PROCREATE 5.2 IS COMING!

I’ve been invited by Procreate to test their brand new baby, Procreate 5.2! It still needs work before the launch somewhere in 2022 (I believe), but boy, this new update is so exciting! Everyone is very psyched about the new 3D features that Procreate 5.2 will offer, but that’s definitely not all that the new update will offer. Here’s a little overview of the most exciting new features that you can expect.

3D PAINTING

Procreate 5.2 will allow you to paint on 3D objects in the app. You can import your own objects from apps like Forger for instance. Or you can just play around with the standard set of objects that Procreate offers you. Painting on these objects feels very intuitive, just like everything in Procreate I guess. You can rotate the object and zoom in easily. You can’t just paint with color on the object, but you can also alter the texture by tapping the little box shape next to the layer name. It’ll open up three layers, one for colour, one for roughness and one for metallic. That way you can adjust how rough or shiny your object looks. These layers work a bit like layer masks, so you can add roughness or metallicness (is that even a word?) by painting on them with white and remove it by painting with black.

LIGHTING SETUP

Besides painting your 3d object in Procreate, you’ll also be able to change the lighting setup. When you go to the Actions menu and then to 3D, you can select Edit lighting & environment. This will open up the lighting studio where you can add and remove ‘lamps’. You can move them around, change their color, their brightness. I’m sure it’ll give hours of fun playing time.

By tapping Environment, you can even change the entire environment your object is in. For now you can choose between scenes like studio, auditorium, nightlife, beach and more. The scene will be best visible when your object is shiny and reflective.

NEW BRUSH FEATURES

STABILISATION

This is another new awesome feature that Procreate will launch. It’s great when you have a bit of a shaky hand, like all of us do from time to time (or all the time). Streamline in Procreate was already great, but this sure is next level. Procreate will now add stabilisation and motion filtering in the stabilisation tab. With the sliders you can adjust how smooth Procreate will make your ‘wobbles’. This is perfect when trying to create smooth outlines for your drawing. This might just be the best new feature!

PDF SUPPORT

Another great new feature is Page Assist. It works a bit like Animation Assist actually! Procreate 5.2 will allow you to import pdf files or turn your layers into pages of a pdf. All you have to do is go to the Actions menu and turn on Page Assist under Actions. Creating a pdf file feels super intuitive in Procreate, it’ll be a great way to make a digital sketchbook for instance!

BUT WAIT… THERE’S MORE!

This wasn’t all that Procreate 5.2 will have to offer. There are more changes that you can expect in the update, I might miss some and some might still get added, who knows! But one thing they’ll be adding is Color Cards. This will be a new option under color palettes. You can either show your palettes in compact mode or cards mode. You can even give your colors different names! How convenient.

You’ll also be seeing a change in the Adjustments menu. Whenever you use an adjustment like Gaussian Blur for instance, you can switch between layer and pencil while working with the adjustment. So you don’t have to pick one before you get started blurring and then stick with it.

And what do you think of saving your brush size and opacity? When changing the size or opacity, you see this little + sign. You can tap it to save the brush size or opacity you are using. You can save up to 4 different sizes, super handy! A final feature that I feel is very handy, is the Recent brush tab in the Brush Library. This tab will show you the brushes you have used recently.

Now these were the features that stood out to me the most, but I’m sure I have missed some. I’m also sure you’ll have lots of fun exploring Procreate 5.2 yourself as soon as it comes out though!