For several years now I have been making illustrations with professional Copic Sketch markers that I bought on Ebay – there was the lowest price for a set of 72 markers, plus I bought some flesh shades and a few light ones (see the earlier post for more details). Now I can already estimate the costs and output from investments. How expensive it is to draw with Copic Sketch markers, and how I like it overall. Would I buy them again?
First, let’s look at the price: in order to draw with Copic markers, you need to initially invest and purchase at least 30-40 shades. And it is better to immediately take a set of 72 markers and take another 5-10 additional colors. If you decide to just buy 5-10 markers to get started, to decide whether you need it or not, then most likely you will not like the result. Since it is difficult to get the desired image with a small number of shades.
Drawing with markers is a pleasure. There is nothing even close to the children’s markers that immediately come to mind. It is a professional artistic tool that gives you incredible pleasure in your work. I especially like the soft brush tip of Copic Sketch marker for crisp lines and pressure control. The colors are very beautiful, especially earthy – this is my love! But fluorescent and too light shades did not suit me.
The consumption of markers turned out to be not too high, using special paper that does not absorb. Some of the markers dried out within a year – I still did not understand what was the reason. Or they were sold to me used, and they were low on ink. Or they are defective and do not close tightly. Maybe, of course, they just ended. But it was strange as with these shades I painted quite a bit compared to others that are still full.
In total, I spent about 40 thousand on the initial investment: the markers themselves and specialized paper. After 2.5 years, 6 markers were dry. Everyone else is great at writing. During this time, I have made over 200 illustrations for two books and a website. I didn’t use markers every day, but occasionally I drew a series of pictures with them. Now I decided to try refillers – Copic Various Ink, which are sold separately and allow filling dry and empty markers 10-15 times.
The price of one Copic Various Ink is about 650 rubles (~9$ on Ebay). It turned out that it is not so easy to find the right shades in Moscow. I ordered 7 cans of ink to fill in the dry markers and took one warm gray W5 for future, as I use it the most. It will be interesting to check how much ink I have. I even think to try mixing colors if I run out of another shade that I rarely use.
As for the profit, for today I still expect to receive royalties for 1 book “Algorithm for Success on YouTube: Think Like a Youtuber!”, Which at best will cover the cost of markers. But considering that I not only illustrated this book, but also wrote it, so far the markers are still gold! If you have a clearer plan for monetizing your creativity, freelancing ideas or free money, then you can confidently delight yourself with markers that can last a lifetime.