Digital speed painting is a process in which computer drawing or painting software is used to speed up the usually taxing and time-consuming traditional painting process. Used for concept art in entertainment fields for years, digital speed painting is now a viable art medium, used by illustrators and fine artists alike to produce live, vivid images in a fraction of the time.
What you need
While vector-based "drawing" programs like Adobe Illustrator or Inkscape are able to create good looking images, the time and effort used to use this software contradicts the principles of speed painting. Raster-based "painting" programs like Corel Paint Shop or Adobe Photoshop give you the flexibility and versatility needed to create great speed paintings. Something else you may want to invest in is a Wacom tablet, which replaces your computer mouse with an ultra sensitive pen. Whatever strokes you make on the pad shows up on your computer screen.
The technique
Traditional painting mediums employ a layering process, in which a sketch is usually covered by a drawing, and then an under painting, and then a few layers of detailed painting. Digital painting software makes this process even easier through the use of layers. Using these, you can paint each step in the process on a hypothetical stack clear sheets of paper, which when sandwiched together creates your finished image. Unlike traditional painting, no time is wasted waiting for layers to dry before adding a new layer.
As you continue adding color to each layer, adjusting the opacity(how much of the paint underneath shows through) allows the layers to affect each other in interesting ways.
Using these graphics programs also allows you the opportunity to use the libraries of different brushes they have to offer, each of them mimicking real life brushes very closely.
Time-lapse painting
Another form of speed painting, known as time-lapse painting, employs a graphic recording application in conjunction with your graphics software. In this process, a painting which could take several hours is played back at a much higher frame rate, making it seem like the painting is taking minutes. While not particularly effective as a commercial art technique, this process is great for showing the steps in creating a digital painting.
