tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87552624758178048102024-02-07T08:01:15.820-08:00pixelbumpdigital media art student ponders universe of pixels in pretty regular ramblings
photoshop, illustrator, graphic design, web design, 3D, virtual reality, second life, edmonton, canada, guru digital arts collegeAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.comBlogger31125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-19728632900916772472010-09-22T05:03:00.000-07:002010-09-22T05:05:27.010-07:00FinalsOk, so even though I am making lots of pictures, it's final exam and final portfolio time and I am a little disorganized. I promise, Dear Blog, that I will faithfully post again starting soon. Please, if you run into Flickr, give her this message as well.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-41364726110126345962010-09-05T11:58:00.000-07:002010-09-05T12:03:55.841-07:00i know, i know...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjSYQj_DYZcjjotHPYvTV0HKIH951XHCt0hiIZFFApI2kXnuhJp0KbNHAyuHnCADKCzLiZPspXHmtuSiGHRsMA_9QawfD3-tXrnTMqhDj6EZlnL2NEkkhG28QlUsr9jZGh2MrAya0w8b8/s1600/garvie-if-and-when-postcard.png"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 277px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjSYQj_DYZcjjotHPYvTV0HKIH951XHCt0hiIZFFApI2kXnuhJp0KbNHAyuHnCADKCzLiZPspXHmtuSiGHRsMA_9QawfD3-tXrnTMqhDj6EZlnL2NEkkhG28QlUsr9jZGh2MrAya0w8b8/s400/garvie-if-and-when-postcard.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513506516259498370" /></a><br />There are probably lots of things that I could be blogging about, since there are certainly lots of things on my mind lately. But I just have so much going on, down, sideways and probably pear shaped in the next couple weeks, that I am only posting a postcard for now.<br /><br />cheersAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-17263496656146393172010-08-18T17:29:00.000-07:002010-08-18T17:37:04.849-07:00imaginationIn the interest of keeping up with my output, another image from the Guru booklet. enough said.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM0KOVP0pM54ZiTf32RYn2V0bNY0hna_evJkGq9I_iw7bLnNn2Mrnr4KXtHf7DksSuj_Ig8q5VMVTtd9nuCU94U2gnq3Pq0uPGryO_W6GT7bGXn2bKWNpNQAek5HvNRuWFOdea-ZnwymM/s1600/garvie-imagination.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 293px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM0KOVP0pM54ZiTf32RYn2V0bNY0hna_evJkGq9I_iw7bLnNn2Mrnr4KXtHf7DksSuj_Ig8q5VMVTtd9nuCU94U2gnq3Pq0uPGryO_W6GT7bGXn2bKWNpNQAek5HvNRuWFOdea-ZnwymM/s400/garvie-imagination.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5506913223200171554" /></a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-53758362915726137332010-08-17T08:14:00.000-07:002010-08-17T08:26:45.187-07:00It's ok to be reusableSo I have been struggling through the weeds on a book layout project at school. The project was really just to do the layout for a promotional brochure for Guru Digital Arts College, but I decided to get all artsy and make some content. Anyway, although in real dollars I think this job might have paid me about 3 bucks an hour, it was worthwhile in other respects. Chief among these is that I gave many of the images different layer comps and tried to create them with reusable elements. The one shown below makes a fine postcard after only a few small modifications. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7I74yMfrFdJKEyQsjm3pgBwP8q2eE4BLADLk41rsTAhgU-gFNoRnGyxS0V7Xakl8WZtFfuOxQ-pEYalNY-_Y0Skkel2l3S0mLufkFurLvW5-CWrhuLs0QVWwiJiLa9My1j0HD_EE24Ek/s1600/garvie--it's-ok-to-be-different.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 293px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7I74yMfrFdJKEyQsjm3pgBwP8q2eE4BLADLk41rsTAhgU-gFNoRnGyxS0V7Xakl8WZtFfuOxQ-pEYalNY-_Y0Skkel2l3S0mLufkFurLvW5-CWrhuLs0QVWwiJiLa9My1j0HD_EE24Ek/s400/garvie--it's-ok-to-be-different.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5506400055910315762" /></a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-76555742214176761892010-08-13T07:26:00.001-07:002010-08-13T07:34:43.459-07:00Courage<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiEeXM9gss3Iu7HV78UsHsCGciXF1lyE8kcwM-ERM5-CyjLsAkPwOVsY9fHC5sEL7xSMEJpXr3Sry-qaJU8GNMyQmKFx4uxn09Rcjb-4oxzsntbCL-2lKXFdbyCfEF8HSdODwyiDR5iIQ/s1600/garvie-courage.png"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 259px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiEeXM9gss3Iu7HV78UsHsCGciXF1lyE8kcwM-ERM5-CyjLsAkPwOVsY9fHC5sEL7xSMEJpXr3Sry-qaJU8GNMyQmKFx4uxn09Rcjb-4oxzsntbCL-2lKXFdbyCfEF8HSdODwyiDR5iIQ/s400/garvie-courage.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5504902660140544082" /></a><br />Here's an image from a brochure that I am working on, which is becoming the project that ate my life.