"Tradicional" Art vs Digital Art

[Hikari.EXE]

For those that have seen, I started to learn how to draw! It's very relaxing and fun hobby to have, but I don't have a good computer nor a drawing tablet to make my drawings, so I use the good ol' pencil and paper to start practicing.

So the question is: What's better? Digital or Tradicional Art?

I already know that many will answer "whatever feels best for you" and yeah I get that since I am enjoying the process, but I still want to open up to discussion because I do have some pointers for both in this manner.
"Tradicional" Art feels more responsive, since you are using physical materials to draw and color, giving you immediate feedback. But the mistakes are "permanent" if you are not using materials that are eraseable.
Digital Art (from what I have seen) is more dynamic, you can just Crtl+Z your mistakes instead of worrying about each line. But there is a whole 'nother side of technical issues like finding the best brush for your art or using the correct layers for editing.
I talked enough, now it's your turn! (if you so want, of course)

 

[WarpKaiser]

Physical media will eventually root/degrade/deteriorate while digital media will be preserved as long there is technology to support it. However we can't deny that physical media has more soul.

 

[Parasite_Steve]

Whatever feels best for you

I’m an illustrator and I work almost exclusively with traditional media. Even when I’m working digitally a lot of the sketching is done on paper first. It’s just my preference.
I’ve tried to get into digital art again and again but even with a decent tablet it never felt quite the same and the limitations of software and screens are annoying to me. I never seem to find quite the right brush for the job or the right color. I occasionally sketch on my phone when I’m traveling but traditional is just way more fun for me. The haptic feedback is very important to my enjoyment of doing any art.

Lately I’ve been using mixed media on wood a lot:

 

[RustySK]

I was trained in traditional media - oil painting, mostly - so I absolutely do have a personal preference here, but as much of a cop-out as it may be as far as the thread goes, I genuinely do not see these two approaches as competing with one another.

It takes incredible skill to make a high quality oil painting and it takes incredible skill to make a high quality digital painting.
That said, digital artists are definitely even more directly affected by the ongoing rise of generative AI than artists using physical media, so the future is a bit uncertain there.

Either way - from Jen Zee to Jeremy Mann, they're all great.

 

[MasterEn]

in the end, they are both simply tools. their usefulness depends on the artist.
digital can give you crisp colors and a variety of effects that would be hard to replicate in real life, while physical can add a certain atmosphere or look to a drawing that can't be replicated digitally.
work in both mediums and see which one that you like more, is what i suggest.

 

[Parasite_Steve]

Physical media will eventually root/degrade/deteriorate while digital media will be preserved as long there is technology to support it. However we can't deny that physical media has more soul.

Physical media has so much more longevity than any digital storage it’s not even funny. There’s a reason important information and archives are stored physically in salt mines and the likes.

Digital is surprisingly very volatile and there’s no guarantee even an intact file will still be readable a couple of decades down the line. Formats change and die all the time. Bit-rot is a problem. Hard drives are prone to error or breakage. They also all rely on electricity to work which might be an additional problem to worry about depending on how the current geopolitical shenanigans plays out. Digital storage has its uses and advantages but longevity is not one of them.

 

[RustySK]

I’ve tried to get into digital art again and again but even with a decent tablet it never felt quite the same and the limitations of software and screens are annoying to me. I never seem to find quite the right brush for the job or the right color. I occasionally sketch on my phone when I’m traveling but traditional is just way more fun for me. The haptic feedback is very important to my enjoyment of doing any art.

Right there with you - the process itself is so much more enjoyable when you can physically experience it.

I'll add that I think to this day the best piece of art I ever made is actually my old set of practice/test canvas I also used as a place to clean off extra paint from my brushes or to story my open paint cans on over the course of a couple years.
Absolute visual chaos, love that thing. Probably doesn't reflect too well on my skills as an artist though.

 

[Phage]

However we can't deny that physical media has more soul.

Yes we can, and don't deign to speak for everybody with statements like that.

I've known plenty of artists who use exclusively digital medium and their art has tons of soul. It's all in the creative expression, the little details, the message being conveyed, or simply how much fun you can tell the artist had creating it. People have *got* to stop shitting on digital artists like this. It's literally nothing but a different medium, like oil paints or watercolor.

