[Wedding Shooter]

So Uli - have I talked you into a tablet yet? Sounds like Irma might have one going cheap

Glad you guys like the layout - I have to spend a lot of hours there. ST - the skylight would be nice. But what I really need is a window to let the breeze in.

Peto - The monitors are great. That 50" sounds like a monster TV. Mine are 20" LCD's from Apple.

[shuttertalk]

Hey just a bit of a diversion from graphics tablets - I wonder how well tablet PCs will work with image editing? In theory it should be ideal - i.e. you can see exactly where you are placing the pointer sort of like (WYSIWYP - what you see is what you poke!).

The only drawback I can think of is the processor - most of these have CPUs that are catered towards low energy consumption instead of performance. Oh, and they're mighty expensive too!

[wulinka]

ahhh! Chris, you make me blush with envy!!
I had been looking at the 9x12 wacom, but the Honkong trip never materialized, so I am facing some difficulty buying it anywhere. Cannot import into China b/c of custom regulations, and here we are in the province, you cannot buy anthing here (there are not even English books to buy here, can you believe). So I think this plan is postponed until further notice, add it to the list of a new PC and a 70-200mm L ...... :mad:

but at least I am saving the money....

[Toad]

Hey just a bit of a diversion from graphics tablets - I wonder how well tablet PCs will work with image editing? In theory it should be ideal - i.e. you can see exactly where you are placing the pointer sort of like (WYSIWYP - what you see is what you poke!).

The only drawback I can think of is the processor - most of these have CPUs that are catered towards low energy consumption instead of performance. Oh, and they're mighty expensive too!

Seams reasonable as an idea, but then you are stuck with working with a tablet PC the rest of the time...I like the idea of the Wacom peripheral better - even if I don't have one.

[shuttertalk]

Hey guys, I'm thinking of taking the plunge, as I have to do some webpage design for my church.

I'm tossing up between the Wacom Graphire4 4x5 inch or 6x8 inch, which is twice the price. Which one should I go for? I've been reading reviews - some say the 4x5 is slightly small for desktop use but good for travel... what do you guys reckon?

[matthew]

How good is the store's return policy? i.e., if you buy one and hate it, can you take it back after a week? If you can, absolutely go for the biggest one you can afford/jusify.


The thing with tablets is that the size really does matter. It's not like a monitor, where different sizes may have the same maximum resolution -- a bigger tablet can sense more points, and gives you a more favourable ratio of screen size to tablet area. Simply put, it means more and finer control.

It's the whole needs v. wants thing... a 4x5 is enough for me, but I do wish I'd bought a bigger one.

[Wedding Shooter]

Do you have a wide screen monitor or a square one - if it's widescreen go for the 6x8. If you are going to use it for more serious stuff later on go for the bigger one.

[shuttertalk]

Thanks for the tips everyone... I think I might go for the 6x8. No point spending $100 when you'll always be wishing you spent the extra $100..

[Paul.R.Lindqvist]

Interesting thread indeed, im sersiously thinking about gettint the intous3 a5 (well im very tempted at least lol), or the a5 wide. I know im gonna upgrade my 20" viewsonic lcd to a 24 wide screen at some point. So aiming for the a5 wide version might not be a bad idea ?

/Paul L.

[wulinka]

hey jules, go for it! And let us know how you get on with it, too!

uli

[Wedding Shooter]

Paul - if you are buying a smaller one best to match it to your monitor. If you buy a bigger one it doesn't matter so much as you can isolate an area of the tablet to match your screen. As you can see by my picture I use a squarer one with a wide screen LCD.

[Paul.R.Lindqvist]

Hi Chris!

Iv already ordered the Intous3 A5 Wide, i read that you can force it realitves to match the monitor, that way i dont have to buy a new one once i get the 24" ws monitor.

Should be at my door on monday, let you know how it goes.

Thanx

/Paul L.

[shuttertalk]

I put in an order for a Graphire4 6x8, which came as part of a scrapbooking bundle (with software, paper, etc.). Funny thing is the bundle was cheaper than the tablet on its own... score!

[Paul.R.Lindqvist]

Recived my New Intous3 A5 Wide today.

Impressive hardware indeed, now i just have to get used to use it. lol

To be honest i really thought it would feel alot more akward in the beginning, but its not that bad.

Chris any tip, for a new user ?

A snap of it, for what its worth.



/Paul L.

[shuttertalk]

Nice Paul! It's almost as big as your LCD monitor!

[Wedding Shooter]

Paul - key is to play in photoshop with some tools that can use the presure sensitive pen. Try the blur tool and push down harder - watch it blur more the harder you press. It is also wonderful for selecting objects.

Work out the keys you use most - like your control, shift, apple keys and assign them to the buttons on the tablet. Than you will find that Photoshop doesn't even really require a keyboard anymore.

Have fun

[Paul.R.Lindqvist]

Thanx Chris, iv been using only the tablet in both Lightroom 1.0 and cs2 the last days. And its works great. Its nice to be able to browse the images in lightroom with just the right scroll "strip" and using the pen for selections in photoshop is so much more precise.

A little more practive and ill probebly wouldnt be able to part from this great tool.

Thanx for pushing me over the edge, iv been thinking about getting one of these for the past year but never took the plunge.

/Paul L.

[shuttertalk]

I picked mine up today... still yet to set it up, but it looks great.

It came with a nice scrapbooking bundle - a whole block of scrapbooking paper, software, plus a thick manual on scrapbooking with photoshop elements. Perfect gift for my wife to hopefully get her interested in photoshopping...

[Wedding Shooter]

If nothing else they do look very cool Seriously - glad to know you are enjoying it Paul.

[shuttertalk]

I had a play last night and it seems pretty cool - drawing and painting is certainly fun. And it makes precision editing, selecting, cloning, etc. much easier.

I don't think I'm quite used to the 'absolute positioning' yet - too familiar with a mouse I think. With a mouse, when you move it, the cursor moves. When touching the tablet with the pen, the cursor jumps to the corresponding part of the screen immediately... takes getting used to.

[wulinka]

sounds like fun... jumping and scrapping. . .

[shuttertalk]

So Paul, how goes the new tablet? Are you using it as much as you thought you would? Is it now integrated into your workflow?

[Paul.R.Lindqvist]

Hi Jules!

Yea im using the tablet almost exlusivly now. Its sooooo much easier to work in photoshop, and browsing and editing in lightroom is dead easy aswell. I actually find the pen (mapping) much more comfortable then the mouse now. (Iv mapped the buttons on the pen as klick and rightclick) I havent forced proportions, since im not hand drawing that much this isnt really needed. So using a a5 wide tablet on a 4:3 monitor works excellent.




Still have the mouse though since the wife uses the computer aswell.

And i also put the tablet away when im not sitting at the computer, dont want the kids to use their crayons and whatnot on it lol.

Only downside is that im still terrible at hand drawing, no change whatsoever...

/Paul L.

[jinko]

I was looking for a tablet themed topic before starting one myself. I guess I could continue with this one instead even though it's quite old. So, what updates or stories do you have, do you own a tablet and what are your advices for someone who is looking to buy one? Are you satisfied with your product and which are the things you'd like to improve about it?