10 Best Tools for Artists and Creatives

When you’re unleashing your creative side, the most important ingredient is feeling inspired. Give your brain the space to engage with your inner muse by gathering together all the tech, tools and equipment that can lend a helping hand. Whether you paint, draw, design, compose, write or capture photographs, we’ve found the best tools for artists of all types that can provide a sneaky shortcut to self expression.

Fine Artist

Do you draw, paint, sketch or sculpt? Or maybe you dabble in watercolours and experiment with charcoal? A fine artist uses a variety of media to express themselves and create beautiful and meaningful pieces of visual art. If this sounds like you, try these best tools for fine artists.

• Born Palette Knife Set 5 Packs Mix colours, create texture and add detail to your work with this set of durable plastic palette knives.
• Faber-Castell Oil Pastels 12 Pack These waxy, oil-based pastels offer rich colour and a buttery, blendable texture that’s perfect for layering.
• Derwent Dual Eraser 2 Pack Correct errors and remove pencil marks with this set of top-quality erasers.
• Born A4 Visual Art Diary FSC 120 Page A pad of thick and sturdy acid-free art paper can be used as a blank canvas, sketchbook or journal for ideas and inspirations.
• Koh-I-Noor Watercolour Discs Standard Colours 24 Pack Many artists add watercolour detail to their pen or pencil sketches. These paints are perfect because they’re highly pigmented and twist together for easy transportation.
• Royal & Langnickel Paintbrush Set 30 Piece A complete set of paintbrushes will allow you to tackle any and every art project under the sun. Made from bristle, camel hair or taklon, there is a choice of brushes suitable for painting with oils, acrylics and watercolour paints.
• Born Artist Coloured Pencils 12 Pack Draw, colour, sketch and shade with these beautifully soft coloured pencils.
• Faber-Castell Pitt Artist Pen Comic Black Set 4 pack No artistic arsenal is complete without a set of high-quality ink pens for illustrating and lettering. These come in a handy four-pack with different nib styles for different texturing.
• Born Round Palette 10 Well An essential tool for holding and mixing paints.
• Reeves Acrylic Colour Paint Set 12mL 18 Pack These high-gloss acrylic paints are richly pigmented and fast drying. They can be used to paint on all sorts of surfaces including canvas, paper, fabric and wood.

Skilled Photographer

Ready, set, snap! Whether you need fuel for your Instagram feed, want to create a series of family portraits or you’re a professional or passionate hobbyist, these products will turn your camera from a piece of tech into a creative tool.

• Rivacase 7503 DSLR Shoulder Bag Black Don’t leave home without this protective DSLR case – it’s water-resistant and features adjustable dividers and zippered pockets for safe storage of all your gear.
• Vivitar 62" Tripod Frame the perfect shot with this terrific tripod. It extends up to 157cm and features a quick release mount so you can instantly switch your camera from tripod to handheld mode.
• Verbatim USB-C Card Reader Hub A must-have for connecting your camera and transferring important files quickly and simply..
• Kodak Smartphone Photography Kit Transform your trusty smartphone into a camera worthy of a professional snapper. Inside the handy travel case you’ll find a mini tripod, portrait light, remote Bluetooth shutter and a dual macro and ultra-wide lense with clamp.
• Canon Compact Selphy Printer Black CP1300BK This nifty device allows you to print directly from your smartphone or laptop.
• Cygnett V-Pro 10" Ring Light with Tripod This game-changing light (with tripod and selfie stick) will elevate your close-up photography game.
• SanDisk Extreme Pro SDXC UHS-I Memory Card 64GB (not pictured) A safe place to save and store images of a shooting session. You can even slot it into your computer when you’re ready for back-up.
• Adobe Creative Cloud Photography Plan 12 Month Download (not pictured) Instant access to the technical tools you need for expert photo editing and organisation.
• Wacom Intuos Pro Small Creative Pen Tablet Black (not pictured) A super stylus and tablet that includes your choice of one of two creative applications to take your photo editing to the next level.
• Nikon Coolpix B600 Digital Camera (not pictured) This sleek camera is great when you want to take close-ups from afar, with a 120x Dynamic Fine Zoom that also prevents blurring.

SEE ALSO: How to Express Yourself Creatively, Even if You’re Not Arts-y

Digital Designer or Illustrator

You’ve got vision, an eye for detail, and a head for mastering all things technological. Channel your creativity into digital art, drawing, graphic design and layouts. This type of expertise combines creative and commercial skills, as you design everything from products and packaging, to websites, magazines and advertising materials – and these design tools for graphic artists can help.

