Harry Potter unarmed is a great wizard. But armed with his phoenix feathered holly wood wand, he’s the G.O.A.T! You too may be a very talented graphic designer or digital artist, but by using the right tools the force of your talent can be multiplied exponentially. Here is a list of the best software and hardware tools in the field today, coming highly recommended by top-notch graphic designers who know their stuff.
These tools are tried and tested and can help you dazzle clients by casting your greatest graphic design spells. Buckle up and get ready to make digital art at the speed of thought! Software — 1. Procreate Design by created in Procreate. This illustration app made solely for the iPad is a brilliant tool because it simplifies a graphic designer’s steps when illustrating anything.
It’s super intuitive and has an awesome selection of brushes. Fe Melo, 99designs designer Procreate:. Allows designers to use the Apple Pencil to draw directly on the screen to get amazing results. Saves work as.psd or.pdf which completely integrates with Adobe. Records the entire drawing process. Allows designers to draw on different layers making it easier to edit the work after Get your Apple Pencil ready and then check out this YouTube tutorial: Find Procreate at the iPad app store. Since it costs $9.99, with no subscriptions needed, Procreate is affordable for graphic designers and digital artists of all levels.
Read reviews, compare customer ratings, see screenshots, and learn more about Canva - Graphic Design Creator. Download Canva - Graphic Design Creator and enjoy it on your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. Graphic is a modern full-featured graphic design and illustration application, created specifically for Mac OS X. Packed with many powerful features,.
Myfonts.com Design by for Technique Inc. Using Myfonts.com. Not only is Myfonts.com a website with fonts galore, its “WhatTheFont” feature solves a crucial problem for graphic artists.
Yaseen Art, 99designs designer Myfont.com can:. Supply your archive with a very large collection of fonts (many are free, some can be purchased). Track the origin of a particular font by uploading it to the WhatTheFont tool Visit and follow their navigation or download the free WhatTheFont app on your smartphone.
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Pick from their selection of free fonts, web fonts or become a subscriber. Select the WhatTheFont button in the navigation, then upload a screenshot of the text to identify the font. Or simply take a picture or upload one from your phone, tap the font you want to identify and boom—you’re all set.
(Tip: use as clean a screenshot as possible so the program can read it. Preferably black text on a white background). With free fonts or exclusive subscription fonts, this program is great for graphic designers and digital artists of all levels. Clip Studio Paint Design by using Clip Studio Paint. Digital artists dig Clip Studio Paint’s simple collection of illustration apps because of its simplicity, mirror feature and affordability. HeyEksa!, 99designs designer Clip Studio is:. A cheaper alternative to Adobe suite—great for graphic designers on a budget.
Available for Mac or PC. Available on iPad with a free 6 month trial Visit clip to buy or get a free trial or buy from. Spend a few hours fooling around on it then watch this YouTube tutorial: If you have an iPad and have been wondering how to use it for designing, this is your hookup.
Ron’s Brushes Design by using Ron’s brushes. A superb digital effects collection for digital paintings and illustrations, Ron’s Brushes continues to be a necessary part of advanced graphic design toolboxes. GFX, 99designs designer Ron’s Brushes can:. Create high quality effects for digital art. Offer a large selection of digital environments and atmospheres Whether it’s flying digital energy, light fusion, wisps, particles or some other look you may never even have considered, graphic designers and digital artists doing nuanced atmospheres will get swept up by Ron’s Brushes.
Don’t believe us? Ask friends in the design community or on graphic design and digital art support groups.
Lots of great artists swear by Ron’s Brushes. Check them out and, like GFX said, “just drag, drop and go.” Find Ron’s Brushes at. Adobe Creative Cloud tools — Design by in Adobe Creative.
This graphic design, video editing and web development software has become a standard in the graphic design industry. No list of design tools would be complete without mentioning Adobe Creative Cloud. It’s much easier for designers who use Adobe to share files with other creative professionals. Tomcept, 99designs designer Among others, the Adobe Ceative Cloud offers three famous design tools:. Photoshop (raster graphic editor). Illustrator (vector graphic editor).
InDesign (page layout program) Visit adobe.com to purchase Adobe or experience a free trial or buy from. Take some time to mess around with it and check out the It behooves graphic designers looking to use industry standard applications to join the Adobe universe. Adobe Photoshop Packaging design by created using Photoshop. There are raster graphics editing programs, then there’s Photoshop.
It’s the industry standard for manipulating digital photos and photorealistic computer art. It’s even entered the modern day lexicon of non graphic designers, “No way that picture’s real! It’s totally Photoshopped.”.
