Trying Something New: Procreate
This is the second article in a series of pieces about experimenting with mediums and not being afraid to try something new. I originally started this article with the idea of animation growing in popularity, in mind. It is, but I didn't have enough info to write a full article about it just yet. There's plenty on the subject but I like writing these in the form of a stream of consciousness, so I pivoted. That's not to say I won't be discussing animation, in fact, that's where we'll start.
Modern animation tries to have its creators use tablets to create content. It's easy, clean, and it allows multiple artists to work on the same project at once. Professional animation normally uses, what are called Wacom Tablets, amongst other things. I focus primarily on hand drawn illustrations so getting into digital art had always been a little daunting to me but I knew it was a process I needed to get acquainted with. I recently bought an iPad with this intention in mind.
When I do my normal Gripless posts, I'm going from a sketch book, to my phone, then to my computer, where I finish up in Adobe Illustrator. Some people have asked about my process and I try my best to let them know. I don't believe someone's process needs to be a secret. If everyone felt that way then no one would know how to do anything. Not only am I more proficient in hand drawn illustration but Adobe Illustrator is my bag baby. The issue is, Adobe hasn't made Illustrator available for the iPad yet. I recently spoke to a representative over at Adobe and they told me it was due for a 2020 release, but stuff happened, you know, like a pandemic. I guess I can wait. In the meantime, I've been using Procreate. It's $10 on the App Store and it's awesome.
When I first started using Procreate, like anything else, it was overwhelming. However, that feeling quickly went away after I spent some time with it. I recommend giving it a good 30 minutes before you breakdown. Then another, then another. You'll quickly see how easy it is. These programs are meant to be efficient. They're not meant to give you a migraine. I have been making gifs and digital art on the iPad via Procreate for about 3 months now and it has completely changed my process. I feel like I have way more content to show for it as well as new styles to introduce to my audience. If you haven't seen my work, take a look @gripless on TikTok and Instagram. You'll see what I mean.
If you have any questions please let me know. Allow me to be a resource for you and if you have any suggestions of things I need to try, reach out. I'm trying to get into Among Us but we'll leave that for another post.