Although I've never been a high-end retoucher or digital artist, today, I'm going to play one. I've got my hands on a Wacom Cintiq touchscreen tablet/monitor and the Loupedeck CT, a customizable input device.
Wacom is probably most well known for their desktop tablets, but they also make touchscreen monitors under the "Cintiq" brand. If you've ever wished that you could draw directly on your computer's screen, the Cintiq is the product for you.
The Cintiq Pro models start around $2,000, but the standard Cintiq 22 costs $1,200 and still works with Wacom's legendary "Pro Pen," which features 8192 levels of pressure sensitivity, 60° tilt recognition, two side buttons, and virtually lag-free tracking.
Drawing in applications like Photoshop with a pen rather than with a mouse is far easier and more intuitive, but certain tasks, like navigating menus, can be slow. This is where the Loupedeck CT comes in.
The Loupedeck CT is a customizable input device with buttons, knobs, and touchscreens that changes functions based on the application you're in or the shortcuts you set.
If you're working in Photoshop and you're always using the "selective color" option, you don't want to have to continually move your arm up to the menu bar and select Image: Adjustments: Selective Color. Instead, you could set this function as a native button on your Loupedeck every time you open Photoshop. If you're using the Pro Pen with your right hand, you can place your Loupedeck CT to the left of your keyboard and control it with your left hand.
These days, I'm doing far more video editing than retouching, and therefore, a stylus doesn't really make sense for me, but if you are constantly retouching images or drawing in programs like Photoshop or Illustrator, a Wacom Cintiq might completely change the way you work. And for anyone who likes optimizing their workflow, the Loupedeck CT might be the perfect product for you.
Check out the video above to get my full thoughts on both products, but if you're considering buying both, now is a great time because you can save money when you buy them together.
I am glad you have such a positive experience with Cintiq tablets.
I find the Loupedeck products to be very Windows-oriented, and fairly difficult to configure and use on a Mac.
I have a 6 yr old Wacom Intuos Pro that I STILL can't get the hang of! It would be nice if I could afford to upgrade to the Cintiq, but I just upgraded my entire system, from a 9 year old laptop...can't afford it now! 🤣