A tale of two tablets

Yeah I thought that was pretty catchy title.  Here is another behind-the-scenes look at my creative process.  Before I started developing my comic, I realized I needed certain tools.  To fully harness the creative power of digital software, you need a graphics tablet.

Tablets are simply thin slate-like devices with a smooth writing surface that attaches to your computer.  Combined with a special “pen,” you can manipulate the computer cursor the same way you would with a mouse, with this one difference: it’s extremely precise.  Not only that, the familiar feel of pen-on-paper makes art related tasks on the computer infinitely simpler.

Tablets can also be extremely expensive, especially for someone just starting out.  But I knew I needed one.  The chore of coloring digital artwork would be near impossible without one.  So I bit the bullet can purchased a Wacom Bamboo pen tablet, the best for starters.

I soon fell in love with the power it gave me.  So after a few months I upgraded to a Wacom Inuos tablet–the bamboo’s beefier cousin.  It is somewhat larger (a plus for artists) and has more features (and great pressure sensitivity).  I became so comfortable with using a tablet to color my artwork, I began to draw and ink the artwork entirely on the computer.  This not only increases the rate at which I can complete a comic, but produces (in my opinion) cleaner, superior artwork.

What does the future hold for digital artwork?  Well there are even more advanced tablet devices, such as pressure sensitive, touch screens.  Those are a bit out of my price range at the moment (and would require me to work at only one computer), but maybe when I become a full time creator.  In the meantime, I fluctuate between digital drawing and pinning over traditional mediums.

Who knows?  I may throw my tablets away and resort to “old school” pencil and paper.