Digital Art Drawing Pads: Are they worth it?

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In this article, we are going to talk about digital art drawing pads and how they can help new artists improve their skills.

Software, laptops, computers, and drawing tablets can be expensive, no doubt. Not to mention the HUGE learning curve involved with some of the newer technology and software on the market.

The drawing tablets, won’t help you become a better artist either. With a click of a button or wave of the pen, you can correct an imperfect circle, straighten out a crooked line or fix up a misshapen square.

As a beginner, it’s important to be able to draw spheres, cones, and squares as accurately as possible. Without the fundamentals in place, the beginner will never reach the advanced levels of drawing or painting.

The tablets do not provide the tactile and visual feedback that a typical drawing surface can give to a beginner artist.

How are watercolor pencils going to look on smooth paper or textured paper? What’s the difference between graphite and charcoal? How does it feel to draw with these items on various surfaces?

Different mediums such as charcoals and colored pencils render different results. The new artist must learn how to work with various mediums to advance from beginner to expert. For example, charcoal can  smudge up the paper, and watercolors can bleed all over the drawing surface. How do you correct that?

Making mistakes is part of the learning process. A drawing tablet makes it easy to correct mistakes or make quick changes. Whereas, on canvas and paper, mistakes are harder to correct.

So…Why am I recommending drawing tablets to beginners?

Technology is a part of life. It’s prevalent in everything we do. All industries use technology and it is going to keep evolving.

The beginner artist has to be up to date on the latest trends in digital and traditional art if they want to pursue an art career. So it would be foolish to forgo any digital drawing pad when it can be a great resource for the beginner.

Digital drawing pads and other forms of technology have their place in artist’s repertoire. 

How can a digital drawing pad help the artist?

Sometimes it’s hard to pick a suitable subject to draw even for advanced artists. Experimenting with different subjects can be time-consuming and confusing. Wouldn’t be nice to see the drawing in all its glory before time and materials are invested?

Paints, canvas, and other drawing supplies are expensive.

  • A set of 6 – 0.7oz bottles of Acrylics can cost $30.00 or more
  • A starter set of 10 bottles of Oil paints 40mL can cost over $70.00
  • A bulk package of 40 16 x 20 canvases can cost about $90.00

As a beginner, you are going to go through a lot of supplies before you get a good painting. With a drawing tablet, a beginner can practice many times before painting the actual picture.

Digital drawing of a mountain landscape using the Ipad Pro and stylus

Technology can help to see a finished piece before drawing it and using expensive supplies.

With a drawing tablet, you can plan out your whole drawing before you set the brush to canvas or pencil to paper. You can pick out the color pallets, test out the shades, map out the whole composition in a matter of minutes instead of hours. It’s amazing the realism that can be achieved using a drawing art tablet.

If you can afford it, drawing tablets can help in the Artists’ journey.

Technology will be a part of the art industry. Robotics, video games, digital art all use technology to create images for various industries.   But tablets do not take the place of learning to draw or paint.

The advanced and beginner artist have to practice every day to develop the skills. Even Michelangelo and DaVinci practiced their craft daily.

Drawing tablets are just aids that can help the beginner to master the art and create images. Creativity happens in the brain and technology can helps to bring it out.

Do not discredit drawing tablets

A drawing tablet can help the artist conceptualize a project which will save on time, money and supplies. A digital drawing pad can show what a finished piece can look like before painting the bigger picture.

The bottom line: Digital drawing art pads are worth the investment. Even the pros use them before painting big projects. Technology is and will always be a part of the artist’s life. The drawing pads can help a beginner artist see the whole project before investing time and money into a piece.

What Digital Art Drawing Pad Should I Buy?

In the next article, we will go over some of the drawing pads on the market ranging from very expensive to budget-friendly devices. Stay tuned.

You don’t have to spend the big bucks on the state of the art drawing tablets such as Ipad Pro 2020 (Although it’s very nice.) There are some inexpensive tablets that are just as good. Even an older Ipad can work as well. Be sure to do your research and check out other vendors. I’ll provide in-depth reviews of the tablets on the market that will help in the purchasing decision.

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