• Canon Pixma All-In-One Home Office Printer TR7660 An essential for any home office, this baby can print, copy, scan and fax in A4. As a graphic designer, you’ll be using it regularly to print out prototypes and pitches.
• Uni-ball Eye Fine Rollerball Pens Black 8 Pack This pen delivers permanent ink that's both water- and fade-proof through a smooth rollerball nib.
• J.Burrows Gel Wrist Rest Blue Avoid the strains and aches associated with constant mouse clicking by using this ergonomic wrist support.
• Otto A5 Herringbone Notebook 192 Pages Brown A stylish and conveniently-sized notebook to have with you at all times, for those lightbulb moments.
• Samsung 2TB Portable Solid State Drive T5 Super-fast hard-disk storage for your essential files, including large format photos, illustrations and InDesign spreads.
• Logitech G910 Orion Spectrum RGB Gaming Keyboard Here’s a time-saving design hack – swap your regular keyboard for a gaming one with programmable keys so your most-used commands are just a click away.
• Samsung Galaxy S21 128GB 5G Grey (not pictured) This next-level smartphone can shoot high-quality photos and videos as well as keep you in touch with important clients.
• Matrix Sit Stand Desk Large Black (not pictured) Alleviate aches caused by hunching over your computer all day with this easily maneuverable desk that allows you to sit or stand.
• Logitech MX Master 3 Wireless Mouse Graphite (not pictured) Make your mouse work double-time. This clever one, designed with creatives in mind, is fast, precise and customisable.
• Wacom Intuos Medium Bluetooth Black (not pictured) This drawing tablet comes with a pressure-sensitive pen and access to creative apps, like Corel Painter Essentials. It’s great for precise and detailed work such as editing photos and designing manga art.

Musician or Music Producer

Technology has changed the way that music is made: bye-bye orchestra and hello one-man band. These apps, tools, accessories and gadgets will help you make beautiful tunes in moments.

• Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 2 Bluetooth Speaker Unicorn A powerful little speaker for playing back your tracks. The sound quality is great, plus it connects to your phone or computer in an instant via Bluetooth.
• Sony Wireless Headphones Black WHCH510 Deliver high-quality audio directly to your eardrums with this comfortable and cable-free headset.
• Studymate A4 70gsm 12 Stave Music Pad 50 Page Compose melodies as they come to you with this handy pad for sheet music.
• J.Burrows Mechanical Pencil 0.7mm Blue 2 Pack With its precise lead and built-in eraser, this could be the tool of choice for annotating music.
• Blue Yeti 3-Capsule USB Microphone Blue Record a number one hit with this high-quality mic – or just impress your friends at a home karaoke night.
• Keji Universal Tablet Stand Black Position or mount your tablet in the perfect spot for presentations, watching videos or reading music.
• Comsol 20000mAh Dual Port Powerbank 18W USB-C PD Keep your phone, headphones and other USB devices charged up, no matter where your work takes you.
• WD My Passport Go Portable SSD 2TB Cobalt (not pictured) Store your important music files on this 2 terabyte drive. Its slim design and protective rubber case mean it’s easy (and safe!) to carry around.
• Saddle Gas Lift Stool (not pictured) The ultimate adjustable seat for the music-minded, you can roll it up to a drum kit or keyboard just as easily as you can a desk.
• P Pavilion x360 14" Convertible Laptop Core i5 DW1009TUH (not pictured) This computer is a laptop and touch screen tablet all in one, so it’s adaptable for any task that comes your way. The up to 8.5-hour battery life is also a godsend for meetings with record execs or for creating tunes on the go.

SEE ALSO: Essential Art Supplies for Students to Add to Their Kit

Budding Bestselling Writer

Got a way with words? Writing is the ultimate creative expression, whether you put pen to paper or tap away at a keyboard all day. Budding Zadie Smiths and Jonathan Franzens, take note: the following is a list of writerly tools to support your creative process.

• Oxford Australian Pocket Dictionary 8th Edition An essential for checking on your spelling and looking up the definitions of tricky vocabulary.
• Philips VoiceTracer Audio Recorder DVT1150 Use this handy gadget to record voice memos and private musings, or whip it out during interviews with expert sources.
• Telstra 4GX WiFi Plus Modem MF910Y/a> All writers need a solid WiFi connection, no matter where they are – for essential research as you tap away, and for distracting yourself with funny cat videos when writers’ block strikes.
• Cygnett ChargeUp Reserve 10000mAh Powerbank Black Charge your devices on the go with this amazing gadget. It’s small enough to slip into your bag yet boasts two USB ports for simultaneous charging.
• Modena Color Your Style A5 Notebook Linen Blank Purple Always carry a notebook – it’s a writer’s right-hand man. Jot down ideas, do a brain dump, write a list, or set yourself a task or two.
• Moleskine Soft Cover Notebook Plain Pocket Scarlet Red See why this style of notebook is beloved by writers such as Ernest Hemingway.
• Thermos Vacuum Insulated Travel Mug 470mL You need to keep the caffeine flowing, especially when a deadline is looming. This magical mug stays hot for up to 7 hours – though we don’t think it will take that long to get through a fresh brew!
• WD 4TB My Passport Portable Hard Drive Black It’s always a good idea to backup your work. This hard drive boasts 4 terabyte storage capacity as well as special software that can password-protect your files, so no-one nabs your bestselling idea.
• Audio-Technica USB-C Microphone ATR2500x-USB This high-tech microphone produces studio-quality recording, perfect for podcasting.
• J.Burrows Pocket Notebook 96 Page Stash this mini notebook in your bag or pocket, so you always have scribble paper handy when that perfect phrase just comes to you..