You may already have the basic equipment for digital art, but now you want to take your art to next level and work more professionally. What tools do professional digital artists use? This post shows you what hardware pro digital artists use and what software apps they work with. We’ll talk about what drawing tablets, styluses, monitors, and different types of digital art software you can choose from to start creating art on a professional level!
You’ve been into digital art for quite a while and now you want to take your art to the next level? If you’ve been creating art with a basic drawing tablet and some free software for some time now, then it’s probably about time to up your game!
Also, if you’ve decided to follow your calling and start a digital art business, you’ll want to work with more professional tools.
So what tools do professional digital artists use? This is what we are going to delve into in this post.
Are you a newbie and want to know how to start digital art?
What tools do professional digital artists use?
Picking the right professional digital art tools can be daunting, as there is so much stuff around to choose from. So if you are looking to move to the next level digital art software and upgrade your digital art hardware, this post got you covered.
Many artists find it hard to pick out the digital software and hardware that is most suitable for the type of art they are making. Digital art is a broad field, so the best fit for you largely depends on your style of art.
As an artist, you may create illustrations, digital paintings, photo manipulations, 3D or vector art, and so on. Luckily, there is something out there for all creative needs, and this post will help you pick the best equipment for your particular requirements!
What do pro digital artists use?
Let’s start with the hardware. The most essential tool that all digital artists need is a drawing tablet.
Pro Hardware Tools Used For Digital Art
1. Drawing Tablet
A drawing tablet is essential because it provides the most natural way of working and gives you access to the sensitivity features of the software you are using. Only a tablet and a pen let you access features like pressure sensitivity and tilt recognition.
Generally speaking, there are two types of drawing tablets: with built-in display and without display. Both are equally adequate for creating digital art on a professional level.
Even though digital artists use all kinds of hardware and software, they all seem to agree on one thing: Wacom tablets are the gold standard in the industry.
As for screenless drawing tablets, professional digital artists usually prefer the Wacom Intuos Pro series. The Intuos Pro tablets are available in three different sizes (small, medium and large) and come with excellent specs and virtually lag-free tracking.
Even if you are old-fashioned and like to sketch your artwork using a pencil and paper, you can do that with a Wacom tablet! The Wacom Intuos Pro Paper Edition allows you to draw on traditional paper simply by clipping a paper sheet on the tablet surface and then starting out by sketching on that paper with the Wacom Finetip Pen.
Once you’re done sketching, you can transfer your drawings straight to your computer and edit them digitally in your favorite software.
Learn more: Best Graphics Tablet For Professionals – Top 10 Picks
Wacom Intuos Pro Medium
- Great overall specs at a reasonable price
- High levels of pressure sensitivity and tilt responsiveness
- Excellent precision and virtually lag-free tracking
Wacom Intuos Pro Large
- Ample drawing space
- Ideal for illustrators who like to work with long, sweeping brush strokes
- Excellent responsiveness and virtually lag-free tracking
Wacom Intuos Pro Paper Edition
- Perfect combination of digital drawing and traditional sketching on paper
- Wacom Pro Pen 2 & Finetip Pen included, both with excellent responsiveness
- Wacom Inkspace to sync, store, and export your paper sketches
2. Display Tablet
Display tablets have the advantage that you can directly draw on the built-in screen. This is the most natural and intuitive way of making digital art that comes the closest to working traditionally with pen and paper.
For many professional digital artists a Cintiq is the tool of choice. The Wacom Cintiq Pro series, as its name suggests, is particularly geared towards professional artists. The regular Cintiq tablets have slightly stripped down specs as compared to the Cintiq Pro displays, but they are still totally suitable for professional editing tasks.
Learn more: What Is The Difference Between Cintiq And Cintiq Pro?
Basically, the main factor to consider when choosing a display tablet is screen size. Do you like to work on a large screen or is a smaller A5 paper-size screen enough for you? Keep in mind that the larger the screen, the less you’ll need to zoom in and out in order to work on the details.
A large screen will also allow you to keep reference images and color wheels open next to your canvas, which may be especially interesting for digital painters.
