Digital Art Summit is going live next week

What the heck is the Digital Art Summit? Great question, a few days ago I was not sure either. Here is the what and why of the summit.

I was trying to find ways to bridge the summer gap at Digital Art Academy. Classes are finishing up tomorrow from this session and the new session doesn’t start until the end of August. That seems like a long time, for an ADD guy that is like a lifetime.

My friend and the founder of Digital Art Academy Karen Bonaker suggested putting together some webinars. That got me thinking, dangerous I know but it happens on rare occasions. Who haven’t I heard from in awhile? Who have I been talking to recently? Who would other digital artists like to hear from? I began compiling a list and making phone calls to stir the pot. The overall call or email post was something like this, “Hey Jeremy this is Tim, I am putting together some webinars this summer would you have any interest in teaching?”

A bunch of people said yes I would love to but I am booked, another bunch of people said shoot yes I am in. On a few rare occasions I still have not heard because of vacations or other stuff. The bottom line is we have an incredible line up of people lined up to share their digital painting prowess via webinar with you. Some FREE and others very inexpensive.

Odwin Rensen Digital Painting

It all starts July 22nd with a FREE webinar from Kirk Nelson. You will learn about the new painting features in CS5. How cool is that?

I wont spill all the beans yet because details and behind the scenes planning are happening as we speak. Some other speakers that you may hear from are….drum roll please……..Odwin Rensen, Darrell Chitty, Heather Michelle, Karen Sperling, Woody Walters, Michael Campbell and yours truly. That is not all though. There are more invites out there, pending. People you know and some you may not know. One thing for sure…you don’t want to miss this.

As I mentioned some webinars are free and the other pricing information will be forthcoming. You can find out through various social media sites or this blog. The best and quickest way to keep a eye peeled is to be on the list. If you have already filled out the form for Digital Paint Magazine you are good to go. Early notification will go to that list first, about 12 hours before the blog post hits. The reason that is important is that we are limited to 100 people on each webinar. Some will definitely sell out.

See ya in a few!

Digital Paint Webinar with guest Darrell Chitty

Thank-you for everyone that joined us in the webinar last week. It was packed! We had space for only 100 and we turned over 27 people away. Sorry for those that did not get on the live demonstration. Below you will find the resources from that webinar.

Darrell Chitty Painting

First this is the video that Darrell Started off with, this is streaming only. If you want to view these videos at full screen click on the little grey square icon in the player like the example below.

Watching Digital Painting Full Screen

To come back out of full screen just hit the escape button.

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Following is the video replay of the webinar, you can watch it here or if you prefer the download link is at the bottom of the player.

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Darrel Chitty Painting

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Chat log questions download

Painting by Darrell Chitty

Audio answers to chat log questions

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Digital Painting Techniques: Traditional Media Embellishment Workshop

Discover how to embellish your digital fine art paintings with Traditional Media.

Join us in North Platte! Friday September 10 and Saturday September 11.
We will have two days of immersion into digital print embellishment. We will use Oils, Acrylics, Pastels and charcoal to finish our digital prints. We will explore techniques geared towards fine art portraiture.

Down load the Digital Painting Techniques embellishment PDF.

Digital Print Embellishment

This Workshop is Limited to 15

There are only 15 seats available for this workshop. Small groups learn better and have more access to the presenter. The tuition for the Fall workshop is 327.00. We can break it into two payments of 167.50.

FAST ACTION BONUS, The first two fully paid tuitions will receive 25% off their tuition and another surprise bonus at the workshop.
Weather permitting we will have some time to capture a western model or two at Buffalo Bill’s Historic Ranch near our studio.

Day 1, Sealing and preparation, Oils and Acrylics
Day 2, Pastels, Watercolor, charcoal, gallery wraps

We will spend some time talking about presentation, whether to use a lab or print at home.

This workshop is designed for the beginner and intermediate painter. Bring your laptop with Photoshop and Corel Painter loaded and ready to roll.

Location

The location is my studio in North Platte, NE. The address is 2102 West 18th Street.
North Platte is a small community on the I-80 corridor. Lodging is in-expensive and the airport has three flights a day during the week arriving from Denver and two a day Saturday and Sunday.

This workshop is sponsored by Allied Photo Labs, Digital Art Academy and Digital Paint Magazine.

Digital Painting Embellishment Workshop

Down load the Digital Painting Techniques embellishment PDF.

