#program recommendation

[lupucs]

Heya! I love your animations! I've wanted to 3D animate for quite some time. Should I start with blender or another software like SFM?

Thank you so much aah!! This might just be me being biased but Blender has always been my preferred choice for anything 3D-related. I never used SFM before so I can't give you any info on that, but from my experience Blender is a lot easier to get into than most industry-standard 3D software such as Maya or 3dsMax from Autodesk, plus it's free and just as viable for more advanced projects since it pretty much has everything you need to make animations. You can even use it as an editing tool. Hope this helps!!

[veilody]

Hi can I ask? What app or software do you use to draw? Most specifically to animate and make GIFs? :D

Hiya! First off: Of course you can ask! I am always open to share my knowledge~ So if there's anything else you wanna know in future don't hesitate to reach out~ :3

The program I use?

I use Clip Studio Paint Ver. 4 (latest version) for the iPad.

My iPad is a rather old one (6th generation, 10 Inch). I got it second-hand in 2019 but it holds up well!

Payment? Plans or One-Time?

Keep in mind, that CSP for iPad is a subscription-system! You can choose between the Pro-Version ( 4,39 € / Month ) or the EX-Version ( 8,59 € / Month ). I use the Pro-Version, but it limits your animation to 24 panels / 2 seconds, so you can't do much with it, while EX-Version gives you limitless frames.

If you use your PC to draw, you can purchase CSP with a One-Time Payment, so you won't have the subscribtion payments. There will be occasional updates, that you'll have to pay extra for but I honestly feel like CSP is worth it, since they're listening to their userbase and the updates are starting to give Adobe a run for their money.

All in all for Animation, I recommend working at the PC because a horizontally wide Screen is SUCH a blessing for working on timelines - I just can't afford a new screentablet for my PC so I am stuck with the iPad for now xD the iPad screen feels very cramped when I work on my animations.

They also have a 3-Month trial-version so you can test it out first!

What does animating look like in there?

You can animate with Keyframes, meaning you can animate the rotation, expansion, position and opacity. Depending on the curves of the animation, you can make more cut animations or smooth ones.

(FYI you can customise your layout within the program, like I had to make a custom layout for being a left-handed one, so my hand won't rest on any controls xD )

Here are two examples in which I animated using keyframes in CSP.

You can see that the keyframes for the first picture are rounded, while the keyframes for the second one has hard edges. There's still so much more I can tell about keyframes, but I guess this would go too deep right now haha~

Then for frame by frame animation like the one below you can work draw each panel by yourself and CSP's got the functionality to lightboard the panels before and after your current so you can have a good idea of what you're doing. You can also combine these two techniques if needed.

Like for Vascos head I used Keyframes to move it up and down.

What about my more Complex animations?

Like those? Or my latest Otsuyu-Vtuber-Project?

Well, for these "motion graphics" I prepare the entire pictures with CSP but I drag them into another program:

Which is the "industry-standard" for creating Vtuber haha~ but the Pro-Version also requires a yearly subscribtion, because the free version of it just doesn't cut it. The limitations are too heavy to really make use of it.

Everythings so expensive! Isn't there any alternative?

Yes, but I can't speak of experience when I recommend: Procreate, which is a one time and fairly cheap ( 6,99 € ) purchase. It is such a strong program and I've seen different artist pull out so much of it, but I honestly did not get to try it out, because the layout is vastly different to the one I am used to from CSP (which I am using for over a decade) I've even seen people animate with FlipaClip, but again I can't talk about my own recommendation about that.

And while I always LOVED "Adobe After Effects" because of my career-choice and studies, I can't recommend Adobe these days, since they're the MOST expensive option ( ~80 € / Month, if not even more) out there, while still being held as industry standard AND they're monitoring your work, so they can feed them into their AI programs. One - like many others - you can't really opt out of.

In that regards, I want to give you guys: Animating as become super accessible these days. There WILL be a program and even a free class / tutorial for you out there, so you can get into it!

Everyone starts small! Here's some examples from when I was barely a teen and I reaaaally wanted to animate:

I remember that I exported each image as PNG to then use another program and make a gif outta it. I wasn't really able to onion-skin most of this so things looked off xD

[winding-maze]

I highly recommend Electric Zine Maker by Alienmelon! It's super simple to use, has tutorials for different folding types, and the vibes of the program itself are very nostalgic and are there to remind you it doesn't have to be perfect.

This is not to take away from the physical DIY, of course! It's very useful for drafting and figuring out which folding style suits your zine.

thats not a “zine” that is an “art book” and you are scaring the hoes (discouraging people from zinemaking by associating it with hefty sleek professionalism instead of extremely diy no resources low cost artistic communication) by mixing up these words

[headslikekites]

🐟🔁

[juicedaloe]

me and my gf :3 (she is made of water)

[kluiyu]

i'm undertaling

[seagem-art]

Comic Book Gem Monsters: UNCORRUPTED :)

Sorry it’s been a minute but I have been drawing a lot lately, I’ve got over 80+ gems drawn out I believe so I might go back to regularly posting! Anyways a little about these lesbians! In my HC these were all Crystal Gems (to make my life easier lol). Pearl for scale on the left!!

1. Sphalerite - fusion of a Citrine, a Nephrite, and a Bixbite. Very tall.

2. Idocrase - fusion of 4 unkown gems, not great at fighting but a pro at hugging.

3. Iridescent Goethite - very large bashful gem with a huge heart. Made to roll out material projectiles for cannons (cannonballs). Would rather roll in the grass.

