Method 3- Colored Pencil Picker App

Method 3- Colored Pencil Picker App

I started to take drawing with colored pencils seriously around 2019. Once I found this application, it was a game-changer for me. I don’t receive compensation for recommending the app. My goal is to share about the Colored Pencil Picker App in case it might help someone else.

First, I will explain how Colored Pencil Picker works. Then I’ll get into how I use it and some pros and cons of the app.

You can find the Colored Pencil Picker on the Apple App store. It was designed for the iPad, which is how I use it. Although you can use your iPhone if you want to. I also located it on the Google App Store, so I’m assuming you can find it to work with products that use Google.

The App is by Kristian Olidana, and it has a one-time cost of $7.99, which I think is a steal. You can use a free version, but it doesn’t have all of the functionality that the paid version does. Also, you’ll have to endure advertisements if you use the free version, and who wants to suffer through that?

The brands of pencils that are in this app are as follows:

-Prismacolor: 150s, 132s, 72s, 48s, 36s

-Faber Castell Classics: 48s, 36s

-Faber Castell Polychromos: 120s, 72s, 60s, 48s

-Caran d’Ache Luminance: 76s, 40s

-Caran d’Ache Pablo: 120s, 80s, 40s

-Caran d’Ache Supracolor: 120s, 80s, 40s

-Derwent Artist Pencils: 120s, 72s, 48s, 36s

-Derwent Lightfast: 100s, 72s, 48, 36s

-Arteza Expert Colored Pencils: 120s, 72s, 48s

The description of the App says that more pencils are to be added in the future. I hope they add the 150 set of Cara d’Ache Luminance, which includes the portrait colors.

Below is a screenshot of how the app is pictured in the App Store. It shows the list of colored pencils on the left, how to read the results you get when you hover over an area of your reference image, and an example of how to achieve the “Mix Preview” by layering two pencils.

Pros and Cons of the Color Picker App Method

Positives

The method is very easy. It only costs a one-time fee of $7.99, and it is very easy to use. I honestly use it for every drawing. I even use it when I draw with pastels because I like how it isolates a color for me to see.

This method is quicker than the other two color-picking methods I went into in my previous two blog posts. I love that. I am impatient. I don’t want to swatch or pick out colors on Adobe. I just want to get started.

I love that I can use the app to isolate a color. This really helps me to focus on what color I could use regardless if I am using the suggested layers or not.

Also, the app has provided me with some go-to layer combinations that I use all of the time now. For example, I have found that ivory, flesh, and warm gray I create lovely light hues for orangey animals. I’m honestly not sure that I would have come up with this combination on my own.

Negatives

A negative of this method is that you have to pay for the application, although I think it’s pretty cheap.

I’m also not aware of how it works on Samsung or Google products, so I can’t vouch for that.

Finally, a negative would be if you take this application too literally it might drive you crazy. I’ve learned over time how to adjust using it to fit my needs. But I could see how it might overwhelm some people instead of helping them.

Let me know what you think. Have you tried this color-picking app? Do you like it? If you haven’t, would you try it? Have you found any other apps that help with this process?

For the next blog, I will be talking about a book called Art & Fear.

Until then, happy coloring.