Recently, I was walking by the many duty-free stores in the Manchester airport, a familiar logo caught my eye. It was the logo from the company “53”, creators of the Paper app that I’ve had installed on my iPad for over a year. I love the app because it lets me be creative on the go. Without a second thought, I bought a Pencil and absolutely love it.
Let’s be clear – drawing is not one of my creative talents. When I originally saw the Paper app, my first was “Hey! I can draw and doodle without wasting any paper!” I enjoyed it thoroughly and purchased the set of additional tools from their in-store app.
Pretty soon I was experimenting with the various tools and brushes. My subjects are predictable: trees, mountains, and buildings and other things I love to photograph. The drawing above is the only one I’ll show you because actually looks like what I wanted it to.
Being good is not my goal. I might get better over time, I might not. What I enjoy is that it lets me use my brain in a different way. I am using my mind and hand to create something that my brain envisions. It relaxes and stimulates me at same time; just like I feel when I’m behind my camera and tripod. Even though I’m using my iPad, this is a very tactile, hands-on experience.
Pencil makes the drawing, painting and sketching experience more realistic than using my index finger. Resting my hand on the screen to write feels very natural, as if I am using a pencil and paper 🙂 All of the brushes and tools are included when you purchase the Pencil and install the Paper app on your iPad, so make sure you DON’T buy them first if you download the Paper App from the App Store to try it out first.
If you’re looking for a way to bring more creativity into your life, this is a pretty cool tool! You don’t have to go to the Manchester Airport. A link to Amazon.ca is on the left, and Amazon.com is on the right. Enjoy!
Update: September 9, 2015
I just found a wonderful website and articles by Michael Rose on how to use Paper and Pencil. Here are a couple of links for you to find them too!