I just got a new iPad and Apple Pencil.
First things first, the new 9.7″ iPad (AKA, the education iPad, or the sixth-generation iPad) is terrific. If you are moving from a previous 9.7″ iPad, there’s nothing but plusses here. A brilliant screen, faster processor and, best of all, Apple Pencil support.
As you might expect, the first thing I wanted to do was make some pretty pictures, put the Apple Pencil through its paces. I played a bit with Apple’s built-in apps, and was able to use the Apple Pencil as a pointer in all the ones I tried, and for simple drawing (freehand line drawing using Markup) in some. But nothing really scratched that artistic itch, though Notes came the closest.
So I turned to Serenity Caldwell, iMore’s artist-in-residence. If you are not already familiar with Serenity’s work, take a look at her brilliant iPad review, paying particular attention to the video embedded in the review. Awesome work. Serenity really knows her way around the iPad, Apple Pencil, and drawing.
If you have an iPad and Apple Pencil, take a look at these posts Serenity pulled together. I found them incredibly helpful.
How to use Apple Pencil: The Ultimate Guide: This one is a soup to nuts, everything you need to wrap your head around the Apple Pencil, showing you how to pair/unpair your Apple Pencil, check the battery level, charge it, and troubleshoot if you run into trouble. An easy read, and perfect for Apple Pencil newbies.
Linked inside the above-linked article is Serenity’s guide to Best Apple Pencil Accessories. Take a few minutes to scan through the post, just to get a sense of the options that are available, see if any of them fill a need for you.
Next up is Best drawing apps for iPad and Apple Pencil. This is a rich list of apps that will really help you get the most out of your Apple Pencil. The first app on the list, Linea, was an instant buy for me.
And, finally, there’s the gold mine of How to learn to draw with iPad and Apple Pencil. Incredibly useful, especially for wannabe artists like me.
Thanks, Serenity. You really are a treasure.
UPDATE: Serenity just sent me two more links, Best handwriting/notetaking apps and PDF markup and annotation apps, both worth a look.