Andrewzz, 99designs designer Photoshop offers:. 2D image manipulation. 3D image manipulation. Compositing. Video editing.
Image analysis Visit to to buy Photoshop or start a free trial—or buy it from. Photoshop is a part of the graphic design zeitgeist. Digital artists who don’t know Photoshop but want to create pixel based art should plan to learn it or get left behind.
Adobe Illustrator Design by In Adobe Illustrator. From drawings to logos to actual photos, Illustrator generates all kinds of images.
Digital artists love the ease in adjusting the layers and art boards in this vector graphic editing program. HeyEksa!, 99designs designer Adobe Illustrator can create:. Graphics. Logos.
Cartoons. Fonts Experience a or purchase Illustrator from. Spend a while tinkering with it, then watch this YouTube tutorial. Illustrator is a cornerstone for graphic designers and digital artists creating vector based art. Those willing to endure the learning curve will find it well worth their while.
Astute Phantasm for Adobe Illustrator Design by using Astute Phantasm Adobe Illustrator. Astute Phantasm for Adobe Illustrator is a plugin tool with built in pattern maker. Want to taper and add gradient to your halftones?
This is your program. GFX, 99designs designer With Astute Phantasm Adobe Illustrator:. Effects can be saved and loaded. Effects are fully editable later through the “Appearance” panel Shop, give it a test run.
Any graphic designers or digital artists creating three dimensional effects and challenging color adjustments will be in seventh heaven with this tool. Hardware — 8. Macbook Pro with touch bar and touch ID Macbook pro 13” with Touch Bar and Touch ID, via. Your portable office has arrived! Tuck this high quality laptop into your backpack and take it with you. It’s as much an elegant piece of art as it is a functional tool.
Satori, 99designs designer Features of the MacBook Pro 15″:. 3.9GHz Processor. 512GB Storage. Minimal environmental damage Visit, or google for the best deal on a refurbished model. Spend a few hours exploring its features. Mac tends to be pretty intuitive, but you can watch a YouTube tutorial about the Touch Bar to learn more. This is a serious investment for graphic designers and digital artists looking to up their game.
IPad Pro + Apple Pencil 12.9 inch iPad Pro + Apple Pencil, via. Being another Apple product, this iPad Pro in combination with the Apple Pencil is not the cheapest, but the larger display on this stylus and tablet combo is a game-changer.
You can adjust the display color tones, there are more colors than the non-pro models, the scrolling is smoother and for detailed art strokes the stylus is extremely precise due to a tighter connection between the display and glass. Andrewzz, 99designs designer The 12.9 iPad Pro offers:.
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Stereo sound and quad speakers that are notably superior to non pro iPads. 3.9GHz Processor. 512GB storage capacity. A couple hours more battery life. Upgraded from entry level iPad, cameras that shoot 4K video.
A Smart Connector which lets you connect to Apple’s Smart Keyboard Cover, no Bluetooth required! Visit, but check out Costco, Best Buy, or, for better deals. Or google “12.9 inch Ipad Pro + Apple Pencil” for previously owned models. Devote some time toward experimenting with it and watch this YouTube tutorial: Graphic designers who want something so thin they’ll barely feel it in their bag will also love the higher speed refresh rate further enhancing the Apple Pencil performance. Wacom tools — Star Wars design by (Eli Hyder) using Wacom.
@Venamis (Eli Hyder), digital artist [email protected] Wacom is the word for magic on the lips and hearts of digital artists in the know. It’s a company that specializes in producing industry standard graphic tablets and styluses. Wacom Bamboo Tip Stylus A book cover design by created using the Wacom Bamboo Tip Stylus. Imagine one stylus that draws on computers, tablets or smartphones. No apps or Bluetooth necessary, so it works on virtually all devices.
It’s basically a magic wand folks. Satori, 99designs designer This stylus:. Transforms your phone, tablet or touch screen computer into a digital canvas. Draws on your screen like you’re drawing on a piece of paper. Is easily rechargeable Shop, but check out Costco, Best Buy or, for better deals. Test it out, then watch this YouTube tutorial: Anyone transferring fine point line work (writing or art) to a computer, tablet, or smartphone will be impressed with the versatility and pressure sensitivity of this stylus.
Wacom Bamboo Slate Design by using Wacom Bamboo. The Wacom Bamboo is a slate which can be fixed under a real piece of paper. The strokes on the paper show up on the designer’s computer screen. It’s basically a magic slate. Netralica, 99designs designer The Bamboo Slate:. Saves time retyping notes.
