[BobM]

I have a question for those of you who are into computer design work, or photo manipulation.

My daughter is a really talented sophmore high school artist. She intends to marry her drawing talents with technology when she goes to college. In the meantime, she's taking a lot of art related courses to build a portfolio. She needs a tablet to assist with the technical parts of this. Her computer art and design teacher suggested this one:

Wacom Intuos 6x8: http://www.wacom.com/intuos/6x8.cfm

I don't want to buy a full PC tablet at this point. It would cost thousands, and she's not doing this professionally (yet). She's probably also going to need whatever the latest is in 3 years when she goes to college (yes, probably a MAC also).

Anyone use this? Any other suggestions?
PS - this would be a Christmas present for her.

Thanks,
Bob

[nathanm]

The 6x8 would be a good choice for sure.  I have the 4x6 at work, and used to have a larger, older model on my PC.  But the ONLY thing tablets are good for is drawing in my view.  It's great for freehand illustrating, painting etc. but not so much photo manipulation\editing.  As a pointing device it is kinda clumsy.  Acquiring and clicking fixed targets like buttons\toolbars is compromised, something taken for granted with the mouse. When you use the stylus, movement and pressing\clicking are intertwined.  I suppose it would take good deal of practice to get comfortable with.  (I tried using paper over the tablet to increase drag, but this will wear out your nibs faster)  I haven't used the newer stylus options Wacom has, though.  Also, the larger tablets aren't necessarily better or easier to use and the smaller ones work with desk space better.  Since you can zoom in and out on your work the scale is relative anyway.  You may not need as much area as you think you might.

[drphoto]

Totally agree w/ Nathan. You don't need a full size tablet. I have the 4x6 also, and I only use it when I want to do suble shading. As he said, using it for normal functions is fairly difficult. The two button mouse that comes w/ the tablet is a very nice addition for a Mac user.

The money for a larger tablet would be better spent on a calibrated monitor. (or a 3rd party calibrator)

[WerTicus]

I have the a5 (as in paper) sized intuos 3    - Its fantastic, could not live without it
I wouldnt recommend the cheaper tablets as they are not sensitive enough (for example you cant draw a circle freehand they come out like hexagons)

[Watson]

I don't want to buy a full PC tablet at this point. It would cost thousands, and she's not doing this professionally (yet). She's probably also going to need whatever the latest is in 3 years when she goes to college (yes, probably a MAC also).

If you were considering a full Tablet PC, consider the Wacom Cintiq 12WX. This device is so good that it's seriously damaged the market for Tablet PCs among graphic designers. It has a fantastic digitizer, colour-calibrated screen, and is cheaper than most Tablet PCs. Plus it works as a secondary screen with most computers.

I actually use one for document review (I'm a lawyer, not a graphic designer), but it works fantastically for that as well.

[navi]

I disagree with anyone who says that tablets aren't good for photo retouching- I work a lot faster with one.

Get the biggest one possible- I have a 18in x 12in tablet. I can never go back to working with a mouse or smaller tablet. I know a few photographers who used to look at my tablet and ask how I can work with such a large tablet (they used a small one) until they sat down and used mine. It takes a few months for your shoulder and neck to get used to the big movements.....

[bunnyma357]

I'm a video editor, not an artist so my use is a little different. I have used a 12X19 Intuos3 at my old job, have a 9x12 Intuos3 at home and tried a 5.8" x 3.7" Bamboo at my current job.

I also feel that the larger area is better if you can afford it. I think for me the 9X12 is the sweet spot for price/performance and I find the tablet great for more than just drawing, which I don't really do. I have 2 large monitors mapped to the tablet, so being able to directly go to anything on screen with the pen rather than having to drag a mouse is a huge time saver. Until you try it you don't realize how different the feel is. The Bamboo functionally was fine for me, but I had to be super precise with the smaller tablet, and there is no extra dead area around the active area of the tablet, so the hand position was uncomfortable - so I ended up going back to a mouse at work, since they won't pay for a tablet.

Expect a learning curve, where you are accidentally dropping folders into each other and then trying to figure out what you just did. The initial frustration can make you feel that it is a waste of time. But, once I got used to it in about 2 weeks,  a tablet is my favorite for almost all tasks.

One other nice thing is that having a different interface can help your brain keep different programs straight. For different clients, I'll edit in Avid, Final Cut, DS, and others. Using a mouse for one and a tablet for another helps me to use the correct short cuts for the correct program automatically rather than having to think about it.


Jim C

[TomS]

I have a nearly identical situation as BobM with my own daughter and she has a Macbook already.  She loves graphic design by computer and is somewhat interested in commercial design as a career. 

Jim - Can you compare the Intuos3 and Bamboo tablets, with the understanding this is more for design than photo work?  Would you guys use one of the larger ones maybe 6x11 if that was the case?

Also, the Intuos3 deal seems like a relatively reasonable way to buy CS4 (half list price) which she uses at school and would really like to have, but is just way too pricey to dabble at home.

Any suggestions for a reasonable add-on monitor for this casual use setup at home?

Thanks in advance,

Tom

[bunnyma357]

The Bamboo worked well for me capability wise, but I don't use any of the subtleties of the tablet, like levels of pressure sensitivity, etc. It really came down to size and ergonomics that made it not acceptable. Sometimes with the large screen area mapped to a small tablet, as you pressed down on the pen it would shift the cursor position and you'd grab something other than what you intended. It took a lot of focus to do what was intended, which kind of defeated one of the main reasons of using the tablet.

This will sound like a dumb feature, but the Intuous3 has about a 3 inch border around the active area, so your hand is always resting on the tablet. With the Bamboo the your hand is always on an edge and after awhile it gets annoying and uncomfortable. The final thing is the ergonomics of the pen and how the buttons feel seems more natural with the Intuos.

For the price the Bamboo is a good way to try out a tablet and if I was just going to use it once in awhile it would be great.  But if it is going to be your primary pointing device for long days at the keyboard, then the Intuos is well worth the extra money.


Jim C

[TomS]

Thanks for the advice as we have no experience with it.  It looks like the Intuos3 is that way to go, now just figuring out what size.  Unfortunately not many places here to see them in person other than BB that has the small ones only.

[BobM]

I wound up getting the Intuos3 for Christmas, primarily because that is what she is using in school and she is familiar with it. I also got a bit Microsoft discount off of e-bay. It's the 6x8 version, I believe. Just big enough but not too large. She's been having a ball with it and her computer generated art has taken a big leap forward over the mouse drawn stuff she was doing before.

Thanks for everyone's help and recommendations.

Bob