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Writer's pictureShannon Caeley

What is Digital Art?

I realized recently that I never really talked about or explained my shift from physical on paper art (like watercolors) to digital art. So I thought it might be fun to share an explanation and some short video clips showing what digital art is and how I use this medium.


Unlike many art mediums (watercolor, pencil, oils, etc) digital art is still relatively new, and I find a lot of people aren’t quite sure how it works or what it means. It’s been an incredible gift to me, opening doors that traditional art mediums couldn’t due to some of the physical limitations I experience.


I decided that for demonstration purposes, a smiling sunflower could be a fun thing to draw. This piece is simpler and lacking a lot of the detail many of my more complex pieces have, but it utilizes a lot of the techniques that make digital art different. What will follow are some clips of me creating this little piece, and some explanations below each clip of what exactly I'm doing.


 

Just like any on paper piece of art, I always start with an initial sketch.


Next I begin adding color. I pick a digital paint brush (these provide a similar feel to on paper art, and the ones I use most are actually created by other digital artists!


The next step is adding shadows to the lower petals.


Blending out the shadows allows the lighter and darker colors to meld. With watercolors, you'd use more water to mix the colors. On my iPad, I use a tool called smudge, which drags the colors into each other as you see here.


Just like on paper art, it is very important to add highlights, and here I choose a soft yellow to make this sunflower look...sunny! Just like with the shadows I blend the buttery yellow into the pink.


Adding some lines creates more texture and depth. I can then blend these out to make them fit perfectly into the piece.


Every cheerful sunflower needs a bit of blush and of course a big smile ;)


Here we're finishing up the face. Notice with digital art, I can zoom into the piece, so I can more easily see the detailed areas. This is very helpful for me for many reasons, as it means I'm not straining my hands or eyes trying to create those tiny details!


And another fantastic feature of digital art, is that I can move elements if they aren't in the exact right place. This takes away a lot of the stress involved in traditional art mediums, because if you don't get it right, you can undo something or move it!


 

And there you have it! The process of creating a smiling sunflower, through the medium of digital art! And here's the finished product!

Another fun thing I can do with digital art, is alter the colors of a piece after it's been painted. This means that I change can a sunny pink sunflower, to this more autumnal red and yellow sunflower!

Digital art has been a great blessing for me over the past couple years! It's enabled me to create art during a time when traditional art mediums became more difficult for me, due to the limitations I experience. It reminds me how much I have to be grateful for that I live in this time in history. Because, although there are plenty of ways technology is used for evil, there are countless ways the Lord uses it for good in my life and I'm sure yours as well! I hope you have a wonderful rest of your week! Soli Deo Gloria my friends!

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4 Comments


D Bassett
D Bassett
Oct 24

So interesting Shannon! Really enjoyed watching you create you artwork!

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Thanks Miss Debbie, so glad you enjoyed!!

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Thank you so much for sharing that! That was so cool and I loved watching you "paint"! Love these little clips!


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Aww glad you enjoyed Holly! ☺️☺️💛

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