Another thing to keep an eye on is the screen technology. Cheaper models often don’t have a bonded display, meaning you will have a stronger parallax effect. The parallax effect describes the little gap that you will see between the tip of the pen and the cursor on the display. High-end models have virtually no parallax effect.
More tablet choices: Best Wacom Display Tablet Picks Below $2000 – Ultimate TOP 8
Wacom Cintiq Pro 24
- 24-inch 4K resolution screen (3840 x 2160) for sharp detail work
- World-class color accuracy (99% Adobe RGB) and excellent brightness (350 cd/m2)
- Large active area (20.55 x 11.57”) for enough drawing space
Wacom Cintiq Pro 32
- Premium high-end device that is used in professional studios around the world
- Pin-sharp 4K UHD display with superior color accuracy and brightness
- Multi-touch functionality as standard
Wacom Cintiq 16
- Least expensive higher-end Wacom display tablet with great overall specs
- Pro Pen 2 with high levels of sensitivity
- Textured surface for authentic drawing experience
3. All-in-One Tablet
The third option in terms of hardware tools professional digital artists use is an all-in-one tablet.
All-in-one tablets can run full software packages like Photoshop and other editing apps. Since these tablets are stand-alone devices, you can take them with you and create art anywhere you go.
A special all-in-one tablet for digital artists is, for example, the Wacom MobileStudio Pro that is available in different sizes and with different processors. The MobileStudio Pro runs on Windows and offers all the sensitivity features the other pro tablets have.
Other all-in-one tablet options are the iPad, iPad Pro and iPad Air, Microsoft Surface Pro, and Samsung Galaxy Tab.
Wacom MobileStudio Pro
- Vibrant colors and excellent color gamut
- Precise pixel-level positioning, lag-free tracking and no parallax
- Compact dimensions and Wi-Fi connectivity for creative editing on the go
Apple iPad Pro (11-inch)
- Liquid Retina display covering the surface edge-to-edge
- True Tone technology assuring true-to-life color representation
- Excellent brightness rating of 600 cd/m2
Microsoft Surface Pro 7
- Highly portable with 1.7 lbs only and a battery life of up to 10.5 hours
- Integrated stand for comfortable 15-degree drawing angle
- Surface Pen for intuitive drawing separately available
4. Creative Stylus
If you purchase a drawing tablet, there will always be a stylus included in the package. At present, the Wacom Pro Pen 2 is the most sophisticated stylus in the market and is one of the most common tools professional digital artists use. It is supplied with the Intuos and Intuos Pro series as well as with the modern Cintiq and Cintiq Pro models, and the MobileStudio Pro.
The most important feature of a stylus is pressure sensitivity. The higher the pressure sensitivity, the more natural the drawing feel it will provide you with. The Pro Pen 2 comes with a total of 8,192 levels of pressure sensitivity, plus 60 degrees of tilt recognition.
There are different types of styluses that cater to specific editing needs. For example, you can get special airbrush pens, art pens, ballpoint pens, and many more. Before purchasing an additional stylus, make sure that it is compatible with your drawing tablet (→ Wacom Pen Compatibility & Replacement Pens).
If you have a regular all-in-one tablet, like an iPad or a Surface Book, you’ll need to purchase the stylus separately. Many of the pens come with (almost) as good specs as the industry-leading Wacom Pro Pen 2. For example, the Apple Pencil 2 and the Surface Pen both feature high levels pressure and tilt sensitivity.
Wacom Pro Pen 2
- Market-leading stylus for digital creators
- 8,192 levels of pressure sensitivity and up to 60 levels of tilt recognition
- Supplied with a number of standard and soft replacement nibs
Apple Pencil 2
- Pixel-perfect precision for painting, sketching, doodling, and note-taking
- Pressure- and tilt-sensitive for natural drawing feel
- Magnetically attachable to iPad Mini, iPad Pro and iPad Air
Surface Pen
- Pressure and tilt responsiveness for natural drawing experience
- Rubber eraser at the end to quickly undo mistakes
- Four pen colors to choose from
5. High-Quality Monitor
A high-quality monitor is another of the essential tools professional digital artists use to create their artwork.
