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50% off Clip Studio Paint Pro $36.00 @ Clipstudio.net

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I have been using Clip Studio Paint (CSP) for 6 years and I personally like it enough to have recommended it to a few people. They have matured a lot over the years; there is a big community built upon the software, where a lot of assets, such as custom brushes, particles and 3D models, are available for free, which are (now) easily managed and installed.

I have personally used it for digital calligraphy, designed diary covers for printing, and anime-style illustrations. I'm not a professional artist and never received training in the fine arts, but it appears that CSP is used by professional artists if you are considering using it in that capacity.

This is a one-time purchase; as an indication, the current copies that I am using are 6 years old and they are up-to-date. The 50% discount is also available to the EX version for $157.50. If you already have the Pro version, you can also upgrade for for the difference between the discounted prices of $121.50.

A 3-month free trial for CSP is available if you are unsure about purchasing a license. Do keep in mind that the current offer expires on 2020-06-23.

IMPORTANT considerations before purchasing
  • Check the system requirements before purchasing. I'm not sure if this is helpful but including as a reference point: while I did get quite a lot out of my laptop with a 4th-gen mobile i7 (4558U) and 16 GB of RAM running CSP, it struggles a little bit at 2560 x1680 @ 300 dpi in terms of smoothness in drawing/painting (larger brush sizes are more demanding) and canvas operation (rotation, translation, etc.); it's definitely not unworkable, but it can be frustrating to some.

  • This license is for Mac OR Windows and, if I remember correctly (don't quote me on this), it cannot be transferred to a different OS after the initial activation. Also, this is NOT applicable to the subscription-based iOS version.

  • You will most likely want to invest in a drawing tablet if you are going want to draw and/or handwrite anything. If you don't already have one and are not working on a Windows-based tablet, take the additional cost into account before purchasing a CSP license.

IMPORTANT information about POTENTIAL discounts in the future

Disclaimer: This is just information base on discounts in previous years, I obviously cannot guarantee that those sales will happen.

If you can wait or need to think about it, there will likely be another sale or two before the end of the year. Of note is that there may be a bigger sale closer to the end of the year base on past years.

If I remember correctly the upgrade from Pro to EX has also always been on sale at the same time, so you can also purchase the Pro version now if you and think about the upgrade to EX later if you like it enough.

A note on Pro vs. EX

They seem to have changed their features page such that the comparison between Pro and EX are not immediately clear now. From memory the more important features in EX are (please double check if you're going to purchase the EX version):

  • Animations are not limited to 24 frames
  • Page management
  • Photo to line + tone (manga style) conversion

I hope that helps!

Edit: typos

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closed Comments

  • have you tried krita? how does it compare?

    • +2

      I haven't used Krita before so I can't really comment on the difference in functionalities between the two, because my opinions would be extremely biased towards CSP since I have experience with it and am happy with it. For this reason, I'll just focus on what works for me with CSP below. Again, please keep in mind that I'm not a professional artist and never received formal training, so take anything I say with a grain of salt. Also, I'm replying with the assumption that you are not a professional artist —- I do apologise in advance if that's not the case!

      In general, if you are not required by work/community to use a particularly program, I think use whatever you are most comfortable with and can get things done quickly, not least because basic features are pretty standard across the board these days. However, if you are open and can afford to experiment and see what works best for you, I do encourage you to give CSP a go.

      I initially tried CSP because it came with my drawing tablet and I really liked it: I originally bought it as just to participate in a competition for a very niche game I was playing (I had no drawing experience before that, unless the abominations that I produced in primary school count). CSP is intuitive enough that I was productive within a month, as a result of my submission I was also commissioned to by a stranger in-game to draw a particular character, and have since stuck with CSP.

      To me, the biggest thing that happened between now and when I first picked up CSP is how quickly the community grew internationally; it's now easy to find (and manage) assets, tutorials, and help in general now, and for me those features, together with the ability to use customisable 3D models as references, are extremely helpful features for getting things done. Also, having literally millions of people paying for a piece of software gives me confidence that the software will continue to improve, which has been the case for me for the last 6 years.

      If you are already familiar with illustration software, I think one of the best way to get an idea of typical workflows in CSP is through their official tutorials.

      It should be noted that Krita survived for so long as an open source software (OSS), and I think that in itself is a reflects the fact that it's a solid piece of software. As someone who codes on a daily basis, I appreciate the fact that that it's open source and I can write plugins for it.

      I hope that helps!

  • +2

    Thanks for the detailed description regarding this deal, much appreciated.

    What do you use to draw? Eg. Wacom drawing tablet?

    • +1

      I use a large-ish Wacom Intuos to draw with CSP. It's 6 years old now and I've never had any problems with it. I love the textured surface and the sound made by drawing on it, but I think that also contributes to plastic tips wearing faster and there is an extra cost on replacement. I haven't really tried other brands so I'm not sure if that's unique to the Wacom Intuos, but I imagine that it's not.

      I have considered upgrading to a 22-inch Cintiq a couple of years ago, but I talked myself out of it because I just couldn't justify the "investment"; a YouTube video that discussed whether or not having a screen is better, which I now think is wrong, also played a large part in my decision.

      On the part about why I think the video that influenced my decision back then is wrong: I needed an iPad for work and earlier this year I could try drawing on it. I was curious about whether or not it's easier to draw on a screen, because I'm not convinced that it makes little difference compared to a screen-less drawing tablet (otherwise people wouldn't make, and buy, those things!) —- I actually find it a bit more comfortable to draw on a screen, and I feel that my lines are more accurate. I have been looking at Cintiqs again because of this recent experience. It may just be me though!

      And thank you! I kind of just jumped at the opportunity to write, and I enjoyed writing things down, too!

      Edit: added a couple of words for clarity; fixed a typo.

      • +1

        Thanks for the detailed reply (again) :)

        I've recently been looking into picking up this drawing stuff as a hobby.

        Planning to do some 2D digital art and also 3D organic sculpting.

        My background is a structural engineer, and have experience in logical parametric design. I want to try open the creative/abstract part of my brain lol. All fun stuff, I'm sure for you also all these years.

        Currently have the same dilemma regarding a drawing tablet vs. screen tablet. Settled on (most likely) a drawing table, as it's not a big financial investment if I don't continue with the hobby. But yeah, those Cintiq screen displays look very juicy haha

        • +1

          I think starting with an affordable drawing tablet is probably a good way to go about it. To be fair, while I do absolutely think that it's nicer to draw on a tablet with a display, drawing on my Intuos never felt unnatural. I haven't tried organic sculpting yet because the list of things that I want to learn just keeps growing, but I can't think of a reason that a drawing tablet wouldn't be suitable —- if nothing else, it'll probably feels much more natural than using a mouse.

          I spent the last 20 minutes learning about parametric design and it's pretty awesome (am a bit surprised that I haven't heard it from friends who are architects!).

          In any case, I think drawing as a hobby can be quite rewarding. Don't give up and good luck with your journey! :D

  • +2
    • +1

      Awesome! Bookmarked and thank you! :)

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