Simply GFX

Elevate Your Style with the Titan Maritime Analog Green Watch ⌚

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Wed, 30 Oct 2024 22:36:00 +0530

When it comes to blending sophistication with everyday practicality, the

Titan Maritime Analog Green Watch (1830KL02) stands out as a true masterpiece. Whether you’re suiting up for an important meeting or stepping out for a casual brunch, this watch ensures you do it with style and elegance.

Why Choose Titan Maritime Analog Green Watch?

Unique Design: The striking green dial, encased in robust stainless steel, offers a perfect blend of elegance and durability.
Reliable Performance: Powered by a precise quartz movement, this watch guarantees accurate timekeeping.
Water Resistance: With a water resistance of up to 50 meters, it’s perfect for those unexpected rain showers or splashy adventures.
Comfortable Fit: The genuine leather strap ensures a comfortable fit, making it suitable for all-day wear.

Features That Impress

Elegant Green Dial: A unique green dial that catches everyone’s eye.
Durable Build: Made with high-quality materials to withstand daily wear and tear.
Date Display: Convenient date display at the 3 o’clock position.

Perfect for Every Occasion

Whether you're dressing up for a formal event

or keeping it casual, the Titan Maritime Analog Green Watch is versatile enough to complement any outfit. Its sleek design makes it a suitable accessory for both men and women.

Why It’s a Must-Have

The Titan Maritime Analog Green Watch isn’t just about telling time; it’s about making a statement. Its unique color and sophisticated design make it a perfect gift for yourself or a loved one. Plus, its affordability means you don’t have to break the bank to own a piece of luxury.

Don’t Just Take Our Word for It

Read the glowing reviews from satisfied customers who can’t stop raving about the Titan Maritime Analog Green Watch. They love it for its stylish appearance, durability, and reliable performance.

Ready to Elevate Your Style?

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to own this exquisite timepiece. Click the link below to make it yours today!

Buy Now on Amazon

Conclusion

The Titan Maritime Analog Green Watch is more than just a watch; it’s a fashion statement, a reliable companion, and a testament to timeless elegance. Whether you’re buying it for yourself or as a gift, it’s a decision you won’t regret.

Enhance your style quotient with the Titan Maritime Analog Green Watch today and embrace the blend of elegance and functionality.

Happy shopping! 🕒💚

>17 Proxima Nova Fonts Collection

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Wed, 16 Sep 2015 19:50:00 +0530

17 Proxima Nova Fonts Collection Pack | 17 OTF

DOWNLOAD

https://amzn.to/45nyKQL

Yeh Jawani He Diwani Poster Sketch {Jayesh Yewale Sketches}

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Wed, 7 May 2014 19:47:00 +0530

Yeh Jawani He Diwani Poster Sketch

Ranbir Kapoor And Deepika Padukon

Pencil Sketch Of My Friend

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Tue, 18 Feb 2014 19:09:00 +0530

Pencil Sketch...
Duration: 8 Hours.

Korean Model On Paper #sketch #Pencil

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Tue, 18 Feb 2014 19:02:00 +0530

When I Don't Have Job My Pencils Work......

Korean Model On Paper

Creating Self Vector image #VectorPortrait #photoshop #JayeshYewale

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Tue, 24 Sep 2013 12:16:00 +0530

Creating Self Vector image #VectorPortrait #photoshop #JayeshYewale

#Digital Painting #LateFriendsMother

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Tue, 24 Sep 2013 12:09:00 +0530

Digital Painting Self portrait

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Mon, 5 Aug 2013 19:04:00 +0530

Digital Painting... (Jayesh Yewale)
Software: Photoshop CS4
Duration : 3hours

Self Portrait

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Thu, 11 Jul 2013 15:42:00 +0530

That's Me -> Jayesh Yewale

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 23:33:00 +0530

What is Mejor Reason Behind This 13th july 2011 mumbai bomb blast... http://amplify.com/u/a18fj3

Captain Jack Sparrow Sketch By Jayesh Yewale

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Tue, 7 Jun 2011 11:45:00 +0530

Captain Jack Sparrow Sketch By "Jayesh Yewale"

__________________________________________________________

My Pencil Sketches

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Sun, 5 Jun 2011 14:03:00 +0530

My Pencil Sketches

25 Amazing Photographer Portfolio Websites

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 10:42:00 +0530

Portfolio sites are often excellent sources of design inspiration. With photography portfolios the primary focus is of course the photography itself, so the design is often minimal to allow the photos to have the attention of visitors. In this post we’ll showcase 25 photography portfolios that show how design and photography can work together to create a beautiful portfolio site.

You may also be interested in these posts from our archives:

25 of the Best Photographer Portfolio Websites

25 of the Best Photographer Portfolio Websites – Part II

25 of the Best Photography Portfolio Sites – Part III

Glitz Photography

Kiran Owal

Ben Thompson Photography

Gavin Gough

Kevin Murray Golf Photography

Twin Photographie

Jochem Gugelot

Brandon Taelor Aviram

Jewell & Ginnie

Arbutus Photography

Nicole Fields Photography

Brent Stirton

Fredrik Clement

Joey L.

Lara Jade

Micah Albert

Mitchell Kanashkevich

Sarah & Simon Wedding Photography

Andrea Smith Photography

Tricia Harrison Photography

Red Circle Photography

Studio Bennett

Andy Thomas Photography

Rocco Studio

Sandy Carson

For more design inspiration please see:

25 Impressive Design Portfolio Websites

25 Flash Portfolios for Your Inspiration

One-Page Portfolios: Trends and Showcase

25 Beautiful Freelancer Portfolio Sites

How to Create a Set of Marker Brushes for Illustrator

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 09:45:00 +0530

Today we’ll be going through the process of creating a set of Adobe Illustrator brushes that will allow you to easily duplicate the look of a marker stroke. We recently released a set of marker brushes for Vandelay Premier members, and in this tutorial we’ll show how you can create your own.

What you’ll need:

A piece of thick white paper or photo paper

A dark marker

A scanner

Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Illustrator

We’ll be making these Illustrator brushes by creating some strokes with the marker on paper. Then we will scan them and do some basic editing in Photoshop before moving to Illustrator to vectorize the image and create the brushes. At the end we’ll show how to compile the brushes and save them as a set that can be easily distributed or stored for your own use at a later time.

