I have neck and shoulder problems on my right side because I have a desk-bound job, and in my spare hobby time, I also like to do photo editing. Other than trying to be more active, I’m starting to consider other input devices to relieve some of my reliance on a mouse. I was considering a Wacom tablet, but I have no real idea how good it is for something like photo editing.
People with experience, is it good for photo editing, and in darktable in particular? Could it also be used on your lap, or would that be too awkward?
Probably only beneficial if you’re drawing a lot of masks. Otherwise, unless you’re left handed, you’ll use your right arm more. Interacting with sliders with a wacom is something I’ve never liked, although to each their own.
Perhaps you should consider a midi control with a lot of knobs, or a few knobs and some hotkeys
Yes that makes sense. Whenever I have watched videos of people using one and raving about it, they’re often using Photoshop or brushes in their photo editor.
I’m a heavy user of sliders so it needs to be good for that. I think why I have avoided midi controllers is because it seems so daunting to set it up how you like it, and then it’s really a one-trick pony for that specific application. But that’s good food for thought, thanks.
That’s why you set up a hotkey modifier with the midi knob-- so holding E and rotating the knob moves the exposure, C + knob is filmic contrast, w+ knob is filmic white relative, etc etc.
I have had a similar question. I have a large monitor and I find my head is looking over to the right side a lot. I would love to be able to switch the panels from right to left but not sure how hard that would be to do…
What I meant is that the midi controller would only be used for darktable because I have no other use for it, but seeing as I spend so much time editing photos, perhaps it’s a worthwhile investment. Thanks for giving me food for thought.
I have a Wacom Intuos S (small pad) and while I like it for photo work such as cloning, masking, etc. with this particular tablet at least there’s no way (I’m aware of) to emulate the mouse wheel. So that cuts into its usability with darktable. I still have to reach for the mouse quite a bit. I’ve never tried it in my lap but I can’t imagine it would be comfortable. My wrist would probably hurt before long due to the contorted angle. As others have mentioned a MIDI controller might be a better option for darktable.
GIMP / Krita / PS / Affinity Photo…? That might be a different story. I use my tablet quite a lot with Affinity Photo (and some with ART).
Yeah I looked at that one but it’s nearly CAD$400. I’d like to try it first before shelling out that much. I believe there’s a more budget alternative from Behringer, but it seems to be out of stock.
Thanks.
The Pro version has a scroll wheel, but there’s still the problem with sliders. I’m not a heavy user of masks and cloning, so it doesn’t look like the best option for me. I use Affinity from time to time but try to avoid it as much as possible.
Not a tablet, but I have found that a good trackball (I have the MX Ergo by Logitech) has made a huge difference for me. I had more wrist/RSI symptoms than neck and shoulder, however. Your mileage may vary.
The MX Ergo comes with a precision mode - a thumb button and status LED right next to the ball. Works pretty well in my experience. Precision mode disables cursor acceleration.
Thanks. The S1060W seems to be more like a traditional Wacom pad, whereas the U1200 has a screen, so is it more like working on a tablet? Which one do you use mainly? Can you tell me what they are good at and what is more difficult? What would you say the main strengths are? Do you need to switch back and forth between keyboard and drawing pad?
Before looking at a Wacom, try a narrow keyboard. Most shoulder problems come from having to reach far beyond that cursor- and numpad block.
A classic TKL (TenKeyLess) might be a good start, but using an even more compressed layout is much better. My daily driver is an el cheapo Ajazz AK33 mechanical keyboard with 82 keys - full F-key row, which is very important to me.
Using the Wacom is still nice, although darktable is not really an app that was made for it. Lot’s of controls and their landing spaces are too small or cramped, making the pen interaction fiddly.
If you are trying to use masks with a wacom/pen/tablet, if possible please try out #14157 and provide comments. Without user demand something like this will not get merged.
I am also thinking about more ergonomic ways when using dt. Does any of you considered game controllers in the past? Are they using the midi protocol, too?