Some people paint on a canvas. Others sculpt clay. Digital artists paint on a screen, or sculpt polygons into 3D models. It takes an entirely different kind of skill to make digital art, but it is none the less a skill, and every bit the art that traditional media create, with just as much soul. Art is art, and pointlessly segregating and looking down on one specific medium arbitrarily, claiming that they're "less than" other artists is, quite frankly, a dick move.

 

[Parasite_Steve]

Yes we can, and don't deign to speak for everybody with statements like that.

Agree with all the points here. The artist adds the soul not the medium.

Sure there are genres of every art form that intrinsically feel more "soulful" but that is mostly cultural bias. Just like you can write a soulful song with a synthesizer and a soulless one with an acoustic guitar.

 

[Tonberry]

For those that have seen, I started to learn how to draw! It's very relaxing and fun hobby to have, but I don't have a good computer nor a drawing tablet to make my drawings, so I use the good ol' pencil and paper to start practicing.

So the question is: What's better? Digital or Tradicional Art?

I already know that many will answer "whatever feels best for you" and yeah I get that since I am enjoying the process, but I still want to open up to discussion because I do have some pointers for both in this manner.
"Tradicional" Art feels more responsive, since you are using physical materials to draw and color, giving you immediate feedback. But the mistakes are "permanent" if you are not using materials that are eraseable.
Digital Art (from what I have seen) is more dynamic, you can just Crtl+Z your mistakes instead of worrying about each line. But there is a whole 'nother side of technical issues like finding the best brush for your art or using the correct layers for editing.
I talked enough, now it's your turn! (if you so want, of course)

Sorry for the incoming wall of text!

While the real answer is, as you say, what works best for you, I think there are important lessons and habit that can be taught much better by working with an analog medium, that still translate well to digital, while not always doing the inverse.
A few examples are becoming more confident in brush strokes and when to draw "fast" and when to draw "slow", and line weight in general (as an illustrator I mostly work with pencils so these are the ones that I can speak of personally, I don't know jack about painting other than that I find it easier analog).

At the same time, digital allows you to more easily experiment and quickly iterate, since analog art takes up space and resources (even if it's just something as small as a sketchpad and pencils, you still have a finite amount so to speak). But at the same time, this makes it easier to develop bad habits (I'm self-taught, so I have tons of bad habits too, I still struggle like crazy with drawing elbows).
Another personal bias is that I think analog art tends to automatically be more evocative. I can't explain why, and this isn't a slight against digital in any way (as I said, I work in both constantly) but there's something special in knowing that the colors and brush strokes you see before you were once blended somewhere in real life by an actual person deliberately. But that's more about the spiritual/emotional connection to art rather than strictly practical.

Go with whatever you feel like, I will personally recommend learning about both in this day and age, but focusing on analog first if only to get a feel on how to tools interact with each other, at the very least, is just good practice. I think it's similar to instruments. If you learn how to play electric guitar before acoustic, you might have a harder time with certain habits, because electric guitars solve many newcomer hurdles, like finger pressure.

Another thing, if you have any interest at all in drawing people, GET THIS BOOK!

I would have bought it 15 years ago if I wasn't stubborn, but it's so insanely good even for just taking notes or skimming through the pictures.
That said, I'm not saying you should read it because you need to learn about anatomy or whatever. People fixating on stuff like that always turn out to be the most boring, overly critical, crab-bucket mentality artists you'll find. It's just a great read for showing you shapes of the human body that you wouldn't have thought of, and it does it in the context of drawing, which makes it easily applicable.

All in all, my personal answer is, while not giving you the answer you wanted is to refrain from in the OP is, learn both, but start with analog.
You don't need to do it at the same time, but it's a good thing if you want to. Start by drawing on paper because it's infinitely cheaper and less of a risky investment than getting confused about tablets and software.
Art is hard as balls and takes a long time. Almost every single person is going to suck hard when it starts. Never be discouraged by inexperience, just strive to learn more and keep in mind that art is ultra subjective, so its value and beauty is LITERALLY in the eye of the beholder.

 

[Sir Auriel of Lionel]

Use whatever feels best. I liked traditional pencils and watercolor pencil but then I tried tablet, got frustrated by the UI, pen detection and my laptop not handing it well that I just gave up all together. Now getting back into creativity, I've painted with Bob Ross (and failed lol), got watercolors to try, want to do some mix media collaging for brain dumping and got models to paint. For me I need to see results by my physical hands and trying to convert to digital just frustrated and discouraged me from even trying again, so I say do what you love because you do it well not what people tell you to do try to enter a market when all you wanted was to make art for yourself.

