Christmas Ornament Phone Wallpapers

Hello everyone!  In just several days, it will be Christmas!  So I found some Christmas trees, took my phone out, and took some close-up pictures of the Christmas ornaments.  

5 Great Photoshop Patterns

Hello!  My computer is up, back, and running.  Hopefully, I will have more chances to post!  Today, I have some patterns that I find useful.

Sorry for the Delay

Hi guys!  Sorry I haven't posted anything in a while.  My computer has gotten a virus and the hard drive has shut down, meaning I can't keep in touch with my files, or even Photoshop.

Sorry!

Planet Tutorial

In this tutorial, I will guide you step-by-step on how to render a realistic planet.  Read more to see the tutorial.

20 Typography Tutorials

It's the beginning of August!  I thought I might start out by showing several tutorials made by other people, in the category of Typography.  I like typography because I think it makes everything look better.  It can make all the difference in your poster if you add typography.  Some of these are text effects.  Most of all, make sure to pay attention to see the fonts.  The following tutorials are handpicked by me.

Google SketchUp

Before and After Simulation

Google created a program a while ago called Google SketchUp.  Its been around for a while.  It is a program that can make virtual things and simulations.  It is rather easy to use, with many tips and tutorials online.

It's geared more towards architectural designing. Some people use it to create mockup houses, or even interior designing. You can also use other people's models, and incorporate them into your own design. For instance, if you were planning to make a mockup city, you could use another person's buildings.  All of this is free.

Here's what Google says about it - 

"Redecorate your living room. Invent a new piece of furniture. Model your city for Google Earth. There's no limit to what you can create with SketchUp. We believe powerful software can also be a pleasure to use – the secret is intuitive tools that work the way you think they should. Apparently, millions of people agree."

Autodesk SketchBook Pro

SketchBook Sidebar

Autodesk Sketchbook is a drawing program.  It's geared more towards.. well, sketching.  I'm not really that type of person, but this software came with my Bamboo tablet so I decided to try it out.  Any sane person would notice that this program is extremely simple.  Maybe even more simple than Paint, the drawing program built into many PC's.  Things which are simpler than Paint are rare.

To the left here are many simple tools, which are standard for most drawing/vector/graphics programs.  The tool selected, as you can see, is a pencil tool.  This suggests that the tool being used right now is thin.  The next few tool are all for brushes.  Experiment to find your liking.  Also to the top of the screen, when you open the program, is another toolbar. It also has simple tools.

GIMP

GIMP is short for GNU Image Manipulation Program.  It serves the same features of Photoshop, but it's free.  Right now, the latest version is GIMP 2.8.  This picture here to the left is not mine, but one that I found on the internet (screenshots aren't working).  It is just to show how simple GIMP is, and much more simpler than Photoshop.

The number of resources available online are numerous; almost as many as the Photoshop resources.  This is because you can download any Photoshop brush/pattern etc. and it will work on GIMP because they designed it that way.

In my opinion, GIMP is a better program for getting rid of backgrounds.  It does it in a quick and easy way, and leaves you with smooth lines.  When I try attempting the same thing on Photoshop, some times, it comes up jagged, or even soft looking.  Not the flat, hard edge that I wanted.  Or even in Photoshop, when I do Select ~ Modify ~ Expand, it just doesn't give me the great product I expected.

Bamboo Tablet

A graphics tablet is something that most graphic designers love to use.  I myself, have one; a Bamboo Capture more specifically, and I find it to be helpful when drawing.  Here's what Wacom says about their Bamboo Capture - 

"Enhance.  Engage.  Personalize.  Bamboo Capture helps you take your digital imagery to the next level.   Works with Adobe® Photoshop® Elements (included in the box)  and scores of other photo software applications for editing, perfecting, and having  fun with your digital images.  Restore old photos, make your portraits come alive, remove unwanted details, improve skin tones, and create your own compositions. 

Bamboo Capture also features multi-touch input, so you can use the tablet to zoom in on your photos, scroll through albums, and navigate your way around your computer, using the familiar gestures of a mobile device. 

Bamboo Captures includes two great software titles in the box:  Adobe® Photoshop® Elements and Autodesk® SketchBook Express."

Inkscape

Today, I revisited another program which I haven't been on for a while. This program may be familiar to some of you graphic designers.  It's called Inkscape.  Inkscape is a great free software that is a vector editing program, and can be considered a simpler Adobe Illustrator.  A vector image by definition is an image that is not limited to being sized in a rectangular box, and can be resized easily without becoming pixelated.  Vectors are composed of paths, not pixels.  This can be helpful if you are making or printing something large sized, so as to make sure the image is not fuzzy.  Unfortunately, most images that you find on the web are bitmap images, which must have a rectangular shape and can not be resized largely, but you can shrink the size down.  Fonts are an example of a vector.

FotoSketcher

Recently, I tried out this program called FotoSketcher.  It's a free program that takes your images and allows you to make it look realistically sketched out.  Ultimately, it can make your photo look watercolored, pencil sketched, or painted.

This example down below shows a photo of a bear.  The pop up window shows a preview of what the bear would look like when realistically pencil sketched out.  There are 5 levers in which you can change to your liking: