Photoshop is a popular software for digital paintings. If you find interest in digital art then yes Adobe Photoshop is an ideal software for you. In Photoshop, we edit raster images taken by camera or downloaded from internet. There are variety of tools that we use in this software. With the help of these tools, we can create digital paintings and manipulate images.
Why is Adobe Photoshop important to learn?
Photoshop has power to make not only digital art but also other designs like photo albums, posters, book covers, web ads, etc. It is because of its tools and options. Some of them major features of Photoshop are:
- We can work on layers.
- We can save the images in different format like JPG, PNG, TIFF, PDF etc.
- A wide type of filters and effects
- Various adjustments and layer styles
- Numerous tools for different purposes like selection making, retouching, color replacement, designing, etc.
- Many more.
With our expert level course in Photoshop, you can master all of the above features including digital painting from our design experts.
Let’s come to the main point of the blog, that is digital painting.
Types of painting tools for digital painters in Adobe Photoshop
There is a single tool that makes paintings in Photoshop. We have a good list of tools that digital artists use for their artworks on digital canvas.
Each tool has their own features and settings to make art more creative.
Tool list starts here:
1) Brush Tool:
This is the main tool of painting that paints on digital canvas just like a real one. We can take different shape and sizes of brush tool. Its shortcut key is (B). We can adjust opacity, hardness, and flow of the brush according to our artwork.
We can also download different types of brushes from internet and import them into Photoshop.
Even, we can create our own custom brush using Define Brush Preset from Edit Menu.
Mixer brush is another brush tool that comes from Brush tool family. It helps digital painters to do shading and smudging for detailing of artwork.
2) Pencil Tool:
Another tool is Pencil which also comes from brush tool family. This tool mostly used for detailed work and for sharp lines. It is a free hand tool. Like brush tool we can change its shape it sizes according to our work.
Draw straight lines by holding down the shift key. Artist can use the pencil tool for quick sketches or detailed line art.
It has hard edges only and helps in making outlines.
We can even create pattern for graphic and textile designs.
Our courses in graphic design and diploma programs for textile design cover Photoshop training and pencil tool is covered in it.
3) Eraser Tool:
Removing brush strokes from real canvas is a challenging task but thanks to Photoshop’s Eraser tool. It helps artists to remove extra part of their work. Its shortcut key is (E). Just like other tool, we can change its shape and size according to our work. It works in the same way like our main Brush tool.
4) Paint Bucket Tool:
This tool fills the large area with colour. Its shortcut key is (G). We can simply choose this tool and click on that particular area where we want to fill.
The Paint Bucket Tool works by fill colour area with foreground colour. It detects the edges of an object and allows quick fill in the selected area.
5) Gradient Tool:
With the help of Gradient tool, we can take many colours at a time and create a smooth colour blend on our artwork. We can simply drag gradient tool and fill on our work. From designing backgrounds to creative design overlays, gradient tool can add depth to your work. To access Gradient tool, locate in the tool box on the left side of the Photoshop interface. Or press G as its keyboard shortcut. Now select the type of gradient from property bar on top.
It comes with 5 types: Linear gradient, radial gradient, angle gradient, reflected gradient, diamond gradient.
We can also change blending modes of the gradient.
Check in gradient editor from property bar to access the gradient presets, noise, color stops and opacity stops.
Best steps to start digital painting in Photoshop
1. Select paint tool first
Select brush tool by pressing B.
2. Adjustment of Tool settings
After selecting the brush tool, adjust its setting. For it, go to property bar on top and access brush settings. It has options to change its shape, size, opacity, flow, pen pressers, transparency, etc.
3. Make outlines
Make a new layer and start creating an outline for the artwork.
4. Choosing the colours
Now, choose the colour from foreground or background color boxes. Put the reference image and simply take eyedropper tool to pick the colour from it. Or we can simply take the colour from colour panel.
5. Start painting
We can simply drag the brush tool on our canvas and for straight lines hold the shift button. If we make any mistake, we can simply press ctrl+ z (window) or Command + z (mac) to undo our mistakes.
6. Use of Eraser tool in our painting
If we want to erase something we can simply use eraser tool drag on unwanted areas.
7. For Depth in our paint
Dodge and burn tool are used for lighten or darken parts for our paint and for its depth.
8. Final Touches
After completion of our work, we save our work simply by pressing ctrl + s or in file>save. Export the file to JPEG or TIFF.
Get detailed steps on creating realistic digital painting in Photoshop!
Best Projects to Create using Photoshop for Digital Painters
Digital painters create variety of projects using painting tools in Photoshop. Some of them are:
- Smudge paintings
- Digital coloring
- Digital art
- Layer mask compositing
- Vector art, etc.
Conclusion
So, some of the top digital painting tools for digital painters in Photoshop are brush, pencil, gradient, eraser, and paint bucket.
These tools are essential to learn for all artists and designers.
Keep your eye on practice and try practice painting using these tools daily. With practice we can bring new ideas and make our work more creative. For better way of learning and practice, you can explore our digital painting master course. These programs not only cover software but also covers special sessions like canvas painting. For more information, contact us at +91 9811818122.
