what do you graphics artists use for free-hand drawings?

[JasonSnake]

So I'm pretty inept on graphics drawings on PC. I'm not too bad at drawing people and objects on paper but how can I do that on a PC? Is there some kind of sketch pad that connects to the computer? Is it something that goes over the monitor and I use some kind of pen tool to draw on it?

Also, what's the best program for something like this? I would imagine photoshop is more focused on manipulating images then creating them. Yes?

Thanks guys...