Pixel Art is a free program with which you can create drawings in the style of pixel art - drawing with squares of a certain size. It is suitable for PC with operating system Windows Vista, 7, 8, 10. Interface on English language, but so simple that any user can understand it. The fact is that the utility performs only the function for which it is intended, and is not equipped with anything extra.
When the window with the license agreement appears, you need to mark “I agree” with a marker and click “Next”.
The last window of the Installation Wizard looks like this. In it, click the “Start” button.
After the program is installed, another window will open - close it either with a cross or by clicking on the “Finish” button.
Now let's look at how to use Pixel Art. Launch it. The “donation” window will immediately open. If you close it with a cross, then it will appear at all subsequent starts of the program. To prevent it from opening at all, mark “Don`t Show Again” at the bottom and press the cross.
The main window looks like this. On the right you can select the grid size - “Grid Size”: small (20x20), medium (30x30) or large (40x40). A little lower, note which layers to display – “Layers”: pixels (grid), background, transparency.
The main palette has 20 colors. But you can add any to the user's palette. Click right click mouse over a free square. Will open context menu: “Color Picker” (the cursor will become a cross, and whichever color you click on will be added), “Change Color” (change the set color), “Reset to White”, “Reset Custom Colors” (removing all colors from the user’s palette), “Reset All Colors” (removing all colors).
At the bottom left there is a button in the form of a gear - this is. Clicking on it will open a window page with three tabs: “Basic”, “Topics”, “About the program”. There is no Russian language, but you can choose a different theme. To close the page, click on the arrow at the top.
There are 6 buttons on the toolbar: “Pencil”, “Eraser”, “Fill”, “Change color”, “Ruler” (the grid will be divided into 5 pixels at the top and left), “Grid” (show it or hide it). With the first three, I think everything is clear. Changing colors works as follows: click on the button, select in the palette desired color, and then click on the pixels of the color in the picture that you want to replace. For example, all my yellow squares will turn red.
pay attention to additional settings bottom: “Grid Visible/Hidden” (the grid is displayed/not displayed), "Transparency Enabled/Disabled"(transparency enabled/disabled). Mark the appropriate options with a marker.
Select a location on your computer to save and name the image. In the “File type” field, only *.png is available; you cannot select any other extension for the image. Click "Save".
If you have imported any drawing into the program, then to save it, click “Save As Sprite”, select a folder, rename it, and there will be a little more extensions here (*.bmp, *.gif, *.jpg, *.png). Choose the one that suits you and save.
How to import your image? In the program menu, click “Open Project/Image” and select “Import To Project”.
There is also the opportunity to immediately take some photos in the style of pixel art. Select “Pixelate Image”, find an image, make it pixelated and save it in a suitable (one of the available) formats.
Through Explorer, find the image you need, select it and click “Open”. Be sure to select the file extension for it to display. If you don't know it, select "All Supported Files".
Then you need to present the picture in the form of pixels – the “Pixelate” button, and import it – “Import Image”.
After the image is loaded into the program, you can change and save it, as I described above, in any of the four formats.
With the help of the Pixel Art program you will definitely be able to create an interesting drawing. Download it and start creating.
Rate this article:Drawing at the pixel level has its own niche in the visual arts. With the help of simple pixels, real masterpieces are created. Of course, you can create such drawings on a sheet of paper, but it is much easier and more correct to create pictures using graphic editors. In this article we will analyze in detail each representative of such software.
The most popular in the world graphics editor, which is capable of working at the pixel level. To create such pictures in this editor, you just need to perform a few preliminary setup steps. Here is everything an artist needs to create art.
But on the other hand, such an abundance of functionality is not needed for drawing pixel art, so there is no point in overpaying for the program if you are going to use it only for a specific function. If you are one of such users, then we advise you to pay attention to other representatives who are focused specifically on pixel graphics.
PyxelEdit
This program has everything you need to create such paintings and is not oversaturated with functions that the artist will never need. Setting up is quite simple; the color palette allows you to change any color to the desired tone, and free movement of windows will help you customize the program for yourself.
PyxelEdit has a feature for setting tiles on the canvas, which can be useful when creating objects with similar content. The trial version is available for download on the official website and has no restrictions on use, so you can try the product before making a purchase.
Pixelformer
In appearance and functionality, this is the most ordinary graphic editor, only it has several additional features to create pixel images. This is one of the few programs that are distributed absolutely free. 
The developers do not position their product as suitable for creating pixel art, they call it in a great way drawing logos and icons.
GraphicsGale
In almost all such software they try to introduce a picture animation system, which most often turns out to be simply unusable due to limited functions and incorrect implementation. GraphicsGale is not so good with this either, but at least this function can work normally.
As for drawing, everything is exactly the same as in the majority of editors: basic functions, a large color palette, the ability to create several layers and nothing unnecessary that could interfere with work.
Charamaker
Character Maker 1999 is one of the oldest such programs. It was created to create individual characters or elements, which would then be used in other animation programs or implemented into computer games. Therefore, it is not very suitable for creating paintings.
The interface is not very good. Almost none of the windows can be moved or resized, and the default layout isn't very good. However, you can get used to it.
Pro Motion NG
This program is ideal in almost everything, starting with a well-thought-out interface, where it is possible to move windows independently of the main one to any point and change their size, and ending with an automatic switch from an eyedropper to a pencil, which is simply an incredibly convenient feature.
Otherwise, Pro Motion NG is simple good software to create pixel graphics of any level. Trial version You can download it from the official website and test it to decide whether to further purchase the full version.
