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It’s a little confusing, then, that my not-professional version is titled Clip Studio Paint PRO. There’s EX, which contains a bunch of additional features apparently.
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There are two versions of Clip Studo Paint. For some perspective, Photoshop used to cost $700 for a license. It wasn’t free, like Firealpaca or Krita, but it frequently goes on sale. (If it’s since gained that functionality, then good for Firealpaca users.)Įventually, the internet clued me into Clip Studio Paint.
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Firealpaca was straightforward and easy to customize, like Paint Tool Sai, but lacked a few very basic functions, like the ability to flip a selection horizontally or vertically. I tried Krita, but it lagged too much to be useful. Just in case it stopped being compatible with my computer, I wanted to find an alternative. My all time favorite program, Paint Tool Sai, is officially abandonedware - it hasn’t received an update in years. Autodesk Sketchbook, Photoshop Elements, Adobe Photoshop CS2, and even a free trial of Creative Cloud, which didn’t run well enough on my laptop for me to justify continuing to use it. I’ve bounced around a few different art programs. I couldn’t even color on a single layer if I wanted to, because only one color could be used per layer. I bought a disc which didn’t come with a serial number, and had to suffer through a long, frustrating call before I received a replacement serial and could finally use the program. Manga Studio 4, one predecessor to Clip Studio Paint, has been around for a long time. As digital art tablets become cheaper, digital arts programs become more numerous.
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