Firstly - I must state my bias
I must first and foremost admit I am biased against 2D art- why you ask- I think it is one of those skills where the difference between the unskilled and skilled is almost too evident. I will admit it is my perception of 2D digital art but with its close links to traditional 2D art- a part of me feels it almost unfair to ask a beginner to pick up a 2D painting program and say "you'll can become great too!" and let them tinker unguided.
Greatness is not Impossible
Of course you can become great with hard work and determination etc but I would recommend 3D art more openly than 2D digital art. A beginner in 3D art has the ability to put aside their lack of traditional art skill and utilise pre-made 3D models- while what I find in 2D Art is that if your eyes and hands are not speaking the same language you will struggle.
As resources, 2D digital art offers you brushes and palettes for your own art but you will still have to master the art of proportions in your characters, perspective in scenes, master how to create lighting effects and realism- there are just so many things to master!
In my opinion and experience to truly begin your quest in 2D digital art at some point you will have to pop open a traditional art book start at page 1, with pencil and paper in hand, and hope you will remember those techniques!
2D Digital Art is hard work
With this said I believe that if you have the grit to tackle traditional art you are half way to mastering 2D digital art - you will have to have the same drive in order to find tutorials on 2D digital art to improve your skills the same way you have to practice drawing. The free brushes that master painters sometimes give out will have you moving leaps and bounds in terms of getting your painting right but it is no where near the substitute that you can find in 3D.
The Payoff
But why shouldn't you just ditch 2D art and focus on 3D art- because of casual games my dear friends. The casual gaming industry uses a lot of 2D art for game creation- all those Hidden Object games, Match -3, even Mania and Dash games- the use of 3D models is limited - so much so that often they use realistic looking 2D art in the place of real 3D models.
It all happens behind closed doors- in order to create the volume (game franchises) and keep the consistent quality of their games, companies can not afford to hire 3D modelers like console gaming companies can- for one thing their production time is shorter and 3D modeling isn't the quickest of jobs. A 2D artist can whack out consistent artworks regularly every day.
2D Artists also don't need too much in order to get going- for one thing apart from Photoshop or Corel Painter and perhaps a graphics tablet there isn't much else for a set up. While in 3D if you want the best results a company might have to shell out money for separate modeling, UV mapping and rendering software just to get the results they want.
I would put it to you that now- in this economic downturn- this is one of the best times to be a 2D artist- especially a self-powered one- showcasing your art in your casual game.
Skill after a while does not diminish- once you have nailed the techniques of 2D art you will be able to approach any 2D painting software and at least land on your feet- with 3D, we rely on the ability of the software provided to a certain extent- be it to have faster results or better results.
I must first and foremost admit I am biased against 2D art- why you ask- I think it is one of those skills where the difference between the unskilled and skilled is almost too evident. I will admit it is my perception of 2D digital art but with its close links to traditional 2D art- a part of me feels it almost unfair to ask a beginner to pick up a 2D painting program and say "you'll can become great too!" and let them tinker unguided.
Greatness is not Impossible
Of course you can become great with hard work and determination etc but I would recommend 3D art more openly than 2D digital art. A beginner in 3D art has the ability to put aside their lack of traditional art skill and utilise pre-made 3D models- while what I find in 2D Art is that if your eyes and hands are not speaking the same language you will struggle.
As resources, 2D digital art offers you brushes and palettes for your own art but you will still have to master the art of proportions in your characters, perspective in scenes, master how to create lighting effects and realism- there are just so many things to master!
In my opinion and experience to truly begin your quest in 2D digital art at some point you will have to pop open a traditional art book start at page 1, with pencil and paper in hand, and hope you will remember those techniques!
2D Digital Art is hard work
With this said I believe that if you have the grit to tackle traditional art you are half way to mastering 2D digital art - you will have to have the same drive in order to find tutorials on 2D digital art to improve your skills the same way you have to practice drawing. The free brushes that master painters sometimes give out will have you moving leaps and bounds in terms of getting your painting right but it is no where near the substitute that you can find in 3D.
The Payoff
But why shouldn't you just ditch 2D art and focus on 3D art- because of casual games my dear friends. The casual gaming industry uses a lot of 2D art for game creation- all those Hidden Object games, Match -3, even Mania and Dash games- the use of 3D models is limited - so much so that often they use realistic looking 2D art in the place of real 3D models.
It all happens behind closed doors- in order to create the volume (game franchises) and keep the consistent quality of their games, companies can not afford to hire 3D modelers like console gaming companies can- for one thing their production time is shorter and 3D modeling isn't the quickest of jobs. A 2D artist can whack out consistent artworks regularly every day.
2D Artists also don't need too much in order to get going- for one thing apart from Photoshop or Corel Painter and perhaps a graphics tablet there isn't much else for a set up. While in 3D if you want the best results a company might have to shell out money for separate modeling, UV mapping and rendering software just to get the results they want.
I would put it to you that now- in this economic downturn- this is one of the best times to be a 2D artist- especially a self-powered one- showcasing your art in your casual game.
Skill after a while does not diminish- once you have nailed the techniques of 2D art you will be able to approach any 2D painting software and at least land on your feet- with 3D, we rely on the ability of the software provided to a certain extent- be it to have faster results or better results.
