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THE WINNER

Procreate for iPad

The perfect blend of style and power at a great price
Image credit: Ambient Design, Lofopi Ltd, Sylwester Los, Adobe Inc, snowCanoe, Savage Interactive

Most of the apps on test here are in the ‘very affordable’ category. Adobe Illustrator is an outlier in having a hefty subscription price which counts against it despite its obvious talents and Adobe Suite integration. Artstudio Pro is a very decent allrounder, putting a friendly interface on an app that works almost as well with photos as with painting.

Art Set 4 skews more towards replicating a real-world canvas and materials and makes an excellent job of it, somehow providing an experience that is pleasingly tactile despite being entirely digital. ArtRage Vitae and Inspire Pro are fun but let down by clunky interfaces.

Procreate feels the most Apple-like app here; slick and powerful and with a deep set of features yet also beautifully designed to the point the learning curve is minimal.

Of course, you’ll still need some skill to make great art with any of these apps, but Procreate feels like the one that will empower you to do that the most easily. For a one-off asking price of just £12.99, it’s an incredible way to express your artistic side and make stunning creations.

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MacFormat
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