Well the first month of the new year is over and it's time to start fresh. I had to decide what new thing I wanted to learn this year. I'm not particularly good at graphic design and have always found programs like Illustrator particularly frustrating because they're really not very intuitive for the beginner. However, I have seen several artists get into programs on their tablets like Procreate. It looks like there are a lot of cool things you can do with drawing as well as manipulation of photos in the program so that's going to be my next skill to learn.
Whenever I want to learn programs like this I have found it particularly helpful to go to YouTube to search out tutorials. Many users have already played around with the various features and created simple how-to videos to break things down for those less familiar with the product. Sometimes I like to start at the beginning and watch tutorials on the very basics of the program. Other times, if there's something specific I'd like to do with my work but am not sure how to do it I search for videos on that particular topic. Either way, it usually takes plenty of time playing around, practicing and checking out as many online resources as I can find to finally get the hang of it.
I haven't had much time in the past month to play with the program but as I go along I will try to post what I've been working on to track my progress. And I will try to avoid the trap of only posting the nice stuff! Failures are learning experiences too!
Do you have experience using Procreate? Do you have tips to share? What new skills are you planning on learning this year? It's never too late to start fresh and learn something new in the new year!