Step 1: Creating the Strokes

I’ll be using a dark blue Sharpie chisel tip marker that you can purchase just about anywhere that sells office supplies or art supplies. Take your marker and create several strokes on one sheet of paper. Then scan it and open it in Photoshop. Mine looks like this.

Step 2: Adjustments in Photoshop

For the purposes of this tutorial we will just be going through the process of creating a brush with one of the strokes. If you want to create a set of brushes you will simply duplicate the steps for each brush, and then we’ll go over how to save them as a set.

So here is the marker stroke that we will be working with throughout this tutorial.

The first thing we will do is take the color out of the image by desaturating it. Go to Image > Adjustments > Desaturate.

Depending on the darkness of your marker stroke you may or may not need to desaturate the image, and the following step may also not be needed if your marker stroke is already very dark. Illustrator’s Live Trace usually does the trick on it’s own, but if you want more control you can edit in Photoshop first, or experiment with the trace options. We’ll go through these steps just so you’ll know what needs to be done if your image requires editing in Photoshop.

Next, we want to make the marker stroke darker. There are a few different ways you can do this, but we will be using levels for this tutorial (adjusting brightness and contrast is another option). So go to Image > Adjustments > Levels.

We’ll bring the white level (on the right) in towards the middle just a little bit, and we’ll be moving the gray levl (in the middle) to the right to make the gray stroke darker.

If there are any stray marks around your stroke you can quickly cover them up by using a white brush. Then save your image as a JPG file.

Step 3: Creating the Brush in Illustrator

Open the JPG in Illustrator.

Next, we will be using Illustrator’s Live Trace feature to convert the JPG to vector format, and from there we will be able to create the brush. Before we create the trace, open a blank file that will be used to store the brushes that we are creating.

Now we’re ready to run the Live Trace. Click the down arrow next to live trace and select “Tracing Options”.

You should then see the tracing options.

We’re going to make a few changes. The specifics may vary from one trace to the next, but you can experiment and see what works best for you.

First, we’ll lower the threshold from 128 to 78. The threshold determines how dark of an area is needed to be converted to black after the trace. Second, we want to check the box for “ignore white.”

If you plan to use the same settings on several items that you will be tracing (as is the case when you are creating a set of similar items like marker brushes) you can save it. So once you have the settings changed, click on “Save Preset” and give it a name.

When you’re ready to run the trace, click on the “Trace” button. After the trace is run, click on the “Expand” button.

Now you’ll see something like this.

We now have a vector that we can work with to create the brush. So go to Edit > Copy and then switch over to the blank file that we created. Go to Edit > Paste to get the vector stroke in the new file. We’ll be using this file to hold all of the brushes that we’ll be creating.

To create the brush, with the vector marker stroke still selected, open the brushes palette and click on the down arrow and click on “new brush”.

Then check the radio button for “art brush” and click ok. You should now see the Art Brush Options.

So give your brush a name, check the radio box for “scale proportionately”, and change the colorization method to “tints”.

Click “Ok” and your brush has been created. If you want to continue to create more brushes in your set you will just duplicate the steps we have done so far.

I’ve created more brushes using the same steps and added them to my document. To run the Live Trace after I have saved the settings, all I have to do is click on the down arrow and select the one that I just saved.

My document now includes 5 marker brushes.

In order to save this set so it can be used later or distributed to others, go into the brushes palette and delete the brushes aside from the ones you just created.

Then save the document that contains your brushes as an Illustrator (.ai) file. Now that you have that file saved you can use the brushes any time you want. To test it out, open a new Illustrator file. Then click on the down arrow in the brushes palette and select “Open Brush Library > Other Library” and find the file on your computer.

A new brush palette will open up and you can use any of the brushes.

Just select the brush you want to use, choose a stroke color, and draw something with the brush.

If you are a Vandelay Premier member you can download the full set of maker brushes, and if you’re not a member they can be purchased for $5.

For more Illustrator tutorials and resources please see:

Learn Adobe Illustrator: All the Basics for Beginners

How to Create an Adobe Illustrator Brush

Create a Fun Ink Splatter Vector

Adobe Illustrator Brushes: Best of

14 Online Presentation Tools

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 09:40:00 +0530

There may be times when you need to present ideas to clients or co-workers and could benefit from one of the many resources for creating online presentations. In this post we’ll introduce 14 different presentation tools to get the job done. Some are free to use while others will come with a cost.

Online Presentation Tools:

280 Slides

280 Slides is a free tool with a clean user interface. You can upload existing files or create your presentations right from 280 Slides. The built in media search allows you to easily include photos and movies from services like Flickr and YouTube in your presentations. They also have pre-built themes to make it easier and faster to create presentations. Presentations can be downloaded in PowerPoint format, emailed to others, or embedded in websites and blogs.

SlideRocket

SlideRocket allows you to create presentations or upload your existing PowerPoint files. You can collaborate with teamworks to work on presentations, and each presentation can be shared by a URL or embedded in websites and blogs. SlideRocket includes detailed reporting that allows you to see who viewed your presentation, where, how long the were on each slide, and how they interacted with the slides. SlideRocket costs $24 per user per month with a 14-day free trial available.

PreZentit

PreZentit is a free tool that is currently in beta. With PreZentit you can quickly create presentations online, and others can even work on the presentation at the same time. Your presentations can be set to be public or private, and they can be downloaded and viewed offline as well.

authorSTREAM

authorSTREAM allows you to upload PowerPoint presentations and share them with others online. The presentations can be shared via a URL, email, or they can be embedded. Presentations can be downloaded as a video and shared on YouTube. With authorSTREAM you can upload 50 private presentations for free and share them with your contacts.

Empressr

With Empressr you can upload your images, video, and audio to create presentations online. Those presentations can then be shared with your contacts or embedded into websites and blogs. As the creator, you can see who and how many people have viewed your presentation. Empressr is a free tool.

Google Docs

With Google Docs you can upload your own images and video, add text, and create presentations quickly. You can allow anyone to view or edit your presentation. Existing PowerPoint files can also be uploaded for sharing. Google Docs is free.

