One of the reason I bought my iPad is that I really wanted to use it as an all in one device. Not only did I want it to all the things you’d expect a tablet and internet connected device to do but I also wanted it as a means to go paperless. That means that one of the main functions I wanted my iPad to perform was that of a sketchbook and art creation tool. As an art major, sketching used to be an everyday thing, but lately I’ve found that having to carry around a separate sketchbook to doodle or jot down ideas was becoming a hassle. That’s why the prospect of being able to do that on the iPad was a big factor in me also purchasing the iPad. I had seen a lot of these apps before I had one and it really amazed me what people could do with it. Now that I have an iPad, I’ve had a chance to check out some of these apps and here are what I would consider my top 5 drawing/art apps in the App Store. I’m sure there are more out there, but these are the 5 I’ve had my eyes on so far. Some of these drawing apps do overlap each other so out of this list, I’d say that you really only need to pick up like two of them. It all depends on what your needs are.

InkPad – $4.99 – Inkpad is a professional vector illustration app designed from scratch for the iPad. It supports paths, compound paths, text, images, groups, masks, gradient fills, and an unlimited number of layers. Inkpad was designed with performance in mind – it can easily handle drawings with hundreds to thousands of shapes without bogging down.

I’ve had a chance to try this app already and as far as vector creation apps goes, this one is really easy to use. If you love using Adobe Illustrator, you’re going to enjoy InkPad.

SketchBook Pro – $7.99 – Autodesk SketchBook® Pro for iPad is a professional-grade paint and drawing application. Using the same paint engine as its desktop counterpart, SketchBook Pro delivers a complete set of sketching & painting tools through a streamlined and intuitive user interface designed exclusively for the iPad experience.

SketchBook Pro is a really advanced sketchbook app, in fact, it might be a bit overwhelming for some. You can try out a free version here just to get a taste of what the full version it like.

Inspire Pro – $7.99 – The key feature of Inspire Pro is that it simulates wet oil paint on a canvas, allowing amazing blending effects with five real kinds of brushes. You will be stunned by what you can do with a dry brush!

I have yet to try this out, but user comments in the App Store say that they prefer this app over Sketchbook Pro. Inspire Pro seems to be the one to choose if you want a more natural painting app.

Brushes – $7.99 – Create art anywhere, with Brushes on your iPad! Brushes is a popular painting app, specially designed for the iPad. Simple to learn, yet powerful enough for pros — Brushes has been used to create 4 different New Yorker covers!

Brushes is made by the same developer that makes InkPad. Brushes is like Inspire Pro and deals more with natural brushes and painting.

ArtStudio – $4.99 – ArtStudio is a professional drawing / painting application. It uses advanced mathematics to attain the highest level of quality, at the same time offering incredible performance achieved through numerous code optimizations. It still remains a fantastic tool for beginners – it contains drawing lessons showing step-by-step instruction on drawing various types of images.

ArtStudio is another natural media painting tool. It seems that Inspire Pro, ArtStudio, and Brushes are the 3 apps most people choose when picking a painting app.

HONORABLE MENTION

LiveSketch HD – $1.99 – Express yourself with impressive sketches like a pencil on a real paper.

I had to include this even though it’s not a top 5. LiveSketch is the most limited app of the above and it only does one thing, sketching. However, it does this one thing very well. It has a unique way of bringing your sketches to life and it’s one that you should really try. It’s usually $1.99 but it’s free right now for a limited time. If you just want an app to doodle with, LiveSketch HD might be for you.