For the past year I’ve been using Manga Studio 5, an $80 program from SmithMicro, as my primary tool for digital painting. I still use Photoshop for certain things but for the most part, the bulk of the work is done in MS5.
Why did I switch to Manga Studio 5? In a nutshell- it’s because it’s a speedy program with powerful features made just for digital artists.
The video below will give you a basic tour of what Manga Studio 5 looks like and what features I use and find the most helpful for digital illustration.
The main idea I want to convey is that this is not a scary program to learn. There are a lot of similarities with Photoshop. Have fun and the only way to learn is just to dive in and mess around.
Next week I will post a demo video of me actually painting something in Manga Studio 5. If you have any questions, feel free to comment below or find me on twitter @TracyBishopArt.
Quick Tour of Manga Studio 5 from Tracy Bishop on Vimeo.
Resources:
- Manga Studio 5 – You can buy the program here.
- Manga Studio 5 Manuals
- Manga Studio 5 Features Videos
- Video Tutorial of Manga Studio 5 by Smith Micro with Doug Hills – Set of in-depth video tutorials
- Manga Studio 5 Penciling, Inking, and Painting brushes by Ray Frenden – Nice set of brushes for $5
