How to Create Art Using Your Own Photos

Looking for a way to incorporate your photography into your art?

This guide will show you how to create art using your own photos.

If you run a business in the creative realm, you may be looking for ways to incorporate your photography into the art you create.  So many artists use photography.  They may use it for inspiration, as a sketching/tracing tool, or as an incorporated piece into their art.

Photography was always my first art of choice.  There is something special that I feel about being behind the camera.  For me, nature and wildlife are my go-to photography subjects but I will admit to being obsessed with other subject matter from time to time.  

For years, I took photo after photo and dreamed of selling it to others.  However, it's always been difficult for a photographer to get our art out into the world.  This is because there are so many outstanding photographers and only so many places to sell your art and make a living.  

However, with digital art and digital photography, that's no longer the problem.  It's easier than ever to create and promote your art on websites, online shops, and print-on-demand company products.  

In this series, I will touch upon each of these topics and how to make them work for you!  If you are looking for a way to express your inner creativity, there are tools out now that make it easier than ever to do so.  You can use a variety of tools to unleash your artistic side.  

First Things First: How to Create

Let's start with the basics.  If it's been a while since you were in the art studio or behind your camera lens or if you have a plethora of art and you aren't sure how to sell it in today's world, this article will get you excited about the world of art and photography again! 

Here are the Big 3 art designing software programs to help you create art using your own photos: 

• Adobe
• Affinity
• Procreate

Adobe

For many, many years, Adobe controlled the entire landscape with Photoshop, InDesign, and Illustrator.  Over time, they added new programs to the mix but the one thing all of the Adobe programs have in common is a very steep learning curve.  

Affinity

Enter Affinity.  Affinity brought 3 products to computers as a direct competition to Adobe.  Affinity Photo, Designer and Publisher.  Photo is akin to Photoshop, Designer is much like Illustrator and Publisher is the answer to those who think InDesign is too difficult.  

When Affinity first released its products, I truly wanted to love them.  And while they did offer some very cool features, I could not leave Adobe as a full solution for the work I did at the time.  That has changed.  Their most recent releases have offered affordable programs that offer alternatives to those who do not want to learn (or pay the steep price) for Adobe's products. In an upcoming feature, we will dive into each of these products so you can decide for yourself - but for now, it's important that you know they are available AND they are available on the iPad - where creating has never been easier or more fun!

 Procreate

Finally, last but certainly NOT least is Procreate.  Procreate is a beast of a program that is only available on the iPad.  However, having it only available on the iPad is not a disadvantage in any way.  Procreate was created for the iPad and it works beautifully with the iPad stylus or other pen. 

While each of these products has add-ons that can enhance your ability to create better artwork, Procreate has captured a very large and diverse audience with its variety of brushes, color palettes, and much more that can be added to make your art world a bit larger.   Better still, it only costs $9.99 and there are no monthly subscriptions or high price tags.  Unlike Adobe where you pay a monthly fee and Affinity which is priced per software release, Procreate is affordable and quick to learn.  

In our next article, we will discuss the different ways you can create beautiful art without the need to carry everything with you!