#bUT NOW ITS ON IBIS MY MAIN MOBILE DRAWING APP!!!!

[astro-inthestars]

Hey guys!! Check out this thing I animated- wait a sec

WHAT DO YOU MEAN I CAN ANIMATE ON IBIS NOW??!?!

[1iliketrains1]

i was always like “wtf” at photoshop artists bc i used it and it’s not a good art based program like,, i use procreate now n its obv much better but like, if u cant afford a program n wanna make some neat art? i have some neat n free recommendations (both for mobile n desktop)

take this w/ a grain of salt of course, cos i’m not the best artist and i def. have my biases

fire alpaca (desktop) / medibang paint (desktop + mobile):

basically my highest recommended, both come from the same company i think- there’s an english vers. and other language vers. for both so far. they each have websites with a bunch of tutorials on stuff like clipping layers and coloring mixing brushes- and medibang has a mobile version (tho, imo it doesn’t work as well as the desktop + theres a lowkey subscription thing).

the main difference between the two is in layout- medibang is a lot more detailed but firealpaca has more beginner friendly features.

pros

+ actually has a lot of things most paid products have, like transform tools and lassos n all that. shares all of it’s shortcuts w/ photoshop

+ custom brushes are fine, tho they use a diff format from photoshop brushes n all, also similar-ish to sai n csp

+ brush stabilizer and the ability to lock layer opacities / masks!! so many programs dont have this but it’s real helpful, esp when you dont want to go through the process of having a billion clipping layers

+ medibang has a resource library, n fire alpaca has comic features / a 3d perspective tool

cons

- a fair bit overwhelming on medibangs end, generally confusing on firealpaca’s if you dont have a guide to help you figure out what icon is connected to what tool

- theres a canvas limit for editing, not much more than general editing either, which, while it is the base of art programs- doesn’t leave much for creativity, plus brushes only have a few settings, u cant make them softer / sharper unless you make a new one

- subscription service for medibang, which is kinda… iff.

basically, medibang / firealpaca are easy to use, solid choice for artists. the former is for peeps who really wanna go for illustrations and detailed drawings, whilst the latter is better for beginners + comic artists. download links below:

https://medibangpaint.com

https://firealpaca.com

krita (desktop)

honestly havent used this much, i didnt really like the program. but, it does have it’s strong suits. unsure if it’s compatible with other program’s brushes or files, unfortunately

pros

+ very customizable due to being open source, preset brushes and custom ones and also in the app’s layout itself.

+ constantly updated, so there’s always new features.

+ allows the upload of custom assets like brushes and palettes and stuff

cons

- definitely overwhelming at first, a lot of features and admittedly brushes are useless to one’s dynamic dependent on what they wanna do. it can be hard to figure out what will work on your first time on it

- laggy, probably due to bugs and stuff from the updates. new features are hit or miss on the working on as well. they get fixed soon enough, but still.

so it’s a fine program, if you can take the time to learn it and swerve around the more glitchy or slow parts. and if your computer can handle it, of course. download link is:

https://krita.org/en/

ibis paint x (mobile)

ah ibis paint, the mobile users dream. i have it too from my finger drawing stage, so i like to think i have had a decent enough experience.

pros

+ surprisingly professional for an art app, filter features, lasso tool, etc. a whole lot of brushes and a resource library as well. comic support is also added.

+ community support! they show off art of the weeks, allow you to upload your works on their servers to be liked by other people, and recently ive heard they’re starting to allow custom brushes transferable by qr code, so, neat.

cons

- ads, ads everywhere. i understand it’s a free program and they need money to maintain the servers (for the community based content, as mentioned), but admittedly- it’s a little cheap. you only have a select set of base brushes and then you need to watch an ad to get 48 hours of like, every single brush in the pack. it’s a good- no, great deal! but still, reeks of cheapness.

- it does look equally cluttered and is a bit klunky when navigating, due to it being a mobile app and thus screens can be… small, yes. it looks better on a tablet, though the squished layout makes it seem kinda overwhelming.

all in all? it vibes! one of the best mobile art apps if you can get over the cheapness. i can see why a lot of people use this. download it on google play and the app store!

autodesk sketchbook (desktop + mobile)

okay now this might be outta the park a bit, but hear me out. this’ll be- a lot more simple compared to the others, admittedly cos i haven’t used this in a while.

pros

+ like a whole lot of realistic— and i really do mean realistic —brushes. pencils and charcoal and even smudge sticks. it feels a lot like drawing on actual paper

+ clear cut interface, it’s minimal for the sake of giving you more space to draw, and all that. however, the canvas is still very easy to manipulate when you wanna zoom in or rotate or anything.

cons

- it doesnt have a lot of the cooler filter or gradient tools, at least from what i’ve seen. no custom brushes either, this is definitely… traditional, in the sense that it doesnt offer much.

- touch controls are a bit wobbly too, it’s meant mainly for a stylus with all it’s pen pressure stuff. you’ll miss out a lot on touch / mouse alone.

it’s… well there’s not much to say about this one, mostly because it’s— ultimately it’s for those who’re really into the more traditional feel! it’s pretty niche, but to those who can use it- and i do recommend you give it a try if traditional brushes are your thing -more power to you! download link below for desktop, but you may also find it on your phone’s app stores:

https://www.sketchbook.com

of course, you can always just pirate photoshop or whatever

but for those who would probably find art programs interesting, these are good and once more, free alternatives to the popular program

remember not to take adobe’s corporate shit, either way!!

denormalize using photoshop for serious art. when people tell you they use photoshop just be like “uhhhh… for art???” and brush them off every time they try to justify it. make fun of people for using photoshop. bully people for paying for photoshop subscriptions. no more adobe products we have moved past the need for adobe products