creative graphic design

Crystal Globe Webbie

noreply@blogger.com (keikoezhan's blog) — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 18:42:00 +0000

First off, before I get any questions... What is a "Webbie"? I use this word for any kind of graphic that just adds something to a website. In this case, the webbie is an icon. But it could be anything from a mascot to bullets - webbies are all those little graphics that you just sort of lump together as being a part of website building.

If I can keep myself going on it, we're going to create a full set of webbies in this collection, all crystal based. Step one, though, is our Globe.

1. Open a new canvas in RGB mode, with a white background, 170 x 150.

2. Set your foreground color to RGB: 13, 129, 240. Grab your elliptical shape tool and hold down the shift key while you drag to draw a perfect circle on your canvas.

3. Immediately go ahead and add a stroke to the circle in the color RGB: 2, 57, 157.

4. Set your background color to RGB: 114, 193, 246. Go ahead and grab your gradient tool. Hold the Ctrl key down while you click your circle layer to load a selection around the circle. Then, drag your gradient so that it is dark at top, light at bottom.

5. Now, set your foreground color to a light gray. Use your elliptical shape tool to draw a circle on the upper half of the existing circle. Lower its opacity to about 40%. Then, use the elliptical marquee tool to "cut" the bottom half off. Do this two more times, to resemble the lighting below (Each circle is a bit tighter than the other, and one step closer to white. The smallest circle is blurred once it has been cut):

6. Now, set your foreground color to full-on white. Create a large circle that nearly touches the edges of our blue circle, rasterize it (right-click the layer, choose "Rasterize"), and then use your elliptical marquee tool to remove all but a thin crescent of this white circle. Use your blur tool on the very tips to smooth the edges:6. Now, set your foreground color to full-on white. Create a large circle that nearly touches the edges of our blue circle, rasterize it (right-click the layer, choose "Rasterize"), and then use your elliptical marquee tool to remove all but a thin crescent of this white circle. Use your blur tool on the very tips to smooth the edges:

7. Shaping right up! OK now, near the left side of your white crescent, you will need to draw a small white circle. Rasterize it and blur the whole thing so that it blends in with the look:

8. Now, set your foreground color to RGB: 138 214 252 and your background color to RGB: 13, 129, 240. Then... you've got it - yet another circle. This time, it should be an oblong circle in the lower half of the blue globe. Rasterize it and drag the layer down, so that it sits right above the original blue globe:8. Now, set your foreground color to RGB: 138 214 252 and your background color to RGB: 13, 129, 240. Then... you've got it - yet another circle. This time, it should be an oblong circle in the lower half of the blue globe. Rasterize it and drag the layer down, so that it sits right above the original blue globe:

9. Now, use Ctrl-Click to load this circle. Grab your gradient tool again, and this time set it to a radial gradient. Drag the gradient so that your light is on the inside, and the dark toward the edges, blending in to the blues already present:

10. Grab your blur tool once more, and smooth the edges of the gradient circle:

11. To go on, you'll need this map. Drag it right into Photoshop, click "Select", "All", and then copy-paste it into your globe image. Drag the layer so that it sits directly above the last circle we created:11. To go on, you'll need this map. Drag it right into Photoshop, click "Select", "All", and then copy-paste it into your globe image. Drag the layer so that it sits directly above the last circle we created:

12. Use your move tool to position the map a bit better on the globe:

13. Without moving off of the map layer, Ctrl-Click the original blue globe layer. Then choose "Select", "Inverse" and hit the backspace key on your keyboard. Deselect, and you should have something like this:

14. Go into your layer styles options and apply a color overlay in RGB: 0, 91, 214 :

15. The only thing left is a shadow, to complete the 3-D look. Use your ellipse tool and a dark gray to draw a thin circle BEHIND the original blue globe, right above the background layer. Rasterize, blur, and you're finished with something like this:15. The only thing left is a shadow, to complete the 3-D look. Use your ellipse tool and a dark gray to draw a thin circle BEHIND the original blue globe, right above the background layer. Rasterize, blur, and you're finished with something like this:

Freelance Graphic Design (2)

noreply@blogger.com (keikoezhan's blog) — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 18:15:00 +0000

...Continued from page 1 of Freelance Graphic Design

Things You Will Have to Do....

1) You will have to be a Jack (or Jill) of all trades. You are now responsible for the accounting, book keeping, janitor duties and marketing. You are now the receptionist. YOU have to take the phone calls, make the appointments, talk to perhaps frustrated customers who aren't satisfied with something. You will be the marketer that has to make sure your name is getting out, and to the right markets. All of this adds up and can be quite time consuming. Freelance graphic design isn't all about creativity and designing. It encompasses a great deal more.