 

[Nebulon_Galaxy]

Sorry for the incoming wall of text!

While the real answer is, as you say, what works best for you, I think there are important lessons and habit that can be taught much better by working with an analog medium, that still translate well to digital, while not always doing the inverse.
A few examples are becoming more confident in brush strokes and when to draw "fast" and when to draw "slow", and line weight in general (as an illustrator I mostly work with pencils so these are the ones that I can speak of personally, I don't know jack about painting other than that I find it easier analog).

At the same time, digital allows you to more easily experiment and quickly iterate, since analog art takes up space and resources (even if it's just something as small as a sketchpad and pencils, you still have a finite amount so to speak). But at the same time, this makes it easier to develop bad habits (I'm self-taught, so I have tons of bad habits too, I still struggle like crazy with drawing elbows).
Another personal bias is that I think analog art tends to automatically be more evocative. I can't explain why, and this isn't a slight against digital in any way (as I said, I work in both constantly) but there's something special in knowing that the colors and brush strokes you see before you were once blended somewhere in real life by an actual person deliberately. But that's more about the spiritual/emotional connection to art rather than strictly practical.

Go with whatever you feel like, I will personally recommend learning about both in this day and age, but focusing on analog first if only to get a feel on how to tools interact with each other, at the very least, is just good practice. I think it's similar to instruments. If you learn how to play electric guitar before acoustic, you might have a harder time with certain habits, because electric guitars solve many newcomer hurdles, like finger pressure.

Another thing, if you have any interest at all in drawing people, GET THIS BOOK!
View attachment 41661
I would have bought it 15 years ago if I wasn't stubborn, but it's so insanely good even for just taking notes or skimming through the pictures.
That said, I'm not saying you should read it because you need to learn about anatomy or whatever. People fixating on stuff like that always turn out to be the most boring, overly critical, crab-bucket mentality artists you'll find. It's just a great read for showing you shapes of the human body that you wouldn't have thought of, and it does it in the context of drawing, which makes it easily applicable.

All in all, my personal answer is, while not giving you the answer you wanted is to refrain from in the OP is, learn both, but start with analog.
You don't need to do it at the same time, but it's a good thing if you want to. Start by drawing on paper because it's infinitely cheaper and less of a risky investment than getting confused about tablets and software.
Art is hard as balls and takes a long time. Almost every single person is going to suck hard when it starts. Never be discouraged by inexperience, just strive to learn more and keep in mind that art is ultra subjective, so its value and beauty is LITERALLY in the eye of the beholder.

Ive read Bridgman book and the way he draws body parts makes no sense. Like scribbles across key points of the body segments. Its good to read i guess. He'll teach you the "flow" of movement but its better to draw from life compared to his approach. Thats my opinion tho

 

[kuroninneko]

Traditional tools are the best way to get started without spending lots of money. Knowing traditional tools will also make your digital art better. Also, you can create a hybrid traditional/digital art style. One thing I like to do sometimes is draw on paper, photo/scan it in and edit/color it digitally. I just feel like I get more precision with real paper.

 

[Tonberry]

Ive read Bridgman book and the way he draws body parts makes no sense. Like scribbles across key points of the body segments. Its good to read i guess. He'll teach you the "flow" of movement but its better to draw from life compared to his approach. Thats my opinion tho

I’ve always interpreted that as intentional.

He shows you how to draw the human body by using lesson-esque material, not finished art pieces.
It’s a teaching book that sort of serves as a stand-in for not being able to partake in actual classes for various reasons, I always felt.
But to each their own, of course! It’s one of the few teaching books I’d recommend on specifically drawing since it’s easily digestible but very deep-diving if you want it to be.

Post automatically merged: Yesterday at 5:15 PM

One thing I like to do sometimes is draw on paper, photo/scan it in and edit/color it digitally.

I also like to do this. It rarely turns out how I envision it since I apparently work really different in analog compared to digital, but it’s a fun process for sure.

 

[Nebulon_Galaxy]

I’ve always interpreted that as intentional.

He shows you how to draw the human body by using lesson-esque material, not finished art pieces.
It’s a teaching book that sort of serves as a stand-in for not being able to partake in actual classes for various reasons, I always felt.

Post automatically merged: Yesterday at 5:15 PM

I also like to do this. It rarely turns out how I envision it since I apparently work really different in analog compared to digital, but it’s a fun process for sure.

