Saturday 11 May 2013

Create a Dark, Conceptual Photo Manipulation With Stock Photography

Tutorial Details

Program: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Difficulty: Advanced
Estimated Completion Time: 15 - 20 Hours

Perfect Gold Text Effect in Photoshop

Gold and glass effects are the most difficult effects to achieve in Photoshop, even more when they are combined. So, in this tutorial I will teach you how to create a combined gold and glass text effect using quick and esay tips with layer styles in Photoshop. Hands to work!

What we will create in this tutorial. perfection gold and glass text effect

Create a blank a black document and fill it with black. Download the metal surface texture here. Place it on the document and down the opacity to 30%. Then, open the Layer Styles panel and give it a Color Overlay style.

Design an Abstract Style Sword Warrior with Fiery Effect in Photoshop

Along the way, we will be using some photoshop retouching techniques, selection tools, cloud effect, texture application and custom brush painting.In this Photoshop tutorial, I will show you the steps I took to Design an Abstract Style Sword Warrior with Fiery Effect in Photoshop. This is an intermediate level tutorial so some steps can be tricky, but why not have a try :)

Movie poster printing companies are a good resource to remember when you need to promote a show or a play.

Here is a preview of the final effect I have for this tutorial: (click to enlarge)

fire sword warrior flatten 500x663 Design an Abstract Style Sword Warrior with Fiery Effect in Photoshop

PSD File Download

9 Essential Principles for Good Web Design

Web design can be deceptively difficult, as it involves achieving a design that is both usable and pleasing, delivers information and builds brand, is technically sound and visually coherent.

Add to this the fact that many Web designers (myself included) are self-taught, that Web design is still novel enough to be only a side subject in many design institutions, and that the medium changes as frequently as the underlying technology does.

So today I’ve put together my 9 principles for good Web design. These are only my opinions and I’ve tried to link off to more reading on subjects so you don’t only hear my voice. Obviously, I have lots of disclaimers: rules are made to be broken, different types of design work differently, and I don’t always live up to my own advice. So please read these as they are intended–just some observations I am sharing…

7 Secrets to Becoming a Graphic Design Superstar

Every new designer aspires to be the best. However, this doesn’t come easy. You not only have to work hard, but you also have to develop good artistic, marketing and communicative skills. You need to know where to market your skills and how to capture the client’s interest. There are hundreds of tips and tricks but I would like to share with you just seven great secrets to becoming a graphic design superstar. The best designers understand these secrets and this is why they are the BEST.

Preparing and Talking About Your Graphic Design Portfolio

As a graphic designer a portfolio is essential. While it’s great to have an online one, it’s also a good idea to have a physical one too to take along to meetings and interviews.

Putting together and showing this kind of portfolio of your graphic design work is quite a skill, and the best way to do it gets debated constantly by designers around the world. There is no right way of doing it – there will always be differences in what employers or clients expect, or would like to see. Some simple logic and advice will help you though, and I’m going to share what I have learned both from experience and from reading other articles.

Wednesday 8 May 2013

Breaking Free of Design Crutches

by Joshua Johnson on 12th July 2012 with 6 Comments

You don’t want to talk about this topic, you don’t even want to think about it. That’s because, like most of us, you’re probably guilty of using quite a few “crutches” to get you by. Those little things that you default to in almost every design with almost no thought.

Let’s bring them to light. Let’s talk about what I see designers doing again and again and what I struggle with myself. Let’s stop hobbling along and start running towards great design.

How to Design the Perfect Twitter Header Image

by Joshua Johnson on 20th September 2012 with 104 Comments

Twitter recently rolled out an updated design for profile pages, which allows you to insert a new “header photo” that sits on top of your feed, much like Facebook’s timeline cover image.

Today we’re going to dive in and see some examples of good Twitter profile images and discuss how you can design your own. I’ll even toss in a free template so you can get started right away.

6 Famous Logos That Leverage Inconsistent Design

One of the most powerful tools that you can use to improve any design is repetition. Repeating colors, shapes and other visual elements throughout a design increases consistency and familiarity so that the design feels more attractive.

But what about the flip side of this idea? Is it possible to wield inconsistency in such a way that it improves the quality of a design? It turns out that lots of well known logos use this very tactic. Read on to see what they are.

Understanding the Three Question Limit as a Designer

Have you noticed when you ask someone three questions in a row, their eyes glaze over and they stop paying attention? It’s a psychological defense mechanism to keep our privacy to ourselves. It’s one reason so many people choke up when taking a test.

The human, by nature, is a questioning animal. We question our existence and future but when it comes to giving answers, that’s just not in our biological nature. This is one of the problems with planning a design project. Questions have to be asked – numerous questions. There is, however, a way to ask questions and get all the answers you need…

10 Tips for Effective Creative Brainstorming

Brainstorming can either be a creative gold mine or a time wasting disaster.

Brainstorming is often discussed in relation to a business environment. In college, nearly every one of my business school textbooks had an entire chapter dedicated to the concept. Though creative brainstorming is in many ways a different beast due to its visual nature, many of the same concepts apply.

Today we’ll take a look at ten tips to consider before you pull your creative team into a brainstorming session. When applied properly, they can drastically increase productivity and quality of results.

Graphic design is a field that is quickly changing, both creatively and technically, and while it is easy to get caught up in learning new technical skills, it is just as important to focus improving and pushing the limits of our creativity.

While in design school, it was easy to surround myself with inspiration and engage in activities that helped my understanding of effective design. Once I graduated I feared losing it, since I was no longer surrounded by a learning environment. I made it a point to continue educating myself as much as possible and become more active in the field of design. I was determined not to let my designs grow stagnant, but rather transgress and improve with time. Here are a few tips, exercises and practices that have help me continue learning, strengthen creativity and become an all around better designer.

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Saturday 11 May 2013

Create a Dark, Conceptual Photo Manipulation With Stock Photography

Tutorial Details