You will need some gear to get started with digital painting and this site gives you the digital painting how to information to make the transition from traditional media to digital painting art. If you make the switch to digital painting art you won’t need to buy any more traditional media art supplies. So even if there are some up front costs, it will be a plus as art supplies really add up over time. A digital drawing tablet, stylus and art software are the minimum. I highly recommend a case and screen cover, as the studio can be a messy accident prone place for the digital painting artist. The digital drawing tablet screen can seem a little slick at first like a coated paper but you can get used to the feel of it with a little time. The screen covers have a slight texture and there are a couple of different ones to choose from which can give you some choices in screen friction.

An important part of digital painting how to involves how to use a digital drawing tablet in a traditional art studio. Paint, charcoal or pastel dust on the studio easels can be noted when choosing an easel in the studio and wiped off with a paper towel prior to putting the tablet on the easel or drawing horse. You can also leave a paper towel on the bottom bar of the easel that your tablet sits on. Since you can’t use a clip on a digital drawing tablet, as it could break the screen, you need to choose a stable easel that is not flimsy. This also tends to lead one to choose an easel rather than a horse unless the horse has adjustable horizontal bars like an easel. Also the angle of the easel in the plane of the floor will need to be a little more than 90 degrees. The specific angle I choose depends on the studio lighting and associated glare. Really for the most part I think using an easel is better than a horse as you can stand back from the drawing or painting and reflect on what you are doing. You also get to stand instead of sitting which is easier on the back and probably healthier. If you drop the stylus it may break and could cost some to replace. The stylus nibs can also wear down and need to be replaced periodically but they are not expensive.

Other than that all you really need is some electricity and a willingness to try something new. I have some how to information and reviews of all the gear you will need. This website is a work in progress and I will add more how to and reviews with time. Select the reviews tab and then choose the gear you want to read about. Also please use the links in my reviews if you decide you want to buy some gear.

I reviewed some of the social media platforms and have recommendations about which ones seem to be the most fun to look at from a fine arts perspective and how their apps compare. There is also some information on how to use the web to increase the potential audience for your art. When you make digital paintings, it allows for easy storage on the cloud, posting on the web and makes maintenance of a website like this for your art much easier. That can open new possibilities both to increase your profile as an artist and learn some new skills for the digital age. The process does include some work with social media web sites, search engine optimization and interaction with and monitoring your website traffic through google analytics or plug ins which use it’s information.