Apple Pencil Review

Drawing on the iPad pro is simply the best drawing experience ever. But what about digital painting? What about professional commissioned art?

Well, how is this?

Or this?

I am 3/4 of the way through making a children's book ENTIRELY on the iPad Pro. Here is a sneak peak of the front cover without the words:

I am certainly not the best artist out there, but what I am trying to say is that the only limits to what this Pencil can do is your own capabilities.

The iPad Pro screen is not as toothy as a Cintiq, but I don't see that as a problem, especially after I put a matte screen protector on to add some extra texture. I have complete control over where the Pencil is going to draw.

Since I've started making all of my art with the Apple Pencil, I've not gotten a single case of artists' cramp, even though I have recently been drawing for hours straight on that children's book. I think this is because the weight of the Apple Pencil is perfectly balanced. Great design! I never knew how much that mattered until I started to use it.

There are only two qualms to the Apple pencil.

First, it is as easily lost as a regular pencil. Supposedly the regular Smart Cover has magnets for it to cling to, but I own the Smart Keyboard Cover because I also use my Pro to write. I assumed that the Keyboard would be the same as the regular cover but the magnets it has aren't strong enough to hold the pencil. I have lost the Apple Pencil more times than I can count, and I don't even go out that much. Once, after it snowed, I miraculously found my Pencil buried in a frozen puddle that had tire marks over it the day after I lost it. After some digging, the Pencil proved to have survived, other than me having to replace the nib.

Speaking of nibs, I want to make it clear that the Apple Pencil was designed specifically for sketching and writing. People were making fun of it's name when it first came out, but it holds more meaning than just being a code word for stylus. The nib of the Pencil is made of a fairly hard plastic that is meant to feel exactly like a sketching with a real pencil. That is both great and not so great, because to some the Pencil may not feel as natural for painting with. Now, I've heard rumors that Apple is planning on coming out with some softer replacement nibs, which I think would be wonderful, but that may also be just a rumor.

I hope this has helped you in your consideration of the Apple Pencil. Make sure to leave a comment with your thoughts, wether you own a Pencil or are on the fence.

Review of Procreate on the iPad Pro

Procreate is an essential part of all iPad pro artists' lives, and it is almost perfect. Here is a quick rundown of the major pros and cons.

Pros:

1. Canvas sizes can be huge, but limits make sure you can still be speedy

2. Features are professional

3. Design is unobtrusive

Cons:

1. Not as flexible as some would prefer

2. Inking can feel slightly unnatural 

I do wish that Procreate would add just a few more features, all of which are mentioned on the Procreate forums. Savage Interactive is very active on their forums, though, so hopefully it will only be a matter of time for them to add them in. I'm sure they are working hard to keep Procreate as innovative as possible, and finding ways to add the new features without inflating the program too much.

I am sorry for such a short post; I have been very busy with the illustrations. Next week I'll be reviewing the Apple Pencil.

5 reasons why illustrating is the best job EVER!

1. You can achieve your goal of reading a million books

Audiobooks are my best friend. I am not normally a great multi-tasker, but for some reason drawing is different. I can listen to audiobooks, podcasts, or my favorite music to keep me inspired. I can't do that with anything else.

2. You are GETTING PAID for DRAWING

What more can be said? Since this is my first illustrating job that wasn't for a family member, I was willing to get paid a super small amount. But it's still something, and next time I will have the confidence to ask for more. The most important thing is the experience, though, which as I mentioned in an earlier blog post is priceless.

3. You have something to show for afterwards

Seeing your illustrations in print is the most rewarding thing ever, even if you just used the Apple photo book printer to print one copy of your book for your niece, which is what I had to do because I didn't have time to do anything else. Let me tell you that is NOT a reccomended way of going about it, but the product did come on time and it was just cool to see my hard work in its proper form.

4. You can work from home

Or, if you have an iPad Pro like me, you can work from ANYWHERE. #ipadprolove

5. It's FUN

When I'm stuck with artists block, I'd rather do anything other than draw another pig. But for the most part, the experience has been one of the most amazing ones in my life. Sure, there will be times when you want to throw your iPad pro onto the ground (hopefully you have a matte screen protector) but other times you will feel profoundly blessed, and it is totally worth it.

Good luck! Keep drawing! And make sure to leave a comment! I'd love to hear what you think illustrating being a full time job. What are your favorite or least favorite parts of drawing for money?