Celsys unveils Clip Studio Paint 4
Celsys has unveiled Clip Studio Paint 4.0, the latest version of its digital drawing, painting and animation software.
New features include a puppet warp tool for posing 2D characters, and updates to the software’s 3D toolset, including the option to import mocap data to use as reference poses.
The update is due for release in March, but is currently available to pre-order.
A digital drawing and painting tool for comics, illustrations and concept art
First released in Japan over two decades ago, and previously marketed as Manga Studio in the West, Clip Studio Paint is a digital painting app for both desktop and mobile systems.
Although best known as a tool for creating comics, for which it has a dedicated set of tools, it is also used to produce illustrations, concept art, and 2D animations.
Updates to the software were available free to existing users until the release of Clip Studio Paint 2.0 in March 2023, when Celsys switched to a new schedule of major, paid annual releases.
Clip Studio Paint 4: new Puppet Warp system
New features in Clip Studio Paint 4 include the Puppet Warp system (shown above).
It enables users to quickly pose 2D characters by pinning parts of the body in place, then rotating and deforming the rest of the character around the pinned points.
Updates to the 3D toolset
The software’s 3D toolset, which enables users to import and manipulate 3D models for use as references or background elements within an image, has also been updated.
New features include the option to paint directly onto the surface of 3D objects, either to add basic surface colors, or to paint guidelines or patterns onto reference objeccts.
It is also now possible to import 3D models in STL format, and animations in BVH format.
BVH support was actually introduced in Clip Studio Paint 3.1 – the release announcement include changes made in the 3.x updates – and is intended to enable artists to choose frames from imported motion-capture data to use as pose references for characters.
It is also now possible to customize the facial expressions of 3D avatars imported in VRM format.
New Quick Filters and Quick Effects for interactive image adjustments
The software’s Filters system has also been updated.
A new set of Quick Filters and Quick Effects (shown above) let users make interactive adjustments to an image – again, a feature originally introduced in Clip Studio Paint 3.2.
There are also new filters for extracting line art from images, intended for preparing scanned drawings for digital coloring, and for applying lens blur.
Workflow improvements include better snapping
Workflow improvements include object snapping, with users now able to snap vector layers, rules and text to grids, guides, other rulers, and the edges or center of the canvas.
It is also possible to snap to content on the current layer or reference layers with the Lasso tool.
You can find a list of other changes, which include the option to color-code layers in the animation toolset’s Timeline palette, in the release announcement.
Initial reactions from users were mixed, with opinion divided on the value of the 3D toolset, and calls for native CMYK support and performance improvements to the brush toolset.
Price, system requirements and release date
Clip Studio Paint 4.0 is due for release in March 2025, and is available to pre-order, with anyone buying a perpetual license of Clip Studio Paint 3 getting an automatic upgrade when it ships.
New perpetual licenses of the Pro edition, which includes the core feature set, but which restricts animation to 24 frames, cost $54, rising to $58.50 when version 4.0 is released.
New perpetual licenses of the Ex edition, which removes the limit on the length of animations, and adds features for creating multi-page projects, cost $237, rising to $258.
Subscriptions are priced according to the number of devices you want to use the software on, but for desktops and laptops, rental starts at $4.49/month or $26.99/year for Pro and $8.99/month and $76.99/year for Ex.
The current version of the software, Clip Studio Paint 3.2, is compatible with Windows 10+, macOS 13.0+, iOS/iPadOS 17.0+ and Android 12+.
Read a full list of new features in Clip Studio Paint 4.0 in Celsys’s release announcement
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