Facts You Didn't Know About Krita

Krita, a powerful open-source digital painting and animation software, originated in 1998 and has evolved significantly over the years. It offers advanced tools, a vast range of brushes, and supports HDR painting. Krita's community-driven development and Python scripting capabilities make it a strong competitor to Photoshop, particularly for 2D animation and digital painting. Its free nature and the learning curve that's less steep than Photoshop's make it an attractive choice for artists and art institutions alike.

Takeaways

• 🎨 Krita originated in 1998 at the Linux Congress when Matas etri, founder of KDE, chose KIMP as a demo to show the potential of hacking a QT GUI around an existing app.
• 🔄 The project underwent numerous name changes, finally settling on Krita in 2002, inspired by the Swedish words 'K' meaning crayon and 'did' meaning to draw.
• 🌐 Krita is a community-driven project with contributions from volunteers, and the KDE Community has played a significant role in its development.
• 💰 In 2012, the Krita Foundation was established as an independent, non-profit organization to support and further the development of Krita.
• 🖌️ Krita offers over 100 brushes and more than 10 powerful brush engines for sketching and painting, with the ability to customize brushes based on various effects, patterns, and designs.
• 🎨 Krita was the first worldwide HDR painting app, introducing HDR painting in patch 4.2.0, which provides a wide range of colors close to real-world colors.
• 🌈 The software includes a vast array of advanced filters for adjusting and editing colors, allowing for professional-looking sketches with minimal effort.
• ✂️ Beyond painting, Krita also serves as a photo editor with features similar to Photoshop, such as adjustment layers, masks, and the ability to handle raw images.
• 🎥 Krita is well-suited for animation, offering essential tools like layering, brush tools, and workflow management features, including a timeline and storyboard Docker.
• 💻 Users with programming interests can enhance their workflow with Python scripting, which allows for the creation of custom scripts, plugins, and automation of repetitive tasks.
• 🌟 Krita's open-source nature means its source code is available for viewing, modification, and contribution, making it a legal and community-supported endeavor.

Q & A

What is the origin of Krita and when did the KDE Community decide to start their own image manipulation software?

The origin of Krita dates back to 1998 at the Linux Congress when Matas et al., founder of KDE, chose KIMP as a demo. However, the KDE Community decided to start their own image manipulation software like Photoshop and named it K Image Shop, which was officially released in 2004.

Why did the Krita project undergo a name change from K Image Shop?

The project underwent a name change because they couldn't register the name K Image Shop due to trademark law in Germany. After some brainstorming, they renamed the project to Krita, which was inspired by two Swedish words 'krita' meaning crayon and 'rita' which means to draw.

What is the significance of the Krita Foundation established in 2012?

The Krita Foundation, established in 2012, is an independent non-profit organization created to provide more support and further the development of Krita. It also marked the release of a paid Steam version of Krita, with all the money directly supporting its development.

What was the main difference between Krita Studio and Krita Gemini?

Krita Studio was a free version designed for desktop and notebook users with a full feature desktop user interface. In contrast, Krita Gemini was a paid version optimized for tablets with a touch-friendly alternate UI. However, due to programming process issues, the Krita team decided to cancel Gemini and replace it with the regular desktop version of Krita.

How does Krita's brush engine contribute to the creation of artwork or paintings?

Krita's brush engine is powerful and has more than 100 brushes and over 10 built-in engines that can be used for sketching and painting. These include the color smudge engine, shape engine, particle engine, and filler engine. Krita also allows users to customize brushes based on various effects, patterns, and designs, and organize them with Krita's unique tagging system.

What does HDR stand for and how did Krita become the first painting application to support it?

HDR stands for High Dynamic Range. It provides a wide range of colors that are very close to real-world colors, including more greens and reds, and allows for smoother gradients and more flexibility with 10 to 16 bits per channel. Krita became the first painting application to support HDR with the launch of patch 4.2.0 in 2019.

How do filters in Krita help in making sketches look more professional?

Filters in Krita offer one of the biggest advantages by allowing users to make their sketches look more professional with very little effort. When used wisely, they can enhance the tone and color of the artwork. Krita features a wide variety of filters, from simple ones like blur and color to advanced ones like chalk filters.

How does Krita serve as a photo editing tool with advanced features?

Krita has advanced photo editing features similar to Photoshop, which include adjustment layers, CMYK and RGB color modes, multi-layers, and the ability to open and handle RAW images. These features facilitate tasks effectively and make Krita suitable for photo editing, despite being fully converted into a digital painting app in 2009.

