Sketching with an iPad

In the course of urban sketching or life drawing, I am often approached by the curious who are fascinated by my choice of medium.

“Is that an iPad?” is often followed by “What app are you using?”

I’ve even been asked a few times, “You can draw on an iPad, but can you draw on paper?”

I thought it would be good to post some questions I am often asked, along with my replies. For those who want the really short version, here's the essential information:

I've found that the combination of iPad Air + Procreate + Intuos Creative Stylus = creative awesomeness!

Is that an iPad?

Why yes it is. I use an iPad Air and love it for many reasons. After getting used to the feel of the rubbery stylus nib gliding over glass, the lines between mediums disappear. 

What app are you using?

My app of choice is Procreate. 

I have tried many art apps for the iPad including Sketchbook Pro, Sketch Club, Art Rage, Inspire Pro and Brushes. They all have their pluses and minuses, but Procreate is the only app that, to me at least, makes drawing and sketching natural and efficient. 

What are you using to draw with?

I am currently using Wacom’s Intuos Creative Stylus. (My review on it is here.) 

I used to use Ten One Design’s Pogo Connect with my iPad 3, but it does not work with the iPad Air due to hardware differences that can’t seem to be fixed. I got the Creative Stylus shortly after I found that the Pogo Connect would only make chicken scratches with my iPad Air. The Creative Stylus is an amazing tool! The only thing I’m not so happy about is that the rubber nibs wear out very quickly. (Are you listening, Wacom?) But pencils need to be sharpened, and pens, paint and paper get used up… I chalk up the occasional purchase of nibs to materials I need to replace every now and then. 

The Intuos Creative Stylus comes in a great solid case, complete with space for spare nibs (you get 2 extras with purchase) and a slot for a AAAA spare battery.

Do you use your finger?

I could use my finger, and do in a pinch, but choose not to because it’s harder to see what I’m doing. I’m a huge Apple fan but disagree with Steve Jobs on this point - the iPad does need a stylus; at least for drawing and painting. But that’s just me. I am well aware that there are many iPad-based artists who are happily using their own digits.

Can you draw on paper?

The iPad has been around for about 4 years. I’ve been drawing for a little over 40. I did learn to draw on paper (although my parents might interject that some walls and furniture should be included too). 

What made you decide to use an iPad?

I made the switch for several reasons. The short answer is ‘convenience’, but there’s a lot more to it than that. 

Perhaps it would help if you understood the challenges I had. (If you’re an artist too, you might empathize):

• lots of stuff to store: a large assortment of paper (used and unused) and sketchbooks of all sizes and types, not to mention pens, brushes and related accessories (You should know that the average home in Hong Kong is about 500sq feet)
• the need to store and care for original artwork properly
• smudging
• fading
• scanning artwork 
• lighting and photographing artwork larger than A4 size
• retouching scanned artwork (spend a few hours cleaning up pencil artwork, then let’s chat about how fun that is)
• correcting color fidelity of artwork in Photoshop
• packing gear (I used to regularly carry watercolors, an assortment of sketchbooks, pens, inks, pencils, color pencils and brushes, along with accessories like rags, water containers, palettes etc.)
• forgetting gear
• cleaning gear
• the weight of said gear and associated consequences
• the cost of constantly buying more materials all the time

This workflow might help you appreciate how I sketch now:

• be inspired by a sight
• find a place to sit/lean
• whip out iPad and Intuos Creative Stylus (seconds to set up)
• turn iPad on and launch Procreate
• have fun sketching (a fully-charged iPad battery lasts me about 7-9 hours of sketching, making a full day out very possible)
• export hi-resolution jpgs, and or a stroke-by-stoke video in seconds, as soon as I’ve completed a piece
• close my iPad, return the stylus to its case and slide everything into my backpack

And at home:

• Wirelessly back up original artwork files to Dropbox & Box and hard drives at home. The jpgs I exported are also in iCloud (auto backup), therefore available almost instantly in iPhoto on my Mac
• upload artwork to website and social media (and if I had an iPad data plan while sketching, I could have uploaded work immediately)

Other advantages of going digital:

• the undo button
• painting in layers  
• an arsenal of media with no extra weight
• ...not forgetting all the other usual reasons people use an iPad; it's like those magic hats with no bottoms from which I can pull out my library of notes, books and magazines, my music collection etc.

The other fact some people fail to consider is, using an iPad has turned out to be much more environmentally friendly than I first thought. I hardly consume any paper / paint / ink / pens now. Have you ever thought about the resources required to produce all the paint, ink, pens etc? And not much of that is recyclable. And some of it is toxic too (think packaging, paints with heavy metals like cadmiums, and their accompanying fumes). 

“But your iPad had to be manufactured too. How long will that last you? What will become of it when you upgrade?” 

Good questions. The truth is, I keep all my gadgets and fix them if they don’t work. Or pass on stuff I don’t use. My Mom is using my first iPad. If she didn’t need it, I’d use it in other parts of my home; as a recipe holder in the kitchen, a magazine reader by my bed (ooh - more paper saved!) And in a couple more decades, I thought it would be interesting to create an art installation with all these gadgets that have contributed to my creative output.

Please note that I don’t claim to have all the facts and figures to support my hypothesis that using an iPad could be greener than traditional media. You have to admit that it’s worth contemplating though, and if you know of a reputable study that makes such a comparison, I’d love to hear about it.

Would you go back to using paper?

To that, I’d say, "Never say ‘never’ ". I absolutely love what the iPad + Procreate + Intuos Creative Stylus allow me to do now, but if there’s something I want to do that is not achievable on an iPad, sure. Paper, canvas, board or concrete… bring it on!

What’s that handle-thingy you use on your iPad?

What you see is a device called the Bracketron Twist 360. It's not an iPad case. It's more of a tablet holder that can set your iPad in any orientation you can think of.

I’ve tested many kinds of iPad cases, and whenever I upgrade my device, get a little irritated at the wasted covers and cases I can no longer use because of a few millimeters difference in size. I wanted to find something durable and extremely versatile to use with my current iPad, whether or not it grew or shrank by an inch or so. I also wanted a way to prop my tablet up in any orientation I choose. All this and more I found in the Twist 360. 

I hope this has given you some insight! I welcome questions and will add relevant ones and my replies to this list as they come up. 

Happy Chinese New Year

Every year, about a week before the lunar calendar says it's time for Chinese New Year, Victoria Park in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong, undergoes a transformation. Within a few short days, bamboo frames and flapping tarpaulin walls become a colorful tent city filled with blossoms and fragrance. 

Bustling, booming and blooming! The annual Lunar New Year Flower Market is one of the best places to get a feel for Chinese New Year festivities.

On opening day of the Flower Market, the crowd pours in. Jubilant anticipation of festive cheer translates into ringing cash registers as people purchase flowers of all kinds, bearing all manner of auspicious names, to brighten up their homes. Apart from flower vendors bursting with bloom, locals and tourists alike also push past seasoned vendors, as well as young entrepreneurs from schools and colleges, out to make some seasonal income from the happy crowd. Stuffed toys of all kinds and gimmicky gadgets jostle with gaudy golden spinning wheels that promise to turn one's fortune around. Pounding drums, enthusiastic screaming vendors, squealing children and the chatter of thousands of excited voices all contribute to the buzzing atmosphere.

Here's a close-up so you see some of the details more clearly.

With each passing day, the crowd grows in size and volume, reaching fever pitch on the final day, New Year's eve, when happy revellers shuffle along together, ever on the lookout for heavily discounted merchandise. Competing vendors can be heard shouting the latest bargains well into the crack of dawn, when it's time for all to pack up and catch a few hours of sleep before it's time to awake and begin several days of festivities. If you didn't catch it this time, mark your calendar for next year and join the fun!

Update:

I was contacted by Florence Morin, the Editor-in-Chief, of Le Petit Journal, a French online magazine, who requested permission to use my sketch. I was delighted of course! The text of this article was translated into french and published on 1 February. Here's the link: http://www.lepetitjournal.com/hong-kong/accueil/hong-kong-urban-sketchers/176261-urban-sketchers-hong-kong-le-flower-market-de-victoria-park-causeway-bay 

A Sunday with Classics

"Where shall we sketch next?” is something that comes up a lot in conversation.

I've lived in Hong Kong for a little over three years, so I know some areas, but recently fell in with a group of friends who also love exploring all the fascinating nooks and crannies of the city through sketching. We'd just sketched at Tai O, a fishing village on stilts, two weeks before, and after the New Year weekend, began discussing new options. A few of us have an informal agreement that we will sketch outdoors regularly in 2014.

Someone proposed we sketch in the city this time. The Hong Kong Museum of Medical Sciences, a 3-storey Edwardian style building in the Mid-Levels was brought up, Google Images were then quickly glanced at, and plans firmed up.

Our meeting spot was the Chinese YMCA, another heritage building a short walk away from the Museum. We were to meet at 9:30am but I was early, so I unfolded my handy little stool, whipped out my iPad and started sketching. Other sketchers began showing up and before long, a little group was huddled in corners over their media, perched on ledges, leaning on bannisters and concentrating on the subject before us. 

Once done with the YMCA, I made for the Museum, our primary target for the day, and found it closed. I’d been there before and wasn’t planning to go in anyway, so I found an interesting angle outside and started on Sketch No.2 of the day.

Stomachs rumbling, we ducked into a little local shop for a hasty lunch before exploring Cat Street, known for its antiques. Its formal name is Upper Lascar Road. I’m not sure where the cats came from. With no vehicular access, the narrow lane housed shops and stalls presenting hundreds of little details to peruse. 

A trio of Chinese porcelain figures posing regally struck me as a good starting point, so I planted myself comfortably and began. In front of us, a lady running her stall told us off in a most unladylike manner that she did not want either herself or her stall to be immortalized in any drawing. What a missed opportunity, lady! ;-) 

Two more sketches and it was time to go. There's a lot more I could do though, and I suspect I will soon be back.

Birds on the Brain - Yuen Po Bird Garden

I'd heard about places like this before; where old men gather in the early morning hours, admiring each other's prized winged possessions. A strap-like handle under each ornate bamboo cage allows the owner to slip a hand through, palm-up, and proffer the contents of the cage to peering enthusiasts.

While thinking of the next place to draw at, I happened to see a spot on a documentary about the Bird Garden at Yuen Po Street, Prince Edward, Hong Kong, A quick Google search later, and I knew I had to go there. Arrangements with my sketcher friends were quickly made, and so, early on Saturday morning, I found myself strolling past the bustling vendors on Flower Market Street, en route to the Bird Garden, located at the end of the street. 

I didn't need directions. There were several men shuffling ahead of me, covered cages in hand, like old waiters about to serve up dinner. At the red-gated entrance, more old men stood around in noisy camaraderie, admiring birds while loudly trading opinions on the government's latest faux pas. They hung their birds on nearby branches; some for sale, some to be admired. I wondered that these men could caw so loudly and roughly at each other but coo with such gentleness when dealing with their darling birds. The other fascinating fact is that the hobby of songbird-raising looks to be completely dominated by men.

While waiting for my sketch mates, I wandered around, exploring. Yuen Po Street Bird Garden is perhaps 100m long, with no vehicular access. Surrounded by mature trees that dapple the pavement with a patchwork of shadows, the short street houses two rows of single-storey stores facing each other. Poles with convenient hooks for cages dot the carefully landscaped green-spaces, awaiting singing occupants.

Most of the little stores were not yet open for business. A few had begun to raise their shutters, and store owners could be seen stacking cages of little finches and budgies for cleaning. 

In bins at another store, recycled egg crates housed thousands of feeding crickets; live bird food. Mealworms squirmed in another bin, and on a nearby table, bags blown up into triangles held fat grasshoppers among a few green leaves. "HK$20" said the battered cardboard sign propped up close by. I'd heard of bird owners buying these little bags and feeding their birds with chopsticks, and hoped that I'd be witness to this sight. That didn't work out, but for the next few hours, joined by a group of sketcher friends, we drew snippets of scenes from this fascinating place.

The average tourist with trigger-finger might be happy perusing the Bird Garden for about an hour. We stayed the entire morning, sketching and watching an ever-growing stream of visitors flow past, taking snapshots and peering at the birds. The stall owners were obviously used to the sight, only perking up when their experienced eyes spied potential customers looking for an ornate bird cage to take home.  

The bird owners however, would raise an eyebrow on occasion then return to their animated discussions on birds, feed and of course, politics. 

My main goal was to capture the early morning atmosphere when the old men would first get together to greet each other. This first sketch took me about 1.5 hours, and I wanted to supplement it with some close-ups and different views. The plummage of the scarlet macaw proved irresistible to draw. By the time I looked up around lunch time, I felt that there was so much to draw, so many angles and details I could do, but hadn't a chance to even contemplate yet. I guess I'll just have to go back another time!