I've use zBrush ,Maxon for Textures but don't think there the best for 2D Art.

I do have gimp it's a lot of fun but not a lot of fillters and don't think it suports fillter forge,topaz.

I mainly need a 2D app that I can play in and get specail effects.

I don't care about realism as you can tell buy my renderosity gallery.
I mainly go for some kind of painted / cartoon orginal look.

This is mainly just for fun so photoshop is a bit much for fun and I don't have a $1000 for it.

So what 2D App do you use & does it have cool fillters for 2D Art ?

Thanks

Not seriously used it yet in anger but the autopaint function in Painter springs to mind as a possibility (lot of money for a paint effect though).

If you're after a cheep program with interesting filters then CameraBag 2 could be useful. Quite a few pre-set filter effects that can be adjusted with sliders, and the usual array of editing functions.

CameraBag 2

I use Paint.net, I like it.  Its got a lot of plugins.

You can use Photoshop for $20/month.  https://creative.adobe.com/plans

In march C4D was 50% off.
I missed it ,( insert cussing here ,a lot of cussing )
$20.00 Photoshop ? OK I can beleave in Santa again
topazlabs are some of my fav fillters made for Photoshop.

Project Dog Waffle is very cool. The current version is like $99 but you can buy some of the earlier versons for like $10. It has some very cool brushes and filters. It has a very painterly (is that a word?) feel to it.

I'm using paint shop pro. It isn't what it once was but it can use most of the plugins for photoshop.

Manga Studio 5, Clip Studio EX and sometimes Photoshop. I don't use filters.

CS2, Corel Painter 9.

"Waiting for Otto"

Yeah, I know weird looking woman... Inspired partly by looking a lot at the paintings of the german expressionist Otto Dix and just a general interest in the period, and ummm, Crepax's Valentina I suppose. Strange but my photoshop paintings are very much unlike my actual painted work, I think I'm looser and have a softer approach with photoshop.

A great tool for 3D texturing and as a vehicle for expression in itself. Nice to take a break from 3d or 3d bound stuff every once in a while.
I use filters.

I own Painter 11 and 12 but haven't found much use for them.  Nice work.

Thanks Teyon. Painter is great for emulating impasto techniques... Really requires that you utilize a stylus and tablet though. I use PS more frequently.

Nice .jpg Primorge.

Fotosketcher

www.fotosketcher.com

It's a stand-alone program which will apply various arty filters to an image. I like it because you can run a filter at certain settings, then change the settings and paint over a particular area of the image to get exactly the effect you want, where you want it.

Another vote here for Project Dogwaffle. Inexpensive, powerful, loads of tutorials, fun to use, works great with my Intuos tablet.

Old copy of Paint Shop Pro 9.01 and optikVerve Labs' virtual Photographer.

http://www.optikvervelabs.com/default.asp

The piugin is fun and easy to use.  Haven't tried their 'Studio' software yet because I'm still using PSP. 

Be Well,
Rªnce

I love Photoshop Elements. It has a lot of filters and you can use a lot of third party filters with it.

If you buy additionaly ElementsXXL you unlock a lot of functions, that are normally available in PS only.

Postworkshop 3 64 bit by Xycod.

The only 2d app I've found that actually approximates oil and watercolor look without multiple actions and fiddling.

Klebnor

FotoSketcher.

paintshop 4 - yep that old! Though I know all the shortcuts and can literally make art by the keyboard. Plus gimp and some very limited photoshop. filterwise - alienskin and a few freebies like, optik verve. .

I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned the Sketch Designer in poser itself...

It can work, but takes a bit of fiddling.  I find I usually combine a sketch render with a plain render - this is the pure sketch render with some custom settings; I was mainly trying to get a setting which created outlines.  I don't really understand it, these settings were arrived at pretty much by chance!

I haven't played around with it too extensively, I do have some nice presets for it that I got ages ago as freebies at animotions I think. Content Paradise sells some presets for it, too.

I imagine in terms of concise line work you could use its output as a foundation and then clean it up in an image editor. I've gotten some striking looking results with just random experimentation... I don't really understand it at this point either. I think it has underappreciated potential though. I will say that the hatching or half-toning is a little difficult to control.

You've been using the sketch designer in the process for your more comic style work paul? I was wondering what you were using for your outlining... There's so many different ways of doing it (cartoon shaders/ edge blend, PS plug-ins, PS actions, etc). Anyway, you seem to be getting pretty good results with it which makes me want to do some more experimentation.

Since you already have GIMP, why not download some photoshop brushes that were converted for it? There are quite a few sites offering them if you do a google search.

http://www.gimpinfo.org/addons/brush/

This is just one of them. There are quite a few others out there.

...PaintShop pro too, for compatible brushes, pretty certain that they can be imported into Gimp. Or just create custom ones from grayscale images.

Quote - Since you already have GIMP, why not download some photoshop brushes that were converted for it? There are quite a few sites offering them if you do a google search.

http://www.gimpinfo.org/addons/brush/

This is just one of them. There are quite a few others out there.

The problem is company's that makes plugs for $$$ don't suport Gimp.
so far TopazLabs are my fav fillters & there only around $30.00 a fillter
,but can't use them in Gimp.

