Vectoring over it I suppose? Not a bad idea anyway ^-^ I sometimes sketch something on paper and find out its really nice thats when I do the photo thing but most times I wanna draw something cool I go straight for the tablet (:
About this that you said Key.. I have a friend that pretty much started with a really bad drawing tablet and gimp or something like that he now creates designs for t-shirts and stuff also posters and all sort of stuff ... Guess what his tablet was garbage YOU just gotta have the touch of it. Conclusion:You might make somepony uncomfortable with what you just said, thing that isnt true at all.
A cheap drawing tablet and gimp would do the trick for a starter thats my recommandation. The rest is up to the pony that draws. You can get a better tablet in time but you gotta start from the bottom