ADOBE IDEAS
for images sharp at any size
FACES . EXPRESSIONS . SYMBOLS . ICON-SIZED GRAPHICS
DRAWING . New addition:- PAINTING on tablets and smartphones
Draw and paint in Adobe Ideas
on iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch
for pictures perfect at any size
Mind you, I can't say I warm to this apple. I made it on my iPad in Adobe Ideas. True, it looks sharp at any size. (That is, the original looks sharp at any size because it's a vector image. The apples you see here are Saved for Web in Photoshop and converted to common-or-garden bitmaps.)
Many illustrators like Ideas because they can scribble down - well, yes, ideas and feed them straight into Illustrator on the desktop.
This slick performance tends to give a rather plasticky look, and unfortunately in Ideas you can't turn it off. Sign your name in Adobe Ideas and it comes out shaved and smoothed to within an inch of its life.
Some weeks ago on TV here in the UK, I saw President Obama sign his name on an iPad in Ideas. I wondered if his autograph, with so much individuality removed, was really all that authentic!
Recently I have come to like and use Ideas quite a lot. It's fast, responsive and easy to use. You draw with a freehand line, even though it's smoothed, and are not required to manipulate shapes as in a fully vector app.
You can however fill closed shapes with a colour. (If you don't like the look of a filled shape, a handy trick is to tailor it with the eraser.)
The free version of Adobe Ideas (did I mention it's free?) comes with only two layers: one bitmap background for an imported image, and the vector layer for your drawing. You can pay – but ridiculously little in Adobe terms – for extra layers.
You adjust your brush width and transparency with a convenient slider at the side of the drawing area. That adaptable transparency is the real reason for my change of heart. I do miss a smudge brush to blend colours, but you can get some interesting effects with a dance of the veils.
If you like to work with a pared down palette, Adobe Ideas allows you to pick and save a five-colour swatch from any image. The resulting collection of colour schemes can come in useful.
Adobe Ideas for iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch
- and images sharp at any size.
SMARTPHONE AND TABLET PAINTING APPS
Mobile apps . Android Apps . iPhone/iPad/iPod Apps . Adobe Ideas
Tablet Computers . Touch Tablet Drawing . Finger painting tips
(c) Valerie Beeby 1998 - 2011
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