Hmmm, filters are plug-ins so maybe the free PSPI plug-in for Gimp would allow you to utilize PS plugs in Gimp? You wouldn't know if the PS plug-in were compatible until you tested it, so there is the risk of wasting money. Anyway...

http://graphicssoft.about.com/od/gimptutorials/ss/Photoshop-Plugins-In-Gimp_2.htm

Have you become a member at the Gimp Plugin Registry?

Edit... Did some searching on the subject and it's looking like many people are using the Topaz plugs within Gimp by using the PSPI plug-in. Looks like the solution to your query.

Using Corel Photopaint 9 and 15 as well as Photoshop 7. However, if you're really looking for that "painted art" feel, these two standalone/Photoshop compatible plugin programs are heads above the rest:

GMX Photopainter

and

Akvis Artwork

when dealing with pro cartoonists svl. yrs ago, I learnt that if one hopes filter or computer-generated background will improve toon, that means said toon should be deleted. keep trying until you get one that don't need help IMVHO.  maybe buy poser - it can do nice toons with no filters needed.  rule of thumb with poser render: most APS toon postwork filters gonna make it look worse.

Do you have Poser, RorrKonn?

Just wondering...

"I learnt that if one hopes filter or computer-generated background will improve toon, that means said toon should be deleted."

Can't remember the last time I heard of non-computer assisted hand color separations or hand painted coloring (that didn't end up digitized) in the print media bound comics. Photoshop and the like are the industry standard process for coloring comic work for probably the past two decades. The original line-work art is scanned and then lettered and colored within an image editor (generally PS/Illustrator), it's as simple as that.

...hell even the inking is done in a computer in many cases.

actually, another vote for Gimp. There was plugin for making Gimp do Photoshop, though some say dodgy plugin. Have seen many at another web site, can't give name, but initials are D A.

When doing cartoon, and tried before, have tried 'posterize' setting from Gimp. Has look, sorta...;)

Very cool that Gimp has Topaz.

I have Poser but If I was converting 3D to 2D.
I would use zBrush and or Topaz.

I'm wanting more of a look like "Beloved" & "So shall it be" in my Renderosity gallery.
They are pencil drawing ,scaned to PC.
Colored in gimp with pencil tool,smudge tool.
Topazed.

I just made for fun.
I don't know a lot about 2D & a lot of 2D Tools I don't care about.
Since I was a Artist be for home PC's

I've never seen a shader,plug or anything auto matic black ink look anything like what's hand drawn on PC's or Paper.

I would think who ever makes that plug,shader will send a big ripple threw Marvel ,DC and all of that style studio's.

Quote - I've never seen a shader,plug or anything auto matic black ink look anything like what's hand drawn on PC's or Paper.

I would think who ever makes that plug,shader will send a big ripple threw Marvel ,DC and all of that style studio's.

I'd buy it!

Rendo must have changed their post image size limitations, these are clocking in at 400k. downsized from HUGE files.

As you can see, I've already done the Naked Chick thing... Probably why I'm not that impressed with naked PoserWomen renders, I mean I actually used to Draw this crap. Not to mention sculpt in three dimensions with clay...

Sorry for the sorta OT, just that I don't really share to much of my work on Rendo for various reasons... Working on my own web site where I'll have all of my work from the past 2 decades though. I will say that as awesome as CG is I think one of its stumbling blocks is its lack of limitations, at least for me art-making is always a process of compromise in the face of limitations and saying "well that'll have to be good enough". With Undo and so many real word simulation models it's easy to get lost in all of the minutiae and noodle around forever. Maybe this is only a phenomena of Poser, and utilizing pre-made content... Creating everything from scratch is certainly a different beast (trying to build my skills on that level, but damn, so much tech... and I'm an old man now).

...Hope those Topaz plugs work out for you in Gimp, RorrKonn. Off to work.

Paul I'd be first in line for a ink plug. for every .jpg I have posted I have 20 versions unposted.
I'm not all that great at inking.

Primorge How about posting your homesite URL ?
& with .jpgs that look that good fell free to sorta OT any time.

Sure, I'm going to add a link to the site as my signature when it's complete. Still have to format about 20 images I guess. It's just a Weebly site but I'm pretty happy with the way it's turning out and my more explicit work is linked out from there to Imgur (which I think is just a brilliant image hosting service and totally progressive, the best). Being careful not to violate Weebly's TOS. I've been looking at Blogger.com, too. Might do something with that after the Weebly site is finished.

Thought about the whole DA thing but after reading all of the TOS and fine print, ummm, no thanks.

Anyone know how to add an image that's a link to the signature line? I see others have done this for various links but I'm really not seeing a way to do it...

Quote - Sure, I'm going to add a link to the site as my signature when it's complete. Still have to format about 20 images I guess. It's just a Weebly site but I'm pretty happy with the way it's turning out and my more explicit work is linked out from there to Imgur (which I think is just a brilliant image hosting service and totally progressive, the best). Being careful not to violate Weebly's TOS. I've been looking at Blogger.com, too. Might do something with that after the Weebly site is finished.

Thought about the whole DA thing but after reading all of the TOS and fine print, ummm, no thanks.

Anyone know how to add an image that's a link to the signature line? I see others have done this for various links but I'm really not seeing a way to do it...

at the bar on top of this page that has HOME MARKETPLACE etc etc FORUMS
on Forums drop down go to my fourm options 3rd down

once on my forums option page
just type ya signature
hilight what you want to link
or it will not work.
at top leftish ya see a chain link.
new little window pops up
just incert URL
Second target drop down line ya can have open in new page.

Thanks for the info man.