VCASMO

VCASMO is a free tool for online presentations. You can upload your images, video, audio, PDFs, or PowerPoint files to create presentations with VCASMO. Permission control puts you in charge of who sees your presentation, and they can be embedded in blogs or websites.

Zoho Show

Zoho Show includes pre-built themes that can make it faster to create presentations. Presentations can be shared with others and they can be embedded in blogs and websites. Zoho Show is free for personal use.

Prezi

Prezi is an online presentation tool with both free and paid plans. With any plan you can easily create your own presentations and share them online or download them for offline viewing. With paid plans (starting at $59 per year) you get additional features like making presentations private and the ability to work offline.

SlideShare

SlideShare is another online presentation tool that has both free and paid options. With the free plan your presentations will include ads, but you will get unlimited uploads. Paid plans start at $19 per month and offer additional features like no ads, private uploads, analytics, and buzz tracking to see who is sharing your content on sites like Twitter and Facebook.

Mindflash

Mindflash is geared towards training materials and working with your existing presentations and training files (PowerPoint, video, Word, or PDFs). Mindflash converts them into an online course that you can share with anyone that you are training. A free account is available for those that have 10 trainees or fewer, and paid plans start at $79 per month.

SlideBank

Slidebank is a “presentation management solution for companies with thousands of PowerPoint slides that nobody can find.” It includes a lot of features for sharing presentations as well as storing and searching. With SlideBank you can also create new presentations in addition to just working with existing ones. A hosted version of SlideBank can be purchased, or it can be hosted on your own server. Contact SlideBank for a quote.

Knoodle

With Knoodle you can create dual panel presentations and synch PowerPoint presentations to video. Presentations can be shared via a custom-branded webpage or embedded in websites and blogs. Plans start at $14.99 per month with a 30-day free trial available.

iPresent

Presio is a tool for creating rich media web presentations. You can record audio or video alongside PowerPoint slides and images. Presentations can be published as HTML pages with embedded media in a variety of formats. Standard and Professional versions can be purchased for $89 or $199 respectively.

For more resources please see:

50 Amazing After Effects Tutorials

10 Extremely Useful Time Management Tools

25 Amazing CSS3 Experimentations and Demos

WordPress Ecommerce: 30+ Resources

25 Excellent jQuery Slider Tutorials and Plugins

25 jQuery Drop Down Menu Scripts

Save Up to 99% on Hosting with Eleven2!

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 09:40:00 +0530

Last year we moved our site to Eleven2 and we’ve been very pleased with their reliability and customer service. Today we’re excited to let you know that if you are looking for a new host, Eleven2 has offers that will save you some money!

Here are two coupon codes that can be entered when signing up for hosting services with Eleven2:

25offeleven2 – Enter this code to save 25% on your first payment of any payment term. The promotion is valid on all shared, reseller and cloud hosting packages.

firstmonth99off – Enter this code to save 99% on your first month’s payment of a shared hosting account.

Eleven2 offers a wide variety of hosting plans including shared hosting (starting at $4.95 per month), reseller hosting (starting at $19.95 per month) cloud servers (starting at $19.95 per month). They offer both managed and unmanaged plans. So regardless of the website or your specific needs, Eleven2 has a solution for you. They offer free migration and a 60-day money back guarantee. See what Eleven2 has to offer.

We’ve written a much more in depth review of our experience and opinions of Eleven2, which you can read if you are interested in seeing the details. We know that all web designers and website owners need to have a quality hosting company at their side, and finding the right one can be a challenge. If you haven’t found the right host or if you’re simply looking to open a new hosting plan, we think you’ll like working with Eleven2.

Disclosure: This post includes affiliate links, however we only promote services that we use ourselves and that we feel our readers will appreciate.

30 Logos Featuring Animals

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 09:31:00 +0530

Logos are obviously an important aspect of a company’s branding efforts. There are all different types of logos, and in this post we’ll showcase 30 that use animals within the logo design. You’ll find a variety of different examples, and hopefully these will help to spark creativity for your own design work.

SmartAuction

Hmmbird

Designwade

Mouse House

Casa Corral

Blackbearry

Boxer Show

Puddy Tat

Cultures East

Telezoo

Big Bird Publishing

Scherkhan

Hedgehog Solutions

Camel

Blue Crain

Swan Love

Stingmaster

Moovers

Ugodno

White Rabbit

Three Bears Cafe

Chameleon Chili Sauce

Zofipole

Roadrunner

Primm Valley Resorts

Greefish

WhosAttending

ToadKing

Gaucho Wine

Dog’s

For more inspiration please see:

40 Examples of Creative Logo Design

45 Nature-Inspired Logos

35 Beautiful Type-Based Logos

10 Ways to Simplify Your Workday

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 09:30:00 +0530

Regardless of whether you are a freelancer, an employee for a design agency, or an in-house designer, you probably could benefit by reducing the chaos and adding some simplicity to your daily life. In this article we’ll look at how you can make some simple changes to your daily processes to reduce stress and create a more enjoyable and productive environment. The article is written with designers and freelancers in mind, but most of the principles are applicable regardless of what you do for a living.

Here are ten things that you can do today to simplify your workday.

1. Start Early

Getting an earlier start to your day can be helpful for several reasons. If you work in an office, chances are the environment will be more quiet and calm before all of your co-workers arrive. Just having an extra 30 – 60 minutes without distractions can make a big difference and can help you to get through your work faster.

If you work from home you may be able to avoid some of the typical distractions by getting up and starting your work before others in your house are around. You may find that starting your workday earlier will have some benefits in terms of your stress level and how you perceive your day. When you start work later you may face the stress of feeling like you should have more done by a specific time in the day, but starting early can help to feel like you’re ahead of the game.

Later in the day when others are scrambling to get their work done before the end of the day, you can already be wrapping up your work.

2. Keep Your To-Do List Short

A to-do list is a critical aspect of time management for most of us. However, one of the downfalls of having a to-do list is that it can get quite full and overwhelming. When this happens, the to-do list can actually become more of a hindrance than a help because you may find yourself focusing on how you will never be able to accomplish everything instead of concentrating on the tasks at hand.

