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That experienced digital painter who told me to stop using 20 brushes per piece was right - I cut my file size in half and actually improved my workflow
After watching a speedpaint by Loish where she used only 3 brushes for an entire portrait, I tried ditching my custom brush pack of 50 and honestly my art looks cleaner now (no more pixelated edges from overblending). Has anyone else found that limiting your brush count forces better actual drawing skills?
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danielmason20d ago
What kind of brushes did you keep after the purge - did you stick with just a round and a textured one or keep a few specialty ones for effects? I'm curious because I dumped my packs last week and kept 5 but I'm already wondering if I can go lower lol. Like how do you handle weird texture work like rocks or bark without a dedicated brush for it?
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xena37320d ago
Forgot the exact number I landed on but it's around 3 or 4 now. Round brush for most things, a flat one for blocking in shapes, and a drybrush style for rough textures like rocks and bark. The trick I found is you don't need a specialty brush for texture if you just mess with the brush settings in your program - I mostly use Procreate and just play with the opacity and size jitter. For bark I literally just stab the canvas with a round brush at low opacity and it looks organic enough (plus it's way faster than switching brushes). The real game changer for me was learning to just use the same brush and change my hand pressure instead of hunting for the perfect brush.
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