Monkey Speedpainting - Default Brush Only

2hrs with one hard edge tapered DEFAULT BRUSH ONLY. No blend modes, no adjustment layers... just straight painting.
If the question ‘What kind of brush do you use?’ annoys you then this video is for you because I’m going to take the most basic photoshop brush and paint a realistic painting with just the one DEFAULT BRUSH ONLY to show that even though custom brushes can be great and very helpful, they can also be a crutch for many and only masks their weakness. However those that know, know when someone doesn’t know something and can be rarely hidden by fancy brushes and adjustment layers so in this video I challenged myself to not use any adjustment layers or blend modes as well to make things more challenging.
I recommend that artists try this challenge as well. Post your default brush paintings to Instagram with the hashtag #DEFAULTBRUSHONLY and tag me @digitalbobert. I'll repost my favorites.
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[@GoldenBrick8888]

Hey, what brush are you using?

[@BobbyChiu]

Oh boy hahahah😆 ~S

[@nicholasblay8343]

one thing that has helped me is, No eraser, no layers, only paint. just like actual paint, made a mistake? paint over it, keep going.

[@BobbyChiu]

This!!! What a great way to keep the pressure off and just learn to enjoy the process. You'll learn more by simply pushing through your mistakes, too! Just keep drawing and see where your creativity takes you :) Thanks for sharing this!!! ~S

[@markmaher1225]

Hey, that was such a great video! I remember i was very skilled at visualisation but it got harder as i lost motivation to do studies. Having a hard time to enjoy the process is a big problem that i am facing when i paint and i never feel like i have a flow that guides me through my painting without getting worn out quickly or distracted.

[@Keropi41]

At some point at learning seriously, i somehow learned to visualize my drawings' shading as if they were screaming at me to shade them

[@pcstew3]

I'm a traditionally trained painter and i just started digital painting this year and when I first started i had no idea why the need for all these custom brushes. I like them a lot now for certain textures and such but they aren't necessary at all. You can make the same texture without the brushes. I also never use the blend tool bc it's just so much easier for me to use pressure and mark spacing to blend areas out. The blend tool doesn't give me the same precision. Love digital painting tho.

[@BobbyChiu]

For sure! Custom brushes aren't 100% necessary, but many artists use them to create textures more quickly or to give their work a certain effect. But the default brush can also be enough to create amazing work! It's more about the skill of the artist than the brush they're using. Thanks for watching this video! :) ~S

[@Wenalexis]

After listening to first few sentences I realized (AND learned) why my paintings don't look the same as others even though i try my best when picking colors, but the colors I put never behave like colors others picked... Well I NEVER used any blending mode, and now you're telling me there's easier way? F yeah, now I want to draw something nice. :D Thank you

[@BobbyChiu]

Join me in the LBX Discord channel after the premier and I'll be doing a more in depth discussion about the default brush and I'll have the hires painting open for Q&A bit.ly/LBXDISCORD

[@soggybubble]

OI how did you get two canvases?? I know you wrote it in your video but I don't fully understand how to do it?

[@coreyaruecker]

I actually can't visualize. I have aphantasia which is interesting as an artist. The only way I can kind of visualize is once I've made marks because I'm actually looking at something. Then I can start thinking about light but it's through abstraction.

[@BobbyChiu]

That's very interesting! It's cool to hear that you don't let aphantasia prevent you from doing art, you just adapt! That's wonderful. Thanks for sharing your story😊 ~S

[@digitalspeedpainting6337]

The end result is just WOW. Looks more beautiful than a real picture.

[@BobbyChiu]

Digital Speed Painting thank u

[@seppohovinseurassa]

I would love to see that vIdeo about blend modes you mention.

[@BobbyChiu]

seppo hovi great suggestion! I’ll keep it in mind

[@BBAMEG]

This was phenomenal and very inspiring! I do tend to get obsessed with what brush to use, but I have been recently just using a slightly textured round brush which has been working quite well.

[@BobbyChiu]

There are many artists who also tend to get so preoccupied with the brush they're going to use, it takes the focus away from the art they're going to create! Great to hear that you've found a brush that works for you! :) ~S

[@MirayaDust]

Thank you for answering my previous question! This was incredibly helpful and really puts into perspective certain things I was unnecessarily getting frustrated over having less experience with this medium. I deeply appreciate you giving me a straight answer! It made all the difference. Thank you for sharing your knowledge! You’re very educational. :)

[@BobbyChiu]

That's so great to hear! Glad you've been enjoying Bobby's videos and are finding them educational :) ~S

[@MirayaDust]

@@BobbyChiu Also, sorry it was annoying! :D

[@commentatorJR]

bobby chiu self portrait for next video.