To simplify things keep your to-do list as short as possible. For example, focus on just completing two or three specific things in a given day instead of working off of a to-do list with 15 or 20 items. You’ll find that with fewer things on your list you’re able to do a better job with each, and you should still be able to accomplish them efficiently as well.

Having just two or three things on your to-do list isn’t always practical, and in that case you can divide your list into major and minor tasks, and keep the major tasks as limited as possible. This will help to keep your focus on a small number of important tasks, and you’ll probably find that you do a better job with them.

3. Prioritize Your Tasks

As you create your to-do list, always take a moment to prioritize them so that you know what is most critical to accomplish in a day. Take care of your most important items before moving on to those that are less significant, and you’ll never find yourself rushing late in the day to finish the most important work of your day. Getting the most pressing items out of the way earlier in the day will ease the stress late and generally will simplify your day.

4. Set Aside Blocks of Time

Most of us struggle to focus on one thing at a time, and we live and work in a society where multi-tasking is a constant. However, you’ll find that you’re most productive when you’re able to concentrate on one thing for an extended period of time without interruptions. Pay attention to what you are working on throughout the day and you’ll likely find that you’re switching back and forth between tasks constantly.

Try setting up your day so that you have blocks like 1 – 4 hours of time to focus on getting your most important work done. Don’t get distracted or off-topic during these blocks, focus just on your main priority. This will lead to a more efficient use of your time. You’ll simplify things by avoid unneeded complications, and you’ll finish with your most important work earlier in the day.

5. Take Short Breaks Frequently

Even when you are focusing on just one task during your block of time, it’s helpful to take short breaks (5 or 10 minutes) every couple of hours. Taking these breaks can help you to get re-focused and to avoid working with very low efficiency due to an inability to concentrate.

6. Don’t Work with Too Many Clients at One Time

Some freelancers tend to work with several different clients at any given time. Cutting back on the number of clients will help to keep you more focused on those that you are working with at the time, and you should be able to work more efficiently and effectively. Ideally you’ll be able to move through projects more quickly, which may allow you to still work with the same number of clients in a month or a year, you’ll just be working less time with each and with fewer at one time.

Of course, there are many times where you’ll have to wait on clients for feedback or to get information to you, so there will be times when this is challenging. But if you are finding that your days tend to be chaotic and not as productive as you’d like, take a look at the number of clients you’re working with and try cutting back to see how it goes.

7. Use a Good Project Management Tool

One of the keys to simplify your work is to be well organized. There are many project management apps and software options to help keep you organized, and some are even designed with designers and freelancers in mind. Basecamp is a popular option among designers and developers.

Regardless of what app or approach you use, having an established method for project management will help to make the best use of your time and you’ll find that you waste less time and have simplified days due to improved organization and communication.

8. Keep a Clean and Uncluttered Workspace

Working in a cluttered environment can add unnecessary stress. Take a few moments to clear of your desk or to straighten up your work area and you’ll probably notice a difference in how you feel and your mindset about your work. This is a simple thing that can take just a couple of minutes, but it can have a big impact by reducing stress and tension.

9. Avoid Unnecessary Distractions

Every time the subject of productivity and simplicity comes up, distractions are always mentioned. For freelancers and designers being online a majority of the day brings a number of potential distractions into the picture. Things like email, Twitter, and Facebook are necessary for most of us, but they can also take up a lot of time and break up the workday constantly if they’re not managed properly.

If possible, have specific times for reading and responding to email and for social networking. If you limit it to certain times during the day you won’t be distracted as you’re working on other tasks and you’ll be able to get things done with more efficiency.

10. Have a Set Ending Time

One of the things I learned when I started working from home full-time is that I work with more urgency and get more accomplished when I know I will be ending work at a specific time. Having that end in sight helps to motivate you to stay on task and get things done, plus it prevents you for working too long.

If you’re not used to working with a set ending time, give it a try and I think you’ll find that it contributes to making your days a little bit more simple and to reduce stress. Your ending time doesn’t have to be the same every day, but just knowing when you need to have things wrapped up will help as you move through your to-do list.

What’s Your Opinion?

How do you go about simplifying your days? Feel free to share your comments and tips with the rest of us.

For more business & freelancing tips please see:

Developing a Freelance Marketing Plan

5 Tips for Handling Pricing Objections

10 Extremely Useful Time-Management Tools

40 Sites for Finding Web Design Jobs

13 Ways to Challenge Yourself in Your Career as a Web Designer

21 Magazines Especially for Designers

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 09:30:00 +0530

There are countless blogs and community sites for web and graphic designers, with new ones popping up every day. However, there are also a number of quality print magazines for the industry, and they can serve as an excellent addition for learning new techniques, staying up-to-date, and for inspiration. In this post you’ll find 21 publications with some basic information on each.

Take some time to browse through the info on these magazines and I think you will find a few that are very interesting and helpful for you. Many of the magazines also come with tutorials and resources on CD, so the value can be very good. The descriptions shown below come directly from the websites of each publication.

.net Magazine

“.net is the world’s best-selling magazine for web designers and developers, featuring tutorials from leading agencies, interviews with the web’s biggest names, and agenda-setting features on the hottest issues affecting the internet today. If you’re serious about web design, then .net is the magazine for you!”

Photoshop User

“Photoshop User is the official magazine of NAPP and comes delivered to your door (or inbox) with your NAPP membership. Published 10-times a year (plus bonus issues), Photoshop User is widely recognized as the most trusted resource for Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom training, advice, and how-to information for the graphic design, photography, and digital arts worlds.”

Computer Arts

“Computer Arts, the world’s best-selling magazine for digital artists and designers, boasts a strong line-up of tutorials every issue, covering everything from manipulating photographs with Photoshop to creating amazing vector illustrations with Illustrator. You’ll also find tonnes of tips and tricks for web design, typography, 3D, animation, motion graphics and multimedia. It’s the one-stop shop for professional advice.”

Web Design Essentials

“Web Design Essentials is aimed at web designers/developers who feel passionately about the web and want to know about the latest trends, tools and techniques to future-proof their site and get ahead of the competition. It will cover what’s currently cutting edge in the web design community, including CSS3, HTML5, JavaScript libraries like jQuery, mobile and much more. Web Design Essentials also includes a disc packed with files to follow the tutorials as well as full programs and resources to help the reader build standards-based state-of-the art sites. It is a companion to Flash Essentials.”