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-40132182263108079732010-08-02T07:00:00.000-07:002010-08-02T07:00:04.661-07:00Restore Arts Funding Now<object style="background-image:url(http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/PoGnsU27OCE/hqdefault.jpg)" width="480" height="295"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/PoGnsU27OCE&hl=en_US&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/PoGnsU27OCE&hl=en_US&fs=1" width="480" height="295" allowScriptAccess="never" allowFullScreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object><br /><br />This sucks. Let's hope it's not a trend.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-70355874549685453842010-08-01T15:47:00.000-07:002010-08-01T15:54:40.346-07:00NeglectedSo my blog (yes, this one) sent me an email to say that she was feeling neglected because I haven't posted anything for awhile. So I made her a picture, which I hope will convey how I feel about blogging becoming yet another chore on my to do list. Hopefully this will be enough to soothe her for now.<br /><br />sheesh<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIcTOnhM03xOrSrKBGTsPqWiyNJFv8_n_mb5tqID3MG-rwH_0APTgOj0ddjHtVXMUJYk1rAHIt9enHdnQY8MpsnveMewFei0Ni_sguHg7HWwu6taYJdoZ7qVxCHfHDaU8UFr9Wyp3-nXU/s1600/garvie-because-you-must.png"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 348px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIcTOnhM03xOrSrKBGTsPqWiyNJFv8_n_mb5tqID3MG-rwH_0APTgOj0ddjHtVXMUJYk1rAHIt9enHdnQY8MpsnveMewFei0Ni_sguHg7HWwu6taYJdoZ7qVxCHfHDaU8UFr9Wyp3-nXU/s400/garvie-because-you-must.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5500577635352953170" /></a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-21046475899028074292010-07-24T06:57:00.001-07:002010-07-24T07:00:22.991-07:00BrandingHUGE assignment this weekend. I need to totally rebrand a tea company. they need a business focus, we're going high end, a personality, we will be classy and luxurious, a logo, a web site, packaging design, and an email HTML flyer.<br /><br />I'm looking forward to the project, but I have almsot none of it pulled together yet.<br /><br />I will post any bits as they are created.<br /><br />CHARGE!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-66841890577228552052010-07-19T10:12:00.000-07:002010-07-19T10:14:45.028-07:00FrustrationI am fed up with the nonsummer weather, tired of waiting for the funds to purchase my Empire Avenue upgrade (so that I can sell more shares of myself) and thoroughly sick of having to drop projects that I am only half-way into so that I can start work on the next looming damn thing.<br /><br />thereAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-76019226230641898982010-07-17T20:12:00.000-07:002010-07-18T00:04:25.498-07:00Yay todayI made scones in the early morning, worked on packaging design for the rest of it. In the afternoon I strolled through a huge outdoor art exhibit, came home for beers and a BBQ with corn and potato salad. I made vegetarian chili for tomorrow and sold out my shares on Empire Avenue. (yahoo) I beat hubbie at poker, but let him win crib, since there is already a growing list of games he won't play with me. And now? Now I plan to develop my taste for skunk weed and single malt scotch, both of which I am sure I can learn to like if I just apply myself.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-67326969449807743332010-07-15T11:15:00.000-07:002010-07-15T11:21:49.918-07:00Embedding experimentsWell, since my own animation attempts are so far under feeble (so far), I decided I should get some web design work done. I need to be able to play video on a site I am working on, and I debating how to go about it.<br /><br />One way is an embedded link, and I hope this works for here because it's a beautiful little piece by Simon Rouby.<br /><object width="400" height="300"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=9548649&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1" /><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=9548649&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="400" height="300"></embed></object><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/9548649">Le Présage (the Omen)</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/direct420">Simon Rouby</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-66976391765974810912010-07-13T21:57:00.000-07:002010-07-13T22:05:07.165-07:00No pictures todayAlas, I spent most of the day trying and failing to overcome my Flash blockage or impairment or whatever my problem is whenever I am confronted with a new program to learn.