Just as evolving technology has provided businesses with increased means of making standard business procedures more advanced, efficient, and profitable, it has afforded the same benefits to artists. Regardless of an artist's preferred medium there is a wide range of software available to help artists create and sell their art. These software packages vary in complexity with the more advanced forms commanding high prices and requiring intense dedication in order to master them. Computer courses that focus on specific graphics packages are offered for students who wish to become skilled in the many features and functions of such programs.
Photo editing and imaging software was one of the first areas to see significant advancements in complexity and usefulness to artists. Many old computers featured rudimentary digital painting software that came included with early personal computers. These have evolved into complex suites of software that offer more options of customization than photographers, illustrators, and painters have ever had before. Photoshop is the leader in this group of software and is a complex form of image manipulation software that requires considerable experience to master. Many colleges offer courses at varying levels of difficulty on the efficient use of Photoshop. It is a program that has seen use in many disciplines of art and also is occasionally used in the business world for creating graphics, website designs, and presentations.
It has come to replace traditional analog film in almost all popular and underground films as it is cheaper and offers many more options to filmmakers. The basic functions of these are also easier to use than manual editing techniques. Many television stations from local stations to large television companies use programs such as Final Cut Pro and Adobe CS to create the media that people watch today. The special effects available on some of these programs also allow low budget creation of scenes and events that previously would have required considerable time, money, and skill to get on film.
Sound editing software also has largely replaced magnetic tape as the medium of choice for musicians. The high sound quality and vast array of specific software available makes it possible for a musician to hone the sound he wishes to produce without hiring engineers and producers. This has helped a number of underground musicians ascend to the top of the music charts, where in previous decades they may not have had access to recording technology. Some musicians swear by the quality of magnetic tape, but the ease with which a song can be created and edited using software means many have switched over to digital recording technology.
Architects and sculptors whose jobs involve physical 3-D objects were some of the last to see useful computer software dedicated to their art. While much of their work is still in the physical realm, software enables them to test the stability of the materials and designs they wish to create before the construction process can begin.
Finally, promotion and sale of an artist’s creation can be enabled through the Internet and reach patrons with whom an artist would never expect to interact in the physical world. Websites such as Etsy, Tumblr, and a variety of other social networking sites facilitate the interaction between artists and those who appreciate and wish to support their art. As the technology gets better and more affordable, more and more artists are looking to the digital realm as a means of creating and of getting their creations noticed.