Krita Complete Beginner’s Guide: Free Professional Digital Painting Tool, Master in 30 Minutes

Why Choose Krita?

Krita is completely free professional painting software with features rivaling Photoshop, designed specifically for digital painting.

Core Advantages:

✅ Completely free (no watermarks, no feature limitations)
✅ Professional-grade features (layers, brush engines, color management)
✅ Cross-platform support (Windows, Mac, Linux)
✅ Full Chinese interface

Suitable for: Illustration beginners, game artists, manga creators
Not suitable for: Photo editing, vector design, 3D modeling

Quick Start

Download and Install

Download: krita.org (approx. 200MB)

First setup:

Language selection → Traditional Chinese (or English)
Workspace layout → Painting (recommended for beginners)
Brush presets → Keep defaults

Hardware recommendations: 4GB RAM, drawing tablet not required but recommended

Interface Overview

5 Main Areas:

Toolbar (left): Brush (B), Eraser (E), Fill (F), Select (Ctrl+R)
Brush presets (top right): Sketch, ink, watercolor categories
Color palette (middle right): Color wheel selector + saved colors
Layers panel (bottom right): Layer management, blend modes
Canvas (center): Creation area

Key operations:

Pan canvas: Spacebar + drag
Zoom: Ctrl + scroll
Rotate: Shift + Spacebar + drag
Reset rotation: Press 5

Core Functions

1. New Canvas

Recommended settings:

Size: 1920x1080
Resolution: 150 DPI (72 for web, 300 for print)
Background: White

2. Recommended Brushes

Basic-5 Size: Sketching, lineart (pressure sensitive)
Ink-7 Brush Rough: Inking, outlines (sharp edges)
Fill_block: Flat coloring (opaque uniform)

Adjust size: [ smaller, ] larger
Color picker: Ctrl + click canvas

3. Layer System

Concept: Like transparent paper stacked together, each layer edits independently

Basic operations:

Add: Insert key
Rename: Double-click layer name
Adjust order: Drag up/down
Adjust opacity: Opacity slider
Hide/show: Eye icon

Workflow: Sketch layer (30% opacity) → Lineart layer → Color layer

4. Selection and Fill

Selection tools:

Rectangle select (Ctrl+R): Select squares
Polygonal lasso (Shift+E): Irregular shapes
Magic wand: Click similar color areas

Fill: Select then press Shift+Backspace
Deselect: Ctrl+Shift+A

Useful Tips

Essential Shortcuts

Tools: B (brush), E (eraser), K (color picker), M (mirror)
Layers: Insert (add), Ctrl+G (group), Ctrl+E (merge)
Edit: Ctrl+Z (undo), Ctrl+T (transform), Ctrl+A (select all)

Symmetry Drawing

Tools → Mirror tool (M) → Choose vertical/horizontal symmetry
Uses: Character faces, mandala patterns

Brush Stabilizer

F5 → Stabilizer → Basic smoothing
Recommended values: Sketch 10-20, lineart 50-70

Reference Images

Tools → Reference Images tool → Drag image to canvas
Doesn’t affect drawing, can move and scale

Practical Case: Draw Smiley Icon (15 Minutes)

Steps:

New: 512x512, 72 DPI, transparent background
Sketch: Basic-5 brush draw circle + eyes + smile
Lineart: New layer, Ink-7 trace (sketch reduced to 30% opacity)
Color: New layer below, magic wand select → fill yellow
Finish: Hide sketch layer, export PNG

FAQ

Q: Brush has no pressure?
A: Install tablet driver → Settings → Configure Krita → Tablet settings

Q: Can’t reset canvas?
A: Ctrl+0 (reset zoom), 5 (reset rotation), Home (reset all)

Q: Software lagging?
A: Lower resolution, merge layers (Ctrl+E), increase memory limit

Q: Can import Photoshop brushes?
A: Yes! Settings → Manage Resources → Import .abr files

Q: File format?
A: Use .kra for working files (preserves layers), PNG for sharing (transparency)

Conclusion

Krita 30-minute essentials:

Download and install (completely free)
Understand interface (5 main areas)
Learn brushes, layers, filling
Memorize common shortcuts
Practice hands-on

Next steps: Advanced brush settings, layer blend modes, animation features

Most important: Tools are just aids, what matters is practice. Krita is professional-grade, free doesn’t mean amateur.

Open Krita now and create your first artwork!

Resources:

Tags: #Krita #DigitalPainting #FreeSoftware #IllustrationTutorial #BeginnerGuide #Tutorial

PSD: Compatible with Photoshop (may have compatibility issues)

Recommended workflow:

Save .kra while drawing
Export PNG when finished

Key Takeaways

Krita 30-minute starter essentials:

✅ Download install - Completely free, official site
✅ Know interface - Toolbar, brushes, palette, layers, canvas
✅ New canvas - Choose right size and resolution
✅ Pick brush draw - Basic-5 (sketch), Ink-7 (line), Fill_block (color)
✅ Use layers - Sketch, linework, color layers separate
✅ Select fill - Rectangle select + fill tool
✅ Learn shortcuts - B (brush), E (eraser), spacebar (move canvas)
✅ Practice - Draw a simple icon

What to learn next?

Advanced brush settings (custom pressure, textures)
Layer blend modes (overlay, multiply)
Masks and selection (precise selection, feathering)
Animation features (simple 2D animation)

Most important:

Krita has many features, but you don’t need to learn everything at once.

Start with basic features to draw a few images, then gradually explore advanced functions.

Tools don’t matter, what matters is how much you draw.

Free doesn’t mean amateur, Krita is already professional-grade.

Open Krita now and create your first artwork!

Conclusion

Krita breaks the myth that “professional tools = expensive”.

It proves: Open-source and free can produce professional-grade work.

Three tips for beginners:

Don’t fear trying - Software is free, explore freely
Draw more practice more - Tools are just aids, skill comes from practice
Use community - Join Krita community, see how others use it

For experienced artists:

If you’re used to Photoshop/Clip Studio, consider Krita as backup option:

Use when traveling (free, cross-platform)
Specific features (like animation, symmetry drawing)
Open-source projects (avoid licensing issues)

Finally:

Good work isn’t from expensive tools, but your creativity and technique.

Krita gives everyone an equal starting point.

Next, it’s up to you what you draw.

Related Resources:

Krita Official Site - Free download latest version
Krita Official Docs - Complete English tutorial documentation
Krita Official YouTube - Official tutorial videos
Krita Artists Community - Artwork sharing and discussion
Krita Reddit - International community exchange

Tags: #Krita #DigitalPainting #FreeSoftware #IllustrationTutorial #BeginnerGuide #Tutorial