# Searching for new software



## torthepixie (Nov 24, 2020)

Hi, I've been into digital art for a few years now, started off using Sketchbook Pro, moved on to photoshop and manga studio, and now I'm using Clip Studio Paint. I really liked manga studio as my goal is to make comic books, however that program is no longer available and has been replaced with Clip Studio Paint. I figured it would be a good program as it is basically just an update on MS, however the program itself has been giving me a lot of trouble. It was really expensive (and I got the paired down version) and it constantly has massive lag, it freezes, and oftentimes crashes, leaving me with lost work. There have been plenty of other issues as well. I'm running it on a pc with windows attached to a wacom cintiq, both of which work fine. The cintiq is brandnew and the computer has just been rebuilt and has plenty of processing power and whatever.

Does anyone have any suggestions on programs I can use for this sort of thing? I didn't really like photoshop all that much, and adobe suite was also super expensive. Sketchbook Pro is fun but it doesn't give me nice, crisp, professional-looking lines. CSP really seems like the most popular, and I'm still trying to troubleshoot to see if the issues can be solved, but I really want to get to work and draw. All of these issues make it incredibly difficult to finish any good work.

Thanks in advance,
Tori ♥


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## DewdropsNManna (Nov 24, 2020)

Hi,
I use Artrage, Krita and Rebelle quite a lot. Krita is a free, open-source platform that has quite a wide variety of tools/capabilities and is used a lot by people who don't have the cash for things like Photoshop, etc. I use it the least, but it's pretty decent. 
Artrage is under $100 to buy and gives you a lot for that. It's very user friendly and has a wide variety of tools and capabilities. This may not interest you, but I'd say it has some of the most life-like oil paints (outside of Corel painter 2021). It allows you to customize any of your tools in any way you'd like and you can import brushes/tools from other programs. 
Rebelle is also under $100 and is a unique program that really shines when it comes to realistic water color (besides many other features, you can tilt your painting to make the paint drip in any direction you like; you can "blow" on your wet paint to move it across the page--like using a straw to blow on your real-life watercolor; you can wet your paper all over or in any specific area you like, paint on it, then dry it when you're ready. This makes for some pretty realistic watercolor!). You can also customize tools to your heart's content and import tools. This program has features available that help people in the industry with rendering realistic flames and some other add-ons I can't remember. I haven't used any of those so I can't speak to that.
I don't know if any of this helps at all. Good luck in your search!


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## torthepixie (Nov 24, 2020)

Those all sound really neat! I am on a fairly strict budget at the moment, but I can easily save up for those two, thank yo so much! ♥♥♥


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## DewdropsNManna (Nov 24, 2020)

You're welcome 🤗! I was just looking up some stuff for Artrage and noticed that Artrage 6, the latest version, is only USD $47 now. I copied a link for you in case you want to learn more about it (and no, I am not affiliated with Artrage and I don't get anything from this!).
https://www.artrage.com/artrage/
Oh, if you do get Artrage, the Custom Brush area is loaded with a lot of really fun and useful presets (I use some of them a lot). Of course, you can also add as many of your own custom brushes as u want.

Finding that out inspired me to look up Rebelle 3 and see if their cost had come down, and it did. It's now USD $62.99 (I'm Canadian so it's a bit more for me). Here's a link to that page, (and again, I'm not affiliated and I don't get anything from this😏)
https://www.escapemotions.com/products/rebelle/about?//products/rebelle/index.php

Hope you can get one or both of these soon if they suit you ☺

Happy drawing/painting🎨🖌


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## vectorian (Sep 8, 2020)

Hi torthepixie

Its curios to hear. CSP works fine for me
on Win 8.1

As others mention Krita would be
a good choice and its free.

Rebelle its an very nice Watercolor Prog.

You can also look on Paintstorm Studio
its often overlooked, but a very good
low cost painting app.

Have a nice day
vectorian


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