Why is a high-quality monitor essential? Because not all monitors, especially in the lower price range, are able to provide accurate color representation and high levels of brightness and contrast. However, when it comes to creating digital art, it’s all about picking the right colors and blending them together perfectly.
Moreover, a lot of monitors in the lower price range cannot be calibrated correctly. If your monitor isn’t calibrated, your images may look dark and washed out when viewed on a correctly calibrated screen. Also, if you print your art, the colors of the art print might look dull and dark as a result of an incorrectly calibrated screen.
Another factor that is important to keep in mind is the health factor: as a digital artist, you will spend hours and hours looking at your computer screen! To make your editing sessions as comfortable and as healthy for your eyes as possible, choosing a high-quality monitor is key.
There are specific monitors for artists available, which are factory calibrated and offer industry-standard color coverage. Many of them also come with an included stand that is fully adjustable in terms of swivel, tilt, pivot, and height, so you can set up your workplace just the way you like.
Apple Pro Display XDR 32-Inch
- Best-in-class brightness, contrast, color coverage and accuracy
- Retina 6K Display & NanoTexture Glass for breathtaking image clarity
- Super-wide viewing angle and wide color gamut
EIZO ColorEdge CS2731 27-Inch
- More affordable option that can rival the Apple Pro Display
- Integrated color calibration and heat sensors for automatic color adjustment
- Anti-flicker, anti-glare, wide viewing angles & Shading Hood to minimize fatigue and improve visibility
BenQ EW3280U 4K 32-Inch
- Superb performance, material quality, and reliability
- • Ultra-¬high resolution for true-to-life colors and bright and sharp images
- Eye care technology allowing you to work for long periods of time without fatigue or eye strain
6. Monitor Calibration Device
A monitor calibration device makes sure that color and brightness of your screen are set correctly. Calibrating your monitor is pretty easy and straightforward. All you need to do is place the colorimeter in front of your screen and then the device will run a calibration routine to define the correct color profile for your monitor.
Even if the color balance of your monitor is only slightly off, a calibration device will detect this deviation. Moreover, color representation may be affected by the ambient light. That means even if your monitor is absolutely accurate, but the ambient light is red or yellow, the human eyes perceives the colors on the screen differently.
If you make edits under these circumstances on a non-calibrated monitor, you risk ruining an otherwise perfect image.
That’s why monitor calibration tools are used by professional digital artists who emphasize perfect color accuracy.
X-Rite i1Studio
- Complete kit for calibrating your monitor, camera, etc.
- Adequate for any type of monitor, including laptop displays
- Calibration only takes a few minutes
Calibrite ColorChecker Display Plus
- Built for professional artists and filmmakers
- Built-in light sensor takes ambient lighting into account
- Hands-free design and easy setup for perfect brightness and color balance
Datacolor SpyderX Elite
- Handheld calibration tool with ergonomic shape
- Red light sensor monitors current level of room light
- Easy to install, intuitive interface, and one-click calibration
What apps do professional artists use?
What tools do professional digital artists use in terms of software? There are lots of apps in the market that are tailored to different editing needs, like digital painting, manga and comic art, photography, 3D modeling, and so on. We are going to talk about them in detail later on in this post.
However, when it comes to digital editing in general, Adobe is undoubtedly the industry-leading software in the market. For a couple of years, the Adobe apps that professional artists use are available through the Creative Cloud subscription model starting at US$9.99 per month.
Adobe Photoshop is arguably the most popular editing tool worldwide. The fact that the verb ‘to photoshop something’ has made it into many languages just goes to show how popular it is. So let’s kick off our list of professional software apps with exactly that graphic editor!
Pro Software Tools Used For Digital Art
Adobe Photoshop is the gold standard among professional digital artists. In fact, there are many good reasons why to use Photoshop. If you are not convinced yet, here are 25 reasons why you should get Photoshop.
Photoshop is extremely versatile and used for a wide variety of editing tasks: photo retouching, digital painting, illustration, graphic design, photo manipulation, and many more.