<br /><br />I swear some people just start dancing across keyboards finding short cuts and testing whistles and ringing bells. I spend a week grumbling about the fact that nothing ever seems to come with a manual anymore. Then I spend two weeks looking for the missing manual online and reading tutorials. Then I have to practise in dead of night, well actually crack of dawn more usually. And eventually I make something amazing.<br /><br />Today was not that day. It wasn't even one of the practise in secret days. Maybe tomorrow will be that day and then soon I'll have the amazing day.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-32092926869232296212010-07-12T06:15:00.000-07:002010-07-12T06:17:51.405-07:00They don't call them grim for nothing<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfmK7ecJ9nHqPQVuaihkMDksjfo_0KFLEq9EB4Gkm4J3etNK1PJUUo8JwZHMcaRR0nAtge_6qsRTeIawS6qdxF9jS0I9ZY4ENIty7gXrOjLuvnXQ4zhzzqOYU3kM3BehWBQBAFcZzJ37Y/s1600/garvie-The-willful-Child.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 309px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfmK7ecJ9nHqPQVuaihkMDksjfo_0KFLEq9EB4Gkm4J3etNK1PJUUo8JwZHMcaRR0nAtge_6qsRTeIawS6qdxF9jS0I9ZY4ENIty7gXrOjLuvnXQ4zhzzqOYU3kM3BehWBQBAFcZzJ37Y/s400/garvie-The-willful-Child.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5493008225105961234" /></a><br />No explanation needed on this one I think.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-56916660295693748232010-07-10T09:06:00.000-07:002010-07-10T09:11:48.751-07:00Midterms<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkskeYt-t_IEkE9L5fIPldRlqFvxvCdAM40OmjD71o71t4OeKKOeftwTKCvZXslEGUEvyFlTo0TGRYldCeToN95cDI1GpIAlb_iPK7RyDyKbMUDze3iKraMvFUkefBdzAuA-gCBaOT1aU/s1600/garvie-mr-president-carson.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 229px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkskeYt-t_IEkE9L5fIPldRlqFvxvCdAM40OmjD71o71t4OeKKOeftwTKCvZXslEGUEvyFlTo0TGRYldCeToN95cDI1GpIAlb_iPK7RyDyKbMUDze3iKraMvFUkefBdzAuA-gCBaOT1aU/s320/garvie-mr-president-carson.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492310737606537522" /></a><br />Phew, midterms are over. Quite an unusual experience really - exams in visual arts. Yesterday's was the most fun and also the most productive for me. The assignment was to design a satirical poster on the BP oil spill while also emulating a graphic designer of our choosing. I ended up with 3 pretty good roughs, the best of which is shown above.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-58857749712359694632010-07-08T07:07:00.001-07:002010-07-08T07:07:30.269-07:00Beautiful photos<div style="text-align: left; padding: 3px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/mistergraves/4625970412/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4020/4625970412_2a18fd3d06.jpg" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" alt="" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/mistergraves/4625970412/">Night Owl</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/mistergraves/">Mr. Graves</a>.</span></div><p>Found some beautiful stuff on Flickr by a Mr. Graves. His landscapes have the kind of personality a portrait might. And his portraits have the vastness and poignancy off great landscapes. If you like Ansel Adams, or Tarkovsky films, you will like these.</p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-52085506583720890552010-07-07T18:06:00.000-07:002010-07-07T18:16:49.770-07:00Epic fail...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe6Mi2ZWn-7vm9SlcfLjK14dvU5ZnpRPlH74aQISPfJ61pbFN7zPkhhYHNNU8ITOj1XVT0AuB-po3w4G9ifKaT2Qxwygg5EUqaYPBhXP1HzFasA3La1Yxxp3G4sKjypy4zjCt3DbmurFE/s1600/guru-bullet.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe6Mi2ZWn-7vm9SlcfLjK14dvU5ZnpRPlH74aQISPfJ61pbFN7zPkhhYHNNU8ITOj1XVT0AuB-po3w4G9ifKaT2Qxwygg5EUqaYPBhXP1HzFasA3La1Yxxp3G4sKjypy4zjCt3DbmurFE/s320/guru-bullet.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5491337981282197730" /></a><br />Well I can't say that we weren't warned that we would be set up for an "epic fail". We just weren't sure when it would happen or what form it would take. Turns out it came in the form of a Mission Impossible Midterm. <br /><br />I'm left trying to decide whether it would be better to analyse the errors of the day in hopes of never repeating them, or whether I should just blot the whole thing from my mind.<br /><br />The accompanying image is admittedly a pretty bad treatment, but it was made in its entirety in under 10 minutes, which unfortunately seems to be what is meant by workflow.