Using a Tablet with Photoshop

[Sandytimeman]

Hey Guys, I just got a tablet and...well its freaking hard to use. I've got a very steady hand with paper and pen but having trouble drawing simple lines or shapes on the tablet. Even tracing images is hard freehand. Are there any training exercises or tips you guys have for a newbie starting out with his tablet?

For reference purposes I'm using Adobe CS5 and I have a Genius G-Pen 450 Tablet

 

[drisky]

It glides more than pencil on paper, I'm not used to it ether, of course I've only borrowed them so I haven't had time to practice. I've been told things like use it instead of your mouse at all times, even when not doing art. Also try doing less precise things like coloring highlights.

 

[Anarchemitis]

Practice, practice practice. [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BoringButPractical]

 

[Erana]

Well, if you're like me, not affecting the width or value of your strokes with your tablet is throwing you for a loop. What I'd suggest is playing around with pressure sensitivity in photoshop. http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080625101133AAptPhH
Also, give a vector art program a try. Inkscape's a free one, the open-source counterpart to illustrator. Use the pencil tool and mess with the smoothing effect. However, vector programs take a different way of thinking than traditional mediums or even typical digital art programs, so if you're not familiar with them, I'd suggest just sticking with the pencil tool for practice unless you find its extremely appealing as a whole.

 

[ThriKreen]

If you're used to traditional on paper style, the disassociation of what you see (upright monitor) to where you're drawing (on the tablet) will take awhile to get used to, especially if you still do regular drawing on a regular basis. It's pretty much an issue of use it a lot to get used to it.

You could consider a switch from a tablet to a Cintiq or tablet PC so you can see what you're drawing, but that can an expensive route, especially since you already have a tablet.

 

[gazumped]

My problem when starting out using the tablet is that I kept thinking of it as a mouse and mousemat, if I wanted to go to the side a bit I'd go way too far. It takes some getting used to to train yourself to use the tablet as a mirror of your entire screen.

But, yeah, like someone already said, just practice! You'll get the feel for it after a while and it'll start feeling perfectly natural. I know someone who gave up their mouse and just uses their tablet to navigate her computer at all times because it was less hassle.

 

[Sandytimeman]

Yeah it seems that using the tablet instead of a mouse is helping a bit.

Well, if you're like me, not affecting the width or value of your strokes with your tablet is throwing you for a loop. What I'd suggest is playing around with pressure sensitivity in photoshop. http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080625101133AAptPhH
Also, give a vector art program a try. Inkscape's a free one, the open-source counterpart to illustrator. Use the pencil tool and mess with the smoothing effect. However, vector programs take a different way of thinking than traditional mediums or even typical digital art programs, so if you're not familiar with them, I'd suggest just sticking with the pencil tool for practice unless you find its extremely appealing as a whole.

Yeah, the pressure not so much as much as steadiness of the hand I guess. Thanks for the tip on Inkscape though, I'm going to download that right now.