Book Review Cher Threinen-Pendarvis:Beyond Digital Photography

I am a geek. As such I love books. My reading habit is non-curable and I peruse books on many subjects, Art and Marketing are my favorite topics and in the world digital painting every book that is published (to my knowledge) I have been fortunate enough to read. Amazon loves me.

Beyond Digital Photography is another must have book for anyone serious about transforming their photography into painterly works of fine art. This book was written by Cher Threinen-Pendarvis and Donal Jolley and published by PeachPit Press. You most likely have heard of these two well respected artists and authors. Cher is the author of the popular Painter Wow! series and Donal has been featured in many publications including The Photoshop CS/CS2 Wow! Book, the Painter Wow! Book and other publications.

Beyond Digital Photography offers extensive step-by-step information on many topics. One of the coolest things is that time is spend with Corel Painter and Photoshop. Finally we have a book that highlights the use of Painter and Photoshop together! I believe one needs to have an intermediate level of skill with the programs in order to get the most out of this book.

Many different types of paintings and techniques are covered at length. There is a great area in Chapter Two that will show you how to obtain nice flowing painterly techniques for those that are artistically challenged. If you are looking for a few nice water color techniques shoot over to Chapter 5 where Cher gives and awesome explanation on how Painters Digital Watercolors work. Take a peek at the workflow she uses to prepare an image and make it more suitable for a high key watercolor emulation.

Finally my favorite Chapter is Six. Donal shares a unique approach to utilizing layers to achieve an oil painted look that you have to try as soon as you read it. There is also an awesome demonstration from Cher of Painters Real bristle Brushes.

All in all a smoking book. The next time you are about to spend 500 bucks on a workshop…cancel your trip, hole up in your studio or a hotel room for the weekend with your computer, Wacom tablet and this book. You will be glad you did.

Digital Art for Beginners

by Karen Bonaker

From a very young age, I enjoyed drawing and painting and was completely content with that until the day I found ®Corel Painter and realized I could create beautiful art on my computer. I turned a deaf ear to my colleagues that told me digital art was not art, something deep inside told me that this was a new frontier just waiting to be discovered.

The next question was where to begin? As I started my research, I found that there were many options for learning how to paint digitally; the hardest part was to find what worked for me and what will ultimately work for you.

For the beginner Painter student, this can be a difficult journey. From the experiences of my own journey, I would like to share some of the best resources for learning how to paint with pixels. Years have passed since I first picked up the stylus. Today, there is so much more available to us, offering the beginning digital artist the opportunity to really discern about how they want to learn to paint digitally and what works best for them.

Online Classroom Training

Digital Art Academy

Online classes vary from site to site but, what you can expect at Digital Art Academy is a personal experience with plenty of support along the way. Classes run six times a year and each session last four weeks. Generally, each week your instructor will give you a written lesson and a video which you can download to your computer and view at your convenience. Your classroom is accessible to you twenty-four hours a day and your instructor is there to support you and answer your questions in a forum venue.

DAA was founded in 2007 as a center of creative excellence; where art, passion and talent converge with some of the best digital artists, nurturing the finest digital artists of tomorrow. The mission is to empower students to realize their fullest potential in the fields of Digital Artistry, Content Creation and most of all, Creative Expression.

Classes are taught by highly qualified digital artists and software professionals. If you enjoy working with other students and a live instructor who offers help and guidance, then this is the place for you. Classes are very reasonably priced and DAA is a Corel Training Partner. Most classes include written lessons and video to enhance the learning experience.

LVS Online:

LVS Online is a pioneer for online training and offers a smorgasbord of opportunities to learn Painter as well as other software. Although not focused specifically on Digital Art; you will find affordable online training for Painter by Elaina Moore-Kelly as well as other creative applications.

Paint box J:

Jeremy Sutton recently launched this wonderful site where members can learn from his techniques and inspirations while obtaining advice from one of the foremost Painter Masters. The site offers video and in-depth articles all about digital art. Most recently, Jeremy added a new critique section where members can learn from each other as well as share. Jeremy takes this opportunity to offer practical in-depth analysis and advice that is relevant to all PaintboxJ members. Critiques are offered on a monthly basis.

Workshops and Webinars

For the student who enjoys a hand on approach to learning, the digital art community is full of wonderful artists who offer hands on workshops on a continual basis. Not only are many of these workshops onsite but, some are being offered over the internet using various webinar providers such as Go To Webinar. For those who have the means to travel, workshops are wonderful ways to learn for the beginner. Here are just a few of the many talented digital artists to help you get started on your journey.

