Note: I’m not buying any of these right now; I’m just thinking aloud.
So beyond web me and professional me, there’s me the artist (which it just so happens is probably the most me me, if that makes any sense). My mother is a painter and I’ve been doing art my entire life, was in private art lessons in junior high and high school, and even double majored in English and Fine Arts in college with a dual focus on drawing and sculpture. I also have a full scholarship to Savannah College of Art & Design, and when I received it and turned it down, they told me that it never expires, so someday if I’m in the south I may go give it a whirl.
In any case, I still do art and I’m looking to get into sketching digitally, so that I can then take my digital sketches to pt and have them etched in sheets of metal, which I think will be a great looking thing. So, how to best draw on the computer… Will a simple Wacom Tablet suffice or do I really need a screen I can draw on? If I really need a screen I can draw on, does it make more sense to drop the money on a Wacom Cintiq screen-tablet OR since it is in the same price range, should I just go with a Modbook? Are Modbooks good for drawing?
Thanks ahead of time for any recommendations. If anyone has a Modbook, I’d love to hear from you.
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
CK,
We have a similar background in some regards. My grandmother was an excellent watercolorist and taught painting and drawing lessons from her home. My mother is an art teacher. I have taken lessons from both of them and I actually minored in studio art when I was working on my CS degree and my second degree which I am completing in May (http://smad.jmu.edu) feels like a combination of my Art and CS backgrounds.
I have been trying to get in to digital drawing AND I have had access to a lot of the Wacom stuff so I can give you a little feedback…
I worked briefly for a fairly successful photography studio several years ago doing some retouching work. We used the high end Wacom tablets and the Cintiq screen tablets. Personally I liked the regular tablets better. The Cintiq screens were pricey and they just felt awkward to use. Also at the time the resolution was not that great. I am sure they are better now (I think I have seen them at like the 1600×1200 range) but I bet they are even more pricey. I just liked the simplicity of the tablets that lay flat on the table. I felt I did better work on them.
On the other hand…
In another job doing network/tech administration for a bank, I had access to a Toshiba tablet PC. I used to love to take it home at night and sit on the couch and do drawings with it. Maybe it was that relaxation of sitting on the couch with my feet kicked up that felt more like real sketching.
That is where I could see the ModBook being very nice. However, there are some things to take into account on how the ModBooks specs…The higher end ($250 and up) Wacom tablets can tell the direction the pen is tilting and the angle. This can produce a much more realistic line. Does the ModBook’s touch screen have this feature?
I have the “el cheapo” $100 Wacom tablet right now and it cannot tell pen direction/angle etc. It seems like a great starting point thought. I think personally I am just going to wait a bit and get the more expensive version (like I said, around $250).
I might also add that I am a lefty, and using the pen with the left hand and the mouse/keyboard with the right, is a killer combo in Photoshop.
Sorry for the long winded response.
-arkowi
Awesome! Thanks for the detailed info. And I, too, am a lefty!!! w00t southpaws!!!
I am thinking of buying a Wacom tablet to help me put together some drawing ideas i have. Is it possible to trace over photos and then convert/sketch/change them into a manga style drawing?
Any thoughts would be helpful.
cheers
Phil
The wacom cintiq is expensive but the experience is unparalleled. The modbook looks nice but it only has HALF the sensitivity of the intuos and cintiq products.
Both the cintiq and intuos line can be used with the same cool accessories like an airbrush and 6d art pen.
If your getting a tablet and not a cintiq then i would suggest a wacom intuos 3 6×11 tablet. the 9×12 is rather large for a desktop.