Making It Ep. 6: Procreate! (Patreon)

EDIT: Sorry friends! I fired the article off a little early on accident, here’s the article with all the fixin’s. Enjoy!

Hello, my darling patrons and friends, and welcome to the sixth episode of the Making It monthly series, where I take you step-by-step through how I make important pieces of my freelance art business.

Throughout the series I’ll be sharing how I make my handmade earrings, enamel pins, custom portraits, process videos, stickers, product photography, and more, so you can be empowered to try making a new product or adding new techniques to your own process.

For this sixth episode, I’ll be sharing my process for Drawing in Procreate!

A few projects I've made completely with Procreate.

Procreate is a raster drawing app for the iPad, similar to (the way many use) Adobe Photoshop on desktop. From what I understand: Procreate is nowhere near as powerful as Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator, but thanks to it's intuitive UX/UI (gesture controls rather than keyboard commands), accessibility (need just an iPad and stylus to use, rather than a separate tablet and computer,) and cheaper price (one-time $10 purchase compared to Adobe's $10/month subscription model) Procreate has been skyrocketing in popularity and is definitely a contender for a great digital drawing platform.

I came to Procreate in 2018. Two weeks after I quit my job to pursue my art career, my Macbook Pro from college died completely. Ain't that just the way. Since I was tight on funds and couldn't afford both a new computer and a tablet, I decided to buy an 11-inch iPad Pro and use that as my computer until I could afford an upgrade.

Clockwise from top left: MS Paint 2008, borrowing Zach's Cintiq and Photoshop 2017, First Procreate drawing 2018, and finally two years of drawing on Procreate 2020.

And while I don't recommend an iPad as a computer replacement unless you have absolutely no choice (do I even have to say that?) using Procreate to learn to draw digitally was probably the biggest boost to my illustration career right out the gate. I'd noodled with Photoshop on Zach's Cintiq, and in middle school I would use my mouse to painstakingly draw on Microsoft Paint, but beyond that I never put in the time to get comfortable with the tools to draw digitally. Procreate immediately felt comfortable and fast, and without digital drawing I think my career would have taken much longer to grow to the point it's at now.

Since then I've used Procreate for nearly everything in my art career:

• Personal illustration and prints
• Stickers
• Ragonia logos and business cards
• Enamel pins
• Custom portraits
• Tissue paper design
• Washi tape
• Marketing material
• Animations
• And currently illustrating a whole book!

Sometimes I have to use it in conjunction with other apps for things like vector designs (Affinity Designer), layouts (a shitty free app called Photo Collage), and photo editing (Snapseed). There are other limits to its capabilities, but the Procreate team seems to be making constant progress on it, and I don't plan on moving to another program any time soon.

This Making It article is going to be all about how I most often illustrate on Procreate, including my favorite tricks, techniques, and processes. And I only know Procreate, but I'm positive a lot of these techniques could translate well to other drawing programs!

So let's get to making art in Procreate!

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Steps in my 'screen printing' style process: Rough sketch, refined sketch, color sketch, big color shapes, refining smaller shapes.

P  R  O  C  E  S  S

+ Reference! If I took a reference photo of myself, I most often upload the photo into the art file, put it in the corner and turn down the opacity so I can see my drawing more clearly.

I also always hide the photo and redraw the sketch without looking at the photo, to further stylize the design and move it further away from the reference.

Two other ways to pull up reference that I sometimes use: Procreate's new reference companion or iOS's split screen capability with either Safari or Photos pulled up!

+ Sketch! I always start with a rough sketch layer to help arrange and visualize how I want the final design to look. I usually use the Evolve brush or a 6B pencil brush in a black or dark blue, keeping the size fairly big so I don't get too noodle-y. Typically I work in big shapes with line art, but if a design isn't working or I want to try something different I'll use a bigger brush and paint big shapes instead, and design from that.

While in the sketch phase I often will use the selection tool (I call it lasso) to quickly circle certain parts of the drawing and rotate, rescale, or otherwise adjust, not being too worried about cleaning it up afterward. If I want to try a few different options, I'll lasso the part and copy and paste it to a new layer so I can experiment further.