Marilyn Sholin

Jeremy Sutton

John Derry

Scott Deardorff

Helen Yancy

Jill Garl

Ann Carter Hargrove

Karen Sperling

Heather Michelle Bjoershol

Fay Sirkis

Tim ONeill

Forums and Blog Sites

Forums offer a student support and a community which they can feel a part of. There are some excellent forums available to the beginner however, one word of advice – study the forum before you join, make sure it will be a good fit for you, a place where you can grow and not feel intimidated. Look for support from other members and, most of all, make sure that it is a place that offers guidance, knowledge and a little hand holding. This can go a long way to create a comfortable place to meet new friends and learn from the best. There are many excellent forums; here are a few choices which offer the beginning digital artist a great place to learn and to feel supported as they learn.

Painter Factory

Painter Factory is place for all things Painter. The forum is full of useful information and offers digital artists of all levels a high level of support. The forum is moderated by Jinny Brown.

Digital Painting Forum

A fee based forum primarily focused on Painter. The forum offers a wide variety of support for the professional and beginner digital artist as well as the armature and professional photographer. The forum founder is Painter Master Marilyn Sholin. Digital Painting forum offers gallery space to showcase your work.

Painter Talk

Painter Talk is a free forum dedicated to digital art. It is a special place for learning and growing in a supportive and friendly digital art community. Painter Talk offers a Gallery to showcase your work.

Concept Org
A web based community of artists who are focused on helping members learn about art and showcase their work.

John Derry Pixlblog

John Derry is a pioneer of digital painting and one of the original authors of Corel® Painter. John’s authors a wonderful blog to follow with helpful information and resources for the digital artist.

Pixel Alley

Founded by Jinny Brown, Pixel Alley is one of the primary educational forums on the web. Jinny offers support to users of Painter with many interesting and enlightening links.

Books and DVD Training

Perhaps you learn best by watching a video, DVD or reading a book. Artists tend to be visual learners so DVD’s and books are a great alternative to travel or going on the web. There are many wonderful training DVD’s available to you including those that come with the software such as Corel Painter and Painter Essentials.  These products offer a solid fundamental approach to learning the software. I have highlighted some of my favorites for learning Corel Painter.

Jeremy Sutton
Learning Corel Painter X with Jeremy Sutton
Painter X Creativity

Cher Threinen-Pendarvis
Painter Wow book series

John Derry

Painter 11 Essential Training

Tim ONeill

Artistic Impressions DVD’s

Digital Painting Techniques DVD Set

My final advice to the beginner digital artist is to take the time to find what works for you; look for instructors that encourage you to be the best you can be, instructors that challenge you and help you see your full potential. It has been a wonderful journey for me to see the growth in the digital art community and the generous support from many of the finest instructors and artists who give of their knowledge and talent so graciously.

Here is a fun photoshop Video tutorial on how to make a signature brush.

There are a number of different ways to use this brush. As you will see in the tut, I used type. You could just as easily use your stylus and sign your name, then turn that into a brush so you have a consistent signature for your digital art creations with just one click. Let me know how you use this and what you think.

Signature Brush tutorial

Enjoy!

Top Digital Art Talent to Collaborate with Digital Paint Magazine

Who hoo! How is this for some great news? Along with the changes in design and direction we will have more people bringing you more great content. Digital Art Academy founder and instructor Karen Bonaker, and many-times-published author and educator,  Tim Shelbourne will be blessing us with their talent in 2010.

I will give you a snippet from a bio of Karen and present one from Tim down the road. You are going to love this stuff!

Karen Bonaker Joins the Team at Digital Paint Magazine.

Many of you already know Karen Bonaker. Karen has enjoyed painting since childhood. She painted on anything and everything including the walls of her home.   Karens mother was an artist and provided this young creative with a wall in her room to express herself. How cool is that?

Formal training came from her local college with an emphasis on color and design. Ten years ago Karen discovered the Painter software program and has since been creating art using a Wacom tablet and stylus.

Utilizing the formal training from college is beneficial as the principles of composition, color and design are the same in the digital world as they are with traditional media.