Web Designer

“Web Designer is the premier magazine for aspiring online creatives and industry professionals. The monthly title offers cutting-edge practical projects spanning XHTML, CSS, Flash and WordPress as well as hosting features and interviews with the web community’s most influential people. Each issue also has a dedicated Industry section covering news and views from the trade, website showcases featuring the finest design talent and a free CD of valuable resources.”

Advanced Photoshop

“Advanced Photoshop magazine is the perfect magazine for polishing up already great Photoshop skills. Aimed towards Adobe Photoshop professionals and enthusiasts, every issue prides itself on its unbeatable quality and sophisticated content. Every month you can have the chance to develop your techniques with a bunch of creative and challenging Masterclass and Workshop tutorials. Our intention is to give you the chance to learn new tricks and fine-tune your skills.”

Digital Arts

“Digital Arts is the magazine for switched-on creatives, featuring a wealth of tutorials and techniques across illustration, vector art, digital painting, animation, graphic and interactive design. It also brings you detailed insight into the latest trends and hottest projects from the world’s leading artists.”

How

“HOW Magazine helps designers, whether they work for a design firm, for an in-house design department or for themselves, be more inspired, more creative and more successful.

HOW Magazine is a designer’s source for:

Design inspiration: More than 500 award-winning print & interactive projects

Career advice: Real-world tips on building your portfolio and advancing your design career

Business guidance: Expertise on managing your freelance business or design firm

Creative connections: Hear from design stars about the hows and whys of their best work”

ImagineFX

“Paint amazing imagery with the help of our in-depth workshops, get answers to all your digital art questions and delve into the mind of your favourite fantasy artists. From the videos, workshop files and exclusive art resources on the DVD to the expert reviews of the latest hardware and software, each issue is positively bursting with digital art goodies.”

3D World

“3D World is the best-selling international magazine for 3D artists, covering the fields of animation, VFX, games, illustration and architecture. Each issue provides analysis of latest trends in the market, artistic and technical advice, impartial product reviews, and exclusive behind-the-scenes articles on the making of key projects in this fast-paced industry. For those wanting to improve their technical skills, the magazine provides tutorials, tips and step-by-step guides covering every major 3D software package, from freeware to professional applications such as 3ds Max, Maya, Cinema 4D, LightWave 3D and Softimage.”

2D Artist

“2DArtist is the magazine for CG artists around the globe, whether you already work in 2D or are just getting started. Each issue is full of techniques, tutorials, interviews, articles, project overviews and galleries – providing the perfect platform from which to improve your 2D skills, learn from the professionals and get inspiration for your next project.

“Every 2DArtist issue is over 90 pages long and the magazines are released once a month as downloadable PDFs through the 3DTotal Download Manager. Available by single issue or subscription, 2DArtist is your ultimate CG resource – giving you access to all the latest news and practical tips and tricks that will give your work the edge over the competition.”

Before & After

“Before & After magazine has been sharing its practical approach to graphic design since 1990. Because our modern world has made designers of us all (ready or not), Before & After is dedicated to making graphic design understandable, useful and even fun for everyone.”

CMYK Magazine

“CMYK Magazine is where aspiring creatives showcase their talents to an industry driven by inspiration and new ways of creative problem solving. At the same time, CMYK Magazine is where creative directors, agency principals and art buyers recruit students and recent graduates at today’s top art-design schools: art directors, copywriters, designers, photographers and illustrators.”

Communication Arts

“Communication Arts magazine is the leading trade journal for visual communications. It’s the largest creative magazine in the world and showcases the top work in graphic design, advertising, illustration, photography and interactive design. Since 1959, more graphic designers, art directors, creative directors, commercial photographers and illustrators have turned to Communication Arts for ideas and inspiration than to any other creative publication. What makes Communication Arts so special? Our unique combination of respected juried Annuals, in-depth profiles in our multi-topic issues and numerous informative columns makes Communication Arts the premier publication to cover all aspects of visual communications.”

Eye

“Eye is the world’s most beautiful and collectable graphic design journal, published quarterly for professional designers, students and anyone interested in critical, informed writing about graphic design and visual culture.”

Faesthetic

“Since its inception in 2001, Faesthetic has grown from a photocopied zine into a high-quality arts magazine with international participation and readership. The artists are provided compelling themes and the challenges of a limited color palette, creating unexpected results.

“Faesthetic is commited to providing an accessible showcase for some of the best in new creativity and art. We embrace traditional and modern expression—including graffiti, photography and illustration.”

I.D.

“Published since 1954, I.D. Magazine is America’s leading critical magazine covering the art, business, and culture of design. Winner of five National Magazine Awards, the publication appears seven times a year. Issues include the Annual Design Review (America’s oldest and most prestigious juried design-recognition program) as well as the I.D. 40, and Design + Business.”

PrintAction

“Since 1961, PrintAction has been providing comprehensive analysis of local and global issues affecting the people in the graphic communications industry. Each month PrintAction through its parent company, Youngblood Publishing, delivers unmatched content about the strategies and aspirations of Canada’s most innovative and technologically sound printing companies. Combining independently researched news with the most interesting personalities and applications, PrintAction is the magazine read most by the professionals of Canada’s graphic arts industry.”

Print

“Print is a bimonthly magazine about visual culture and design. Founded in 1940 by William Edwin Rudge, Print is dedicated to showcasing the extraordinary in design on and off the page. Covering a field as broad as communication itself—publication and book design, animation and motion graphics, corporate branding and rock posters, exhibitions and street art—Print covers commercial, social, and environmental design from every angle. Engagingly written by cultural reporters and critics who look at design in its social, political, and historical contexts, Print explores why our world looks the way it looks, and why the way it looks matters.”

Graphic Design USA

“Graphic Design USA is a monthly news and information magazine for and about the professional design community including graphic design firms, corporate and publishing inhouse departments, advertising agencies, institutions and non-profits, and other creative businesses and organizations.”