<br /><br /><em>heavy sigh</em>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-35266884348736461112010-07-06T14:28:00.000-07:002010-07-06T16:04:48.263-07:00Vectors, vexels and vexations<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw4GdtbTJwOwLRIBiIUsD9wgzjUHB_VFR7fSxROXLLz0Q9VXoZK_ZxAQNCDelynFMc5HJFPVrmEiSaGLJBppoTi75-BoNTSZ6UuZqUnaMY5viwj59UF993xQrKEeni3U7Mav_7qnVVxLg/s1600/garvie-white-space-geisha.png"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 276px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw4GdtbTJwOwLRIBiIUsD9wgzjUHB_VFR7fSxROXLLz0Q9VXoZK_ZxAQNCDelynFMc5HJFPVrmEiSaGLJBppoTi75-BoNTSZ6UuZqUnaMY5viwj59UF993xQrKEeni3U7Mav_7qnVVxLg/s400/garvie-white-space-geisha.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490924281459778578" /></a><br />First off vector images are great in a number of ways, but their real advantage from a designer or artist's point of view is their scalability. You can make them reeeeally really big or really small with no loss of clarity whatsoever. You won't be able to test that here, because once I have posted an image to the web, it becomes a raster image, meaning it's made up of a bunch of little pixels. Everything you see online is a raster image no matter what program it was created in, no matter what file format it was saved in. Got that? That was vexation number one. <br /><br />Vectors only really have an advantage in print media. If you think about a logo for instance that might get printed on everything from a business card to a box car then you will be able to appreciate the importance of scalability and why logos are almost always vector images. But this wasn't about logos or print even. These were for things supposedly meant for the web. So not being able to achieve the effect that I wanted for some small online icons with vectors, or in this case in Illustrator in general, I got in a snit about the whole "must be vector" regime that I was dealing with at the time. <br /><br />I got over it more or less, but then there was the whole separate issue of the vexel, which is different than a vector image. A vexel is a sort of bastardization of vector based images and pixel based images. They start out in Photoshop, a program that I love dearly despite its inability to create real vectors. What I think happened was that people who had Photoshop, but lacked Illustrator learned to use the former's ability to make vectorish shape layers as a means to achieve an almost vector image. Sorry for the jargon, if you're not a user of these things yourself. <br /><br />Bizarrely enough however, what they chose to do with these almost vector images was to trace photographs which had first been manipulated in Photoshop. The manipulations are aimed specifically at achieving clearly defined areas of subtle color changes, which can then be traced using the pen tool and filled in with solid colors to mimic a vector shape. Many such shapes on many layers make a picture called a vexel. If you have ever seen a paint by numbers kit, then you'll have some idea what I am talking about. The plan goes something like this. Find a very detailed high resolution image and blur it in Photoshop, then posterize it into bands of color, then apply a blur layer to restore its original colors. Then faithfully, slavishly trace each and every one of the shapes you can see on a separate layer and viola, you get an image that is virtually indistinguishable from its posterized form. The main difference is that getting there in Photoshop doing nothing other than applying filters and adjustments takes 3-5 minutes, and getting from there to the finished traced version is likely to take 3-5 days. See the added aesthetic value? I don't. <br /><br />In case the above isn't quite masochistically tedious enough, people doing this in Photoshop are forced to use the pen tool, since it is the only way to freehand a psuedo vector shape layer. Now the pen tool has a lot going for it if you need straight lines or bezier curves. But last time I had a good long look at a portrait or a landscape, both of these were in short supply. The world of natural things is kinda lumpy and rough around the edges. So the pen tool, which is touchy and time consuming is not the tool you want unless you need a perfectly smooth curve or a perfectly straight line.<br /><br />Lucky for us, we did not have to do our completed vexel in Photoshop, we got to move over to Illustrator, which specializes in vector images and so has lots and lots of tools for tracing and drawing, all of which will produce vector shapes by default. Alas most people still stuck slavishly to the pen tool, because the instructions said to. Make that that 3-5 days above into 3-5 weeks and you'll get an idea of how many student hours went into making these things. <br /><br />If you search the word <em>vexel</em> you will find lots, as well as tutorials if you have time on your hands and want to make your own. Most are much more photo-realistic than mine above. And my friend Dano has made a couple of gorgeous ones, one of which you can see <a href="http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=524991538&v=photos#!