gloves on their own.
• The stylus for the tablet is always supplied in the box along with the device itself and has a different look and configuration depending on the model. But some styluses are standalone devices.

Styluses supported by Autodesk SketchBook. Image taken from the official site.

Many popular art programs for mobile devices (for example, Autodesk SketchBook, Tayasui Sketches) support the use of a pen from Wacom and others. This feature will be especially useful for those who already have a regular tablet - by combining it with a stylus, anyone who draws can get their own analogue of an interactive pen display.

Modern artists often prefer to draw with tablets. This method has many advantages over analog. It is much easier to correct the drawing, there is no need to worry about digitizing the picture; for a graphic sketch and for a picturesque complex landscape, you need the same tool.

Professional artists will, of course, choose a good, expensive graphic tablet that connects to a computer, or a powerful 24-inch do-it-yourself device. But if you want to draw for yourself, have fewer gadgets, or just try, then you can get by with a regular tablet computer.

Can I draw on a regular tablet

Any tablet computer is suitable for drawing on it. Of course, complex work will be difficult to make, but for diagrams and sketches of the tablet will be enough "headlong". It is also very convenient to draw quick sketches and sketches. An idea came to mind - immediately grab the tablet and draw. And it doesn't matter where you are: at the workplace, at home, in a cafe or in a park. The tablet device is convenient and always at hand.

AnjelikaGr /

All you need to draw is software and a stylus.

For a graphics tablet, you need Photoshop or another graphics editor and you just install the necessary program on your computer.

Several video tutorials will help you get comfortable with drawing. With an ordinary tablet computer, everything is much more interesting.

How to draw on a tablet: programs and applications

For any tablet, you will have to download applications. They can be very conditionally divided into two categories.

• The first category is simple sketch programs with a limited set of brushes and, as a rule, one layer. They are inexpensive or free.
• The second group includes, as it were, simplified and limited versions of Photoshop. There are also adjustments for the pressure and opacity of the brush and layers.