Juxtapoz

“Juxtapoz is a monthly magazine that covers contemporary artists who deserve crucial attention. These are the artists who push the envelope to redefine originality. They are independent thinkers, they are infinitely creative, and their artwork engages the viewer with complex levels of meaning and aesthetic interest.”

What Magazines Do You Read?

If you subscribe to any design magazines please share your experience in the comments.

For more resources please see:

25 jQuery Slider/Image Gallery Tutorials and Plugins

25 Excellent jQuery Slider Tutorials and Plugins

25 of the Best Calligraphy Fonts for Designers

10 Extremely Useful Time Management Tools

25 of the Best Real Estate Themes for WordPress

45 Examples of Beautiful Reflection Photography

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 09:26:00 +0530

Beautiful photographs serve as an excellent source of inspiration for designers. In this post we’ll showcase 45 photos from various photographers that make use of reflections. If you see something you like, click on the image or the photographer’s link and you will be led to the source where you can view the photo in full size or browse through other work from the photographer.

Developing a Freelance Marketing Plan

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 04:23:00 +0530

Freelancing can be a great opportunity for designers at any stage in their career. For some it may be a short stint that will help them get to where the ultimately want to be, and for others it can be a long-term destination. Regardless of which approach you’ll be taking, the competition will be fierce. The ease of entry into the industry is appealing for many people, but that also means that there are thousands of other designers you will have to compete with in order to land clients.

In this article we’ll take a look at how freelancers can approach marketing in order to increase the likelihood of success. There’s more to being a successful freelancer than just being a talented designer, and by starting with a solid marketing plan you can ensure that your skills are maximized.

What Are Your Goals With Freelancing?

The first key to address is that your goals will direct your marketing approach. As was already mentioned, different freelancers can have drastically different purposes. The way you position and market yourself should help to put you in a better position to achieve your goals, so it is important to focus in on those goals when you are developing a marketing plan. Here is a look at a few possible goals and how they can influence your marketing plan.

Use Freelance Work as a Springboard to Employment

Just as finding clients as a freelancer will involve a lot of competition from other designers, landing a job with a design agency or as an in-house designer will also require you to stand out from significant competition. Many designers and students have found that freelancing can serve as a bridge to go from where you are now to where you want to be.

Freelance experience can be a great help when trying to land a job with that agency that you have been dying to work for. A successful stint in freelancing will give you some work samples to showcase to potential employers, plus you’ll pick up some valuable experience working with clients, developing quotes, managing projects, and running a business. All of these things can help to give you a leg up on other candidates for a job.

If this is your goal, personal branding is important. Being hired as a designer/employee essentially requires you to sell your ability and qualifications to the employer. If you’re able to develop a reputation or to brand yourself as a highly-talented designer, more opportunities are likely to open up.

Your portfolio website will be crucial to your own personal branding and marketing, as it will certainly be evaluated by anyone who is considering hiring you. Make sure that you take as much time as needed to create a portfolio site that does an effective job of selling your skills to potential employers. View your portfolio site as an audition for potential employers. Only show your best work samples, as any that are not up to par with your current skills and abilities may work against you when potential employers are evaluating your work.

Use Freelancing to Gain Experience and Improve Your Skills

In the first scenario where freelancing can be used as a springboard to employment, the likelihood of landing a job will be much greater if you’ve already developed the skills needed to succeed. If you’re not yet at the stage where you would be able to compete for the job that you ultimately want to have, freelancing can help you to gain critical experience over a period of time as you work on building your skills.

Freelancers can work with clients of all sizes and types, so not having extensive experience will not prevent you from being able to do work as a freelancer. Starting out you’ll probably need to focus on small businesses and organizations with limited budgets, but it will help you to improve your skills and move forward with your career as you work your way up to bigger and more challenging projects.

Career as a Self-Employed Designer

Not everyone who freelances sees it as a temporary stage that will help to move on towards full-time employment. Some designers prefer to pursue freelancing as a long-term career, or maybe they would like to expand their business in the future by hiring other designers or developers and starting an agency. In this case, the marketing focus should be on long-term stability and success rather than short-term.

Full-Time Freelance for Now

While some freelancers know exactly what they want to get, whether it is full-time employment or a career as a freelancer, others may not be sure until they get a little experience under their belt. In this case, freelancing can serve as full-time work to earn an income for the foreseeable future, but it can take one of several paths at a later time.

Maybe you have lost a job and freelancing is a way to earn a living while you determine what direction you would like to go in the future. Maybe you’re not sure yet if you would be better suited to working as an employee or if you would rather work independently. Getting some experience working with clients as a freelancer is a great way to find out which way you would like to go.

Keys to Freelance Marketing

Now that we have looked at some of the most common goals and purposes of freelancing we can look at some of the keys to marketing in more detail. As we go through these keys, keep your goal in mind and try to determine how each of these can help you work towards that goal.

Your Portfolio Site

We’ve touched a little bit already on the importance of your design portfolio, but it really is one of the most significant aspects of your marketing efforts as a freelancer and it deserves plenty of attention. The portfolio site is an important part of the marketing plan regardless of your goals and purposes for freelancing, although your approach to the portfolio site may change depending upon your goals.

If you are attempting to use freelancing as a means to landing full-time employment as a designer, your portfolio site should communicate your skills and qualifications. Some freelancers not only showcase work samples but also list their experience and specific skills, which helps the portfolio site to act essentially as an online resume. In this situation, personal branding is also important because you want the potential employer who is viewing the site to be left with a memorable impression that will keep you in the forefront of his/her mind when making a hiring decision.

On the other hand, if your primary purpose is to gain experience through freelancing, the most important purpose of the portfolio site is to encourage inquiries from potential clients. You’ll of course want to showcase your work samples and your abilities, but getting in touch with potential clients is the action that will determine the level of success of the portfolio site. Greater emphasis should be used to lead the visitor to contact you or to fill out a form.

Branding

We’ve talked about the importance of personal branding if you are attempting to use freelancing to land a job, but the approach to branding can vary depending upon your goals. For those freelancers who are looking to expand at some point in the future to move from freelancer to owner of a design agency, personal branding may not be as important. If you are extremely successful at marketing yourself as an individual it can sometimes be difficult to make a transition where you will be landing clients but not actually doing the design work yourself. In this case you may choose to work under a business name instead of as John Doe, freelance designer.