[@BobbyChiu]

Haha, great idea!!😉 ~S

[@osep5581]

Yesss!!

[@LestardCalhoun]

You bring up a lot of good points to get more proficient with the general process of digital painting. However, I used to ask this question about custom brushes a lot and I have to be honest here. Every artist who addresses this question never really seems to actually wanna answer it. Instead of saying “Use fundamentals and the round brush and git gud”, how about saying “I used this brush here in this part of the picture and here is what it does.” And if you’re up for it, maybe even explain that “this and this are the main brush settings” or share/sell the brush. It’s like asking someone about a particularly interesting texture in a watercolour painting. If I ask “How did you get this effect?”, which is very similar to asking about the use of digital custom brushes, then I usually don’t get a “This texture won’t make you a better artist! Just soak a sable hair brush and learn your fundamentals.” Instead, I’ll get an “I scored the paper with a scalpel, like so” or an “I used a sponge to dab some of the colour off the sheet while it was still moist.” If you want to teach something then this question is actually a good opportunity to talk about the decision making process with custom brushes and thus help people to better understand their tools and use them efficiently for very calculated approaches, which is exactly what you talk about in this video.

[@BobbyChiu]

Thank you for your thoughtful comment! It's true that the brush you're using doesn't matter as much as how you use it, and having a good grasp of the fundamentals is the most important factor to being able to make any brush work for you. But there is definitely value in knowing what custom settings some artists have on their brushes to achieve a specific look or texture that you're going for, too. Custom brushes can be great shortcuts for quickly adding a certain texture to your work or for speeding up the process in general, so it's a great idea to take the time to experiment with your own settings to create custom brushes that serve your purpose, because each artist has different needs! That being said, we appreciate your suggestions to have Bobby do a video on his favorite custom brushes, so hopefully he will be up for making one! :) ~S

[@LestardCalhoun]

@@BobbyChiu hey, cheers for your reply! Completely with you on this and really happy you understood my comment in this way. It's just always been weird to me that people just seem to assume you're looking for a magic trick that will solve all your art problems when you ask this question, when really you're just trying to tap into a special bit of proficiency that you see them do really well. And yes, I'd love to watch a video in which Bobby explains his favorite custom brushes and how he uses them, so here's hoping!

[@kalebgonzales4009]

Dang! Under 2 hours!? Now that’s hardcore god tier master ninja lord!

[@BobbyChiu]

Haha! Is there a better way to describe Bobby's painting skills? I think not😆 ~S

[@aziminamdar161]

Quality work .....love it

[@BobbyChiu]

Thanks for your kind words! Glad you enjoyed this painting! :) ~S

[@SandeepSinghKhalsa]

Jai Hanuman Gyaan gun Sagar, Such a great devotion in making such an ape can only be the great ape from the Epic Ramayana, especially the feeling when He's close by. True. Although there is a reference. ☺

[@sohaartyk9018]

Thanks for for this video. It helps me alot. 👍🏻 I am learning with default brushes and paint with a single layer. ❤️🙆🏻‍♀️😁

[@BobbyChiu]

That's great! Happy to hear you found this video helpful! :) ~S

[@boo63735]

Thank you for this video Bobby!

[@BobbyChiu]

Thank YOU for watching!! :) ~S

[@shinkamui]

Thanks a lot for sharing this much knowledge Bobby! Following your videos over the week, my little notebook is filled with notes on things i'm excited to improve on for what to paint next, how about something with challenging perspective like a reflection on a sphere mirror. Maybe a self protrait looking through one of those? ;)

[@BobbyChiu]

Wow! That's so great to hear and Bobby really appreciates your kind words! So great that you've been taking notes and applying what you're learning to improve your own work. Thank you for those awesome suggestions as to what Bobby should paint next!😃 ~S

[@zaidaliahmed7869]

great video and i agree with a lot of it, it'd be great to see a video from you on layer modes as well! are you gonna do a follow up to this video on the subject of "visualization"? like going over what exercises or practices will get you near kim jungi level visualization? would be really helpful if you could.

[@BobbyChiu]

That’s a great idea. Thank you for the suggestion

[@MrJCraft]

a better question is what method are you using, lol this was literally the perfect method of painting to get a realistic result with the default round brush XD, Glazes and scumbles are so so nice.

