Appreciation post: The before and after I saw in my digital paintings after switching to a $30 tablet

I started doing digital art on a cheap mouse last year and my lines were always shaky. Then I grabbed a basic Wacom tablet for like $30 off Facebook Marketplace. Within 3 weeks, my brush strokes got way smoother and I could actually control pressure. The biggest difference showed in a portrait I did of my cat where the fur details popped way more. Anyone else see a big jump when they moved from mouse to tablet?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_lee1mo ago

Where the fur details popped way more" - yeah, I bet they did, right after you spent all that time drawing individual hairs with a mouse and your hand cramped up like you were in a fistfight. Going from a mouse to any tablet is like trading in a rusty bicycle for a motorcycle, no matter how cheap the tablet is. Good for you and your cat portrait, hopefully it's hanging in a place of honor now.

wyatt_mitchell261mo ago

Hear me out though, I think you're mixing up the mouse and tablet thing a little. Going from a mouse to a tablet isn't like going from a bicycle to a motorcycle, it's more like switching from driving a stick shift to an automatic. Both get you there, but one lets you focus on the road and not the gear grinding. Drawing fur with a mouse is like trying to paint a fence with a toothbrush, it works but your hand is toast after ten minutes. A tablet just makes the motion way more natural, even a cheap one. Your cat portrait probably ended up on the fridge, which is the REAL place of honor anyway.

the_ruby1mo ago

Hey, did you try using a stabilizer setting on your tablet to smooth out those fur lines?