Corel Painter 2017 is a professional digital painting software renowned for its realistic simulation of traditional painting media and brush behavior. This guide will detail its interface, complete workflow, advanced techniques, and common issues to help users quickly master its core functions.
I. Detailed Explanation of the Software’s Core Interface and Workspace
After launching Painter 2017, you will see a workspace composed of multiple dockable panels. The default layout is designed to provide an efficient painting experience.
- Menu Bar: Located at the top of the screen, it contains all advanced commands such as File, Edit, Canvas, Layers, Select, and Effects.
- Property Bar: Below the menu bar. Its content changes dynamically based on the currently selected tool and is used to quickly adjust tool properties (such as brush size, opacity, and grain).
- Toolbox: Usually located on the left side of the interface. It contains core tools such as brush tools, layer adjustment tools, selection tools, shape tools, and the eyedropper tool.
- Canvas Workspace: The largest area in the center, serving as the main space for painting and creative work.
- Panel Area:
- Brush Selector: Located in the upper-left corner or the left panel of the interface, it provides dozens of brush categories (such as pencil, watercolor, and oil paint) and variants.
- Color Panel: Usually located on the right side, containing the color mixer, color sets, color information, etc., used for selecting and mixing colors.
- Layer Panel: Located near the Color Panel, it manages layers, masks, and dynamic plugin layers on the canvas.
- Paper Panel: Controls the selection and scaling of canvas texture (paper grain) and contrast adjustment.
- Tracing Paper: Used for tracing the underlying image.
II. Complete Workflow from Creation to Export
1. Create or Open a Project
Method:
- Launch the software and click “New” on the welcome screen, or go through the menu bar “File > New”.
- In the dialog that appears, set the canvas parameters: dimensions, resolution (300 DPI recommended for printing), paper color, then click “Create”.
- To open an existing image, use “File > Open” or the shortcut
Cmd + O.
2. Basic Drawing Operations
Steps:
- Select a brush: In the “Brush Selector”, click a category (e.g., “Pencils”), then select a specific variant on its right (e.g., “Cover Pencil”).
- Adjust the brush: In the property bar or using the shortcuts
](enlarge) and[(reduce) to quickly adjust the brush tip size. Use the property bar slider to adjust opacity. - Select a color: Click to pick a color in the circular color wheel or triangular color mixer in the “Color Panel”, or use the Eyedropper tool (I) in the toolbox to sample a color from the canvas.
- Start painting: Drag the mouse directly on the canvas or use a pen tablet to paint.
3. Use layers for non-destructive editing
Steps:
- Click the “New Layer” icon at the bottom of the Layers panel to create a transparent layer. Separate your sketch, line art, and coloring onto different layers for easier editing.
- Select the target layer and use a brush to paint on that layer. Layer blending modes and opacity can be adjusted at the top of the Layers panel.
- Right-click a layer to duplicate, delete, create a layer mask, or apply dynamic effects (such as “Liquid Ink”).
4. Save and export your artwork
Steps:
- Save the project: Use “File > Save” or
Cmd + Sto save the file in Painter’s native format.rif, preserving all layer and effect information. - Export to a universal format: After finishing your creation, use “File > Save As”.
- Choose a format such as
.PSD(preserves layers for editing in Photoshop) or.TIFF(high-quality printing). - For web use, choose “File > Export” to export as
.JPEGor.PNG, and set the image size and quality in the dialog box.
- Choose a format such as
III. Advanced Tips for Common Features
1. Custom Brushes and Variables
After selecting a basic brush, open the detailed settings via “Window > Brush Control Panel”. Adjust properties such as “Size,” “Spacing,” and “Grain,” then click the menu on the right side of the brush selector and choose “Save Variable” to create your own custom brush.
2. Making Good Use of Drawing Aid Tools
- Golden Ratio & Layout Grid: Enable via the “Canvas > Composition” menu to assist with composition.
- Perspective Grid: “Canvas > Perspective Grid > Show Grid” lets you create one-point, two-point, or three-point perspective guide lines, and the brush will automatically snap to the perspective lines.
3. Cloning and Tracing Techniques
Open a reference photo and use “File > Quick Clone”. The tracing paper will automatically overlay the photo. Select a “Cloner Brush” variant (such as “Soft Cloner”) to paint or color on the new canvas based on the underlying image.
IV. Common Issues and Solutions
Issue 1: Brush Lag or Stuttering
Solution:
- Check whether the brush size is too large, especially for thick painting brushes.
- Try lowering the “Predictive Stroke” value in “Preferences > Brush Tracking”.
- Merge or delete some high-resolution layers to free up memory.
Issue 2: Watercolor/Liquid Ink brushes cannot be used on specific layers
Solution: Watercolor and Liquid Ink are special “dynamic plugin layers” and must be created on dedicated layers. When you select these types of brushes, the software usually prompts you to automatically create the corresponding layer. You can also manually create one via “Layer > New Dynamic Plugin Layer”.
Issue 3: Tablet pressure sensitivity not working
Solution:
- First, make sure the tablet driver is correctly installed on your system.
- In Painter, check “Preferences > Tablet” and ensure “Use Pen Pressure” is checked.
- In the brush property bar, confirm that the pressure icons (usually curve shapes) to the right of “Size” and “Opacity” are enabled.
V. Corel Painter 2017 for Mac Keyboard Shortcuts Summary
| Function | Shortcut (Mac) | Description |
|---|---|---|
| New File | Cmd + N |
Create a new canvas |
| Open File | Cmd + O |
Open an existing image |
| Save File | Cmd + S |
Save the current project |
| Undo | Cmd + Z |
Undo the last action |
| Redo | Cmd + Shift + Z |
Redo the undone action |
| Select All | Cmd + A |
Select the entire canvas |
| Deselect | Cmd + D |
Cancel the current selection |
| Fill with Foreground Color | Cmd + F |
Fill the selection or layer with the foreground color |
| Toggle Tracing Paper | Cmd + T |
Show/hide tracing paper |
| Increase Brush Size | ] (Right Bracket) |
Increase brush tip size |
| Decrease Brush Size | [ (Left Bracket) |
Decrease brush tip size |
| Eyedropper Tool | I |
Temporarily switch to the eyedropper tool to pick colors |
| Brush Tool | B |
Switch to the brush tool |
| Hand Tool | Spacebar + Drag |
Pan the canvas view |
| Zoom In | Cmd + + |
Increase canvas display magnification |
| Zoom Out | Cmd + - |
Decrease canvas display magnification |
| Actual Size | Cmd + 0 |
View the canvas at 100% scale |
| New Layer | Cmd + Shift + N |
Create a new standard layer |
| Merge Layers | Cmd + E |
Merge the selected layer down |
Note: Some shortcuts may vary depending on your system or custom settings. You can view and modify all shortcuts via “Corel Painter > Preferences > Customize Shortcuts”.
