Now let us shift the point of interest towards the digital era and yes, it is possible to practice calligraphy on your PC. There are three types of calligraphy: Western, Eastern, and Arabic, each reflecting the language and handwriting of a specific region of the globe. Unlike the conventional form of writing, digital calligraphy requires no special pens, inks, or brushes. However, it does require quality software that comes with various brush presets. One might ask why bother with digitalizing calligraphy or creating calligraphic fonts when there are already so many designs available to choose from. As in all other areas, it is important to find your own voice or in this case your own writing style in order to make your work stand out from the plethora of similar services available on the market. Are you ready to step up your game with a professional tool? If so, take a look at our selection below, compare and explore the different capacities that each software has to offer and become an expert at digital calligraphy.
What is the best software for calligraphy?
The graphics software is used by millions of designers and artists to create anything from mobile graphics to book illustrations and much more. One of its distinguishing features is its vector-based structure which means you will never have to deal with resolution issues. Your calligraphy can be easily scaled larger or smaller while preserving intact quality. Besides, the Image Trace feature can quickly scan your calligraphic fonts and transform them into vectors. The Illustrator also boasts a user-friendly brush widely appreciated for its accurate results. The tools included in Illustrator’s suite enable you to find a font style that fits your work or turn to other graphic designers for calligraphic design inspiration. You can even import your favorites by choosing from over 17,000 high-quality fonts with Adobe Fonts or sync with Adobe Stock and use it as a basis for custom fonts. With Adobe Illustrator you can make your own custom font design based on handwriting or serif or sans serif fonts. Not only that, but you can also create custom letterforms that fit your unique layout and design. Let’s quickly go through its key features:
Adobe Originals (available in Illustrator’s font menu, it allows you to choose an existing font to kick off your design process, then adjust the weight, width, or slant to suit your specific needs) Sketch-based development (you can either draw by hand in Illustrator or import hand lettering / digital art from Adobe Photoshop) Image Trace (transform your imported font sketch into an easily edited vector graphic to refine your work) Integration options (third-party plug-ins can easily be integrated to help you finalize and manage your fonts)
Adobe Illustrator is a paid service, but you can try it out for free for 7 days. You can integrate it within the Creative Cloud if you use other Adobe products. It’s the pinnacle when it comes to calligraphy work thanks to its numerous brushes and special effects, not to mention the fact that it gives you complete control over the lettering since you can edit your graphics pixel-by-pixel. In calligraphy, each letter is carefully thought out according to the artist’s vision. This leads to a wide variety of styles and Photoshop brushes cover them all: from spray paint or ink wash effect, precise linework shading with pencil, ink, and charcoal brushes, and watercolor brushes to splatter effects. You can perfect your calligraphy brushstrokes with thousands of preset high-quality Photoshop brush sets or create your unique, custom drawing brushes and sync them with Creative Cloud libraries. You can create unique calligraphy designs by playing around with effects and color options. Users can also create custom brushes or use one from the comprehensive brush preset collection. Let’s quickly go through its key features:
Your work is automatically saved to the cloud for quick access, no matter where you are Lens Blur offers a more natural and realistic look when blurring an object in the foreground Improved Content-Aware Fill Object Selection tool (create fast and precise selections by drawing a simple rectangle) Performance improvements (smoother panning, zooming, and navigating)
Adobe Photoshop is a subscription-based service that is integrated into the Creative Cloud. It has a 7-day free trial. SPONSORED When it comes to calligraphy, the tool is suitable for both professionals and beginners who can use pre-designed graphics without the hassle of starting from scratch. With a full artistic color palette, easy-to-use pen and pencil, and tools that allow you to control size, shape, text, lines, and layers, you can start creating unique and stunning lettering designs with a creative edge in no time. Graphic Design Studio gives you a plethora of inspiring tools, including over 2 000 pre-designed vector graphics and images. The tool lets you also create your own presets and add them to the Component Library, so you can reuse them in the future. It comes with full layering support, so you can tweak and change up your lettering without disturbing other parts of your design. Let’s quickly go through its key features:
Powerful editing tools Full support for SVG files, including import and export Creative filters and effects (3D tunnel effects and unique shapes, blurs, shadows & glows) Creative background and fill textures Artistic color palettes and gradients 65+ commercial use fonts
Graphic Design Studio is a paid product, so if you want to use you will have to purchase a license. Creating your own calligraphic artwork has never been easier thanks to the pens and pencils as well as the color, line thickness, and transparency of each tool boasted by this software. The best part is that you can even modify characters after scanning thanks to the internal image editor. You can create standard font files (TFF or OTFF formats) which can be easily editable and included in other font or graphical editing software. Caligraphr also includes character randomization which is an essential solution when you want to simulate genuine handwriting. This calligraphy tool supports multiple languages, so you can easily access and edit all sorts of characters. Let’s quickly go through its key features:
Simple user interface Ligatures (suitable character sequences are automatically replaced with your specified ligatures) Customizable templates (with exactly the character set you need for your font)
Calligraphr has a free as well as a paid version. The free version lets you freely create and design calligraphy, but it does have some limitations on the number of fonts you can make at the same time. ⇒ Get Calligraphr Thanks to its flexibility, the tool enables both advanced and beginner users to design intricate calligraphy. Plus, Inkscape is able to utilize the pressure and tilt sensitivity of a tablet pen. You can take full control of the look of your design with width and thinning settings, so your calligraphy looks exactly as you envisioned. Inkscape also gives you the possibility to fully control the angle and fixation of your pen, with custom pen degrees, from 0 to 90 or -90. Let’s quickly go through its key features:
Tremor (to give a more natural look to the calligraphy strokes by producing anything from unevenness to blotches and splotches) Wiggle and mass
You can take full control of the look of your design with width and thinning settings, so your calligraphy looks exactly as you envisioned.
Inkscape also gives you the possibility to fully control the angle and fixation of your pen, with custom pen degrees, from 0 to 90 or -90.
⇒ Get Inkscape
By emulating the look of handwriting, calligraphy fonts are more artistic than the average font.
If you decide to create your own, you have even better chances to produce an eye-catching design that is sure to impress the right audience for your project.
So why not try your hand at digital calligraphy with the help of a specialized tool? Let us know how that worked for you in the comments section below.
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