[Figure 1.6] The Brush Selector shows the current category and variant.

[Figure 1.7] Acrylic Wet Brush is smeary.

The marks you make with your Wacom pen and Painter can imitate virtually any traditional art materials. You’ll choose your digital “brush” with the Brush Selector in the upper-left corner of the Painter workspace. It has two main sections, one for the colorful icons representing each of 29 categories and the other for the specific variant within the selected category. Below them is the Dab and Stroke Preview, showing a cross-section of the brush tip and a sample stroke made with black. Figure 1.6 shows that the Wet Brush variant of the Acrylics category is the current choice. Notice that the Wet Brush variant runs out of pigment rather quickly. What the Stroke Preview cannot show is how this brush behaves when strokes are overlapped. Figure 1.7 shows several Wet Brush strokes made with different colors. This brush also acts like a brush in the Blender category, smearing colors together. Go ahead, give it a try.

[Figure 1.8] Pick a color, any color.

When Is a Brush Not a Brush?
When it’s a pencil, a pen, or a piece of chalk. Painter uses the term brush in a generic way to refer to everything used for drawing and painting on your digital canvas.

You can change the color of pigment using the Color panel shown in Figure 1.8. Click anywhere on the hue ring to choose a position on the color wheel, and then click inside the triangle for the exact Value (brightness) and Saturation (purity) you want. There are other panels for creating new colors and grouping them. See Appendix A for more info on managing color.

[Figure 1.9] Categories and variants listed.

[Figure 1.10] Step up to the Bar.

Until you get familiar with what each category icon represents, you might find it helpful to see the names of the categories alongside a smaller icon. Use the pop-up menu in the upper-right corner of the Brush Selector to choose the list view from Category Display. This menu has several other options, such as hiding the Dab and Stroke Preview. Figure 1.9 shows the categories as a list, with Dab and Stroke Preview and Recent Brushes gone.

Department of Redundancy Department
It’s handy to be able to click on a brush you used a few minutes ago without having to search for it again in these long lists, but Recent Brushes also appear in the Property Bar at the top of your screen. The Property Bar shown in Figure 1.10 shows the default settings for a Pastel variant, along with several other handy choices that are useful when drawing and painting. The Property Bar shows options for whatever item in the Toolbox is active.