The Bottom Line
As of November 2007, Fo2Pix is out of business and the company assets are in liquidation. Unfortunately, there is no way to purchase Fo2Pix products at this time. [reference]
Pros
- Seven ArtWizards give you fast, predictable results in a short amount of time.
- On-screen instructions guide you through the painting process.
- Doesn't require very large starting images. Works best with medium-resolution images.
- Open and save as JPEG, PNG, TIFF, and BMP files.
Cons
- Lack of manual mode limits experimentation and takes some creativity out of the painting process.
- Comes with only a few ArtWizards. Purchasing more ArtWizards can be expensive.
- Waiting for each step to process can be slow.
Description
- Allows you to create fine art from your photographs by following a set of step-by-step ArtWizards.
- Generates 300 painting and mixing sources, which are based on the artistic elements of the photo.
- User controls are all on-screen. No hidden palettes or nested menu commands to navigate.
- Mixing of sources is controlled by the color, contrast, and blend mixers in the Studio Editor.
- Stencils act as a filter or mask so you can control how the palette is applied on the canvas.
- Adjust Editor lets you crop, resize, rotate, and tune the color and contrast in the image.
- Layout Editor lets you place your picture and make adjustments before printing.
- Includes 66-page printed user manual in a ring binder that also holds your software CD.
- For Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows ME, and Windows XP or Mac OS X Tiger (10.4 or higher).
- ArtMaster is a limited version of ArtMasterPro without manual mode or ArtWizard recording features.
Guide Review - Fo2Pix ArtMaster
The seven Artwizards in ArtMaster include: Basic Form, Chalk Grey, Distant View, Essential Watercolour, Popart 1, Sand Dune, and Shade Exploration. Unlike ArtMasterPro, ArtMaster does not offer a manual mode. That means you're limited to the approximately 300 sources contained in the ArtWizards, but you can still experiment by combining steps from different ArtWizards, and you can purchase additional ArtWizards from Fo2Pix.
ArtMaster and ArtMasterPro offer many improvements over Fo2Pix's PhotoArtMaster home user product line—larger canvas sizes, automation, added file format support, and finer control. ArtMaster is primarily a teaser for the more advanced ArtMasterPro product. You can generate some unique art with it, but you won't get a lot of variety without purchasing more ArtWizards or upgrading to ArtMasterPro. Chances are, once you get a taste of the possibilities, you'll want to upgrade to the full package.