Referrals

Having a steady stream of referrals is the ideal way to stay busy for most freelancers. Unfortunately, it’s not usually that easy. In the past we’ve covered this topic in more detail with 5 Keys to Building Referral Business.

As far as it’s impact on your marketing plan, if your approach to freelancing is a long-term focus, developing referral business should be a priority. For those who intend to freelance for the short-term and move on to full-time employment, pursuing referrals from friends, family, and your existing network is a good idea and can lead to new projects, but dedicating a significant amount of time to building new relationships for the purpose of referrals may not be your best use of time.

Specialization vs. Generalization

Standing out from the crowd of other designers can be made more achievable if you choose to specialize in a particular area. Some freelancers and agencies market themselves as being experts in a certain field or as being specialists, and this can certainly help you to stand out from the competition from those who are in your target market.

For example, if a real estate agent is looking for a website do you think they would prefer to work with the average freelance designer or with someone who specializes in design real estate websites? In most cases they’ll choose the specialist because they are likely to have better knowledge of the industry and a better understanding of what it takes to build a successful website for a real estate agent.

Some common specializations include custom WordPress themes, Drupal development, e-commerce websites, blog design, non-profit websites, church websites, and more.

However, specialization does have some drawbacks as well. First of all, potential clients who do not fit into your area of specialization may feel that you are not the best fit for their project because they don’t fall into your area of specialization. Second, you’re also tied to the demand for whatever you specialize in, and that may be out of your control. For example, if you specialize in working with a particular CMS or shopping cart and that system loses popularity and falls out of demand, you could be out of luck too. Generalization also allows you to work on a wider variety of projects, which may be more interesting to you and it can lead to better all-around experience.

Deciding on generalization vs. specialization is an important key in the development of your marketing plan. If you’re going to be looking for employment specialization can either help or hurt depending upon whether the job fits into your area of specialization. If you’re not sure exactly what type of job you’ll be looking for, a general approach is usually a better option.

Pricing Strategy: Package-Based vs. Custom Quotes

Pricing may not be the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of marketing, but your prices will have a big impact on what clients you are able to land, and your pricing strategy will impact how you go about marketing yourself.

Most designers prefer to provide custom quotes for each project because every situation is unique. Last year we took a look at the pros and cons of package-based pricing (see that article for more details). Offering various packages to your clients can help to save some time in developing proposals/quotes for potential clients and it also helps to avoid wasting time with potential clients that would never be willing or able to pay what you charge. But for most designers the need to treat each project as unique will outweigh the pros of using packages.

One situation where packages do tend to work nicely is for those designers who are using specialization. For example, you may choose to charge a base price for custom WordPress theme development and offer various add-ons or upgrades at set prices. In this situation your projects are likely to have more in common than a designer who takes a generalized approach, so projects may be more likely to fit into various packages.

Finding Clients

Finding enough paying clients is probably the number one challenge for most freelancers, especially those who are just getting established. This is a major topic that could not only justify an article on its own, but actually books have been written on the topic. With that in mind we’ll cover some of the basics here and how it pertains to your marketing plan.

Friends and Family

Many designers (myself included) get their first clients either by doing work for friends and family or by landing clients that have been referred by friends and family. Regardless of where you are in your career and what your goal is for freelancing, getting work this way is a possibility. However, it tends to be most effective for those who are just getting started and have the goal of using freelance work to build experience. Most connections from friends and family tend to be small businesses and individuals that will be working with limited budgets, so if you are an experienced designer with average rates or higher, many of these people will be unlikely to convert to paying clients.

Job Boards and Bidding Sites

There are a number of industry specific job boards (see 40 Sites for Finding Web Design Jobs) that can be great placing to find freelance work as well as full-time employment. Also, bidding sites like Elance and Guru offer freelancers the opportunity to bid on projects that have been posted.

These sites can be a great opportunity to land new work, but they can also prove to be a waste of time if you’re not able to secure the work. The bidding sites tend to require you to work for lower than average rates in order to get work, and you’ll also need to spend time finding the right projects before you even make a bid. You’ll be in competition with a lot of designers on the popular bidding sites, so being able to deliver quality results at affordable prices is key. Part of determining how much you need to charge will be impacted by where you live. If you’re in an area with a high cost of living you will probably be competing with designers who live in areas with a much lower cost of living, and they’ll be likely to price their services below yours.

If you’re goal is to use freelancing as a means to get to full-time employment, design job boards should be sites that you monitor on a regular basis (most have RSS feeds that you can subscribe to). Bidding sites can be helpful if you’re looking to gain experience. Otherwise, you’re probably better off devoting your time to other ways of marketing yourself.

Ongoing Clients/Maintenance

For designers who are always looking for more work, one of the best scenarios is to find a few clients that need regular or ongoing work. This will not be the case with every client, but even just having a couple clients that need a little bit of work done each week can have a noticeable impact on your income. Ongoing clients are great because you will not need to dedicate time to finding as much new work, all you will be doing is providing services and all of your time will be billable.

CSS-Tricks has a brief post that I have linked to a few times in the past, The Heating Company Analogy. This post gives insight into how and why ongoing relationships can be established with clients. For those with long-term focuses and goals ongoing clients take on a greater significance. If your goal with freelancing is to find a full-time job or to gain experience, you may be better off to work with a greater number of clients and get more experience to build your portfolio as opposed to working for the same clients repeatedly.

Blogging

For many designers blogging is not only a way to communicate and share their ideas, but it is also a way to market themselves and their services. Designers like David Airey and Chris Spooner have made blogging a priority and their careers have been greatly impacted. While both are certainly very talented designers, it’s unlikely that either would be as well-known if it wasn’t for blogging.

Having a blog will allow you to establish your reputation within the industry, plus it will help you to reach out to others that may be potential clients. Perhaps someone who is looking for a designer will come across one of your articles through a Google search and they’ll end up contacting you because of the way you communicated through the blog.

