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- Automotive and Motorsports
- Illustration
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Is this raster or vector art?
By the end of this email, you will know what the difference is.
If you read the words "digital art" you might think "pixels on a screen", opposed to "traditional art" where you maybe think "paint on canvas".
That would be somewhat correct, but that is only half the truth.
Let me break it down for clarity.
Production art vs deliverable
Opposed to traditional art, in digital, there's a difference between the artwork when you are producing it, and when it's ready to share.
When you are "in progress", you usually have the "raw file", that includes all kinds of layers, groups and organisation, that help you go over the artwork creating process in a simple (or chaotic, depending on who you are) way.
You can learn more about best practices and quickly get up to speed in my step-by-step free course here.
βExporting
After you finish your work, you usually "export" a finished piece. This can be a JPG, PNG, SVG or whatever format you want. Usually these formats are not easily modifiable (at leats not as easy as the raw files).
You can even end up with a "raster file", meaning, pixels, from a vector one.
This is what I usually do when exporting my artwork to share on social media.
I export my vector files into high enough quality JPG for it to be nice to look at, but not as high as I would if it needs to be printed, etc. A bit to protect it from people ripping off my work.
Raster vs Vector: Which is better?
As many things in life, there are trade offs.
No option is better than the other.
Each is more suitable for one situation than the other, so it always depends on the use case.
I would say the best strategy is to befriend both techniques and use the proper tool under the intended context.
If you want to sketch something up, draw something you already know the size of, and take advantage of being able to be loose and blend things, raster is the best option.
On the other hand, if you'd like to be very precise, have the ability to infinitely scale your artwork and have the flexibility to change things after you created it, like brush types, colours or even curves themselves, then vector is your best candidate.
"Normal" art, aka raster
I call this "normal" art because it's what's in most people's minds when they think of digital art.
With raster art, you have your "digital" brush, made of an image, and "stamp" this brush form/texture into the digital canvas.
Since these digital brushes are images, they can literally be anything, from real world brush and pen simulations, to stamps in the shape of a tree to quickly fill up a background.
Pros of raster art
- Easier to use than vectors.
- Can achieve a lot of looks, from very crisp to very painterly ones.
- Big variety of brushes and effects that can be made to the layers.
Cons of raster art
- Brush strokes can not be modified after placing them.
- You can handle brush size, but it has an upper limit (brush image size).
- Brush resolution (since they're images) determine how easy it is to work on bigger pieces.
- Size and resolution of canvas limits the size and quality of your finished image, and can't be changed after you start working.
One of my favourite raster illustrations I've done
"Math" art, aka vector
I call this "math" art because of the way it works internally. I'll try not to get too technical.
But the main difference with raster is that instead of "stamping an image", you create "nodes" and "curves" which then on top, they have a texture that defines what the end result looks like.
Let me explain.
You have a variety of vector tools. Some even work like raster ones (like the pencil or brush tools in Affinity Designer). You click, drag, and the lines appear.
But when you lift, a BΓ©zier curve has been created. A BΓ©zier curve is a set of discrete "control points" or nodes, that define a smooth, continuous curve by means of a formula (hence my nickname "math" art).
These nodes and curves can be altered after placing them, which changes completely how vector art works compared to raster. These changes include node position, curve angles, and even "brush type" on top of this curve.
This means that at one point, one curve can look like a pen stroke, and after changing one setting, it can look like an oil painting brush stroke following the same path.
Pros of vector art
- Infinitely scalable once finished
- Infinite detail can be created as you zoom in
- Everything can be edited after creating it if you change your mind
Cons of vector art
- Usually a very precise look
- Hard to be loose with strokes
- Hard to blend things between them
- The way brushes work are not as intuitive as raster brushes
Does this mean that you can not achieve a "painterly look" with vector?
Of course not.
It just takes a bit more effort and risk, but using the right brushes and letting yourself go, you can absolutely get a painterly look like I did in my "Lamborghini Miura in Tokyo" illustration here.
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How can I start?
In both cases depends on the platforms you have access to, but here are some pointers on how you can start with each.
Raster
Procreate: Cheap, one time purchase, and very good. My recommendation.
Affinity Photo: A bit more expensive than Procreate, but also much more complex. It also lets you edit photos, if that's your thing.
- Platforms: iPad, macOS, Windows
Clip Studio Paint: Also good and present in basically all platforms.
- Platforms: iPad, iPhone, macOS, Windows, Android, Galaxy, Chromebook
Adobe Fresco/Photoshop: I'm against Adobe as a company, but not mentioning these apps would be a disservice to you. Fresco has a free version with limitations, and an optional subscription fee. Photoshop has a subscription fee.
- Platforms: iPad, Windows (Fresco). iPad, macOS, Windows (Photoshop)
Vector
The easiest way to get started in Vector is by joining my free course here.
βAffinity Designer: my go-to app, and what I teach in the course. Intuitive, not expensive, easy to use and very powerful.
- Platforms: iPad, macOS, Windows
Inkscape: free app that I found a bit more complicated to navigate, but you can probably make it work for yourself if you dedicate to it.
- Platforms: Linux, macOS, Windows
Adobe Illustrator: the Adobe version of Affinity Designer. This is the application which I tried to start with over 15 years ago, and outright abandoned because it was so confusing. Might have improved, but it's still Adobe. Don't bother and get Affinity Designer.
- Platforms: iPad, macOS, Windows
What's next?
I hope this brief but information packed breakdown gave you more clarity on the different types of digital art you can create.
Pick one out to try!
Of course, I would love you to start with my free course in case you are starting vector art, but if you are planning on getting started with raster, I can help too with some resources.
Feel free to reply to this email with any question or request of recommendation if you have any, or do so via Bluesky.
That's it for today. If you enjoyed it, let me know! See you on the next one.
All the best,
Juanma from Creating Lightly