Hmm never thought of it like that. Im gonna re-read the book again. it had been a couple years since ive read it.

 

[Tonberry]

Hmm never thought of it like that. Im gonna re-read the book again. it had been a couple years since ive read it.

I personally always found it the most helpful when looking at it for guidance and practicing occasional lessons I was looking for.
Trying to hard-read front to back just confused me because how it’s often pretty scientific regarding muscles and bones and the like and it got a little overwhelming.

But I’ve always learnt the most by doing, not by studying, and I imagine that can be wildly different from person to person.

 

[Raziya The Seeker]

Much as digital can do amazing things, traditional art still makes me weak in the knees. There's just that rough, organic vibe to a lot of traditional that your usual digital picture just doesn't emulate. It helps I can never wrap my head around a tablet, and have done traditional art my whole life otherwise (simple pixel art not counting).

Furthermore, as a furry and someone who pokes around on DeviantArt almost every day? A lot of digital art just feels... samey. Sterile in a way, while traditional art doesn't for me. No wonder AI just creates the most bog-standard digital art. Stuff feels a dime a dozen. But, that's just my opinion.

 

[KirboDeku]

Physical media will eventually root/degrade/deteriorate while digital media will be preserved as long there is technology to support it.

We have paintings from centuries ago, yet I can lose my work because my program crashed and I didn't spam Ctrl+S.

To actually answer OP, I prefer traditional. Sure, mistakes are definitely more punishing and you can't use shortcuts, but I just prefer simply using a pencil and paper. Unless you're making a comic with a bajillion pages, then yeah maybe shortcuts will save your sanity.

Another cool bonus of traditional is that you get to have both a file on your PC by scanning it and a cool page you can hold.

 

[HawkR]

I was just thinking about this! I've always wanted to paint, but, never had access to the needed materials. Appropriate canvas or practice paper, paints, brushes, mixing palettes, jars, more jars somehow, more macguffins, things you end up needing but can't explain, things you CAN explain, but it's hardly worth the effort, not to mention, room to store it all.
Just never happened. Plus, all that money and effort for me to make a piece of crap? (That happened, once. Quite disheartening.)

A while ago, I kept needing to digi-fy my sketches for various reasons, and everything was going to be so much easier if I could just make it all digital. I bought a tablet, and finally got to paint as much as I wanted, whenever I wanted, and ruin an unlimited amount of digital canvases.

I still have a love and preference, and particular respect for real material and paintings, but the tablet makes me happy with my limited means.

 

[Taukyrie]

I've used both, and it always comes down to what I feel at the time.

With traditional, I love the feeling of using physical paper, the sound of pencil on paper, and the smell of copics and other art markers. But at the same time, you're more likely to make mistakes because everything is permanent the moment you ink it. Not only that, but you're not always gonna have the right colors on-hand to color a piece how you want. Like getting good materials for traditional art is expensive in the long run because you have to always replace them if you run out of things, and I can understand it's not for everyone because of it. But at the same time, you can't really replicate the feeling of drawing on paper that you can on digital.

As for digital, yes, it's easier to draw and cheaper in the long run but at the same time I don't feel as much of a feedback as I did with traditional, even when I was told to turn on the stabilizer because I guess I was just supposed to find out that exists. I did want to mention that one of the things that really kind of drew me away from digital in the first place was how there felt like a bazillion different art programs you could use, and I didn't know what to pick because I just wanted something simple to use and something I didn't need to pay for because I didn't know how much I would be using it. (The answer is Krita. Just use Krita.) But yes, the other major problem is that you have to save often in case your program crashed, and you lost your work.

I also want to say that traditional I think is a bit better at spontaneity when it comes to doodles. Like I'm more likely to be able to just doodle random things in my notepad while waiting for an interview than on a digital canvas.

I do want to say that I am a big fan of utilizing both mediums to do a lot of drawings for Art Fight.

 

[Hikari.EXE]

Thank you all for the responses! I'm extremelly happy that even tho there was disagreaments in the threads, it was all resolved respectfully and all parties understood each other. I originally created this thread since it is oficially been a week since I wanted to get serious about making drawings, so I wanted to know what was the best option before delving in deeper into my studies, and if you could be so kind and check out my status this day, I uploaded another drawing! I'll try and upload one every day, and if not then it was mostly a study day, since I work and get back home around 5:30 pm so pumping these out every day can be quite dificult.