How do I translate my pencil skills into skills with a stylus and artpad?

[MonkeySage]

I've got a small opaque artpad and stylus, which I plug into the mouse port of my computer. I use it with GIMP...

However, no matter how good I get with a pencil, my skills with a stylus are completely stagnant. I really suck... It doesn't help, that I can't keep an eye on both my hand and the thing that I'm drawing simultaneously. I might as well draw with my eyes closed.

The artpad itself was all that I could afford at the time, it's about... 6x10 inches, I think.

[M@XWeru]

Unfortunately, there's no easy answer for your problem. Drawing with a tablet depends on many factors, such as your software, your settings (there really are a million things that can go wrong with tablets, and cintiq-type ones are on a whole 'nother level), and your own technique. Also, if the angle of your screen or tablet isn't exactly right, your pictures could end up skewed. Have a look at this (http://i.imgur.com/nmTMA2c.png) - the middle one is my original drawing, while the others were corrected with the skewing tool.

Basically, all you can do is practise. It took me over half a year to get used to my first tablet.

[Sean Mirrsen]

I can suggest basically two things.

One, get MyPaint (http://mypaint.org/). If you want to use a pencil, it is a far superior tool to do so than GIMP.

Two, stop "keeping an eye" on your hand. Your only point of reference should be the pointer on the screen. Your tablet does not show the image you're working on, so why look at it?

[MonkeySage]

Eh, I didn't like MyPaint... Gimp gives me unlimited layers to work with, and seems far easier to use in general.

[Sean Mirrsen]

Eh, I didn't like MyPaint... Gimp gives me unlimited layers to work with, and seems far easier to use in general.

MyPaint gives you layers, blending, undo, and unlimited canvas. It also doesn't spoil you with digital manipulation - if you want to transfer your pencil skills you won't need it. It's been a lot more natural to use for me than either GIMP or Photoshop. Heck, even than Corel Painter.

It also makes for very not-digital-looking sketches (https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4152380/Skekches/014_a.png), as I've been told a few times.

(I also fail to see how MyPaint could be harder to use than "let's pretend we're Photoshop but put every toolbar in a separate window" GIMP. It literally opens to a clear canvas and a selection of tools. Start up and draw. As long as you don't have to fight with it to make it recognize your tablet, it should, theoretically, be as easy as it gets. :smallconfused: )

edit: at the very least, try out Krita (https://krita.org/en/). It has the same faux-Photoshop aesthetic going on, but shares a brush engine with MyPaint and as such has a much better selection of tools. And a far less confusing interface than GIMP. Grab this brush pack (https://meemodraws.deviantart.com/art/Krita-Brush-Pack-311306611) for it if you end up liking it, the sketching and blending tools there are great.

[M@XWeru]

Two, stop "keeping an eye" on your hand. Your only point of reference should be the pointer on the screen. Your tablet does not show the image you're working on, so why look at it?

A good point as well.

As for GIMP, I believe the creators have admitted GIMP is more of a photo editing tool than a painting program, and it can be a pain in the ass to get it to work with a tablet. It works, of course - ultimately, you can draw in MSPaint if you prefer, but there are a lot of programs out there that offer convenient tools of various kinds. I don't have a lot of experience with different programs, myself, as all I really care about is whether you can turn off the stabilizer and whether the anti-aliasing breaks down the instant you export the file. I don't believe you'll find it much easier to draw in some other program.

Have you tried different stabilizer settings, by the way? Those make a huge difference, and many programs have stabilizers enabled by default.

I've never used a tablet smaller than my screen, so I don't know exactly how it works, but I imagine that if your tablet surface translates to a much larger screen, that would make controlling your movements very difficult. Maybe there's some setting that makes the tablet affect a smaller screen area?

[Pixie22]

I don't know much about the programs you guys all listed here, I mostly use photoshop and all.
But I do wanna make a point that, if you have never drawn with a tablet before, its normal that you'll 'suck at it'. I've drawn with pencils for years, and when I first got a tablet I drew worse than my little sister (and she cant draw) So if all listed above doesn't change a thing for you. Then it might just be you have to keep drawing and get used to it. Aside from the fact that it asks a very different hand-eye coordination, it's as if you are drawing with a complete different medium. And you'll have to learn it, nonetheless how well you can draw on normal paper. :/ and its frustrating I know. A thing I'd say is: draw every day with it. At least one drawing, even if it's a little one. That's the fastest way to learn.

[cobaltstarfire]

I cut my teeth in GIMP, before being able to afford photoshop (also before there were so many nice cheap/free art programs out there to play with). GIMP plays nicer with a stylus than photoshop does most of the time. Of course photoshop is also more of a photo-editing program than an art program too.


All you can do is practice, drawing on a tablet is not the same as drawing with a pencil, the hand eye coordination is different, and you can't rotate the tablet like a piece of paper so certain curves and angles are just trickier. I've seen some artists are pretty good at rotating their drawing as they work on digital art via shortcuts and custom button mappings, which is probably a nice skill to have because it'll lessen the stress on your elbow and shoulder, which is important if you intend to do a lot of work.


Try working bigger and zoomed out, and also see how pencil mode works for you. I don't do digital as often anymore because it hurts my arm, but I've found that it is a little more forgiving for line work than brush mode is. (never tried anything with stabilizers before, but I've heard good things about those too).

I would strongly recommend you try out the different programs that are being suggested, sometimes the first problem in making art is not having tools that jive with you, it never hurts to experiment.

[Lacuna Caster]

I've never had particular trouble with tablets per se, though I still find working on paper is much more tactile and responsive. (I think I may have some kind of psychological hangup when it comes to using a tablet. I'm all, like, "Ugh, I have to pick it up, and then plug it in, and then find the stylus, and then try to balance it in my lap so it doesn't overlap the keyboard"... and then I do it and it's fine. First World Problems.)

I personally use Photoshop Elements, which I'm less than thrilled with UI-wise, but it has a few tools (such as shrink/expand selection) that I haven't found in other packages (and I always feel vaguely guilty about piracy.)

[Doorhandle]

The sad answer which isn't very helpful is PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE!

The less-sad and more helpful answer is to tape some paper to the front of your tablet. If it's thin enough it will still let you draw via tablet while having the feel of paper. Might wear through the stylus's nub a little faster though.