Digital Artists! What is your preferred program?

[moo_nieu]

procreate is cheap and looks nice. i havent messed with too many of the settings, but you have the ability to create your own brushes, customize existing ones, and download brushes that other people have made so thats pretty neat i think. maybe every drawing app has that though lol im not too informed to be honest. im a beginner digital artist and it works for me!

 

[shellbell]

If you're planning on using a PC, I'd go with SAI or clip studio paint. I haven't had access to SAI in a decade but I recall it being a lot nicer to colour/blend than procreate (which I use now) has. And clip studio paint looks extremely similar to SAI. They both have functions that procreate do not have/don't do as well (because of price point and hardware I guess) so yeah... The only downside I'd say for them is they're not "simple".
And use a wacom tablet if you can - I think you can find a basic bamboo for like $20 second hand. The surface pro has lag issues and doesn't have the 2000+ levels of pressure sensitivity a wacom has.

If you're just looking for something easy and entry level - sketchbook. I never tried it on PC but the version I tried on ipad was my favourite out of the free ones

 

[xSuperMario64x]

if you have an ipad then def get Procreate, that's what I would be using if I had one. my current tablet is a Lenovo Android and I've been using Medibang for all my recent digital art. it's very user friendly and I would definitely recommend it

 

[shellbell]

But I've written a book for my son that I want to illustrate (or if I'm really terrible, I'll just commission it I guess) and I have ZERO clue about which programs are good, better, best overall.

I'm not sure how you plan on doing this, are you making the entire page or just the illustrations?
Cause I know page setting/layout/font and all that other design aspects would be better handled by a more professional program. but if you're just doing illustraions and plan on submitting it to like a preset "custom print book" service, I think any program is fine as long as you know the program well and are familiar with it. But yeah, I still go by my recommendations above ._.

 

[Foreverfox]

I'm not sure how you plan on doing this, are you making the entire page or just the illustrations?
Cause I know page setting/layout/font and all that other design aspects would be better handled by a more professional program. but if you're just doing illustraions and plan on submitting it to like a preset "custom print book" service, I think any program is fine as long as you know the program well and are familiar with it. But yeah, I still go by my recommendations above ._.

I had planned on just the illustrations on a white page, but I might be interested in doing whole page illustrations. I know that doesn't really help much lol.

 

[Jessi]

I use a iPad, and my favorite drawing software is procreate.

Very new user friendly, while still having good feature. Also very good price wise, in comparison to its competitors.

For free softwares, I always used Kirta (which sadly is not on the iPad), but its very very similar to photoshop but free

 

[dragonair]

Previously used Paint Tool Sai but I've started using Clip Studio Paint and prefer it a lot more!

 

[Hanif1807]

I currently use Clip Studio Paint EX. Previously i used FireAlpaca and Paint Tool SAI

 

[Alienfish]

FireAlpaca for most part, though I enjoy making "tbt-style" mirrors for a friend to guess and then I use Krita.

 

[Crowsie]

On my Cintiq I primarily use Paint Tool Sai, and occasionally Clip Studio Paint if I need some of its bells and whistles. On my iPad, I stick to Procreate, but I've also been dipping my toes into ArtStudio Pro and Medibang. I'm not a huge fan of CSP on iOS. I just don't think it translates well to the iPad. Also, I hate its monthly pricing model and how I can't use my desktop license. I'd rather pay for a program once and just have it.

Procreate is really nice, though. You cannot beat 10 dollars for a program that robust. It's almost a steal lol.

 

[Aquilla]

I’m using Krita and my trusty 30$ huion tablet I didn’t want to invest too much at the start, since I’m prone to losing interest in my hobbies after a few weeks. Surprisingly, digital art has been a permanent thing. I upgraded to a used ipad and procreate. However, I can’t draw in procreate for the life of me. I an so scared of it. So I am still using krita, because I know my favourite brushes and how to navigate it.