Procreate has been one of the fastest growing digital painting software and today, it consistently ranks on top of the charts. With a growing number of supporters and developers that continuously listens and addresses feedback from artists, it’s no wonder that ever since its release way back in 2011, it’s slowly climbed its way to the top and became THE app to use for both beginners and professionals alike.
On December of 2022, Procreate updated their app and released version 5.3— a huge upgrade to the app and adding so much more features to help artists with their artistic workflow. The changes include a brand new feature, Hover,  exclusive to iPad Pro 11” and 12.9” (2022), a change to the Color Drop feature, as well as to the brush size and opacity gestures and many more. In this blog we will go through each changes so buckle up and let’s get started!
The new update brings awesome features the to table and you might have uses for some of them but it’s okay if you don’t! However, it’s still useful to know what the app can offer should you find a way to use them some day! Here are the changes made in the latest Procreate update :
1. Hover Capabilities
2. New Color Drop feature
3. Performance optimization
4. Page Assist
5. Third-Party Stylus Deprecation
…That’s it? Well, yes but no. This list might look simple but every single one of these is jam-packed with features and information you’ll want to know!
If you’ve recently bought an iPad Pro in 2022, then this update is for you. With the Hover support in the new iPad, Procreate decided to take advantage of this new feature and opened up more possibilities for the app.
The first change is the Brush Control, before you make a mark on your canvas, you will now be able to hover first and see the full-color preview and size when you hover (yes, this works with erasers too!).
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The second one makes freehand selections much easier, Procreate has transformed selecting in the new iPad for a more flexible use. You can now hover with your Apple Pencil and see where the selection will go before you finally tap and finalize! No more pesky undoing a thousand times because selection didn’t go where you thought it would!
The next one optimizes the experience of changing your Brush Size and Opacity. Instead of tinkering in the sliders, you can now hover your Apple Pencil and use gestures to change the size and opacity. You also have the option to hide the sliders completely if you opt to use gestures exclusively!
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The last hover feature happens outside your artwork and in your gallery! With this change, you can hover over your artworks and it will automatically play your animation or preview your time-lapse on a loop.
Amazing, isn’t it? The only downside is if you’re like me and you have an older model of the iPad Pro, you won’t be able to utilize these to their full potential but worry not! The other features will still be useful!
The Color Drop feature has always been a fun thing to use and now it’s even more flexible and easy to use! I’d put this in the Hover section but older models can also use this so I decided to make a separate section for it. To use this feature, you’ll want to drop a color into a section and a bar up top will appear with a button that says “Continue Filling”. Simply tap on that button and any section you tap on will get filled with the color you chose instead of manually dragging and dropping like before!
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Here's the Color Drop in action:
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Another win for the new iPad Pros— with the all new and powerful M2 chip, the newer models will experience and 30% performance boost!
You can now turn your Procreate into a sketchbook! Well, some of use kinda already do but with this new feature, you can now import PDFs and with the new Page Assist, you can turn your canvas into a sketchbook with pages you can flip through!
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Unfortunately, we will be ending on a low for those who use a third-party stylus. As of this update, Procreate will no longer support non-Apple Stylus (with the exception of Logitech Crayon).
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Find all these exciting? To update your Procreate app, simply head to the App store, find Procreate and tap the Update button and you’re golden! Currently, we are in Version 5.3.3 so feel free to check out the update notes!
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P.S. It’s better to be safe than sorry! Make sure to back up your files in case something happens!
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There we have it, all the updates we have so far! The journey definitely doesn’t end here, the devs for Procreate are always taking in suggestions and implementing features that are especially useful for us artists so you should always watch out for the next one they release!
If these changes are a bit overwhelming for you, don’t worry! We have the perfect Procreate Masterclass 2023 for you to check out, brimming with multiple lessons and your ultimate guide to Procreate. The best part? This class is always up-to-date (recently updated for the 5.3 changes!) so you will never be behind with all the new techy features available!
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Courses and brushes by Freya Kotchakorn helped mored than 10.000 students excel in Procreate drawings.
