We are revisiting the topic of sketchnoting with an updated list of some of the best iPad apps you can use to create visually attractive sketchnotes. As we have argued elsewhere, Sketchnoting is the art of visual recording in which the sketchnoter draws on a multimodal set of tools to communicate their ideas. Unlike traditional note taking, sketchnoting is a primarily visual medium in that it foregrounds the visual element and highlights connections and hierarchies. Sketchnoting involves the blending of words with drawings, shapes, diagrams, and graphic organizers ( e.g arrows, pointers, bullet points..etc).
According to Mike Rohde, author of The Sketchnote Handbook, sketchnoting has several pluses:
- It engages your whole mind
- It creates a visual map
- It helps your concentration
- It taps our visual language
- Sketchnoting is relaxing
- Creating Sketchnotes is dynamic and fun.
Here is our selection of some of the best sketchnoting apps for iPad:
1- Paper by FiftyThree
‘ Paper is the best way to capture and connect your notes, photos, and sketches. Create checklists, spotlight details in photos, and sketch diagrams with unbeatable speed and ease — Paper is like a wall of sticky notes for everything that inspires you.’
2- Inkflow
‘Inkflow is a note-taking and brainstorming experience unlike any other! Capture your ideas as easily as with pen and paper, then resize and reorganize them with your fingers.’
3- Concepts
‘Concepts intelligently combines paper + pencil with powerful vector manipulation. Make quick sketches, beautiful illustrations, and precise drawings with ease and style.’
4- Adobe Photoshop Sketch
‘Draw with pencils, pens, markers, erasers, thick acrylic*, ink brush*, soft pastel* and watercolor* paint brushes to create artwork that can be sent as layered PSD files to Adobe Photoshop CC or Adobe Illustrator CC.’
5- My Sketch Paper
‘My Sketch Paper, an excellent freehand creative tool, beautifully be filled with anything from a sketch to a flow-chart, a list to an diagram. You can make extremely smooth lines and began drawing, writing, diagramming, etc with the default pen and brushes. A fresh canvas is ready and waiting for your ideas, inspiration, and art.’
6- Tayasui Sketches
‘Sketches is the most realistic, versatile and user-friendly sketching app designed for a mobile device. This exhaustive artist's toolbox helps users create dazzling sketches, cheerful paintings and smashing illustrations on the go.’
7- Autodesk SketchBook
‘Autodesk® SketchBook® is an intuitive painting and drawing application designed for people of all skill levels, who love to draw. We reimagined the paint engine, so SketchBook delivers more fluid pencils and natural painting than ever before, all while keeping the interface clean and simple.’
8- Zen Brush 2
‘Zen Brush 2 is a drawing app focused on the strong yet beautiful feel of the East Asian ink brush. With a new drawing engine that brings to life a feeling of silky fluent painting and the delicacy of an ink brush, providing a simple and intuitive user interface imbued with the Zen spirit, this app is designed to be optimal for performing Zen art.’