/photo.php?pid=6216171&id=524991538">here</a>.<br /><br />Actually, once I finally got off my ass and started one, I came to see the number of hours required as part of their charm. It is a lot like doing needlepoint, which I confess I used to find sort of addictive. If you combine vexel tracing with a decent podcast or two, you can pretty much do this until the cows come home, and if you're like me and don't have any cows, you can pretty much do this forever. Plus, when you're finally finished the damn thing, you don't need to sew it into a pillow. You can print it on the side of a box car and watch its perfectly sharp lines and flat colors fade off into the distance.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-82095842090244760582010-07-05T11:15:00.000-07:002010-07-05T11:29:14.444-07:00I'm baaaaaackSorry, sometimes you step away from something for a minute, and then you get distracted, and then you forget to come back, and well, you know how it is... next there's a leave of absence, then you meet some guy and move to another city, then there's a whole new career. No wait, that was before, this time I just went out to get some air. <br /><br />I feel especially concerned for the <a href="http://http://www.empireavenue.com/">Empire Avenue</a> shareholders who lost money on me over the last couple weeks, (at least the ones not mercenary or sharp enough to sell me), so I will be doing what I can to rebuild my social capital.<br /><br />Another reason for my quietness of late is the lack images to post. The last couple weeks have been all about learning to code web sites, and while it might be fun to learn to make a rollover effect for a button or a horizontal navigation bar, trust me, it's nothing you haven't seen before.<br /><br />But I have been busy drawing, and I am sure I can drag something up here to post.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-64151433717182959092010-06-15T18:04:00.000-07:002010-06-15T21:32:13.930-07:00Photoshop is squishy<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJi7P_cyJSzvwqgiAH0_LHMnApEvlgl2bR5nRWXF-2HL3GhMzgHHRbsuBXWOUzf54wQxlUsX3T_6ZhUWs4Lua2oErhROGo9Nmrvh49lAv7Vkw6e_woST3RH-rtfKUHt9PkTHMltuyXbec/s1600/garvie-fly.png"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 293px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJi7P_cyJSzvwqgiAH0_LHMnApEvlgl2bR5nRWXF-2HL3GhMzgHHRbsuBXWOUzf54wQxlUsX3T_6ZhUWs4Lua2oErhROGo9Nmrvh49lAv7Vkw6e_woST3RH-rtfKUHt9PkTHMltuyXbec/s400/garvie-fly.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5483172519967605618" /></a><br />I swear, I love photoshop a bit more every day. I also love the people who think up incredibly cool and creative things to do with it, even though sometimes I have no idea who to credit. This image is the result of an exercise we did in Danielle's class at Guru Digital Arts, which is based on a tutorial from somebody who knows a thing or two about manipulating graphics creatively. I think the idea of building a bug from spare parts is just brilliant. My final image is more elaborate, but here you can really see the many creative possibilities for constructing an image this way. <br /><br />I can't wait to make a whole swarm of critters from spare photo parts.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-13961058950046960232010-06-14T08:28:00.001-07:002010-06-14T08:28:18.033-07:00FlickrThis is a test post from <a href="http://www.flickr.com/r/testpost"><img alt="flickr" src="http://www.flickr.com/images/flickr_logo_blog.gif" width="41" height="18" border="0" align="absmiddle" /></a>, a fancy photo sharing thing.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-51806831119680017262010-06-12T07:15:00.000-07:002010-06-12T08:52:23.081-07:00Domain Name Despair SyndromeWhat's in a name?