Learning a little bit of drawing/painting - Is bamboo wacom ok?

Toskineuro

Hi!

I used to draw a lot when I was a child, and after I owned my first computer I stopped to draw at all. It's been a long time that I want to try digital painting but my drawing skills are not so good anymore and I would like to start to draw right on photoshop. I have tried and it's being hard, my linework looks too bad/dirty and I have to use the eraser to clean it all the time. I'm wondering if it is because I'm a newbie or if it is because of the size of my tablet. I have an old small Bamboo wacom like this one.

Thanks

Mathew O

I know some amazing artists that use small tablets, I used to live with the best concept artist I know and he used that exact tablet

CordellC

A Bamboo will do just fine.

Snader

Yes. A wacom bamboo is fine.

But. It depends on your personal tastes. I prefer to have a large off-brand tablet instead of a small wacom because it allows me to make smoother broad swoops from the shoulder elbow, rather than working more with the wrist.

You could ask around your local art circles if anyone has a large tablet, and if you could borrow it or come over to try for a day, and quickly figure out what your preferred option is.

GrevSev

The small size frustrates me after looong usage but i forget all about it once the wrist pain dies down.

skylebones

I prefer using a small sized tablet. I grew up drawing in notebook sized sketchbooks, and smaller tablets helped me with the way I am comfortable painting/drawing.

Your lines will smooth out with practice. I also found when I first started with a tablet the 'smoothness' caused my lines to be a bit wobblier. I put a piece of paper over it to add some bite and it helped. Eventually I didn't need the paper.

Toskineuro

Thank you guys!!

So the problem is me :poly136:

Yeah I would like to test a larger tablet but unfortunately I don't have any friend that owns one.

....

I'm thinking on start a thread to show something and get some crits, but my drawing and painting are still really bad, don't know if it will be worth.

CordellC

Toskineuro wrote: »

Thank you guys!!

So the problem is me :poly136:

Yeah I would like to test a larger tablet but unfortunately I don't have any friend that owns one.

....

I'm thinking on start a thread to show something and get some crits, but my drawing and painting are still really bad, don't know if it will be worth.

It means you'll get the most out of the feedback. The more room you have to grow the better.

The drawing you linked in the OP isn't too shabby, either.

Toskineuro

CordellC wrote: »

It means you'll get the most out of the feedback. The more room you have to grow the better.

The drawing you linked in the OP isn't too shabby, either.

So maybe I will start a thread. thanks!

Dumb question:
start drawing whatever I want? Or there are some exercises that are better to start with?

Toskineuro

Snader wrote: »

Yes. A wacom bamboo is fine.

But. It depends on your personal tastes. I prefer to have a large off-brand tablet instead of a small wacom because it allows me to make smoother broad swoops from the shoulder elbow, rather than working more with the wrist.

You could ask around your local art circles if anyone has a large tablet, and if you could borrow it or come over to try for a day, and quickly figure out what your preferred option is.

Now I see what you say. I'm watching some videos at Ctrl+Paint, and the instructor says that we shouldn't use the wrist and fingers to draw, but I have to use them a lot to be able to draw something.

Optinium

It's personal taste and technique.
I prefer using my elbow as my main pivot but when I started out I was doing everything through my wrist, you just have to be conscious of what you're doing.
You might be a bit limited due to the smaller tablet.

There is larger tablets out there which don't cost much, brands such as Trust and Aiptek offer pretty decent sizes at a fraction of the Wacom prices.

gsokol

I had a small tablet in college, but once I jumped up to using a larger one (medium intuos 4) I definitely felt more comfortable personally. The larger surface makes small wrist movements much less sensitive. Seems like the medium sized ones are the sweet spot for me.

Skillmister

Having a medium intuos at work makes me realise i need to get one at home as my tiny tablet just doesn't cut it. I didn't think it was so bad when i hadn't used a better one though

PolyHertz

I used small tablets exclusively up until less then a year ago. The main difference is that with a larger tablet it makes sense to draw using your arm instead of just the wrist, which is a good thing because it will reduce the likely hood of carpel tunnel syndrome and for some people will help make cleaner lines.

Toskineuro

Thanks everyone for the reply!

It seems that the medium ones are the best choice (price vs size). I will keep doodling using this small tablet and start saving money to buy a medium one if I keep drawing. I don't know if I'm not going to give up at the very begining :poly131:

Using reference and not looking like the reference ehehe..

Toskineuro

Sorry for posting this here, this is the last

She doesn't sleep well I guess
http://i.imgur.com/K0JPPcs.jpg

D4V1DC

I bamboo It up!
Cause I'm POOR and I got used to It, I mean the tablet but sure that other thing too.



Post some work soonish so we can see what you do with your bambooie

Toskineuro

D4V1DC wrote: »

I bamboo It up!
Cause I'm POOR and I got used to It, I mean the tablet but sure that other thing too.



Post some work soonish so we can see what you do with your bambooie

ehehe, me too. I will. Thanks

riveter

I have a Bamboo tablet and a Monoprice tablet. The Monoprice is great for a fraction of the cost and much bigger.

Here's a review:
http://frenden.com/post/31659364200/the-little-monoprice-graphics-tablet-that-could


And the tablet:
http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=108&cp_id=10841&cs_id=1084102&p_id=6814&seq=1&format=2#description

Snader

Toskineuro wrote: »

the instructor says that we shouldn't use the wrist and fingers to draw, but I have to use them a lot to be able to draw something.

Well, it's a matter of preference, mostly. There has been research indicating that using the wrist too much leads to RSI, but also about using the elbow or the shoulder too much - I figure that since I use the mouse mostly from the wrist, I use a larger tablet to vary things a bit and put less strain on the individual joints.

My preference most assuredly isn't the "best" or "only" choice though. I'm one of a minority preferring qwerty phones over all-touch and I've considered getting a 7 inch phone to merge the use of phone and iPad; both ideas kind of frowned upon by some people. I prefer PC gaming because it's cheaper, and I'm one of the (vocal?) few that think short game-time is a good thing. (yeah, I don't much like Skyrim either.)

Toskineuro

Thank you for the tip riveter

Snader, it makes sense. I use the mouse with my left hand at work because I'm starting to have carpal tunel syndrome on my right wrist.

I think short game-time is good too. :thumbup:

Thanks.

Dubzski

PolyHertz wrote: »

I used small tablets exclusively up until less then a year ago. The main difference is that with a larger tablet it makes sense to draw using your arm instead of just the wrist, which is a good thing because it will reduce the likely hood of carpel tunnel syndrome and for some people will help make cleaner lines.

I second this, i've been using the postcard sized wacom for 6 years... first one i ever bought lol! I'm used to it now but when using the bigger ones it is noticable that you use less wrist action and more elbow movement (or have the ability too).

Thanks for the link to that drawing/learning website rather interesting ^_^.