[@nirashakannangara9901]

Thanks for sharing this. This is definitely going to help🙏

[@BobbyChiu]

Awesome! Glad you found this video helpful :) ~S

[@BC-sh7en]

just what i needed. thanks for the insight.

[@ashbell28]

I would like to see a video on how to study and practice perspective. Especially when trying to create perspective in a scene or illustration but there's not much reference to use.

[@BobbyChiu]

Ashanti B great suggestion! Perspective can be difficult

[@MidMistOinks]

Man I’m sure this is a good tutorial, but since I can’t visualize anything in my head, I unfortunately can’t do much with it. Lovely painting though!

[@BobbyChiu]

Thank you for watching! :) ~S

[@landerStrijb]

A gulper eel would be a nice painting subject.

[@BobbyChiu]

landerStrijb that’d be interesting. Thanks for the suggestion

[@anya7334]

i always found it difficult to paint water. all the ripples seem so complicated and time-consuming. if you do a video discussing that, it will be very appreciated! thanks

[@BobbyChiu]

Ooooo yes. The complexities of water are just endless... and then how water relates to air and atmosphere

[@ZoeyChuu]

How can you visualize if you have aphantasia ;; ?

[@s.r.4213]

I would be interested how do you choose Color for your paintings ? I guess you reference was a usual Monkey pic in a actual green Environment ? Thanks !

[@cdscissor]

Why am I watching this? I'm a traditional artist. Although I do plan to go digital eventually.

[@BobbyChiu]

CDScissor maybe it’s because my techniques here are based on traditional painting techniques. I started learning acrylics and watercolors before digital

[@cdscissor]

@@BobbyChiu Yeah, I noticed your paint in a very traditional way (kinda don't know how to word this) so it just felt right watching this, although it is digital. Anyways, my pencils still have a long way to go, and most other mediums would just break the bank for me so I'm sticking to what I have for now.

[@romt5649]

yeah a video about blend mods could be cool :D

[@pedrobarreiros3356]

Do you think it would be better to tackle a painting using color since the beginning or first going with the P&B, then using color blend mode? I'm doing your digital painting course and I think I can finally make piece with painting. Thank you for being so enthusiastic and commited with your art

[@BobbyChiu]

it’s actually a far more complex answer than it might appear. Definitely would be a great question to bring up during the question and answer. In discord after the next video premieres. Bit.Ly/LBXDISCORD

[@simonegreco4620]

I'm particularly challenged when drawing portraits, and when lightning isn't direct it's even more difficult

[@M32_722]

lol when you were saying "picture it moving, try to mooove it, try to moove this thing" i pictured rick telling morty to turn into a car lol

[@BobbyChiu]

🤣!!! ~S

[@robbilly6167]

Love it

[@BobbyChiu]

Thanks for watching! Glad you enjoyed it:) ~S

[@JaswiL-_51]

What does Flow do exactly? I only used Opacity since I didnt know what the flow tool is used for

[@BobbyChiu]

Flow is the rate at which the paint comes out of the brush

[@thetwinsplay7804]

Now default brush and one layer only would be a fun challenge.

[@BobbyChiu]

Ooooo very interesting! That would be a challenge for sure! ~S

[@yasnizory3292]

Using a hammer only hides your weakness, now I will show that a nail can be hammered using ONLY my forehead.

[@BobbyChiu]

N B 😂

[@tilzn9432]

Anyone knowing alternative version of that brush for procreate?

[@aleph-null]

monkey painting speedrun any%

[@BobbyChiu]

Chill Gamer full painting took 1hr 54min

[@supercool42_]

monke any% world record B)

[@jt342]

U should have more veiw 👍

[@arammco]

You're saying "don't look at the keyboard" He looks to check the two keys with the bumps. Mhhh

[@vivam.793]

The idea of the two bumps is that you just run your fingers over they keyboard and you'll be able to find them

[@salmadys]

Isn't using low flow in a brush almost the same as using a soft brush? I mean i get it that this exercise is about the absolute essentials and painting with no bells and whistles but i find the "no soft brush" rule redundant if painting is still going to be about the strategic placement of "hard edges" and "soft edges"

[@BobbyChiu]

using low flow can still create sharp edges since the stamp is a completely sharp edge so I don't consider it a soft edge brush. It's a hard edge brush that can paint soft edges as well. I didn't mean that I'm not going to paint soft edges though

[@JPEGTOMUSIC]

Hi bobby ive been taking art seriously and studying and everything since 2016, but, i have HUGE problems with visualization... i cant see anything do you have any good exercises to train the brain on that?