4. Variscite - quick gem with strong caretaking tendencies. Used to be something like a gem nurse in Homeworld.

5. Jeremejevite - loves digging, in Homeworld she created holes to anchor down large structures to the ground. Now helps humans in construction.

6. Amazonite - originally an organic life biologist, now helps run the local animal shelter. She can also communicate with animals. Very fond of raccoons.

7. Andesine - used to be a scribe for court proceedings, now works as a writer.

8. Realgar - originally used for retrieval missions, now she works as a lifeguard!

9. Bowenite - made to be a historian and philosopher, now works as a gem history teacher.

10. Heulandite - small gem who can make it snow within a radius around her. Originally used to keep artifacts cool in warm colonies.

11. Viridine - incredibly feisty small gem with dashing abilities, her temper has since cooled and now works at the local library!

PNGs posted below!

I hope you enjoy them!

REBLOGS ARE APPRECIATED!!! ;)

[buglaur]

for a girl whose never built anything from scratch before i'd call this a triumph

[son-of-avraham]

I had a really nice discussion (almost two hours long in my car that was hot!) with my rabbi. As some background, he's kind of a naturalist/hippie kind of character. He started out our meeting with deep breathing and meditation, to illustrate this.

So, the interesting thing he said was about Rosh Hashanah and Tu BeShvat. It went something like...

"When the leaves fall, we celebrate the new year. Our own leaves fall as we shed our old habits and the things we choose to leave behind, and we enter the hibernation of winter to reflect. It's the new year for ourselves. Once the leaves bud again with leaves, we celebrate the new year with trees just as we ourselves wake up and rejuvenate to dedicate ourselves to growth. We are connected with everything in nature, with the trees around us as we continue to live"

I don't know, there's something about connecting ourselves with nature that I really love about judaism. We are not an island - we cannot survive alone. We need each other, we need nature, we need g-d, we need to live. And that's what I love so much.

[tawnysoup]

Hi!! Can you please tell what program do you use for drawing and which brushes? Love your artstyle <3

I have very bad news for y'all, I actually use Toon Boom Storyboard Pro for nearly all my art. Yeah. It's like $1200 for a perpetual license i know. Yeah it's not designed for what I'm using it for. It was an INVESTMENT, ALRIGHT?! I got it as a fresh graduate and back then they did student reductions for perpetual licenses. Don't get silver/gold support btw its utterly pointless. I just really really love the way it feels to draw in, and how the vectors work in it, and I use it every day since I bought it so I think it was worth the money for me. I usually just use a basic pencil tool with no stabilizer and 'full scene antialiasing' (in preferences) turned off. My sketch files are 4000x4000 and I just make a new board whenever i run out of room.

Alternatively Toon Boom Harmony (for animation) draws the exact same way and is a lot cheaper if you go for the most basic option (still like $450 perpetual but it's something i guess), I just prefer the layout of Storyboard Pro.

The other program I use is SAI2, but only rarely, mostly for last stage polishing, colouring or pixel art. Anything I can't do in SBP basically. I try to do everything in Storyboard Pro on as few layers as possible bc my brain hates complexity!!! dsksdkdsk

[the-hot-zone]

recommendations for @mail-me-a-snail & honestly everyone who follows me bc y'all know i give out recommendations like candy. i think especially you may like I think love is something that happens to other people and HOW TO BE A DOG (the latter is similar to Your Faithful Servant).

[loudclan-clangen]

*cries in hand lettering perfectionist carpal tunnel insanity*

[leonardcohenofficial]

i appreciate all the recs for my next new-to-me show i've received thus far and also find it so funny how many medical shows have been suggested as i don't even particularly enjoy the genre (i don't even particularly seek out procedurals!) it's just that MASH the pitt and ER Did Things To My Brain without warning and now. here we are

[batshaped]

vista

[muffinlance]

hellooo very cool person I am just now getting into the atla fandom and I know Nothing other than your fics are very cool and great and I was wondering if you have any recs (or links to posts with recs!!) bc I trust your judgment LOL

I hope this is ok to ask!! also I will add that I am not that picky but I will add that I am very much a longfic enjoyer so🫶🫶

My friend, may I open up to you the broad world of clicking an AO3 user's bookmarks. <3

AKA: literally click any ao3 username, "bookmarks" should appear towards the top of the resulting page. You can then voyage into the additionally wonderful waters of filtering by length, "recommended", fandom, etc.

Also: if the fic you like is in collections, try checking them out, especially if the title appeals to you. Can be a great way to find essentially a fic playlist.

Anyway all hail ao3's designers they done good work

[time-woods]

Just wondering how long have you been drawing digitally? I’ve been drawing traditionally for 11 years now and started digitally only a few years ago but your art is so scrumptious and it looks so effortless!

Also if you have any tips on improving digitally i would love to know!

Absolutely LOVE your art! They make me so happy!=)

i thiiiink ive been drawing digitally since 2018 ? ? somewhere around that, (jeez i was like 12 . . ) and i got my first drawing tablet -

my main tip is just keep drawing ! experiment with all the things you can do with digital art ! or you can treat it the same as traditional and paint with one layer. to be honest i treat digital art very similar how i go about drawing traditionally (theres even paper textured screen protectors u can get for tablets to make em have the same feel as a sketchbook ! )

its been 7 years of digital art for me and i still dont know all the tools in clipstudio paint (mainly cause i dont like watching tutorials an just like teaching myself )) but just mess around with things ! sorry thats the only real tip i can give

also thankyou ! !