Sketchbook Pro face
Categories: artwork
Tags: Brushes, sketchbook, ipod, Artwork
Date: 18 May 2010 07:23:40
OK now some of you may have noticed I'm very much into the Brushes app on iPad and iPod. That's not to say that I'm not open to the idea of other apps, nor do I avoid contact that isn't anything Brush related. Far from it; I have a page of apps devoted to the creative tools and have an interest in all of them (Sketchbook, Art Studio, Brushes beta, Inspire, Layers, Harmonious, Typedrawing, Artisan, SpawnHD, iFractal and Trippingfest in case you're wondering). I just haven't found anything I like anywhere near as much as I do Brushes.
It's not perfect: the viewer tool is a little broken on the iPod -> Mac version (taking the layer order over the drawn order as timeline priority), the line tool isn't as strong as Sketchbook's (no auto-smoothing), there's no move layer tool on the iPod version (although issue 1 and 3 have been fixed in the iPad version) and so on. I can think of a dozen or more improvements I'd love to suggest to Steve Sprang if we had the chance to chat about what would be amazing to see in future releases (movie exporter with selectable render layers, type, custom brush designer, brush rotation alongside spacing, psd file export and so on) but the first thing I would say would be 'thanks for such an amazing tool. It's a job to use.'
So, not perfect but awesome regardless.
That said I do often try and create pictures with the other apps, I just find their limitations, particularly their UI limitations, immensely frustrating. Layers has some sweet touches but shake for interface? No thanks (yes I know this has been optioned but even so a crackers idea. Still, it was the first tool with layers so big kudos to them for that), Art Studio has a LOVELY dry brush tool but, again, I find the UI clumsy and unwieldy. Sketchbook has a beautiful and useful mirror drawing tool which I LOVE to pieces, as well as a sweet line smoothing tool but is slooooow and the UI is, again, aimed for precision and thoughtful contemplation rather than speed of doodlage. I want to draw and think as little as possible about the steps I have to take to progress forwards. Sketchbook's UI feels like a satnav set to a foreign language.
That said I did doodle this today (edit: yesterday but have been sick as a sickpig through night hence delay) which is as far as I could get. I would like to have coloured it in more and smoothed some of the lines but enough was enough. Maybe one day I'll get a workflow sorted on another app but, for the moment, Brushes hits the speed spot.
