Ohuhu Marker 40pc Review
These markers are a great deal - great price! They are slightly smaller than Copics. which means they will run out of ink quicker, but that’s okay.  You can buy Copic refill inks, and then it will be just as good. 

How to Curate and Blend your Markers
I learned how to use Markers from Art Center College of Design from Tony Yao. 
Choosing and curating your markers is very important. People spend a lot of time choosing their marker sets, carefully selecting them based on the hue, saturation and brightness. Some people even keep their set colors a secret!

For starters, each color set should only be about 2-3 markers for simplicity (4 markers in a set max). Each set should be bound by a rubber band and stored together.

I found found that this set of 40 pc Ohuhu markers can be successfully separated into 10 different colored sets. This should be more than sufficient for most people’s needs. The only thing that is missing is a light skin tone. If you want a light skin tone, I think Copic’s E53 - Raw Silk works great!

You will have many leftover markers. Markers not in a set should be stored aside and be used as accents or backups.  

I have found that the color caps and numbers don’t always make sense. If you want to accidentally chose the wrong marker, you could consider putting a piece of masking tape, or label on top of the marker cap and relabeling it (Grey #1, Grey #2, Grey #3 so on…)

Here are the sets that I recommend. 

1) Cool Grays - BG042, BG082, MG170, Black
2) Teal - B289, G482, G850
3) Blue - B290, B956
4) Green - G284, G472
5) Yellow Green - G289, G554
6) Warm Grey - WG150, WG170
7 Orange - Y397, Y691, YR792, R865
8) Pinks - RV390, RV610, RV968
9) Violets - V284, V369
10) Brown - Y679, E769

To properly blend your markers, you will need to switch back and forth between 2 colors. It’s okay if they don’t look smooth right away, after about 10-15 minutes, the paper absorb the markers, and the will blend by themselves. 

Start with the light marker and put down the colors. Come in with the darker shade and put it down, along with a couple of thin lines. Use the lighter shade to “double hit” that intermediary area. Save your “double hits” for when you need them. 

This technique is quite different from the “feathering” technique you see a lot of Youtubers like “DrawingwiffWaffles” use. The technique I’m showing was developed for creating a lot of plastic and metallic objects such as toasters, and cars. It is an industrial design drawing technique. 

If you are having trouble blending, you could try “kissing” your markers. That’s when you touch your markers together to temporarily change the color. Put down your markers and notice that they will temporarily be lighter/ darker. 

I personally don’t really like the cool grays they have provided in this set. The grays in this Ohuhu set feel like… 10%, 50%, 70% grey, whereas closer intervals of 30%, 50%, 70% will lead to more success and comfort in this endeavor. I would recommend purchasing a separate set of cool grays. 

Azure 7 pc Greyscale set from Amazon/ Walmart. $7 
Walmart sells them for $7. Amazon sells them for $13. Fantastic bargain if you can get your hands on them. I tried them out, and they are fantastic quality at a very affordable price. 

Copic Ciao Markers - 3 Individual Markers - $11.70
Here are the colors you need: Cool Gray 3, Cool Gray 5, Cool Gray 7

The best way to make sure your markers blend together is to make sure you have chosen compatible ones.  My teacher always stressed how important it is to go into the art store and buy the markers in person and test out the colors. A lot of the markers you get in a set are frankly incompatible and are frankly a bit of waste. However, considering that Ohuhu markers are such a great deal, you are still coming out on top even if you don’t use half of them!

Use the sets that I recommend, and you guys should be fine. Good luck. 
Let me know if you guys want to me more marker content from me. 

I recently created a new video from my Outschool classes. I'm really happy with the way it came out! This was the third version of my Intro video. I've attached my previous 2 versions because I wanted to show people my process and that I didn't get to this overnight. 

My latest intro video is a documentary style video. I have previously produced videos in this style for my friend's business and they look really hot! I thought... why not do this style of video editing and production for myself??? 

Documentary Style Videos I previously created:
First Gear Bicycles: https://youtu.be/9PhVE0j-PKw
Amy's Sad Lamps: https://youtu.be/fFrshoPOnTA

This was the second version of my Outschool Intro. This was my attempt at making a video that was a bit more informative and helpful - however, I felt this style ended up feeling a little preachy and pedantic. I felt the messaging may have come across too serious. But there are some good attempts at animation and video editing in there. 

This was the first version of my Outschool Intro video. It was simple, basic and to the point! This video was targeted more towards younger kids. The V2 and V3 videos noticeably target a much older demographic. 

I'm creating this post because a lot of parents ask me what their child needs to get started with Digital Art. What do I recommend?

There are basically 2 routes: iPad vs NOT iPad. 

Option 1: iPad
Using the iPad is one of the most popular options with kids nowadays. It's multifunctional, easy to use, and very popular. Kids like to fit in and having an Apple product is kind of cool. That being said, you are paying a premium for this premium product. 

You will need 3 items.
1) iPad ($300-$1000+)
2) Apple Pencil ($100-$200)
3) Software - Procreate ($10)

There are lots of different tiers and generations of the product. Not every iPad works with the Apple Pencil which is paramount to digital art. This website goes over the minimum requirements if you want to go this route:
What iPads Are Compatible With the Apple Pencil? 


Option 2: Computer Route (Not iPad)
This route is more aligned with what industry professionals use. It is a bit cheaper but more complicated.

You will only need 2 items + your computer.
1) Digital art tablet ($50-$1500) 
2) Software ($10-$50)

​The digital art tablet has a large range of prices. There are two factors contributing to this...
Brand name and touch screen. 

The dominant brand name in this space is Wacom - a Japanese brand. Their leading competitor - Huion - is a Chinese brand and sells their product about 5x cheaper than Wacom.  While I personally have not used Huion products before, I have a lot of friends who have used them, and they said that their product is just as good and a fantastic value. I think it's fairly safe to use Huion. 

The other factor is LCD touch screen. Most drawing tablets consist of a touch sensitive surface where you draw on the tablet while staring up at the computer monitor. Most students have a tough time adjusting to this because the hand-eye coordination is more difficult. The difference in price for having a LCD touch screen is about 5x. But if you are going to buy an LCD touch screen, it's not that much expensive to buy an iPad + Apple Pencil. 

​If you want to go this route, here are two options that seem pretty decent.

No LCD touch screen ($50)
HUION H610 Pro V2 Graphic Drawing Tablet 

With LCD touch screen ($300) 
HUION Kamvas 13 Android Support Graphics Drawing Tablet

I personally just use the one without a screen, and I'll use my monitor for look at what I'm doing. This is a bit less intuitive and requires more training. 

For software, I personally use Photoshop. Right now it is $20/ month - which can be a bit pricey. Other options include... CLIP STUDIO PAINT ($50), IbisPaint (Free), Krita (Free)
 
This is my digital painting class. Digital Painting: Drawing People and Landscapes
It is an intermediate class. I recommend you practice a bit first or look at youtube videos before you enroll.

Hope this helps!
​- Mr. Chris