If I'm having a hard time sketching at full size I will draw some tiny thumbnails to encourage myself to design quickly for the overall composition. Once I have a thumbnail I like, I lasso tool around the winner, copy and paste it to a new layer, and scale it to fill the page.

With the thumbnail image enlarged, I turn down the opacity on that layer, and draw a slightly more refined sketch on another layer, with the thumbnail layer as a guide.

Basically, I work in more and more refined sketches until I think the design is working clearly enough for a final.

+ Rough Color! Before moving on to the final I usually make a rough color plan. Typically I'll make a new layer underneath the sketch layer and very quickly block in big color shapes. Almost always the feel of the pieces changes drastically with color and solid forms (rather than just line work), so this is also a technique to check that the composition is working.

+ Final Drawing! Once I have a sketch and color plan that I like I merge all that I can and delete the rest, unless I think I may need to change my mind and go back to a different option. (Kaila asked about bad habits: I think it's that I merge and delete layers too quickly, instead of saving them for possible use later.)

I then turn down the opacity (usually 5-10% visibility) on the sketch layer, add a new layer, and place it underneath the sketch layer.

From there I start doing the final illustration. Typically I use a brush to outline the big shapes, and either use the ColorDrop function to fill the outlined shape or color in the outline with a bigger brush scale. I mention this in the video, but I often use the ColorDrop function as it's easier on my wrists than the coloring motion.

So I usually first outline and fill the biggest color shapes, making new layers and arranging as necessary. Then I make another layer at the top (underneath the sketch layer) and do the linework, and repeat the process until the art is awesome!

+ Screen print-style technique! I've been playing with a fun technique inspired by printmaking lately. A quick explanation is: have a separate layer for each color, set each layer blend mode to Multiply, and have fun carving and layering the colors and shapes together! You can see this technique in my most recent HP Holiday stickers process video!

+ Finalize! To finalize I organize and name my layers, merging what I can, and deleting what I don't need anymore. If there are any distinct sets of layers I organize them with named groups. If I remember I also lock all layers, and go over the whole piece at a close and far scale, looking for any errant marks or mistakes. I need to be better about this, as I've accidentally left some random marks in a final piece a few times.

My two most often used color palettes: Ragonia and Pantone Colors.

C  O  L  O  R

+ Color palette! Honestly here's my color palette story: In 2018 I took a day or two to develop a color palette because I was tired of my art not looking like 'me'. I gathered reference images of interior design pictures that I loved, and built a couple options for palettes, tweaking and adjusting as I went. I landed on a palette that I liked and pretty much have used it for everything since.

Basically I just made a color palette inspired by design photos (not art or illustration) that I liked, adjusted so they visually worked together, and have used that since. So I don't have to start from scratch for each piece.

Adjusting my color palette: much brighter blues in 2018 (on left), toned down blues in 2020 (on right.)

+ Pantone! Occasionally I've had to make a tweak to the palette: early on I realized my blue color was WAY too bright on my Instagram, like neon-burn-your-eyeballs bright, and I adjusted that. I've also most recently tweaked the colors as clients have asked for Pantone matches for printing, so I've adjusted the colors to be closer to those.

Since then I've been trying to re-develop my color palette for more accurate printing based on Pantone colors. This is still in progress!

+ Limited color palette! I love to work with limited color palettes. I typically work with 2-4 colors at most per piece, and treat the balancing of those colors throughout the composition like a puzzle. The most variation in my limited color palette comes from when I adjust the blend modes on the layers, so the colors interact with each other in interesting ways. That, and when I make portraits I'm typically more flexible with the number of colors used, but even then I try to re-use colors throughout the piece.

'Spotlight' yellow on left, even distribution of color on right.

+ Color distribution! As part of that 'color puzzle', I have a rule I implicitly give myself while I'm drawing: to never have a color used in only one place in a piece. Unless the color is used singularly, as a spotlight, for symbolism or to direct the eye.

I think a good example of spotlighting color is my Cat Mask 2019 Inktober piece, where all of the bright yellow is concentrated on the head, but the color is used for both the hair and the mask. If I had added yellow to the dress or the background the effect would have been muddled.