Since Photoshop is available through Adobe’s Creative Cloud, subscribers get automatically access to the respectively latest features. You can choose between three subscription plans that come with additional online storage and allow you to share your creations across all of your devices.
The most affordable option is the Single App plan that gives you access to Photoshop and cloud storage for $9.99 per month. If you have the budget, consider signing up for All Apps plan. With this plan, you’ll get the entire Adobe Suite, including Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, and lots more.
You can start a Free 7-Day Photoshop Trial here to see if you like it.
Adobe also offer a 60% discount for all students and teachers that you can claim here.
If you need help in getting started, check out the free Photoshop tutorials available on this website.
2. Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Illustrator is one of the best programs to create illustrations and vector graphics, including logos, icons, infographics, and more.
The smart pen tool makes it easy to draw smooth lines and curves. The improved Touch Type feature, the simplified Free Transform tool, and the powerful Puppet Warp allow for easy transformations of selected portions. Because Illustrator is a vector editor, all objects and artworks are infinitely scalable without losing quality.
Illustrator is available for Windows, macOS, and the iPad. Just like Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator comes with collaborative editing capability and cloud storage.
Illustrator is slightly more expensive than Photoshop. The annual subscription costs US$20.99 per month. You can also get it with the full Adobe Suite for US$54.99, including Adobe Portfolio, Adobe Fonts, Adobe Spark, and 100GB of Cloud Storage.
Before committing, you can test Adobe Illustrator free for 7 days here without any credit card information required.
Corel Painter is the tool of choice for many professional digital painters. It is used for digital painting, drawing, illustration, manga and anime art.
Corel Painter is able to emulate different natural media, including watercolor, acrylic, and oil. The various brushes are some of the best in the industry. The pinned color wheel that you can place anywhere on the screen makes picking your most used color swatches quick and easy.
Corel Painter isn’t the cheapest. But as opposed to Photoshop, you will get the entire software package for a one-time payment. Updates come at a discounted price, and you will often find the software on sale at a considerable discount.
To see if Corel Painter is right for you, you can start a Free 30-Day Trial here.
Clip Studio Paint is another app for professional digital painters. It is especially popular for manga and comic art, but also other forms of digital painting and drawing.
Clip Studio Paint is very powerful software that makes digital painting feel very natural and intuitive. For example, when you draw a line with the brush tool, it automatically corrects any slight jitter and makes your lines look smooth and even.
Clip Studio Paint is available in two versions: the PRO (standard) version and the fully featured EX (expert) version. And the newly released EX version is now also available on the iPad.
The EX version is substantially more pricey than the PRO version. But if you’re not planning to print out your art on a larger scale, you most likely won’t need the additional features of Clip Studio EX.
Anyway, you can test either version with a Free 30-Day Trial here!
Autodesk Maya is the industry standard when it comes to 3D modeling, animation and design. It is professional software that Maya is used by 3D animators across the globe and is built for feature film production.
It has been used for Oscar-winning films like Spider-Man: Into the SpiderVerse and Avengers: Infinity War. The software allows you to create realistic characters and physically accurate simulations in a single visual programming environment.
Because Maya is a powerhouse of advanced animation features, it is on the pricier side of paid software programs. A monthly subscription cost US$205, while the annual subscription is at US$1,620. To see if the software is a good pick for you, you can test Autodesk Maya free for 30 days!
ZBrush is the most advanced 3D sculpting software out there. It is used to create high-resolution 3D models for movies, video games, and special effects. The software mimics traditional sculpting techniques.
Modeling in ZBrush feels like working with a digital ball of clay that you can shape as if you were working by hand. ZBrush has all the tools you need to quickly sketch out 2D or 3D objects and then render them realistically with lighting and atmospheric effects.
ZBrush is part of Maxon One. You can get a free 14-day trial of ZBrush here, along with Cinema 4D and Redshift, and all other Maxon One apps!
My name is Angie and I’m a self-taught digital artist. On this blog, I am sharing my knowledge and discussing the best software and hardware for different artistic needs. My desire is to offer options for all creative stages and budgets so that everyone can follow their dream and create art!
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