When I first got Painter I took a long time to start using it because I
didn't know where to start. I could really have done with some simple
suggestions as to what tool to try first and what to do with it.
So here's a "guide" if you can call it that, to getting started with
Painter.
1: CONFIGURE YOUR TABLET
1: THE COLOR WHEEL AND MIXER
3: LAYERS
4: TOOL SUGGESTIONS: DRAWING
5: TOOL SUGGESTIONS: COLOR
1: CONFIGURE YOUR TABLET
When you open Painter and get rid of the various tip screens, the first thing
you want to do, even before you start a document, is set up your tablet pen the
way you like it.
To do this, go to Edit > Preferences > Brush Tracking.
In Painter IX.5 you will be confronted with a scratchpad to draw onto. Make
a stroke or two with your usual speed and pressure, and it'll automatically
configure itself for you. (It took me months to find that out!)
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2: THE COLOR WHEEL AND MIXER
The Painter color picker will look unfamiliar to Photoshop or oC users.
There's a ring, and an inner triangle. You pick your hue from the outer
ring, and the intensity from the triangle.
Complementary colors are opposite each other, analogous colors are next to
each other, so you can pick yourself a well matched palette really easily.
The mixer, located beneath the wheel, is a different beast. Here, you pick
colors from a basic palette, put them on the pad and mix them to get new hues.
This method will give you colors that look more "natural" than ones picked off
the wheel.
Of the icons, far left is Dirty Brush mode, which is either on or off. You'll
find out what that does the first time you try it. Next is a Paintbrush to put
paint down. Next is a Palette Knife to mix, after that the Eyedropper and
Multiple Eyedropper for picking more than one color at a time. The Magnifying
Glass zooms in; hold CTRL and click to zoom back out. The hand pans around.
Lastly, click the trashcan to clear the disgusting mess you just made.
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3: LAYERS
I don't think Painter does layers as comfortably as Photoshop, but that's
not necessarily a bad thing; we shouldn't be overusing layers anyway in digital
painting.
To merge two layers, select them both by holding Shift and clicking in the
Layers window. Then go to Layers > Group and select Group, or press CTRL/G.
Then go to Layers > Collapse or press CTRL/SHIFT/X.
Another useful command in the Layers menu is Drop. This will drop the
selected layer or layers to the canvas (merge them with the base layer, in
Photoshop terms). You can Drop All to flatten your image.
There are lots of new and exciting layer modes, like GelCover or Magic
Combine. I don't know what half of these do myself, still. If a tool needs
to use a specific layer mode to function (I am thinking of Watercolor, Liquid
Ink, Pencil...), and the current layer is different, it will make a new layer
of the right type when you set your pen to the canvas.
If you've lost/closed the mixer or the layers menu or anything else, you
can get them back by going to Window and Showing the one you want.
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4: TOOL SUGGESTIONS: DRAWING
Here we go, the good stuff at last!
Pencils. I have found Corel's Pencils to be a bit indifferent, mainly
because of the poor tilt sensitivity support. That's a tablet issue as much
as a Painter one though.
I can do better than this with a real one, honest
Pens. These are pretty nice even with the default setting. Would be good
choices for sketching.
Liquid Ink. This set of tools always requires its own dedicated "Liquid
Ink" layer. Take the time to explore this option. Ink flows, drips and spatters
so organically you'd swear the end product came off a real brush. It feels
really nice to use.
A quick recommendation: I use Smooth Camel for outlining with the following
settings: Size between 2 and 5 or so, Feature between 2 and 3. If you reduce
the size of your brush and get a stuttery line, reduce the Feature some more.
Hitting the brush icon at the far top-left of the screen will reset your
current brush to default settings, for any tool.
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5: TOOL SUGGESTIONS: COLOR
Oil Pastels: I am specially recommending these, especially if you come
from a Photoshop background. The Oil Pastels do not require special layers and
are very forgiving. You can keep laying new color down without it getting
muddy. Only downside is, you cannot taper your strokes with pressure; you will
have to change the size of the brush.
Another thing that makes the Oil Pastels a good beginner choice is, there
aren't many of them, so you don't get overwhelmed with options. Most of the
image above was done with my main tools, the Round Oil Pastel 10, 20 and
30. The cloud was done with Soft Oil Pastel 10.
Pastels: Similar to Oil Pastels, but dry, obviously. I've not
played with these much, but they also look pretty easy to handle.
One nice thing about these is that the Tapered Pastel and Pastel Pencil
brushes do change width with different pressure.
Digital Watercolor: Now we're getting into more painterly tools. I
must confess, I'm not good with this one. Those with experience of real
watercolor will probably find it easier to understand.
This was done with New Simple Water brush, changing size as appropriate.
Watercolor: These are new, more accurate simulations of real-world
watercolor. Just like real paint, they bleed, blob and dry out in irritating
and unaccountable ways *rimshot* They need to be on their own dedicated
watercolor layer.
If you can't tell, it's a soft toy. Done with a variety of Watercolor brushes,
mainly Fine Camel and Soft Camel.
Artist's Oils: The main thing is, you have to put your colors on
flat and then blend them in.
This is the first time I used these, so don't laugh. I used various brushes,
but mainly small-size Blender Bristle and Blender Brush on the dog. Try it
out for yourself...
NOTE: Some of the oil brushes give a thick globby impasto effect. If you don't like it, look to
the top right of your drawing window. There are four buttons there above the scrollbar. The bottom one
looks like a blue star. If it's 3D, you'll get depth to your strokes; if it's 2D they'll be flat.
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Painter is a massive program, and I've barely scratched the surface of it. There are no wrong ways to
use a tool, so go ahead and experiment. Use everything, not just the options I've discussed! And if
you come up with something really cool, share it with me... heh.
Email: quillandlauren@yahoo.com
AIM: eloze (email me first with your AIM name so I can add you)
MSN: metara_v2@hotmail.com (by prior appointment only)
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