What are the essential tools in Krita for creating frame by frame animation?

Krita provides essential tools for creating frame by frame animation, including layering tools, brush tools, shaping tools, and advanced workflow management features like the timeline Docker, storyboard Docker, onion skin Docker, and the animation curve stalker for animating property values over time.

How does Python scripting in Krita allow for customization and automation?

Python scripting in Krita provides access to functions and objects that can be used to create custom scripts and plugins, automating repetitive tasks. Additionally, as Krita is open-source, users can view, modify, and contribute to the source code, allowing them to manually fix bugs or add functions.

Why is Krita considered a strong competitor to Photoshop, especially for 2D animation and digital painting?

Krita is considered a strong competitor to Photoshop due to its continuous upgrades and improvements, offering a less steep learning curve and a free price point, which is a significant advantage over Photoshop's subscription model. Its increasing popularity has led many artists, studios, and even art schools to switch to Krita.

Why did the ATI art and Technology of Image department at the University of Paris decide to switch to Krita in 2015?

The ATI art and Technology of Image department at the University of Paris decided to switch to Krita in 2015 after years of using Photoshop, likely due to Krita's robust feature set, its suitability for digital painting and 2D animation, and its cost-effectiveness as a free software option.

Outlines

00:00

🎨 Introduction to CR and Skillshare Animation Course

This paragraph introduces the audience to the topic of the video, which is about lesser-known facts related to CR (Krita). It begins by mentioning Skillshare, a platform offering a variety of classes in creative fields such as animation, drawing, and illustration. The video features a course led by a 2D animator, MAA, focusing on animation using CR as an affordable alternative to expensive software like Photoshop. The course content includes mastering drawing tools, frame-by-frame animations, and the tweening animation feature. The video offers the first 1,000 viewers a one-month free trial of Skillshare Premium membership through a link in the description. The paragraph then transitions into the history of Krita, starting from its origins in 1998 at the Linux Congress and its evolution into the KDE Community's own image manipulation software, eventually releasing it as K image shop in 2004. The name change to Krita is explained, highlighting the Swedish words 'K' for crayon and 'did' for drawing, with the 'K' prefix to align with other KDE Community apps. The paragraph emphasizes the community-driven nature of CR's development, supported by volunteers and the CR Foundation, a nonprofit organization established in 2012 to further its development. It also mentions the release of a paid Steam version to support CR financially.

05:03

🖌️ CR's Features, Filters, and Its Role Beyond Painting

The second paragraph delves into the advanced tools and features of CR, which contribute to its popularity over other art software. It highlights the powerful brush engine with over 100 brushes and 10 built-in brush engines for various sketching and painting needs. Customization of brushes is also discussed, allowing users to create unique brushes with different effects, patterns, and designs using CR's tagging system. The paragraph then touches on CR being the first worldwide HDR painting app, introducing HDR painting in its 4.2.0 patch in 2019. HDR, or High Dynamic Range, is explained as providing a broad spectrum of colors closer to real-world hues, with capabilities like 10 to 16 bits per channel for smoother gradients. Additionally, the paragraph covers CR's extensive filter options, both built-in and from the GIMP plug-in library, which can enhance and professionalize artwork with minimal effort. The versatility of CR is underscored by its photo editing capabilities, rivaling those of Photoshop, including features like adjustment layers, color modes, multi-layer selection, and handling RAW images. The paragraph also mentions CR's suitability for animation, offering frame-by-frame animation tools, workflow management features, and the timeline Docker. The inclusion of Python scripting in CR is highlighted, allowing users to create custom scripts and plugins or even contribute to the software's development. The open-source nature of CR is emphasized, with its source code available for viewing, modifying, and contributing. The paragraph concludes by positioning CR as a formidable competitor to Photoshop, particularly in 2D animation and digital painting, and notes its growing popularity and adoption by artists, studios, and educational institutions.

Keywords

💡Krita

Krita is an open-source digital painting and animation software that provides a powerful alternative to commercial software like Photoshop. It is known for its wide range of tools and features, such as brush engines, filters, and animation capabilities. In the video, Krita's origin, development, and various functionalities are discussed, highlighting its evolution from an image manipulation software to a robust digital art platform.