Instantly adds notes to a cloud or shares them Shop, but check out Costco, Best Buy or, for better deals. Take time to fool around on it then watch this YouTube tutorial: Anyone who loves the tactile sensation of real pen to real paper, but wishes to cut out the middleman of recopying notes and illustrations should try this elegant solution. Wacom Cintiq Design by using Wacom Cintiq 13HD. Enter a screen tablet you can illustrate directly on with a stylus. Its pen is light, there’s no battery needed and the screen texture is ideal. Finally, you won’t get in trouble for drawing on the TV! Mila Katagarova, 99designs designer The Cintiq:.
Features a 1080p LCD display. Works with the stylus directly on the screen. Has an integrated display. Feels like drawing on real paper. Is customizable with four express buttons Shop, but check out Costco, Best Buy, or for better deals. This is a dream unit for professional graphic designers and digital artists looking to be more efficient with their workflow.
Sometimes a customizable tool like this pushes you to the next chapter of your talent. Wacom Intuos Pen & Touch Design by using Wacom Intuos Pen & Touch Small. Illustrate on this desk tablet and the results show up on the computer screen. If you’re worried about not having enough drawing surface, just zoom in! Ocelittle, 99designs designer Graphic designer Ocelittle loves working with the Intuos tablet because it’s “very responsive, has great pressure sensitivity plus a multi touch feature that gives you the ability to swipe or pinch to zoom, rotate or scroll, along with four additional express keys that can be programmed to perform any function.” Shop, but check out Costco, Best Buy or, for better deals.
Take a few hours to experiment with it then watch this YouTube tutorial: The Intuos Pen & Touch is wonderful for graphic designers and digital artists who don’t need to see what they’re rendering on the screen they’re drawing on and who don’t want to splurge on a screen tablet. Design by using Wacom Intuos Art. Wacom Intuos Art The Wacom Intuos Art has a larger active area than the Wacom Intuos Pen & Touch plus the multi-touch feature lets you use your fingers as well as stylus. YaseenArt, 99designs designer Here’s a YouTube tutorial for the Intuos Art: Want a larger canvas than the Intuos Pen & Touch Small?
Want to use a stylus and your fingers? Prefer not to draw on-screen? Here’s your desk tablet! Other tools — 15. Art supplies Collage idea, via. The tools you use to develop your best work don’t have to be expensive or complicated. They can be as simple as pencil, paper and any art supplies that call out to you.
Relying too much on the latest technologies can easily lead to getting stuck in a creative rut. Getting back to basics with the stuff we learned as kids takes us back to our creative roots and original artistic voice. Turn off your screens and break out color collage paper, plasticine and paint for an instant burst of inspiration. Satori, 99designs designer Playing with art supplies of any kind has countless benefits:. Helps to develop and test out ideas.
Offers a creative outlet. Helps to unclog artist’s block and inspire new work 16. The right environment Photo by, via Unsplash.
This may not be an actual tool, but hear me out. Having a sanctuary to work in soothes the spirit. When the spirit is calm, the outer world follows suit and you are set to create your best work. The “right” environment is slightly different for everyone. Check out what it means for HeyEksa! Idan Arbesman, UX/UI designer at Signavio Multiple displays:.
Help you avoid icon clutter on your high quality screen. Maximize screen real estate.
Help you work faster and more efficient Professional graphic designers and digital artists who maximize clients and spend long hours on projects will benefit from the organization two screens provides. A comfortable chair ST Racing Gaming Chair, via.
Graphic designers often have to sit at their desks for hours on end, so don’t underestimate the importance of having a good chair. There are tons of great chairs out there, you just have to find the one that fits you best. Designer Andrewzz recommends the ST Racing Gaming Chair, a super comfy high back chair styled to resemble a racing seat. Andrewzz, 99designs designer If you’re willing to splurge on a mouse and keyboard, they can help you streamline your workflow and prevent long term wear and tear on wrists and hands. Your magic wand — There you have it, the hottest graphic design tools today, recommended by designers who use them every day! Do you need the most expensive equipment in order to make good artwork? Absolutely not.
If you’re willing to put in the time and effort, you can use basic (even refurbished) graphic design tools and still create artwork on a competitive level. Remember, Harry Potter could perform some wand-free spells. But, just like Harry’s magic phoenix feathered holly wood wand allowed him to increase his magical potential, saving up and investing in the right tools will bolster your productivity magic. Which design tools wouldn’t you want to live without? Let us know in the comments below.
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