<br /><br />To move from one cliche to another, anyone doubting the adage that there is no such thing as an original idea need only spend an hour or so searching for a domain name. If that doesn't do it, then the next 10 hrs spread over the course of a week's worth of pondering great names surely will. Leaping out of bed to try just one or two, maybe seven more variations on your 38th from the top of your favorites list to find that they too are all already gone, ought to convince you that if it's not true that there is no such thing as an original idea, it is most definitely true that there is no such thing as an original <em>Domain Name </em>idea. Go ahead and try this for yourself: you name it - it's gone. <br /><br />I have been obsessed with trying to find a decent and available domain name incorporating the word or part of the word <em>pixel</em>. So far, I have failed. Seriously, I must have been dreaming to think that such a thing was possible. I have since fantasized about calling up the peeps who already own the ones that I wanted and offering them, um, well I'm not sure what I could offer them. A few extra bucks and the promise to do a better job with both the name and also the site design probably wouldn't suffice. <br /><br />Pixelbump is gone; so is pixelthat, pixelthis, pixelit, pixelpeople, pixelpeeple, pixello, pixomatic, pixelala, pixelgaga, pixelfit, pixelpleasegodjustthisone and COUNTLESS others. Don't even get me started on pixelpump and its derivatives, or pixelanimals, pixelcolors and pixelnumbers. Gone, gone, gone and get serious. Who are all these other people who think just like me? What hope is there of distinguishing myself and my work from the ocean of others already out there if the simple first step of an original name is beyond me? <br /><br />The only hopeful sign is that apparently my experience is hardly unusual. Since starting this quest a few weeks ago, I have found several people who have also suffered from what I am calling <em>Domain Name Despair Syndrome</em>. What makes it a syndrome is that it's accompanied by a particular neurosis, or at least this is true in my case. You see one of the names that I wanted, a name that was in my top 5 choices IS still avaialable as a dot com. It's a great name. It not only was one of my original choices, it was first in line after pixelbump. It suits me perfectly, probably better than pixelbump does, is an original derivative of the word pixel and is also a word that expresses what I take to be an important design ideal. And incredibly, it's not taken -- not owned yet. It was available a week ago, and it's still out there waiting for anyone who wants it. And I do!! Or um, at least I thought I did. <br /><br />This is where our despair gets its syndrome status from the simple addition of a bit of neurosis. Here's the thing. No one <em>but</em> me has thought to register this domain name, which is great because that means that I can have it all to myself. But it also means that no one else wants this name. That would still be ok, indeed it should still be fine and dandy - perhaps even an indicator of personal originality! if not for the lingering effects of all the fruitless searching of unavailable names. What I think happens is that so many domain name searches return unavailable as a result that unavailability itself starts to take on the allure of a desirable characteristic. I not only want what I cannot have, I want it <em>because</em> I cannot have it. The more unavailable it is, for instance if both the dot com and dot net domains are gone, then the more attractive that name becomes. <br /><br />Worst of all, the name that I wanted, which is available has somehow become less attractive <em>because</em> it is still available. Now that, is clearly evidence that I am nuts. Bear in mind that this name was my <em>second choice </em>when the whole process started. But after hundreds of searches just trying to see what's out there, finding that it isn't makes it less attractive. It no longer feels like my second choice. Instead it feels very much like the name that nobody else wanted. So a week later when I log onto goDaddy and see that it is still available, rather than jumping for joy or at least feeling relief, all I feel is doubt.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-74248635106687754362010-06-07T16:23:00.000-07:002010-06-07T21:34:09.100-07:00Creativity... I has it<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV3-dcDmo33fQb4x4bDo_05ZYiTdoN-vEYLsaVrPmshIUuiH9IWcL1ysWtzB7OEl5syAdby-87NvoBeMO78c5gxCwdqQjuAa7IqL-OwboE4Yi6s5zdgW508JNoBxvRP89VMFKGImcUXc8/s1600/garvie+creativity%27the+earthy%27.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 180px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV3-dcDmo33fQb4x4bDo_05ZYiTdoN-vEYLsaVrPmshIUuiH9IWcL1ysWtzB7OEl5syAdby-87NvoBeMO78c5gxCwdqQjuAa7IqL-OwboE4Yi6s5zdgW508JNoBxvRP89VMFKGImcUXc8/s400/garvie+creativity%27the+earthy%27.