It’s difficult to compare drawing to digital media. In some ways, they both serve the same purpose. They allow the artist to convey ideas and concepts that cannot be expressed in other ways. They both allow a person to place what is in his or her head into the sight of another person. In both mediums, intangible ideas are visualized and made real to others. However, in other ways they are completely different. They each provide different tools for expression, complete with unique advantages and challenges.
One thing that differentiates drawing from digital media is the way an artist controls artist what they are creating. For example, when I draw, I can control every line that I place on the paper; the equation is simply my hand, the pencil and the paper. However, I am limited by my capabilities, and I can only create images that consist of black charcoal and white paper. With digital media, I felt like I had less control over the images I captured. For instance, if I had wanted to take a picture of a person with a certain expression, but they moved before I could take it, I could not create that image. However, digital media provides the flexibility of changing images as many times as I wanted, though again limited by my knowledge and the capabilities of the software.
Another difference between the two mediums is to whom the artist is able to convey their ideas. Drawing provides a very direct way of presenting an image, but it can be complex in what the image contains. Digital media allows the artist to present in a more complex medium, allowing them to incorporate not only a single image, but also moving images, sound and text. Also, the idea of an online blog, or another internet site, as a canvas provides the unique opportunity for an artist to communicate their ideas to many more people. The YouTube videos we viewed in class are a perfect example of how digital media allows artists to reach a wider audience.