[@ronjosh1518]

So what kind of standard brush do you use?

[@MrAdamJW]

How are you painting inside a small window and having the large image in the background at the same time?

[@BobbyChiu]

This is a feature that can be used when using Photoshop on a PC instead of a Mac! ~S

[@RSidd]

Hmmm.......Monke.

[@dennisgarcia558]

What dpi do you use to start a new painting? Lots say use 300 dpi is that correct?

[@randomnickify]

It doesn't matter, that's for printing.

[@nearyyin5648]

i have aphantasia..

[@vishwanathravi7196]

Can u please explain the concept behind painting things without reference please, atleast give some tips.

[@ismaelalmeida8137]

Hey there! He does give tips on how to paint/draw from imagination. It all comes from understanding what you see. When painting from reference or real life, try to understand why the light acts a certain way, why the shadows have that shape, how the muscles moves,etc. One of the exercises to try is to do a painting from a reference and once finished, try doing one from imagination with what you just learned (around the same colors/light composition). Sure, it takes a lot of time. But the results are great! Also, don't compare your self to professional artists when it comes to painting from imagination. They have years and years of accumulated visual library inside their head. So yeah, in the end it's just paying even more attention to stuff around you and getting the ''why'' . Happy painting :D

[@ebi5426]

I cant visualize anything... i have aphantasia. Everything is black.

[@BouncyAnimation]

what Brushes are you using?

[@BobbyChiu]

😆😆😆 ~S

[@shavingrabbid]

was opacity jitter turned on?

[@BobbyChiu]

no

[@shavingrabbid]

@@BobbyChiu cool

[@smallpoly10]

Looked like just pressure-size and a low flow rate

[@supercool42_]

can you do a video on how to do studies :)

[@BobbyChiu]

You can check out the 90 minute art challenges that Bobby livestreams every Monday and Thursday at 9:30am EST! They do a different study each time and talk about their process along the way! :) ~S

[@twilightwolf-vv7uf]

please paint a wolf :)

[@faltergeist3224]

damn, the patience it must've took; both for the question, and the artwork 😂

[@BobbyChiu]

actually it took me less than 2 hrs to paint this so it really didn't take too long :)

[@Kino-Imsureq]

Honestly though idk why someone would use that much layers and brushes? whether on paper or digital, you dont have to hassle with 10000 layers and brushes, if you dont use them.

[@neelav2394]

To make the process non destructive. You can always go back to any layer and change whatever you'd like to in the painting

[@Kino-Imsureq]

@@neelav2394 So like separating lighting, background, and albedo? Yeah... i guess you could. (But also to erase one object you would have to go through every layer that has to do with that 1 object, whereas if just 1 layer you can just erase 1 time and boom.)

[@SubNorm4L]

@@Kino-Imsureq Depends on the project, on a complex illustration with lots of characters i would make a layer for each of them with local colors, a layer for the background, 1 for the lighting and 1 the shadow. It's useful because you can establish your colors, composition and structures in a much more organized way. After that, you just paint on top of everything and make layers when you want to try something that could ruin or improve what you already painted, it's like being safe while experimenting. But, in general, having a character on a different layer than the background is a good idea. Use as many layers as you need, they're just tools, but it's not like you need 5 layers for each little object, not even for the main one, though. In environment you separate Foreground, Mid ground, Background, sky and that's it most of the time. Different brushes give variety of texture, edges and noise, just that. So it depends on taste and the direction of your work.

[@TERRORVELAZQUEZ]

Hey Bobby! I am truthfully thank you for sharing such an advice, visualize the thing, if well done really improves the lines, immediately. Also, i want to share my experience, if so, anatomy is necessary (really), also is to observe things, and not just watch them, i think that is the very reason that your advice works so well with me, ´cause i usually pay attention to aspects like textures, forms, shadows, and all that visual stimulation that life provides. Anyway, thank you from CDMX, México. IG: @Terrorvelazquez

[@BobbyChiu]

Thank you for sharing that! Yes, you are correct in that knowledge of anatomy and how to observe things is very helpful when it comes to improving your art! Glad to hear you found this video helpful and that you've been enjoying Bobby's videos! :) ~S

[@TDuD3]

man.. I've been watching your vids for almost a decade now and I wasn't subscried!..

[@BobbyChiu]

Haha, that's alright! Never too late to subscribe⁠😊 Thanks for your continuing support of this channel!! ~S