The Digital Art Expo in New York has shown one of Karen’s digital paintings. She has been a regular contributor to Corel Painter Magazine, served on the Beta Team for Corel Painter Essentials 4 and Corel Painter 11 as well as serving on the Corel Advisory Board.

Karen founded the Digital Art Academy. The Digital Art Academy is a venue for individuals to develop their own talents and gifts specific to drawing and painting.  She is a veteran of online training and is an instructor at the Academy.

Tim

Free Webinar with Master Digital Painter Darrell Chitty

Digital painting techniques revealed. Would you like to expand the products and services you promote to your clients?

Guest expert Darrell Chitty is going to teach us some techniques for painting like the Old Masters.
We’ll be meeting Tuesday night, December 29th at 8 p.m. Central for the webinar.

This is your opportunity to learn live from Darrell.

You will learn the styles of 3 Masters; Rembrandt, Monet and Turner.
Learn what the differences are in style and how to duplicate those style differences in your own paintings.

Discover how to create an eye-catching digital painting that demands attention…

Review how to utilize Darrell’s workflow so you can create faster and with less stress, even if you’re not an experienced digital artist.

To participate in this call, join us at 8 p.m. Central. You can pickup access to this NO COST webinar by clicking on the link below. There are only 50 seats. Please don’t register unless you have sincere interest and will be there.

Here is some of Darrell’s work

Artist Darrell Chitty's Rhapsody in Pink

SORRY THIS WEBINAR IS FULL.

Be sure to sign up for the notification list to the right if you missed this one. We have webinars on occasion and other free content as well. Filling out the opt-in at the right puts you on the subscription list for digital paint magazine.

Digital Painting compared to Traditional Media

I am an artist. Currently I choose digital painting as my field of study and chosen media to work with. After spending most of my time as a photographer and being ADD, digital painting is a great fit for me.

While the principles of great art stay the same, there are differences in the medium you choose to work with. This is in no way a slam to traditional media or the artist who create using traditional methods. Following is a simple and brief comparison. It is by no means exhaustive but it will give you a good sense of the differences.

Pastels-

Pastels are a unique combination of a drawing and painting medium. This gives pastels a marked advantage for certain types of work.

Advantage-No problem creating linear and Mass Shapes

Advantage-No solvents required

Disadvantage-Dust is toxic and can also be very messy

Watercolor Painting-

Water colors have a unique look and feel and are very popular with the working pro as well as the weekend painter.

Advantages-Easy clean up with water

Advantages-No solvents required

Advantage-Awesome choice for layering and transparent effects

Disadvantage-Mistakes a difficult to fix

Disadvantage-Good brushes are expensive

Disadvantages-Watercolor is consumable and needs to be constantly replaced

Acrylics Painting

Acrylics are quick drying water soluble paints (Golden Artist Colors and some others are now making some “open” acrylics that have an extended drying time. This will allow some techniques that were previously not possible because of the fast drying time.)

Advantage-Easy clean up with water

Advantage-No solvents required

Disadvantage-Good brushes are expensive

Disadvantage-Pigment is consumable and needs to be constantly replaced

Disadvantage-In general the colors dry flatter than oils and don’t look as good.

Oil Painting

Oil paint are the most widely used medium by working professionals.

Advantage-Highest quality of color in traditional media

Advantage-A large number of painting techniques are easily supported.

Advantage-Mistakes are easily fixed

Disadvantage-Good brushes are expensive

Disadvantage-Pigment is consumable and needs to be constantly replaced

Disadvantage-Messy and the use of caustic solvents is necessary (water based oils are now available, you sacrifice a little color quality

Digital Painting

Advantage-Highest quality of color

Advantage-A large number of painting techniques are easily supported.

Advantage-Mistakes are easily fixed

Advantage-No clean up necessary

Advantage-No solvents required

Advantage-Awesome choice for layering and transparent effects

Advantage-No problem creating linear and Mass Shapes

Disadvantage-Computer hardware and software are expensive

Disadvantage-Traditional media still required to have an “original”

Disadvantage-Not yet fully accepted in the fine art world

Disadvantage-Can feel “sterile” and sometimes lacks the look and feel  we like in the process of creation.

I thought this comparison may stir the pot a little bit… but that is ok.  Comparing digital painting to other mediums caused me to really look at some of the pros and cons of creating art this way. It was a great exercise. I know that I missed some advantages and disadvantages on both sides. As you go through here and discover some things I have missed feel free to comment, let us know your opinion.

Tim

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