#i have a spare pen that is broke (nibs dont work in it it just died one day and never woke up) upstairs and i need to remember to bring it

[luthifer]

im probably going to have to by a new tablet pen next month ngl

[ghostpajamas]

PJ .......do you have any advice for like. art programs and tablets and the like? cause im lookin to upgrade my art set up from my fingie and a samsung tablet the age of a second grader KSALHSJDKSJD. any advice is helpful like what to avoid what to get, etc. im just going around asking other artists what they think.

HMMM! YEAH I COULD PROB GIVE A RUN DOWN OF STUFF I'VE USED AND WOULD/WOULDN'T RECC! do you have a pc or laptop that runs windows? bc thats what i have going on so its basically all i can recc for kkjjjgjjgg

programs

>firealpaca/medibang: FREE!!! theyre basically the same program but medibang has cloud support and firealpaca has onion skin mode for animating. both work very smoothly (even on an ancient pc like mine) and have easy to learn interfaces! this is a big fave recc for beginners and honestly? it holds up, i still use it often. almost no computer strain. 4 stars

>aggie.io: free, in browser, can be used collaboratively. it has good tools ngl. i use it a lot to fuck around with and its pretty functional. id recc it for getting used to a tablet or if you dont want to learn a whole program right of the bat. or just for fun really. low strain. 3.5/4 stars

>paint tool sai: last i checked sai is 40$ish? now, sai is probably my favorite program in the world. it has such a smooth and comfortable brush engine, pretty limited tools (but sai v2 has a text and shape tool, swag), and a very clean ui. it took a bit more time to get the hang of than firealpaca but it's been my go to for 4 years now. low strain 4.5 stars

>photoshop(cs6): a million fucking dollars just pirate it. it has good brushes and tools if you know how to use them but its honestly a huge hassle to figure out how to do basic shit it. i really dont recc it. HIGH strain. 2 stars

>clip studio paint: 50$ but it goes on half off sale like, twice a year. photoshop done RIGHT. clip is very comfortable to learn and it has an online marketplace and forums for downloading other people's brushes/materials and figuring stuff out if you're having a rough time. has just about the same functionality of photoshop but without the brain hell ui. medium-high strain. 4.5 stars

>autodesk sketchbook (pc): free. i used this when i was just starting out back in 2014/15 and its pretty good for goofing around but i dont think i could do serious illustration in it (edit: iprob could if i could get my tablet to work with it). i reopened it a few months ago and i had no idea how to use it. last i checked it had a layer limit of like, 3 but i dont know if thats gone. (edit: it is) low-medium strain. 3.5 stars

tablets

for pen tablets, id recc taping shiny paper on the surface bc they (wacom tablets specifically) have rough surfaces that eat through your nib like candy

>wacom intuos pen and touch (small, old version): 200$, it was good. it broke for a while bc tea spilled all over it and the cord fell in yogurt but i excavated it from the attic and it works fine now? setup is pretty easy but wacom product constantly want driver updates. has an eraser and 2 buttons on the pen. 4 on the tablet, comes with 3 spare nibs. 3.5 stars

>wacom intuos pro (small): 250$, this baby was smoother and had a nicer pen, ngl. it also needed constant driver updates which was a real hassle. has an eraser and 2 more pronounced buttons on the pen. good pen weight. 6 buttons and a touch wheel on the tablet. comes with 10 spare nibs (variety set) and a pen stand. 4.5 stars

>xp-pen 13.3 inch monitor tablet: 300$, set-up was a BIG hassle but i havent had to update the driver since and it works very smoothly. 6 buttons on the tablet, 2 on the pen, no pen eraser. comes with 10 spare nibs, a glove, pen stand/a tube to keep it in, a screen protector (that i removed like a fool). no tilt support (i dont like tilt anyway so it wasnt a problem for me). requires an hdmi port on your computer. id say it's pretty good for the price, though i do still like pen tablets. 4.5 stars

for starter tablets id recc xp-pen or huion pen tablets bc they go for like, 40-60$ dollars and i hear theyre pretty good. or! i think wacom has some pretty cheap tablets available. a wacom intuos small is about 80$.

haha this was really long sorry. i hope it helps, good luck, evan!!! ❤️❤️❤️