Studio Artist 1.5, by Synthetik Software Posted: 27-Mar-2001

4 out of 5 Mice Vendor: Synthetik Software Type: COMMERCIAL Reviewer: Judy Catambay Class: PRODUCTIVITY

Studio Artist is a graphics synthesizer program that enables the user to paint using source images. Unlike other paint programs that I have used (Painter, Canvas), this program requires that you begin with a source image, which can be a photograph or any digital image. The source image serves as a model or painting subject for the user. Colors can be chosen from the source image or a from a color picker. The source image can be changed at any point during your painting. This aspect of the program has endless possibilities and makes painting easy for a person with little painting knowledge or skills. A drawing tablet or mouse can be used with Studio Artist, or the program can paint for you in autopainting mode. There are many options such as layering, masking, and working with movie files. Studio Artist has a complicated control panel with a plethora of options, some with very specific results and some with impressive preset options. From an artist's point of view, some of the terminology can be confusing, as it does not easily relate to the painting actions (unlike the Painter program). To clearly understand all of the options, you need to use the manual. This was my first work using Studio Artist. Click on the picture for a larger view. "Indian" Copyright © 2001, Judy Catambay Some of the features include a great set of paint tools, including wet paints and customized brush textures, raster painting with vector editing, image processing effects, and a great number of preset effects. They are all excellent features, but the interface is not the most intuitive, and I would say that there is a steep learning curve. A novice could produce some interesting work, but I'm sure with a lot more experience with the software, an expert could produce some amazing digital art with this software. Pros The use of a source image Abundance of possibilities and combinations of effects Painting experience not required Cons Steep learning curve Non-standard terminology Overall, Studio Artist can produce awesome paintings, and it is a lot of fun even for experimentation. Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 mice [For a look at more of the artist's work, check out Judy's Gallery]