I have the small (4x5?) Graphire (cheap one) and really like it. I have never tried a larger one and in the past opinions seemed to be mixed on size.
The higher end tablets (I forget the model name) mainly give more levels of preasure sensitivity which I don't think would help for masking but may be usefull for a artist/painter.
I have a 4" x 5" and it is magic compared with a mouse!. I would not even go larger than what I have as otherwise you have to make quite large hand movements. However, especially with a larger screen (I am still on 17" ) a 6 x 9 might be better
Actually you don't need a large tablet unless you're an artist and you're used to making sweeping brush strokes with your wrist and forearm. The 4x5 and 4x6 widescreen tablets are the ideal size for retouching since you can make precise movements without tiring your arm.
Tablet size is irrelevant to screen size because the tablet comes with the Wacom Tablet Utility software that allows you to map one or two monitors to the tablet.
I currently use a 6x8 Intuos2 and I only use about one-third of its area for retouching. In hindsight I should have gotten a smaller size.
Here's a photo of the Utility showing the tablet mapping function; I set it up to only use about of a quarter of the tablet size when using Photoshop:
Ken, for retouching photos a 4x5 or 4x6 tablet is more than enough. Plus it occupies much more space that the tablet area so that's another consideration.
I use the Wacom Intuous3 A4 size tablet and while it is really good I find it quite large and after having used an A5 tablet I feel I would have been better going with this, and yes the A4 tablet does take up quite a bit of desk space.
James_N wrote:
Here's a photo of the Utility showing the tablet mapping function; I had it step up to only use about of a quarter of the tablet size when using Photoshop:
Thanks James, I have been using the Intuous3 A4 for almost 2 years, I guess I must have been running a really old version of the Wacom driver because that option was never available. I just updated and it is, thanks for sharing!
i just got the graphite as a closeout at best buy for 59.00, it was the 20 sq in unit, 4x5,, just giving it a whirl now, but seems like a pretty useful tool
i just got the graphite as a closeout at best buy for 59.00, it was the 20 sq in unit, 4x5,, just giving it a whirl now, but seems like a pretty useful tool
the higher the screen resolution, the larger the tablet you need because the GUI features on the screen start getting too small. clicking on a menu in 2.5Kx2K mode isn't easy with a 4x6 or even on my 6x8.
Wacom is currently replacing the Graphire line of tablets with the Bamboo line. Perhaps that's the reason another poster was able to get a Graphire at a "closeout" price. Both are considered to be "consumer" tablets and the Intuos3 line the "pro" tablets.
Ken May wrote:
Thanks again for all the responses....
Is there any difference in performance between the 4x5 Graphire and the "Bamboo Fun 4x5"?
I have used a 4X5 tablet for 2 years. I decided to splurge and buy a 9x12 for more performance. I returned the 9x12 after 1 day. It seems that the larger tablets are good for artists that use actual brush like strokes with their whole arm but the 4x5 is actually better faster. You wouldn't think so but...
I have owned and used the 9x12, 6x8 and 4x5 tablets in Graphire and Intuos in the two larger sizes. The 9x12 is a beast and takes up a lot of real estate - great if you want to sit back with it on your lap! The 6 x9 is nice with dual screens but for 19" or smaller screens the 4x5 or 4x6 will work quite well. The intuos versions are more pressure sensitive and have the programmable keys and slider bars which is amazing if you do a lot of enhancing and especially fine detail retouching like on faces in a group of 15-20 on a 40 x 60 inch image.
I currently use a 19" and 17" monitor for editing. Will the 4x6 Intuos be sufficient. From what i read here, most are happy with a smaller rather a larger working area.
Saw in today's ads Best Buy has a Wacom tablet for sale under 100....think it was the size smaller than 4x5....going to take a look at it...anyone here use this one?
I bought a 4x5 reconditioned Wacom Intuos3 for $119 a couple weeks ago from Digital Graphics Resources.
Over the last 10 plus years I have gone from a very large Wacom(way too much real estate) to a Medium sized 6x8 Wacom to the 4x5 Wacom. I like the 4x5 best.
Tablets are great for mask because there great for brush type tools. The size of a tablet does not make much of a difference unless you like to use long sweeping arm and wrist movements while painting. In that case a large tablet surface would be beneficial. Tablets 12x9 and larger have a quick point mode where the tablet surface get mapped into two tablets. So the large tablet are like three tablets in one. However all tablets surfaces can be remapped so you can map a very small portion of the tablet surface to cover your display whole surface. There is also multi monitor support. you can map your tablet to one or more of you displays.
Learn where in the Tablet driver control panel applet you can map and configure you tablet and devices for applications. In applications find out where there tablet support setting are settable. Use Photoshop's brush pallets to configure tablet brush type tools. Use brush tools tool option bar settings to help also. Don't try to do things in a single stroke. Use low opacity and many strokes. When working on mask and your painting with Black and White using brush blending mode overlay will protect areas that are totally White and totally Black only the gray area in the mask will be modifiable. Once a spot become black or white it will not change. This is very helpful working on edge areas.
) a 6 x 9 might be better 
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