💡Skillshare

Skillshare is an online learning platform that offers a variety of classes in creative fields, including animation, drawing, and illustration. In the context of the video, it is mentioned as a platform where users can join a course led by a 2D animator to learn about animation using Krita, emphasizing its use as a tool for creating vibrant animations and character designs.

💡KDE

KDE stands for K Desktop Environment, which is a community-driven project that develops free and open-source software for desktop computing. In the video, KDE is mentioned as the community that originally started the Krita project, aiming to create an image manipulation software similar to Photoshop.

💡Mascot

A mascot is a character or symbol that represents a brand, product, or organization. In the case of Krita, the mascot's story is tied to the software's name, which was inspired by two Swedish words: 'krita' meaning crayon and 'rita' meaning to draw. The mascot embodies the essence of Krita as a drawing and painting tool.

💡Open Source

Open source refers to a type of software whose source code is made available to the public, allowing anyone to view, modify, and contribute to its development. Krita is described as an open-source project in the video, which means its source code is freely accessible and the community can collaborate to improve the software.

💡Digital Painting

Digital painting is the process of creating artwork using digital tools and software, such as Krita. It involves using various brushes, colors, and layers to create visual art on a digital canvas. The video emphasizes Krita's capabilities as a digital painting tool, with over 100 brushes and powerful brush engines that cater to artists' needs.

💡Animation

Animation is the process of creating the illusion of motion through a sequence of images. In the context of the video, Krita is presented as a tool for creating frame-by-frame animations, offering essential features like a timeline, storyboard, and onion skinning to manage and refine the animation process.

💡Filters

Filters in digital art software like Krita are tools that apply various effects to an image, enhancing its appearance or altering specific aspects according to the artist's vision. The video mentions that Krita has a large set of advanced filters that can be used to adjust colors, tones, and other elements of the artwork, contributing to a more professional look with minimal effort.

💡Photo Editing

Photo editing involves the manipulation of digital images to enhance or alter their appearance. Krita, despite being primarily a digital painting and animation tool, also offers photo editing capabilities similar to those found in software like Photoshop, such as adjustment layers, color modes, and the handling of raw images.

💡Python Scripting

Python scripting refers to the use of the Python programming language to create custom scripts and plugins within a software application. Krita supports Python scripting, allowing users to automate repetitive tasks and even contribute to the software's development by manually fixing bugs or adding new functions.

💡Competitor to Photoshop

Photoshop is a widely used commercial software for image editing and digital art creation. Krita is described as a competitor to Photoshop in the video due to its range of features and functionalities that rival those of Photoshop, but with the advantage of being free and having a less steep learning curve.

Highlights

Krita originated in 1998 at the Linux Congress as a demo to show the potential of hacking a QT GUI around an existing app.

Krita was initially named K Image Shop but had to change due to trademark law in Germany.

The name 'Krita' is inspired by two Swedish words 'krita' meaning crayon and 'teckna' which means to draw.

Krita is a community project maintained by volunteers and has a dozen generous contributors.

The Krita Foundation was established in 2012 as an independent non-profit to support the development of Krita.

Krita had two variants, Krita Studio and Krita Gemini, with the latter being optimized for tablets but was later discontinued.

Krita boasts over 100 brushes and more than 10 powerful brush engines for sketching and painting.

Krita was the first worldwide HDR painting app, introducing HDR painting in its 4.2.0 patch in 2019.

Krita offers a wide range of advanced filters to enhance artwork and photo editing capabilities.

Krita's advanced photo editing features include adjustment layers, CMYK and RGB color modes, and multi-layer selection.

Krita is well-suited for animation with essential tools like layering, brush tools, and advanced workflow management features.

Krita supports Python scripting, allowing users to create custom scripts and plugins, and even contribute to the software's development.

Krita is open-source software with its source code available for anyone to view, modify, and contribute to.

Krita is increasingly becoming a strong competitor to Photoshop, especially in 2D animation and digital painting.

Krita's learning curve is less steep and it's free, which is a significant advantage over Photoshop's subscription model.

Many artists, studios, and art schools are switching to Krita, including the ATI art and Technology of Image department at the University of Paris.

Krita offers a one-month free trial of Skillshare Premium membership to the first 1,000 people who click the link in the description.

The Skillshare course led by 2D animator MAA focuses on mastering Krita's drawing tools with an emphasis on frame by frame animations.

Krita's unique tagging system allows users to customize, save, and organize their brushes based on various effects, patterns, and designs.