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480179523904770914" /></a><br />Ok, after a weekend of experimentation in combining illustrator and photoshop, which produced nothing that I am willing to show... (yet anyway), we did this wee but worthwhile exercise in class today. Assignment: draw from a deck of um... sort of like tarot cards, and illustrate or express the card in 1 short hour. The card I drew was <em>The Earthy</em>, and this is the image I came up with. <br /><br />It's pretty good for an hour's time especially considering the time spent looking for and installing photoshop brushes, browsing textures, masking out the Courbet nude etc. It was an exercise meant to jolt our creative juices into flowing, and I think quite successful all round. I am considering doing one a day as an exercise in creative discipline, but maybe I'll give myself 2 hours next time. <br /><br />Credits: nude from Courbet's Nude Woman with Dog. Trees, ferns and dandelions were photoshop brush freebies from BrushKing & Brusheezy. Background textures were both freebies from Bittbox. Owen and Beth for the assignment :)Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-76241386929732141392010-06-04T10:28:00.001-07:002010-06-04T10:54:47.551-07:00Shattered... finishedHow's that for a dramatic title? Just teasing -- really this post has nothing to do with being shattered. And as it turns out, I'm not actually finished the piece. But I thought that I would add a blog post to show what ended up below the header tidbit that I posted earlier. The project was an interface design for Chris Caldwell's class at Guru Digital Arts. Shattered Clothing is a (mostly) T shirt seller of wearable limited edition designs made by an inmate on San Quentin's death row. Their original website was not so good, so our job was a redesign. <br /><br />Anyway, mission mostly accomplished on my part. Caldwell's main criticism was that I had not taken the grungy theme as far as I might have and that specifically the little web style buttons looked out of place and would have been better as paint smears. I was actually worried that I had gone too far with the grunge and that the thing wouldn't look like a business web site at all. But as soon as he mentioned the buttons, I knew he was dead right. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9ber69HjPzQ7rLKDyCi0XUJt4TidejFMYF39hdAQFzpCkQhECsFg23OWq2uaI6EH44z5X0lrXUV9o0XvSQGjry945Y0DowpoiQe3W_g8mQwhgunDV2my1i0mHsyEmvMiATaQkPiFJN-g/s1600/garvie+shattered+interface+design.png"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9ber69HjPzQ7rLKDyCi0XUJt4TidejFMYF39hdAQFzpCkQhECsFg23OWq2uaI6EH44z5X0lrXUV9o0XvSQGjry945Y0DowpoiQe3W_g8mQwhgunDV2my1i0mHsyEmvMiATaQkPiFJN-g/s400/garvie+shattered+interface+design.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5478976074533111106" /></a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-83970047238278330492010-06-01T22:07:00.000-07:002010-06-02T06:03:29.145-07:00Today's tidbitThinking about web sites and their elements has pretty much taken over my Guru life. From site maps and wireframes to icon sets and general interface design, it's all web this week and last. Today I made a start on an interface that has to be finished tomorrow. This is just the header so far, but it's off to a promising start. <br /><br /> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV7wOqwJ102IGwEH6nZAl6TV-UlmiYeUvTGoMCrNUXMx68IRit06g_011GFmUVBY_bDgf-fo8xaRBGrnNEPmI09zkLP5-HDL_5ibSbIgvsMxTFWXC7dLBalcVw60f6LdxwccYSC7tpTdA/s1600/garvie-shattered-webheader.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 62px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV7wOqwJ102IGwEH6nZAl6TV-UlmiYeUvTGoMCrNUXMx68IRit06g_011GFmUVBY_bDgf-fo8xaRBGrnNEPmI09zkLP5-HDL_5ibSbIgvsMxTFWXC7dLBalcVw60f6LdxwccYSC7tpTdA/s400/garvie-shattered-webheader.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5478040001523451378" /></a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755262475817804810.post-39920557475453078682010-05-31T07:32:00.000-07:002010-05-31T09:54:59.265-07:00Testing<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfR-ApAUqa_GoXCZ9oi-g55GqHpTTbN6bGZxhhZqQ2_BZP_mocWCdhgjISnwz96gyjXoBtI8W3xZd7NPtrSVBMbEtnJXiYahJZR_xhyphenhyphenRTsk-GMQvOHtssTYf644jufnSDXCZ35_MbdcXk/s1600/garvie+pixelbump.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfR-ApAUqa_GoXCZ9oi-g55GqHpTTbN6bGZxhhZqQ2_BZP_mocWCdhgjISnwz96gyjXoBtI8W3xZd7NPtrSVBMbEtnJXiYahJZR_xhyphenhyphenRTsk-GMQvOHtssTYf644jufnSDXCZ35_MbdcXk/s320/garvie+pixelbump.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477443208400541090" /></a><br />This is just a test. If it were a real post I would go on for several paragraphs and use a better design as my visual. But this is just a test and the logo sample was just a tutorial. I now return to my irregular schedule.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01567541165245536309noreply@blogger.com0