Going through the brushes

(or I might have a new goal)

If you do digital, you’re probably familiar with the way people look for the ‘right’ brush to magically make them draw better. To combat this for myself, I’ve been idly working at playing around with stock brushes in the art program I use. I’ve got a set of stock brushes that I like well enough now instead of relying on custom brushes.

For my last few practice classes, I’ve been working on doing a whole class with a single brush where it hasn’t made the regular list. What works? What do I like? Are there good bits? It’s definitely giving me some food for thought. Also a certain degree of amusement. The first couple 30s sketches look funny, but the 5m sketches it’s often hard to tell I used a different brush from normal. And it’s keeping me interested in practicing which is always good.

You’ll see the same thing with physical art materials too, which is actually what got me started on finding brushes I like. I found a physical tool I liked and had a period where I wouldn’t draw if I couldn’t have that exact thing.

Hey Torrilin, I agree and I fear the exact same dependance. But I mean why limit yourself? I've tried limiting myself to the round brush and get good results but why bother when I can get the same result in 1/3 of the time spent with custom brushes? If you're just aiming for personal achievement then it doesn't really matter but if you want a sustainable career professionally you better get dem brushes. I mean people even use 3d software and photobash more than they draw, it's hard to compete unless you get new "brushes". I guess you could see it as reinventing yourself, keeping yourself fresh. Why just stick to a round bristle when you can get all sorts of funky shapes? Just a thought! (ツ)_/¯

I think you entirely misread me.

The app I use, Procreate, has hundreds of stock brushes. Around a dozen covering different kinds of pencils, brushes aimed at most kinds of paints including ones rarely used anymore like fresco or weird things like paint rollers. And a huge host of specialty brushes. So I’m going through and trying them INSTEAD of sticking to a plainer brush. If you don’t sit down with a tool and use it, it’s a bit hard to figure out what it’s good for.

Because honestly the most common kind of custom brushes are things meant to be another pencil, or a stamp brush for eyes or lips or some other “hard to draw” thing.

Yeah sorry english is hard! x)