Digital art can be used for illustration, comic books, animated movies, video game graphics, or just to make your own pictures.If you don't have a lot of previous art experience or are used to working with traditional pen and paper, creating digital art might be intimidating.You only need the right tools and a lot of practice.Pick a digital software program to learn, get a computer that fits your needs, and start making art!
Step 1: Drawing circles, squares, and triangles is a good way to practice.
You need a strong foundation in traditional drawing and painting to be good at digital art.The skills for digital art are the same, even though the medium is different.If you don't have much drawing experience, you should start by drawing basic shapes.Practice with circles, squares, and triangles and then move on to sketching 3dimensional shapes like cones, cylinders and spheres.
Step 2: Add cast shadows.
Adding an imaginary light source to your page will make your cones, cylinders, and spheres look three-dimensional.Shade in the areas farthest from the light source.You can draw a shadow underneath your object.The shadow should be the same shape as the object, but it may be longer or shorter than it is.
Step 3: Draw with one and two point perspectives.
One point perspective is a linear perspective with one vanishing point.When you look down a railroad track, you can see that all the lines converge at a point in the middle of the scene.The two point perspective has two vanishing points on each side of the scene.
Step 4: From direct observation, draw people, objects, and landscapes.
It is time to draw from life once you have gotten the hang of basic shapes, shading, and perspective.Drawing from life will be more challenging than just drawing from your imagination.Draw a pile of objects with accurate perspective and shading to practice still life.Go to a figure drawing class and have a friend pose for you.
Step 5: The color wheel can be used to grasp color theory.
Blue and green are analogous colors because they are next to each other on the color wheel.They look at each other in a good way.Red and green on the color wheel are called complimentary.They are very different with each other.Use your imagination and play with color.You are ready to learn digital art once you feel confident with the basics of shapes, shading, perspective, drawing from life, and color theory.
Step 6: Choose between a computer and a stylus.
If you want to mimic traditional painting, you should use a pressure-sensitive tablet with a stylus.You can use a stylus on a computer.To get good at digital painting, you will probably eventually want to use a stylus and tablets, but working with just a regular monitor and mouse is possible.
Step 7: For free you can download GIMP or Krita.
Volunteers built GIMP, a free, open source digital art program.It has the same functions as the industry-standard, but has a more confusing user interface and is less beginner-friendly.Krita is a free, simple, beginner-friendly software that specializes in digital painting.It doesn't have the photo-editing capability of GIMP, but has a lovely user experience for digital painting.It is best to learn one program first and then explore other programs once you have mastered it.Trying to learn a bunch of different programs at the same time can be difficult.You should start with a free program if you are a beginner.If you are training for an industry job, you may want to consider paid alternatives.
Step 8: Digital painting can be done with the help of the Corel Painter.
Krita is a digital painting software.Digital painters love it because it mimics traditional paint-on-canvas.You can try a 30 day free trial to see if you like it.
Step 9: You can use either the clip studio art or the paint tool saai.
The Clip Studio Art and Paint Tool SAI are popular among concept artists.The free, open source programs cost money.They have certain tools that are helpful for making Manga, but they are more limited than other programs.It looks like a comic drawing because the clip studio art smooths out every outline you draw.There is a huge fan-base for Paint Tool SAI.You can create smooth, sleek drawings with it.
Step 10: The industry standard is paid for.
It costs money, but it has lots of useful features, is updated regularly, and is considered the industry standard in animation and graphics.If you are serious about your craft and want to pursue a career in digital art, this program may be worth the money.
Step 11: A new document can be created in your digital art software.
To open a new document, go up to File, on the top of your computer screen, and click on a phrase to open it.You can specify the size and resolution of the document you want to save.
Step 12: On the document, choose your color settings.
If you want to display your art digitally, you should use Red Green Blue, a three-color spectrum.If you want to print out your work, use the four colors used in color printing.
Step 13: Pick the background color for your drawing.
It is very easy to fill in the whole background with a different color, even if you are used to starting with white paper.The brightness of a white background won't compete with the values of lights and darks, so this can be helpful for judging.A gray background is a good place to start.
Step 14: Use the paint bucket tool to experiment with paint.
The paint bucket can be used to fill large areas.You can change the thickness and color of your line.Many digital art software programs offer a lot of different paint brushes that can be used in different ways.You can use a fill tool and different distortion effects with paint brushes.
Step 15: You can create multiple layers.
You can save your work in different layers with most digital art software.If you save the background as a layer, you can start a new layer for something in the foreground.You don't have to remove the whole drawing if you mess up on one layer.There are layers in your picture.If you drew a tree on the left side of the picture, you can move it to the right.You can't do this in real life painting.
Step 16: You can zoom in on your picture to add more detail.
Another great feature of working in digital art is that you don't have to draw on paper.You can see the whole picture if you zoom in on your drawing.
Step 17: Reorder and hide what you like.
You can stack your layers in any order you want.You can make an initial messy sketch in one layer, and then trace over it in fine detail in a layer on top, as if you were using tracing paper.You can hide the messy sketch so that you only see the finely detailed drawing.
Step 18: When you are done with your artwork, save it.
If the program shuts down, you will still have your work saved, so make sure to save your artwork frequently.Once you are done, make sure to save it.You can either print it out or show it to your friends.
Step 19: Try and improve with video instructions.
Don't stop there.Practice and learn new skills online.There are tons of great videos on how to use the basic tools of digital art software programs.There are online video classes that offer a progression of skills from basic to advanced.Watching videos will show you exactly which buttons to press to access the tools.As you watch the videos, take notes.