How do I use the 'Realtime impasto effects using layers!'

[Mythmaker]

@teddyy

I posted those templates back in 2020. Since then we’ve had developments in the brush engines that allow us to add thickness effects directly to brush presets (using the ‘lightness’ property with brush tips). This provided a much simpler and more effective way to achieve impasto style brush effects.

There are still benefits to the template method - such as it being not destructive and can be used in real-time or as a post effect. It can also be applied to anything, whereas the lightness effect is currently available for the pixel or colour-smudge engines (most presets use one of these two).

If your main interest is the impasto effect then I would definitely look at the lightness bushes as a preference over this. The best example of what can be done with those so far is emilm’s set:

Rotating light brushtips WIP

[Example strokes] [Example painting] Some experiments with animated RGBA brushtips, made using a rotating light in Blender. Rotation set to Drawing angle in Krita. gih export with the first dimensions Selection mode set to Angular. That way the light directions stays roughly the same, regardless of brush stroke direction. A limitation with this setup is that it doesn’t work correctly when the canvas is mirrored. Workaround by activating the mirror sensor in the Brush Editor. [blender noodle…

I feel the main benefit of learning this layered effect now is the understanding gained - That opens up possibilities when trying achieve other effects.