Corel releases Painter X3

Corel has released version 13 of its Painter software for digital artists, which the company has dubbed 'X3'. Available to download today for $429/£262.50 (excl VAT), the upgraded tool boasts a number of new features, including:

• A Brush Search engine to help you find and select brushes quickly and easily, with visual preview
• Stroke preview, showing what each brush stroke will look like on your canvas.
• A new brush optimizer, which highlights the primary parameters of each brush.
• Pre-built, customisable Jitter brushes, which Corel says "simulate those random elements and 'happy accidents' that can occur when using real world media.
• Perspective Guides to enable you to accurately draw in a one-, two- or three-point perspective.
• The ability to work with reference images directly within the Painter interface.

Notable visual artist Android Jones is enthusiastic about the release. "This is an incredible day for digital artists," he told our sister site, ImagineFX. "No longer are any of us burdened by the frustration of perspective lines. Corel Painter X3 has finally put your creativity into perspective."

You can see 13 exclusive videos showcasing the new features - and find out what 12 other leading artists think of Painter X3 - here.