2) You will have to be assertive (if not aggressive at times). Those who are timid can often get eaten up in this kind of business. Trust me. I know. If you are the kind of person that doesn't like cold calling and that kind of thing, you will have to get out of your comfort zone to survive. You will sometimes need to bug clients about promised funds, providing needed materials and documents, and so on. You will need to get on the case of the printers if they are taking their sweet time. You really can't be the kind of person that will get pushed around. Otherwise people and businesses will put you last on their "to do" list and you will not get the speedy responses that you need to satisfy both sides.

3) You will have to act like a professional and look it. Lose any rough edges that come out when you are under stress, because those edges will be showing to clients. You are the professional, needing to show it in action, word and outward appearance. This means biting your tongue when someone criticizes your work, or when they pick the design sample that you like the least. When you meet with a client, dress well for it. Forget the casual look. These people want to feel well assured that they have invested in the right company to do the job. Looking sharp affirms them that you take the job seriously, and picking you wasn't a mistake. Acting as a professional obviously also carries over into action. Keep the client well informed, and provide clear documentation as to what they can expect in the end, and the steps along the way.

4) You will have to sell yourself. This goes along the lines of number 2, but it deserves it's own space. To succeed in freelance graphic design, you will have to market and sell yourself like you have never before. Get the word out by cold calling, advertising in the newspaper, news groups, forums, and by word of mouth. Sometimes the best way to get started is by doing work for people that you know. This provides a slightly cleaner transition into the freelance world, as long as they don't expect you to do the job for cheaper because they know you.

4) You will have to be very VERY organized. Along with any business, you are really going to have to be organized. This starts from the way you organize your files on your computer, all the way you store printed materials. Losing a clients file or work is just not acceptable, and you will pay for mistakes like this. The last thing you want to have is a bad name.

Helvetica NOW poster design contest

noreply@blogger.com (keikoezhan's blog) — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 17:49:00 +0000

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Helvetica™ typeface, Linotype™ invited designers worldwide to take part in the Helvetica NOW poster design contest.

More than 1,000 posters were submitted to the contest, and they’re on the ballot for the first round of voting. With your help, the 200 posters with the most votes will advance to the second round. Then there’s a final round of voting to declare a winner. The winning entries will be announced in the January 2008 LinoLetter.

Freelance Graphic Design

noreply@blogger.com (keikoezhan's blog) — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 14:27:00 +0000

Freelance graphic design can be very rewarding. You are your own boss, you're not stuck in an office (at least not sitting beside that noisy guy with the weird tie), and there is really no limit on how much you can potentially earn. But it's no walk in the park either. Before you begin to think about becoming a freelance graphic designer, you should ask yourself some questions and look at some facts...

Things You Will Need....

1) A Good Name. You will need to pick a good name that will help you stand out from the rest of the competition and sounds professional. Really try avoiding the word freelance in your name. Pick something that sounds like it's more than just a solo act. You will most likely need to check with local authorities whether or not your name has already been chosen. Registering a name prevents others from using this name, and prevents you from taking others that have registered.

1) A Dedicated Place to Work. Without a doubt, you will need a place where you will not be distracted or disturbed by the outside world. Office space is ideal, but many freelancers can work out of their homes with success. If working from home, try and have a whole room or even wing of the house dedicated to this business. Trying to work while your kids are taunting you to build a Lego spaceship can be testing and distracting. Keep this place of work clean and organized. Even if a client never sets foot in your office, keep it clean. Don't have objects in there that will distract you. This is your place of work. Keep it that way. Pick a large room to work from where you won't feel cramped. Look for a large desk or something with a large surface area. Having room just enough for your computer/office equipment isn't enough. You should have a place where you can lay out written ideas, drawings, printouts, and more. Have a filing cabinet to keep all of your clients information in along with other important documents and agreements. Have your phone in a good place where you don't have to move away from your computer/work area.

1) A Website With Your Own Domain. A business these days without a website is outdated. A freelance graphic design business without one should be burned to the ground. With the huge explosion in technology and the Internet, to not have a website for your freelance graphic design business would be business suicide. Website hosting these days is cheap, with plenty of space and resources at your disposal. Forget the freebies like Geocities and that kind of thing. Save those sites for playing around with ideas of your own. Pick a reliable website host, upload your site, and keep the site updated. This is important in conveying professionalism.

What good is a site if no one can find it? You will also need your own domain name. Rather than having a long winded, cheap looking address provided by a free website hosting service, register a domain name so clients can click on www.yourname.com rather than something like http://members.icenterwebsites.net/~huebs . This kind of address looks terrible, and shows you don't even have the patience and time to do something as simple as this right. Domain names cost around $10 or higher a year, depending on where you look.

Continue to page 2 of Freelance Graphic Design