Suggestions needed for digital art and computer programs

[Cathy Wendler]

What would you do differently, if you were a newbie (like me) wanting to start in digital? What program would you use for starters? Is there one program you love? Is there one that is good for starters AND good for the long haul too? Or is there a "starter" program you'd use? What printer do you like the best? What scanner? Hindsight is 20/20, let us know what you've learned the hard way.

[Kay Mace]

Yes, Yes, I need to know these things too- I have an EpsonstylusCX5400 scanner/printer combo that is really hard for me to figure out-I think I could do the kind of things on it Isee on this site---Someone please take us by the hand and lead us into the digital world of OZ!

[Ginny Ciszek]

Hi Cathy- I learned on Photoshop but I would'nt call it easy to learn, at least for me.
I have self taught myself over about four years with a very little "real person" help from my brother and nephew ( they seemed to confuse more then help by not going slow enough) I have tried a few tutorials free but am not good at following directions so I mostly have learned by trying stuff out, trial and error. Lots of error! and just doing it until I figured out how to do it better. I know there are faster and more efficient ways of doing what I do, but it works for me so far; but I would love a Photoshop mentor.
I tried Picassa before but it was redundant to photoshop and I didn't need both. It is a free download photo editing program but I think it also has brushes and you can draw stuff ect. - Is more basic than photoshop so should be a faster learning curve. My advise is to just try it all out and be adventuress,there's no one watching go ahead make a mistake..
I also have Coreldraw, which I do other stuff on that is easier there. Like large layout set ups and layering images quickly.
When I do business cards, I don't use a template. I do a master in Coreldraw and have it printed at the copy shop on good paper. I can fit more on a page, less to trim without a big white border and the image printing comes out better than in set templates.
My printer is an Epson COLOR STYLUS 260R. I have had a HP but didn't like the print quality I got from it. I have the mid priced" printer only" style. It is two 1/2 years old and still printing well, my previous two printers only lasted about a year (I print a lot at times and then don't print anything for a month,which isn't great for the printer) I get astoundingly good images from it, especially for the price (about $100.00 when I got it)
Never buy a combination printer,copier,scanner,fax kind of style unit if you want good printing quality. There aren't any good ones on the market for art quality printing that I know of.
Make sure what ever printer you get has a maintenance function that lets you fix printing issues that come up like lines, out of register or splotches. My friend had a printer that you could'nt adjust the heads or clean them. So when they got out of register she had to get a new printer. Mine has a wizard that walks you through all maintenance tasks, which is a godsend.
I use the printer co. genuine inks because they are worth the money in light fastness and water spotting. I have used cheaper inks and sprayed fixer on them and then tried to paint on the image and still have it smear and ruin my piece. I don't have to spray fix matte paper and can use it with paints and Modge Podge and not have it run. With the gloss paper I always spray it before working with my collage images to be safe.
So thats what I know in a nutshell. Please ask if I can clarify or answer any more questions.
Good luck in your new digital adventures! I am positive you will be amazed by the creative possibilities and fun to be had.
Keep me posted of your progress. Blessings upon you. Oh, neophyte to the kingdom of digital magic. Live long and prosper, Ginny

[Cathy Wendler]

Where is the best place to Photoshop? I looked online and they had a trial issue. What version do you use Ginny? I haven't looked up Coreldraw yet, layering sounds like something I'd be interested in.

[Ginny Ciszek]

Cathy Wendler said:

Where is the best place to Photoshop? I looked online and they had a trial issue. What version do you use Ginny? I haven't looked up Coreldraw yet, layering sounds like something I'd be interested in.

Cathy- I have Photoshop CS2 it is an older version but I didn't want to have to learn anything new. My brother gave me his program when he got the newer version so I didn't have to buy it. I know it is expensive but maybe try the trial first and see if you like it before making the plunge. Coreldraw I also got from my brother so I'm not sure how much that is but it is less useful so if I had to pick one I would get the Photoshop. A lot of people, Graphic designers and Artists, use Adobe Illustrator instead of Photoshop but I found it too hard for me to learn another program and I liked it less than PS. It seemed more suited to people who make their own drawings instead of working with photographic images like I like to do, so I uninstalled it.
It takes a lot of room on your computer all these programs do so make sure you have enough space or it won't run very well.( It needs backup space as well as program files) I am totally not a techie person so I can't tell you specifically what you need to run it, my brother sets all this up for me. I hope this is some help but I'm sorry I don't know more. Blessings in your pursuit of digital magic- Ginny

[Valeriana Solaris]

Hello Cathy :-)

I discovered Gimp a few years ago. It is very similar to Photoshop, but it really takes a lot of time and patience to work with all of these picture editing programs. The good thing about Gimp is that it is free! There are tons of free tutorials online that help you get started with it.

The installation process was a bit difficult, so it is a bit difficult for a newbie.

The link: http://www.gimp.org/

Best wishes,

Valeriana

[John Dyhouse]

Hi Cathy, I use a freebie photo manip tool called Photoplus. Version 8 ( I think ) is available for download. The bought and paid for version is at V 11 but the free tool does almost everything that you would want as a beginner to digital art. Tutorials and brushes are not so freely available as for the industry standard software but you gotta learn somewhere without breaking the bank.

[Cassie]

I use Gimp. I am still learning it. I really liked Paint.net but it only works if you have Windows. When we switched to a non-Windows operating system I couldn't use it anymore. I loved the Photoshop CS3 free trial. But I couldn't afford to actually buy it because it cost like $500 if I remember correctly.