Can I mix traditional and digital together?
We’ve moved beyond the discussion of traditional vs. digital – they’re simply different ways of realizing your vision. With digital, you can mix mediums that don’t mix easily in the real world, explore motion and interactivity, and experiment with unprecedented speed. Join us in the new world of the “tradigital.”
Why digital?
For many artists who work in both natural media and digital forms, there are strong trade-offs both ways. For those developing digital know-how, the benefits of digital can be summarized as follows:
In software
Working digitally in layers makes it easy to isolate specific refinements while experimenting with new areas of the image and with overlay alternatives. The added power of blending the layers in a wide variety of ways provides endless options that are quick and easy.
Software features combined with layers enable artists to change scale, rotate, and warp parts of a drawing to easily fix what would be difficult or impossible to do in the analog world. Special effects and advanced digital techniques provide options that are relatively quick to employ.
Software can be combined in interesting ways as artists learn the benefits of using vector and bitmap art tools. Digital also opens up possibilities for exploring motion and interactive media and presentation.
Effects
Changing lines, mediums, and paper texture after the fact is relatively easy when working digitally. Similarly, it’s easy to mix mediums that would be quite difficult to do in the analog world.
When speed matters
Once you’re familiar with digital techniques and tools, this approach is extremely fast compared to real paint (especially oils and layered or mixed media).
Last but not least, digital is “non-destructive,” which means your original digital files are untouched, so artists are free to experiment and explore, making it more comfortable to push boundaries and explore new ideas.
Which Wacom is right for you?
Serious artists most often opt for an Intuos professional pen tablet or Cintiq interactive pen display, due to the added controls and advanced features.