My old tablet drawings looked flat until I found a free brush pack

I was cleaning my computer and found a folder from two years ago with my first digital art. The characters looked like paper cutouts with no depth. Last month, I downloaded a free brush set called 'Inktober Essentials' and tried it on a city scene. The texture brushes added grit to the bricks and made the rain look real, not just blue lines. What's a simple tool that made your art look way better?

4 comments

4 Comments

beth_park1mo ago

Disagree completely. Chasing new brushes is how you avoid learning the basics. My old stuff looked flat because I didn't understand light and form, not because of my tools. I spent years downloading packs instead of practicing. The free brush just puts a fancy texture over weak drawing. The simple tool that made my art better was turning off all the special effects and using one basic round brush for a year. It forced me to actually learn how to paint.

lewis.brian1mo ago

Totally used to be that person collecting brushes like they were magic. Hearing you say that makes it click how much it was just a way to avoid the hard work. Sticking with one simple brush sounds like the real fix.

fiona_carr261mo ago

Yeah, turning off all the special effects was the game changer for me too.

johnson.river1d ago

Oh man, this is so true. @lewis.brian I think you're onto something with the whole brush collection thing (I was guilty of that too, honestly). But yeah, stripping it all back to one basic round brush really forces you to figure out the actual fundamentals, like lighting and values. The fancy textures just hide the weak parts of your drawing, you know? I did a whole year with just a hard round and a soft round brush, and that's when my art actually started getting better. It's like learning to cook with just salt and pepper before you start adding all the exotic spices.