ArtPlantae Today

There is no shortage of drawing, sketching and painting apps for iPads, iPhones and other gadgets. Which apps are the best? Which will help you draw, paint and match colors in a way resembling how you work with pencil, paper and paint?

Today I want to bring attention to a selection of apps created by Adobe and, specifically, to the interesting series of videos published last month about creating botanical illustrations on mobile devices.

Broadcasting from The Creative Cloud Classroom, instructor Mike McHugh demonstrates how to use Adobe’s Creative Cloud products to turn a botanical drawing into a finished painting. The products he demonstrates are Adobe Ideas (sketching), Adobe Kuler (color matching) and Adobe Illustrator CC (painting).

The color-matching app Adobe Kuler is especially interesting. Many of you are familiar with the color chart by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). Well, Adobe Kuler essentially functions like the digital version of the RHS color chart. This interesting app enables you to point your iPhone camera or iPad camera at a subject and instantly establish a color palette. It is fascinating to watch it work.

Now, in just these two paragraphs I have laid the foundation for some very lengthy discussion. I know a discussion like this can turn into as heated a debate as those about religion and politics. My objective today is not to stir the pot, but to share thoughts. To facilitate the sharing of opinions, I created a short survey where opinions can be cast as anonymous clicks. If you would like to post more extensive commentary, please feel free to do so in the Comment box below. All I ask is that you keep passionate commentary friendly.

Before you visit the anonymous survey, take a moment to view the wonderful tutorials in Adobe’s Creative Cloud Classroom. Each video runs about 12 minutes. Here are the links:

Botanical Illustration #1
In this video, viewers learn how to trace a photograph using Adobe Ideas.

Botanical Illustration #2
Viewers learn how to work with Adobe Kuler to create a color palette.

Botanical Illustration #3
Viewers learn how to transfer files to a desktop computer and use
Adobe Illustrator CC to finish the painting.

Also See
Adobe Touch Apps for iPhone and iPad. Adobe Ideas and Adobe Kuler are FREE.