Intuos tablet

[Witold Grabiec]

Just wondering if anyone uses a tablet (such as Intuos3) for PS work and if so, what size and make. I have not used one yet and am not sure about possible advantages of using one. Or is it more about having the tablet for some tasks and the mouse for the rest (and I'm not referring to menu navigation, just actual image editing).

Thanks.

[Walter Calahan]

I used one for a while, but went back to the mouse.

I have two monitors, so the pad I bought ended up too small in its cover of all that acreage. Grin. I'm sure it would have been fine for a one monitor set up.

I had the 6x8 model. I should have gotten a 6x11, or 9x12.

[Dick Hilker]

I've used an older 9 X 12 for several years, both for P/S and regular computer work and can't imagine doing P/S without it. The control you get and the ease of use are much better than any mouse. My unit also has a mouse that I occasionally use for scrolling and right-click applications which can be done with the stylus, but less easily.

When this one needs replacement, I'll probably use a smaller tablet , since they work as well for the limited retouching work I do, rather than serious graphics applications.

[Daniel Geiger]

I use the cheaper Wacom Graphite in 6x8 or so (preferred) and also have a 4x5 (a bit too small for my taste). Can't imagine anymore doing PS without it, even do websurfing +++ with tablet rather than mouse, but don't need all the presets and pressure points of the Intuos. Did it for years with mouse and quite a bit of wrist pain, now I can do it for hours with no problems. Just be sure to install the software that comes with the tablet. Often the tablet works somehow when plugged in, but it behaves like a mouse (i.e., relative movements only, not absolute screen mapping), so only with the driver you get the full benefits out of it.

[Brian Ellis]

I have a Wacom Intuos that's about five years old. I haven't found it terribly useful for Photoshop. I use the pen for making selections with the lasso tools but I don't use those tools very much so I don't use the pen very much. I use the Wacom mouse for everything else. I spent the first month or so after I got it trying to substitute the pen for the mouse and using the controls on the tablet instead of the keyboard but for what I do I didn't see any real advantages to that. However, I'm a "straight" photographer and I don't work in any great volume. Possibly someone more graphic arts oriented or to whom speed is important would find it more useful. Or maybe I just didn't spend enough time learning how to use it. I do like the size I have, which I believe is 6x9. I've heard people who use larger sizes say they have to move their wrist and hand around too much. 6x9 is a nice compromise between having enough room so that you aren't running off the sides all the time but not so much that you spend time and effort moving around a lot.

[Gordon Moat]

I have been using WACOM tablets since late 1994, when I started college. My current tablet is a Graphire 4 6x8, which I prefer over other choices. I found the Intuos, with all the extra settings, did not match as well to the movement of my hand and the edits I wanted to do.

On the size of the tablets, I have used from 4x5 to a 12x24, and almost everything in between. The only ones I have yet to try are the panoramic layout tablets. The difference is mostly going from moving just your fingers on a 4x5, to moving your wrist more on a 6x8, and anything larger requiring more hand movement.

Using a mouse seems to me like trying to draw with a bar of soap. Unfortunately, it takes time to get use to a WACOM tablet, and many people just do not acclimate to them. They can reduce fatigue, but only when used as intended. Like everything else, they are not for everyone. The only times I use a mouse anymore are when I am using someone else's computer, and I don't miss it at all.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat Photography

[Norm Buchanan]

I use the Intuos2 6x8 and I love it, and would miss it terribly for detail work. I find the pressure sensitive brushes and pens extremely useful for careful touch-up work and masking. Personally I loathe using a mouse. My usual workflow involves "roughing-in" work on my laptop using it's touchpad and then detail work and print prep using my desktop machine and the Intuos pad/pen.

Hope this is helpful to you.

Cheers,
N.

[Frank Petronio]

They are all good tablets but the more expensive ones don't really offer any benefits imho. The $99 Graphire 4x5 is just fine.

To learn how to use one the best way is to take your mouse away and force yourself to use only the tablet for a week. The first day or two will be awful, they are very different. After a few days you'll adapt and the mouse will seem very crude.

[D. Bryant]

They are all good tablets but the more expensive ones don't really offer any benefits imho. The $99 Graphire 4x5 is just fine.

To learn how to use one the best way is to take your mouse away and force yourself to use only the tablet for a week. The first day or two will be awful, they are very different. After a few days you'll adapt and the mouse will seem very crude.

What Frank said. Get the 6x8 Graphire and learn to use it. You won't go back to mousing for PS work.

Don Bryant

[Lenny Eiger]

I was without one for years. Then I had someone show me how to mask properly - and he wouldn't give me that all-important 2nd lesson until I got a tablet. In the end, I agree wholeheartedly. I don't think you can do serious work without it...

I have a 6x11. Its great, but it could be even wider. I use two 23 inch screens side by side.

Lenny
EigerStudios