Aseprite
Can rightfully be considered the most convenient and beautiful program to create pixel art. The interface design alone is worth it, but that’s not all the advantages of Aseprite. There is the ability to animate a picture, but unlike previous representatives, it is implemented competently and easy to use. There is everything you need to create beautiful GIF animations.
12580Many of you probably remember well how low the resolution of the old screens was. mobile phones And game consoles. To make images as clear as possible, such devices used pixel or dot graphics. It is still used now, but much less frequently, for example, when creating icons, pointers and some other small images. Pixel graphics also exist as a kind of digital fine art.
Traditional graphic editors are not very suitable for creating bitmaps; there are specialized programs for this, such as the application. Being created on the Universal Windows Platform and adapted for touch screens, this editor can work on both desktop PCs and mobile devices governed by Windows 10. Judging by the tasks assigned to it, the editor may seem primitive to some, but this is not so.
It is not primitive, but specialized and has all the necessary tools for creating and editing pixel graphics, including animated ones. The program has its own set of brushes, a full-color palette, fill, selection, eraser, tools for drawing lines and some geometric shapes, supports working with layers, changing transparency, cutting and pasting, locking along axes, cropping, flipping horizontally and vertically, undo actions and many other functions that a good graphics editor should have. There is even the possibility of using simple visual effects.
Finished works can be saved in the format GIF And PNG, and also publish them in a public online gallery, where they can be awarded free license for the professional version of Pixel Art Studio. The editor itself is distributed free of charge, but with some restrictions, which can be removed by purchasing Pro-version of the program costing 299 rubles. The interface language in the current version is only English, but the name of the developer, as well as the offer in Russian to buy him a Big Mac, suggest that other localizations may appear in future versions of the editor.
Finally, with the arrival of the rains, I managed to set aside some time for drawing: the work was beyond the roof (although, when has it ever been otherwise in the village?) And the stable +32 did not at all contribute to good health in particular and an outpouring of energy in general. I still wanted to practice my knowledge of anatomy, and a simplified image of a person would be good for this. So I looked away.
Of course, I have Photoshop and Illustrator, and some people use them, among other things, to create old-school images, but personally, they are inconvenient for me for these purposes. In addition, when it comes to creating sprites, these programs are inferior to specialized software. Well, Google to the rescue.
The first most frequently mentioned on various resources was Graphics Gale, but it did not please me. The program is terribly stupid, sometimes crashes or produces errors out of the blue. The software is clearly written crookedly, although it has good functionality free version, and was sent to the trash bin.
Next in line was Aseprite and, after getting acquainted with it, I definitely wouldn’t change it for something else. This is the damn BFG of sprite graphics!
The interface turned out to be convenient and very “tube”, reminiscent of the GUI of the well-known . Like any serious graphics editor, Aseprite supports layers with blending and transparency modes; There are all the necessary drawing tools including Bezier curves.
The selection toolkit is consistent with Photoshop; Selected areas can be scaled, stretched, moved and rotated.
If you need a special brush, you can draw it yourself here. Saving/loading brushes available. There is a small set of effects, although without the possibility of settings that can be applied to the image. There is also a tool for creating seamless textures/tiles. There is also a color replacer that allows you to replace all pixels of one color with some other color.
The program provides ample opportunities for working with the palette. There is not only a color wheel, but there is also the opportunity to easily and quickly obtain shades that match the desired color by choosing one of seven harmonious options. This really makes it easier to create your own palette. By the way, the program also has predefined sets of palettes various devices such as Atari2600, GameBoy, Commodore64 and NES.
But most importantly, Aseprite, as befits professional software, allows you to create sprite animation. There is a timeline, frames, tracing mode, and animation playback speed settings. In short, everything is the same Adobe Flash, but only without ActionScript.
Finished graphics can be saved in various formats, the main ones being *.png, *.tga, *.gif, *jpg. In this case, the program will help you create a sprite sheet and generate JSON data for it.
During the entire time working with Aseprite there was not a single crash or freeze. The program itself, when installed, occupies 8 MB on the hard drive and uses a minimum random access memory. As for the price, it is simply ridiculous for such a powerful program - 350 rubles. (
A utility for creating graphics in a pixel style, which has recently become very fashionable. Thanks to this editor, the process of drawing 2D graphics with large pixels becomes even more fun. You can use the application on desktop and tablet computer. It is also worth noting that the program for drawing pixel art has a minimal set of functions. That is, it is not suitable for image editing. Its task is only to create small pictures in the style of pixel art.The application interface is made in English, but it is so minimalistic that every user can understand the software. There is nothing superfluous here, only a palette, brushes and a working canvas consisting of pixels that need to be filled with paints. The user will need a few minutes to master the principles of operation. The Pixel Art program has a minimum of settings: a grid, a palette and a brush. You can create new images, save projects, and open previously created materials to make edits.
With the help of the Pixel Art editor, anyone can try their hand at the popular direction of pixel art. It will also be very useful for illustrators when preparing material for printing in a printing house or creating a unique logo.
Features of Pixel Art
- Selecting the resolution of the created illustration.
- Export images to popular formats: png, gif, bmp, and jpg.
- Easy and convenient application interface.
- The ability to draw pixel art on the grid cells of the working canvas.
- Customizable work area size.
- English interface.
- An assortment of brushes, erasers and a wide color palette.
- Possibility to undo the last changes in the drawing (step back).
To summarize the Pixel Art program, it can be noted that this graphic editor has a very narrow specification. It is designed exclusively for creating pixel art images. In his arsenal there are only the necessary tools for this. The interface is very convenient and simple, designed for users of any level.