If you don't mine me asking, what ink and brushes do you use? I want to get more seriously into brush inking and the supplied I've had the last decade are downright shit.
I'm no expert on materials so take anything I say with a pound of salt (worse, materials seem to be falling down in quality across the board - paper, brushes, nibs, ink).
I inked the above with a Pitt brush marker. I like the way they feel in my hand, marker-like, and the brush is substantial, more like a pen point to me than a Copic. I like the Copic brush pen but it has less "feel" on the page, I'm a pen guy (Hunt 22, 102 mainly) and I like to feel the implement working on the paper, touching it and making its mark. FOr that reason, I mash up my brush pens pretty quickly. With Pitt pens you can yank out the point and then flip it and insert a fresh point/brush pen. Don't think you can do that with other brush pens. I have a Pentel pocket brush pen which is lovely but I can't get it to do anything I want it to, it's more like a real brush. I've tried some other Japanese brush pens and have mostly fumbled around with them pretty poorly.
Re: actual brushes - I'm no help. The standard of older brush inkers is the series 7 Windsor Newton #3, iirc. Expensive and who knows if it's better for anyone than a cheaper brush, a brush pen, etc.
Ink -- used to use basement-quality Higgins black ink, watched it deteriorate further over time, after I used up my cache I played around with Dr PH Martin's India ink, Speedball super black and FW Acrylic. I liked the FW but the last bottle gunked up on me some and I needed to water it down for my pens. Might not be a problem with brushes. The Speedball's been okay, I'm using it at the moment, it's like my new Higgin's. The Martin's iirc was pretty decent. I've got an unopened bottle of PH Martin's Bombay black india to try. I am ignorant about ink and flail around since dumping Higgin's, which was graying out badly after erasing.
I draw with inexpensive stuff, by and large. #2 Ticonderoga pencils (Mexican-made, not China), and very basic art pencils and erasers. Everything works for someone, not everyone can work with everything except annoying "talented artists" who are hateful and must be destroyed.
My suggestion - Try stuff according to your budget and see where it gets you, if you have friends who draw have an art supply hangout and try each others drawing supplies and ink to see what you think. Learn by failing and trying different things. When you find the implements you're comfortable with that achieve the results you want, stick by 'em and try to buy in bulk because the quality trails off over time and often oddball left-of-center stuff is discontinued.
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January 19 2012, 03:28:24 UTC 4 months ago
January 19 2012, 21:34:56 UTC 4 months ago Edited: January 19 2012, 21:40:31 UTC
I inked the above with a Pitt brush marker. I like the way they feel in my hand, marker-like, and the brush is substantial, more like a pen point to me than a Copic. I like the Copic brush pen but it has less "feel" on the page, I'm a pen guy (Hunt 22, 102 mainly) and I like to feel the implement working on the paper, touching it and making its mark. FOr that reason, I mash up my brush pens pretty quickly. With Pitt pens you can yank out the point and then flip it and insert a fresh point/brush pen. Don't think you can do that with other brush pens. I have a Pentel pocket brush pen which is lovely but I can't get it to do anything I want it to, it's more like a real brush. I've tried some other Japanese brush pens and have mostly fumbled around with them pretty poorly.
Re: actual brushes - I'm no help. The standard of older brush inkers is the series 7 Windsor Newton #3, iirc. Expensive and who knows if it's better for anyone than a cheaper brush, a brush pen, etc.
Ink -- used to use basement-quality Higgins black ink, watched it deteriorate further over time, after I used up my cache I played around with Dr PH Martin's India ink, Speedball super black and FW Acrylic. I liked the FW but the last bottle gunked up on me some and I needed to water it down for my pens. Might not be a problem with brushes. The Speedball's been okay, I'm using it at the moment, it's like my new Higgin's. The Martin's iirc was pretty decent. I've got an unopened bottle of PH Martin's Bombay black india to try. I am ignorant about ink and flail around since dumping Higgin's, which was graying out badly after erasing.
I draw with inexpensive stuff, by and large. #2 Ticonderoga pencils (Mexican-made, not China), and very basic art pencils and erasers. Everything works for someone, not everyone can work with everything except annoying "talented artists" who are hateful and must be destroyed.
My suggestion - Try stuff according to your budget and see where it gets you, if you have friends who draw have an art supply hangout and try each others drawing supplies and ink to see what you think. Learn by failing and trying different things. When you find the implements you're comfortable with that achieve the results you want, stick by 'em and try to buy in bulk because the quality trails off over time and often oddball left-of-center stuff is discontinued.