Grease Pencil Tools should natively be a part of blender
Grease Pencil Tools is a add on at this point but it adds functionality that makes Grease Pencil usable for 2d artist.
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Rotate canvas and Reset rotation: With out this Gp isn't usable for 2d drawing at all. This function is in every art program.
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Zoom fit: When you zoom in you need a quick way to pop back out.
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Camera Flip: When you look at the image too long it's good to flip it to see it from a different angle.
These 3 functions are basic and heavily needed. Every Raster art program at least has these. But then there's:
4.Box deform: a great way to free trans form strokes on a box grid.
Edit: If it were a core part of blender then it would be factored into every new release. There wouldn't be a back in forth were blender get's updated , the add on breaks and then we have to wait on the dev to fix it. No shade on them by the way.
It's actually broken right now
4 Comments
If it's a functional addon, why do you need it to be native in blender?
Let's take an example from the addon node wrangler: it enhances the node editing UX so much that the user base as a whole can't see life without it, and the BF started to slowly but surely integrating it into Blender natively.
Similarly for Grease Pencil Tools, I think we could reasonably make the argument that some of its functionality are immensely useful and ubiquitous even outside of 2D artists: all the camera controls that it offers are quite a massive QoL bonus―if not vital―for anyone working with cameras and final renders, which is also a much larger user base than Grease Pencil's.
So maybe it shouldn't require installing and enabling an addon, especially one in the Grease Pencil section, which most users wouldn't even think to look into.
Edit: now we got interesting stats from the Blender Survey 2024 :
What Lauloque said. As a 2d artist i can't use greasepencil At All with out the first two things i listed. Also new 2d artist will expect that functionality before even knowing they have to get it from a addon. Though It's a bit different from node wrangler. you could use the nodes with out it, but in 2d rotating the canvas, and resetting your view zoom is so integral to that work flow. Every raster art program has those four things i listed. Also Some times it's not functional. It's been broken a few times. During those times it's just not useable. if it were a core part of blender then it would be factored into every new release. There wouldn't be a back in forth were blender get's updated , the add on breaks and then we have to wait on the dev to fix it. No shade on them btw.
agree , this plugin has a lot of features that are essential for regular painting.