ZBrushCentral

To Pen or Not To Pen?

that is my boggle!

Im just kind of wondering if you guys would mind telling me which of you use pen tablets, and any reviews/suggestions for which ones would work for me and are worth the money.

As far as my needs, Im going to be attending the art institute of san francisco for game art and design… the pipeline teacher worked for ILM so we will use my sweet sweet zbrush!.. anyways, I will be working extensively with that and PS.

I’ll be glad to hear what yall have to say :smiley:

PEN.

I use a large Wacom. No complaints. The increase in productivity is quadratic over mouse alone. More fun too.

Good luck.

tablet is night and day difference, you’ll never go back to a mouse.

i use a wacom intous 2 12x12 at home, and intous 3 6x8 at work, good times. Great for photoshop too obvoulsy.

okay then if that’s the consensus so far… how hard is it to get over the pen “learning curve” if there is one, and is it worth the 100 bucks for the 6-d pen?

what prices should I expect to pay?

is having a smaller tablet that much worse?

I have the Graphire 4x5 bought from CompUsa for $80.00. I’ve used the 6x8’s and 9x12 intuos’s as well and imo, the graphire is fine. There is a difference in pressure sensitivity and of course size, but I’ve adapted pretty quickly.

If your on a budget, the graphire can’t be beat.

I would definitely invest into an intuos, at least 6x8 - believe me, you’ll fall iin love with it really quickly.

The “key” is that you don’t see it as the “digital equivalent” to pencil ´n paper but rather as a completely new, more intuitive tool. It doesn’t feel like pencil and paper but it’s a lot better than a mouse. I wouldn’t want to do anything without it anymore!

The pen is to the mouse as isotoner gloves are to woolly mittens. Unless you’ve got a trackball, trying to draw with a mouse involves gross muscle movements going right up to the shoulder.

I have a 6 x 8 Wacom Intuos, and a 4 x 5 that I pack in with my laptop whenI’m travelling. I consider it as necessary as my mouse.

ive had the privelege of using several wacom tablets of varing sizes and qualities. I started as a student years ago with the first graphire 1.0 at 4x5 and it was very handy. Then i jumped to a intous2 12x12 a year or so ago that i got primarily for zbrush. maybe the graphires are far better now but i noticed immediatly there was a big quality difference down to the construction of the pen with the intous2 vs. the graphire. id say get 6x8+ tablet. the 12x12 takes up lots of space but im use to it on my desk and not in my lap like the little 4x5 was. At work i have an intous 3 6x8 and i wish it was a 9x12. the size of the tablet is a percisions thing right, i have large screens so the 12x12 is closer to 1:1 even wrapped across 2 monitors. as far as pressure sensitivity, again im sure the graphire 3 or whatever is current is better than what i upgraded from but i noticed the differece from 512 levels, to 1024 or 2048 whater the intous 2 is in painter etc. And the Lines per inch is muhc higher also. Anyways hope my ramble provides some insght. If i were shoppingfor myself, id get an intous 3 9x12, used to come with extra stuff 6x8 didnt like 4d mouse too.

If you can spring for the bucks, there is nothing like a Wacom Cintique. 18" (diagonal) tablet with bulit in monitor. After using it for a month, going back to a mouse was like drawing with my foot. :lol:

Zbrush definitely allows a person to become extremely proficient using a mouse…but… when I bought my first tablet (some off brand ) it was like opening up a window in a cave. That cheapo lasted about six months then I bought the little Graphire…the pen is definitely the way to go. No it’s not exactly like a regular pen or pencil and not exactly like a mouse, but it took all of a few minutes to get into the hang of it. No learning curve at all…and so much m ore natural. If you do regular drawings etc, then you are going to be in love. Good luck in school. As I get a little older, I really envy those who are able to go to art and graphics type schools. Make the most of it and follow your dreams.
regards
Ron

I use both pen and mouse. I find the mouse gives me much more control when modelling. The pen feels more natural when texturing and adding subtle detail in PM. Having said that, I’ve got a really good mouse (Logitech MX700) and a little, cheap old Wacom, so I’m keeping my mind open, next time I have the cash to upgrade my devices. Not sure I could ever give my mouse up totally, though.

thanks guys, i was hoping to get answers like these

Ron Harris: thanks man, thats exactly what Im doing, Im taking some junior college classes right now to defray costs through credit transferring, but I cant wait to start school

chalkman: yeah, thats the cadillac of tablets, and the subject of many an artist’s dream I have, but the bucks might get in the way… I dont know.

spaz: haha, dont worry, I ramble too, so I understood what you were saying

thanks for the comments everyone, now I can go shopping! I’ll keep yall updated on my purchase… and now maybe I’ll get good enough to actually post a WIP! :smiley:

I actually don’t have a tablet yet. I don’t think my zbrush work suffers because I use a mouse, but with all the the people that advocate using a tablet, I think it’s in my best interest to buy one. It’ll probably make sculpting and texturing a lot more easier and enjoyable. Especially since I come from a 2d arts background.

