'puter Art advice wanted

[Geoff_N]

As a schoolkid I actually made money flogging my poster paint and acrylic paint seascapes and still life to teachers and friend's parents. I'd like to say that girls would queue for nude portraits but they must have realized that the human form wasn't my strongest skills.

Anyway, while my story and novel selling is in a nadir I thought I ought to catch up with graphics. I have paintshop pro v9 but although it's OK for touching up photos, removing redeye, turning rectangle pictures into spheres and other funny stuff, it is as user-friendly as a bike with no handlebars for free hand drawing, and my favourite activity, colouring in.

Whenever I ask professional artists what they use, it is often Adobe Photoshop. When I look it up I find there is CS3, Elements, Extended, Lightoom, etc arrgggh! I also find that some folk reckon its not much different to Paint Shop Pro.

Then I discover Corel Painter, which is much cheaper, but also a nearer simulator to real life painting.

What I'm hoping for is to design book cover art for my science fiction and fantasy novels and stories.

I'd be very obliged for any advce.

Geoff

[Ed]

The only graphics prog I've ever used with any success is Photoshop, and the great thing about it is there are plenty of online tutorials you can look at to learn how to do various effects. You can also download brushes, layer effects and actions, etc.

It's also quite adaptable. You can use it for everything from editing your photographs to freehand sketching. There are also huge communities of people who use it that you can consult if you get stuck any time.

To buy it costs an arm and a leg, but I think you'll find about 90% of the people online who use it... ahem... didn't buy it

[Geoff_N]

Thanks, Ed.
My wife is a teech and so is entitled to legal discounted software. She can buy Photoshop CS3 for about £70, which is, I believe about a third the RRP.

I might get Corel Painter anyway cos its only around £30