Program for a painting effect

[PeterAit]

In my abundant spare time, I have started experimenting with making photos look more like paintings. Photoshop has a few tools in this line but they seem limited. Any suggestions for something that is more powerful and flexible? Thanks.

[jrsforums]

You may want to look at either Topaz Labs ‘Studio’ or Exposure Software (was Alien Skin) ‘Snap Art 4’

[chez]

I use Corel Painter. Very powerful with many brushes and options. There is an automation option where you pick your brush types and set a few parameters then let it lose on a photo. I've been using it for a few years and have sold prints made from photos that I've painted using Painter.

[Bart_van_der_Wolf]

I use Corel Painter. Very powerful with many brushes and options. There is an automation option where you pick your brush types and set a few parameters then let it lose on a photo. I've been using it for a few years and have sold prints made from photos that I've painted using Painter.

Yes, Corel Painter is probably the best, but obviously comes at a price.

Topaz Impression, as a plugin to Topaz Studio, does a good job as well (especially because of the many presets to get one starting).

[PeterAit]

Thanks y'all. I have been experimenting with Corel Painter and it is very impressive! I'll be having some fun.

[jrsforums]

You may want to look at either Topaz Labs ‘Studio’ or Exposure Software (was Alien Skin) ‘Snap Art 4’

I meant ‘Studio 2’, which includes ‘Impression’ and many other previous standalone pieces.

[rollsman44]

Thank you everyone for the recommendations. 

[Alan Klein]

Peter, You could try actually painting photo prints.  When I visited Clyde Butcher's galleries in Venice Florida, his wife Niki Butcher had color painted B&W photo prints for sale.  I'm not sure what type paint she uses. But this is a long established art.  Here's one my wife bought, framed, that we hung in our home.  You can check Niki's work out here and processes.  https://nikibutcher.com/

[drralph]

Back in the wet darkroom days, I did a lot of hand coloration of silver halide prints using Marshall's Photo Oils.  I have not tried them with inkjet papers, but I bet it would work.  That would be a fun process to resurrect.  From the look of Niki's sample, the colors look very much like the Marshall's palate.

[Alan Klein]

Back in the wet darkroom days, I did a lot of hand coloration of silver halide prints using Marshall's Photo Oils.  I have not tried them with inkjet papers, but I bet it would work.  That would be a fun process to resurrect.  From the look of Niki's sample, the colors look very much like the Marshall's palate.

I have pictures of me and my sister from 70 years ago when photographers would color paint BW pictures of children's portraits.  Rosy red cheeks and some flesh tones.

[drralph]

Those colors are something it would be near impossible to simulate with a digital painting app.  I find them very appealing. I think the same process was used to colorize post cards in that era, which I also find to have a wonderful palette.

[Jim Kasson]

I use Corel Painter. Very powerful with many brushes and options. There is an automation option where you pick your brush types and set a few parameters then let it lose on a photo. I've been using it for a few years and have sold prints made from photos that I've painted using Painter.

I think that program is descended from Fractal Painter, which I used in the 90s. It was an excellent program. How many people remember that, for the first year or so, the program came inside a one-gallon paint can? It had autopaint back then, but a better mode for what the OP is talking about was (and maybe still is) to set the program to pick up the colors from the image and do the brushstrokes yourself.