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Digital illustration is the creation of original artwork using a computer and software. Artists use graphics tablets or mice to draw, and software can be vector-based or raster-based. Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop are popular programs. Digital illustration is used in many industries and can be combined with traditional art.
Digital illustration is the technique of using a computer to produce original artwork. Digital illustrators use a combination of illustration software and image editing software to create computer art. Digital illustration isn’t simply manipulating images with software; it is the actual creation of new art with digital tools.
An artist might use a graphics tablet or mouse to create digital artwork. A graphics tablet is an input device that plugs into your computer and features a tablet, or pad, with an attached pen. The artist uses the pen to draw on the tablet. The resulting image is saved to your computer, where it can be enhanced and refined. Some artists use a mouse for digital illustration, but many find they can control images better with a pen than a mouse. Graphics tablets also usually have some degree of pressure sensitivity, which gives artists more flexibility in how they draw.
The software used for digital illustration can be vector-based or raster-based. Vector-based software draws paths, shapes and lines based on mathematical principles. The paths it draws are fully scalable. Making them larger or smaller doesn’t affect them or make them “fuzzy,” as bitmap or raster software does. Raster-based, or bitmap, software creates images from pixels, which are small rectangles that make up an image on a screen. Because each pixel might contain bits from different parts of an image, the image gets blurrier as it gets larger, so there’s a limit to how much a raster-based image can be scaled. Typically, drawing software is vector-based, while image-editing software is raster-based.
Anyone who wants to become a digital illustrator typically needs to be very familiar with vector- and raster-based software. There aren’t many vector-based software packages; Adobe® Illustrator® is by far the most used by professionals. There are many raster-based applications, but Adobe® Photoshop® is preferred by many illustrators. A digital illustrator may or may not have a background in traditional art, but will often have a background in design.
Digital illustration is used in nearly every industry of graphic design and illustration. It is widely used in web design and software design, as well as poster, t-shirt, computer animation and advertising creation. Digital illustration is often combined with traditional illustration, especially in books and comics, to produce a truly unique art style.
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