Muddled values on left, the pinks and reds are too close in value to the green. Much clearer values on the right.

+ Values check! A quick tip for checking the values of the colors in your drawing: add a layer at the top, fill the layer with black, and change the blend mode to "Saturation". Boom, your drawing is black and white and you can make sure the values of your colors are reading clearly! If neighboring colors are too similar shades of grey with this trick, the values are probably too close and are hard to read!

(Zach asked me to note that colors are not JUST about values, contrast and saturation also play a big role. But checking your values can help strengthen your colors regardless.)

Examples of three layer blend modes: Normal, Multiply, and Hard Light.

+ Layer blend modes! These fun filters change the way the colors in your layers interact with other layers, and I highly recommend doing some experimentation with them. My favorite layer blend modes are Overlay, Multiply, and Hard Light, but I have a lot of fun testing out different options while I work with some surprising and cool effects.

My project organization stacks on my Procreate.

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+ File set up! Color: Use RGB for digital/web, like social media posts, Patreon/Youtube/Twitch graphics, etc. Use CMYK for print media, like prints, business cards, stickers, etc. More on why here!

Size: If there's a specific size I need for a product, like portraits, business cards, prints, etc. then I draw at exactly that size. For portraits, that's usually 5x7", 8x8", or 8x10". If I don't know what size I need, I draw at a larger scale than necessary. For really big designs (that Verizon mural) I sketch at a smaller scale on Procreate and then do the final art on a Vector program called Affinity Designer.

DPI: Dots per inch, always at least 300 dpi, sometimes 400-600. More on size and DPI here.

+ Project Organization! Every month or two I organize my Procreate files into named stacks. Another of my bad habits that I'm just now breaking is working on multiple projects in the same file (yikes), and then not even naming the layers or file. So for a while, I had to open each and every file and click through the layers to see what was in the project, and I'd have two enamel pin designs and three Instagram posts in the same file that I almost deleted. Don't be like me, keep your projects separate, named, and organized.

+ Layer Organization! I'm working on this! I'm getting better at naming and organizing my layers, locking them when they're finished or not in use, cleaning up stray marks, and drawing in the correct layer, and grouping layers based on design elements. The better I get at this, the faster and cleaner I can work.

+ Save and Back up! I usually save my final pieces as a PNG in my Photos and Google Drive for less important drawings, as a PDF in my Drive for more important pieces, and as a PDF and Procreate backup in my drive for very important clients and unfinished pieces. I make a lot of art, so I make sure to save ALL my final drawings as at least PNGs in my Drive, but I don't keep many back ups of the working files unless they're client work in progress or otherwise important.

My most used brushes with examples.

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+ Fave brushes! Probably 95% of the questions I got about Procreate are what brushes I use! I definitely go through phases and use different brushes for different types of projects, so I'll share some of my favorites here, roughly in order of how frequently I use them right now, and what I use them for:

• Evolve (Drawing) - sketching, linework, lettering, everything
• Freycinet (Drawing) - textured color blocks and shapes, eraser tool for a carved look
• Hard Airbrush/Hard Blend (Airbrushing) - Erasing big blocks cleanly, clean linework and shapes. Also for very even lettering.
• Nikko Rull (Painting) - text mostly, also good textural linework
• Dry Ink  (Inking) - textural shapes and cutesier, puffy linework, texture and shading
• Script (Calligraphy) - wonkier lettering, wonkier linework and shapes (since it response more to pressure)
• 6B Pencil (Sketching) - sketching, textural coloring, texture and shading, things like noses and cheeks on portraits.
• Medium Nozzle (Spraypaints) - big textural and shading blocks, blend modes.
• Bonus! Max Ulichney's Watercolor Max Pack - The only Procreate brush set I've bought, and I'll probably buy his other packs in the future. Fun traditional brushes with a bit of a learning curve.

+ Settings! I know people get all into their brush settings, but I generally just stick with the default settings. The only thing I adjust is the Pressure Curve, depending on how much variation I want in my linework. Often I'd find myself wanting to have a pretty consistently heavy linework, so I'd be pressing hard ALL the TIME, which was absolutely terrible for my wrist. By adjusting the pressure curve I made sure I didn't have to press too hard to get an even line.

