Doing digital illustration is a pretty easy way to make money if you are creative and have an active social media presence. There are many ways to start your career as a digital artist, but most begin with creating illustrations or artwork.
You can create stills, silhouettes, or three-dimensional art that are then scanned into a computer program such as Photoshop or Sketch. These programs allow you to edit and add effects to the image which you then upload onto a website for display.
There are also apps designed especially to help artists design logos or find new styles to experiment with. By investing in the right tools, you will be able to hone your skills while earning some extra cash!
This article will go more in depth about how to take digital painting seriously, what types of software is needed, and some helpful websites where you can get started.
Practice making images in different styles
A very popular way to do digital illustration is creating still life, or nature-inspired illustrations. These are typically framed as depictions of natural objects such as fruits and vegetables, flowers, or landscapes.
Still lifes can be totally computerized and designed at any time. Artists create them by incorporating textures, shapes, and colors from all over the place.
The hardest part about doing still life art is picking your canvas! You will need a surface that can hold the object up, like a table top or wall. Then you will want to find a light source to illuminate the painting so it looks realistic.
There are many ways to learn how to do still life artwork. By practicing in several styles, you will find it easier to replicate a variety of designs.
You can take your inspiration from real world still lives, look through old paintings, and study masterpieces. There are plenty of free resources available online.
Create your own style
As mentioned before, digital illustration is more than just putting shapes together. It is creating images that appeal to the eye, using layers, colors, and textures.
There are many ways to pick up tricks of the trade, but no one really “owns” any specific style. Different artists have different styles due to personal preferences in color schemes, brush types, and fluidity.
You can learn about all of these things and create your own unique style! There are plenty of resources available online and through art colleges or creative writing programs. You may even find students around who are willing to show you their work!
If you ever feel like you lose momentum, take some time off to refresh and get back into it. Don’t worry about perfecting everything, just focus on exploring new areas and finding your groove.
Use a program like Photoshop or Paint Tool SAI
There are many great free software programs that allow you to create digital illustrations. Some of the most well-known include Adobe Photoshop, Gimp, and The iPad’s own painting app, InkPaint.
All three of these applications have their benefits. All offer easy ways to add textures, shapes, and colors to your images. They also all have tools that help you organize and edit your pictures after you finished creating them.
There is one major downfall with some versions of Photoshop though — it can be expensive!
Luckily, there are several good alternatives out there that are much more affordable. One such tool is Paper, which is totally free to use! You get pretty powerful features when you purchase an Paper account through Amazon!
Amazon gives you 2 GB of storage space for using their service, and you can easily remove this limit. It is very cost effective as it does not require a credit card nor do they charge any monthly fees.
Learn to use all the features of Photoshop
There are many ways to do digital illustration, but you must know how to use every feature in photoshop! Some people start with a style they like and then add textures or effects to it, which is fine, but what if we asked you to create something new that was not your own design?
You would have to completely re-do the effect, making it look different than before. Using the right tools can help you achieve this!
There are several types of tools used for digital illustrators. These include drawing, texture, pattern, color palette, shape editing, and composition tools. Each one plays an important part in creating illustrations that show off your talent as a designer.
This article will go over some of the most essential photoshopping skills, and things you can practice using them.
Practice your editing skills
A lot of people start doing digital illustration by creating an image or pattern and then adding in some colors and textures. They may even add shapes such as eyes, noses, and mouths!
However, what most people miss out on is actually editing their images. Editing means changing things like contrast, color balance, and texture. These are all important parts of designing anything visual.
If you want to take your design work to the next level, spend time learning how to edit your illustrations. You will find it very helpful for making your designs look more professional and crisp.
There are many free resources available online that can teach you this art form. All you need to do is search “how to edit digital pictures” to find them.
Learn to use all the features of Paint Tool SAI
One of the most popular drawing apps is Adobe Photoshop. It has many tools that allow you to edit, enhance, and create new designs from your pictures or pre-made images.
One such tool is the Pencil (or Line) tool. The Pencil tool allows you to draw lines and shapes onto your image. You can also go back later and erase parts of the line or even add another one!
The trick is making the lines look natural and seamless. Luckily, there are some easy ways to do this in Paint Tool Sai. Let’s take a closer look at them.
Practice your drawing skills
A very popular way to do digital illustration is creating hand-drawn looks. There are many ways to learn how to draw, but most people begin with line drawings or studies of still life or landscapes!
Many artists start by tracing their own illustrations or designs to create their own style. By looking at other illustrators’ work, you will find lots of different techniques they use.
Some make it look easy, but there’s an art to it that not everyone knows. It takes practice, dedication, and in some cases, years to perfect.
Know your software
A lot of people get stuck into digital illustration starting with Photoshop or Gimp, but that is not a good way to begin! These are great apps, but they require you to have either a paid account or a premium membership to use some features.
There are many free alternatives out there that contain all of the basic tools needed to start creating. Some of the most common ones include:
Pencil – For drawing shapes and lines
Brush – For adding texture and special effects
Settings – To control how the app functions
Many of these applications also offer you more advanced settings and features than what we mentioned before, making them worth looking into!
Having a general understanding of these apps will help you create beautiful illustrations! There are several ways to learn more about each one, such as by reading their documentation or talking to other users. You can find lots of information online and through social media channels.
We hope this article inspired you to pick up a new tool or two so that you can start creating! If it did, then please spread our word and let others know about this post. Share a link to it on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and tell everyone what tool(s) you learned in digital art painting here.