When my money is right, i’ll purchase one. I hope that will be soon.

Once you use a tablet, you will hardly touch your mouse again (using ZB). I bought a fairly inexpensive graphire 2 quite some time ago and I have no complaints.

I invested in an Wacom Intuos 2 9x12 a couple years ago and actually only really started using it when I got zb2 a month ago. I was mad at myself for “wasting” $400+ on the tablet (was intended for photoshop use to create game textures, I MOD for games in my spare time) but had not ever really USED it. Then comes ZB2 and I “forced” myself to use the tablet/pen from the get-go with the app so I would learn the program thru the tablet and I can say with much elation that I could not have made a better choice!. I will also say that I knew, even back then, that though the cost was high for that larger tablet, I knew it was an “investment” and I bit the bullet and went for the larger size and this too, I am quite thankful of now. Even if you get a smaller one, the difference in capability, performance, and intuitiveness is second to none. And FASTER by a factor of 100. The pressure sensitivity gives you much more control, especially in the detail work. Fantastic! it’s even got me back into it’s use in photoshop and the investment is really paying off in spades now. There is no equal to a tablet in apps like ZB2 and paint programs… Worth every penny. You will have to pry my tablet now from my cold dead fingers…LOL

Z-Brush is the only app i have which just works with my tablet as it should… for the rest i prefer my mouse :smiley:

Perhaps because i got a cheap graphire 3 without any fancy buttons… but atm there is no more room (or money) lol :stuck_out_tongue:

Hi, I think im reviving an old topic, but just wanted to add my two cents: WACOM is the cream of the crop maker (among very few competitors) of pen tablets, but for those who can’t afford them (specially people like me that live away from big countries where these things are seldom imported and at huge price tags) there are alternatives.

I have a Genius MousePen 8x6. Not very glamorous, I know. Many people would shatter and destroy this piece of equipment after using the wacom’s, but for a $60 price tag, at such huge size (compared to 4x3s) its a very good starting point, with the added pressure sensitivity and smooth flow. Im a actualy very impressed with this product, it works fantastic with drawing applications, and zBrush understands it perfectly. So dont be affraid to say you settled for less than a Wacom and it’s still doing the job! :smiley:

Rafael Polit Jr.
Quito, Ecuador.

Back to the 6D pen, I don’t think it is worth the cash. I bought one, and miss the buttons on the basic pen. It comes in handy with Painter, when I need “spin” control, though, so I don’t regret the purchase, but you’ll use the basic pen more.
I bought the Inruos3 9x12, and I absolutely LOVE it. I had an Aiptek 9x12, and was not satisfied by it, so I gave it to my neighbor. My carpal tunnel syndrome has subsided greatly.

Christopher Tedin
Sculptor, Painter, Instructor and Graphic Designer

After modelling up till now without a tablet (I did have a really terrible extremely tiny one, but that was so useless I didn’t use it) and modelled only with a mouse. Not being able to afford wacom tablets etc my other half picked up a wireless A5 trust pad for me for xmas. The change in workflow is amazing! So much quicker to do things (although getting used to using a pen instead of a mouse is going to take a few days). Although I’m sure wacoms etc are worth the money, for those of us that don’t have that sort of spare cash knocking about, the trust A5 wireless does just as well.

You see I’m a big believer in life that I only buy things I feel I ‘deserve’. Whether that be as an artist, musician etc, As i still have in my eyes a fair few things to achieve yet, theres no way I could justify spending that ammount of cash on a tablet. I’d much rather not have to do without the basics in life. (Such as food, beer, Cigs…you get my point).

Wayne…

hi,

I saw your post. I need to complete a 10 second cgi spot and create characters from scratch. I have live action video reference files. I seek specialists in san francisco who have done animations and character animations using zbrush and maya. Do you have a website of your character animation work? Your referrals are appreciated. I prefer email over phone: [email]aimedia1@gmail.com[/email]

-Evan