The other adjustment I make sometimes is to the streamline setting of my brushes. If I'm going for very smooth or clean lines and edges, I turn up the streamline setting on the brush.

My long hours procreate drawing set up: a hard pillow to raise up my iPad, a pencil grip, and artist glove.

T  O  O  L  S  /   T  I  P  S

+ Straight line/perfect circles! Draw a line and hold at end of line, without lifting pencil. Line will automatically straighten. Same with circles, draw a circle without lifting pen and hold, tap edit shape at top to turn your ellipse into a circle.

+ Alpha lock! Swipe right with two fingers to lock the layer's transparency. I use this tool to change the color of the layer, and to draw patterns on designs, and to apply textures.

+ Composition check! To get a different perspective on your drawing, head to Settings, Canvas, and then tap 'Flip canvas horizontally' to mirror your design. This can expose some errors and uneven composition elements you might not have noticed. I'll often flip my canvas a few times throughout the process, adjust while it's flipped, then flip back to the original.

+ Drawing guides! Love these suckers, especially for centering my illustration, making sure the composition is balanced, providing bleed and trim space for prints, and for keeping my lettering relatively even.

+ Comfy working! Full-time job drawing on Procreate! To stay comfy and healthy drawing for hours every day I do a couple of things:

• Big fat Apple Pencil Grippy! Make the pencil bigger for finger and wrist comfort!
• Artist glove! Make or buy a glove to help your hand slide around easier! I find my wrist is much more comfortable when I draw with a glove because my hand doesn't get caught on the screen.
• Raise it up! I raise my iPad up on a pillow for long projects to keep my neck from crunching and keep me from hunching over and hurting my lower back. I find the angle is also better for my wrists.
• Keep it clean! Wipe down my iPad screen regularly, it gets a little dirty from finger oils after a while and can interrupt the pencil's effectiveness, which is very frustrating.
• Take breaks! Yes!! Stretch your back, neck, hands and wrists every 20-30 minutes, take a lunch and dinner break, stand up and walk around or do a child's pose, spend some time looking at something far away. Don't draw every single day, take days off as if drawing were a workout routine. See my Arty Business article on Healthy Artist Body! At the very least, make yourself do some wrist, shoulder, and neck rolls every once in a while. But seriously, protect your greatest tools!

Another example of my process for a finished illustration, showing my sketch phase, color pass, multiply layer for shading (I turned down the opacity after this step), and final linework.

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R  E  S  O  U  R  C  E  S

• Procreate's Handbook - Excellent guide by Procreate themselves
• Procreate Forum - lots of discussion on tips, questions, resources
• 10 Essential Procreate Tips - Shutterstock article on tips
• Digital Illustration: Learn to Procreate - Jarom Vogel for Skillshare (Great course! I learned so much from this.)
• Max Ulichney's Max Pack Brushes - In case you want to expand your traditional  brush collection!
• My Procreate Process Video Tag here on Patreon, goes all the way back to March 2018 when I first got Procreate!
• How I Use Procreate - Cheyenne Barton Youtube vlog and Process Video
• Procreate Workshop - Making Art on the iPad! - Bardot Brush tutorial video
• Procreate Watercolor Tutorial - Max Ulichney Process video with his Watercolor brushes!

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I hope you found this insight into my Procreate illustration process helpful, especially in conjunction with my process videos! Just writing this article made me feel inspired to experiment and learn even more about Procreate's capabilities and tools, so I hope it made you feel the same!

Did I miss anything? I'm an open book about my art process, so please don't hesitate to leave a comment if you have any further questions or requests on the topic.

And nooooow, tell me about how you use Procreate (or your favorite digital drawing tool!) Any hot tips, cool new techniques, or favorite resources? What brushes and layer blend modes are your favorite? Do you have a digital piece you're particularly proud of, or maybe your first ever digital piece? Either pop into the comments or share on the Community page here! (And don't forget to introduce yourself there and say hi to your new buds, if you haven't yet!)

I look forward to hearing what you think and seeing your awesome digital illustration pieces!

Xoxo, Ragon