Blogging has been instrumental in the growth of Vandelay Design, and it is a good idea for any freelancers who have a long-term approach. The reason for that is that it takes time to build and audience and to develop search engine traffic that will lead to clients. If you’re goals for freelancing are short-term in nature, blogging may be able to help, but it’s unlikely to bring floods of traffic to your site in a short period of time.

For a more detailed look at the subject, please see our e-book How to Use a Blog to Market Your Design Business.

Search Engine Traffic

All businesses and marketers covet search engine traffic. Not only is it free, but you’re also getting exposure to people who are looking for exactly what you have to offer. Building search engine traffic is difficult in competitive industries like web design, but it is possible. Blogging is hands down the best way (in my opinion) to draw search engine traffic to your site if you are willing to put in the time consistently. Blogging will give you more pages on your site to attract visitors to, and it will allow you to target a wide variety of long tail search phrases rather than relying on getting top 10 rankings for extremely competitive phrases.

Building search engine traffic should really only be a priority if your approach to freelancing is long-term. If you have a short-term approach will you be unlikely to build enough search engine traffic in time to help with your goals. Search engines tend to rank sites higher if they have established trust and reputation, which is something that takes time.

PPC

Pay-Per-Click marketing can be an effective way to market your services because it will help to put you in front of people who are looking for what you have to offer, and it can be very affordable. You don’t need to have a large budget to use PPC ads, and you can pause them any time you are busy and do not need new clients. Additionally, you can target local areas or specific regions is you are looking to pick up clients in your local area or in a specific country. That way you don’t waste advertising money on people who are outside of your targeted area.

PPC can be helpful for freelancers who are looking for quick results. So if you have a short-term focus for freelancing and it’s not worth your time to work on developing organic search engine traffic, using PPC ads may be able to help with landing clients quickly.

Unique Selling Proposition

With so many designers and agencies out there competing for clients, you’ll be more likely to have success if there is something that sets you apart from the rest. Your unique selling proposition could be a particular style that you have mastered. It could be your reputation and experience in a particular industry or specialization. It could even be your approach to design or how you work with clients.

If you’re just getting started you may not have something that makes you unique, but it’s important to think about what you would like that to be in the future and what you need to do to get there. What skills and experience do you need? How do you need to market yourself so that potential clients will see what you have to offer as being unique?

Social Networking

Many designers not only use social networking as a way to communicate with others in the industry, but also to find work. This can be an effective approach for for freelancers of all kinds regardless of your goals, although, of course, your goals will impact your approach. Twitter and Facebook are the two most popular social media sites at the moment, and both are also popular among designers. However, for freelancers who are looking to find full-time employment, taking the time to develop a network at LinkedIn is highly recommended as many potential employers will have a presence there.

Social networking at sites like Twitter and Facebook can help to find new clients and to develop relationships with other professionals that may lead to referrals. For more information on this subject see How to Find Your Ideal Client Using Social Media from Social Media Today.

Jacob Cass of Just Creative Design had an interesting experience with the social site Dribbble. You can read his post How I Got a Job Using Dribbble.

Conclusion

There is a lot to consider when it comes to marketing your freelance business, but it all comes down to your goals. Always keep your purpose for freelancing in mind and make sure that the approach you are taking is well-suited for that purpose and that it will help you get to where you want to be. Remember, what may be an effective marketing approach for one freelance may not be the right fit for you.

If you haven’t already taken time to think about what you specifically want out or freelancing or to develop a basic marketing plan, I recommend that you do so. Having a game plan will help you to get more out of your efforts and to use your time more efficiently.

For more on business and freelancing please see:

15 Steps to a More Productive Workday

7 Ways to Kill Your Freelancing Career Before it Starts

5 Keys to Building Referral Business

5 Tips for Handling Pricing Objections

10 Extremely Useful Time Management Tools

40 Sites for Finding Web Design Jobs

25 of the Best Real Estate Themes for WordPress

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 04:21:00 +0530

Real estate is a very competitive industry and having an attractive, usable and up-to-date website can help agents to stand out and increase the exposure for their listings. In the past, managing a website could be a costly a complicated task for real estate agents. However, there are now many WordPress themes designed specifically for real estate that can make it much easier and affordable.

WordPress is a great platform for most real estate agents because it is simple to add new listings in most real estate themes, professional themes can be purchased for less than $100, and because having a search engine-friendly site is possible with WordPress.

While there are some free real estate themes available, the quality and functionality of most premium themes is far better and prices are very reasonable. In this post we’ll showcase 25 of the best professional real estate themes for WordPress.

AgentPress ($59.95 at StudioPress)

ElegantEstate (Membership to ElegantThemes is $39/year)

deCasa (39 € at ThemeShift)

deCondo (39 € at ThemeShift)

Real Estate ($89.95 from Templatic)

Realtor Press ($79 at Mojo Themes)

Meadow Ridge, a Genesis Child Theme ($50 at Theme Garden)

Estate ($200 at WooThemes)

Real Agent ($79.95 at Gorilla Themes)

Residence ($79.95 at Gorilla Themes)

Broker ($79.95 at Gorilla Themes)

Open House ($79.95 at Gorilla Themes)

Bel Air ($69.95 at Gorilla Themes)

OpenHouse ($35 at ThemeForest)

WP Pro Real Estate ($30 at ThemeForest)

WP Pro Real Estate 2 ($35 at ThemeForest)

Real Estate Theme ($25 at ThemeForest)

Elegant Real Estate ($30 at ThemeForest)

QuickStart Real Estate ($30 at ThemeForest)

Real Estate Gold ($30 at ThemeForest)

OurHome ($25 at ThemeForest)

Realist ($25 at ThemeForest)

ModernRealtor ($30 at ThemeForest)

Homeowner ($79.95 at Gorilla Themes)

Prime Real Estate ($32 at Mojo Themes)

For more WordPress resources please see:

WordPress Ecommerce: 30+ Resources

15 Exceptionally Useful Resources for WordPress Theme Designers

20+ Tutorials and Resources for Working with Custom Fields in WordPress

Top 10 Blogs for the WordPress Community

35 Specialty Galleries for Your Design Inspiration

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 04:15:00 +0530

All designers need inspiration. That inspiration can come from just about anywhere, and ideally inspiration will be found from a variety of different sources. Nature, print publications, art, music, photography, architecture, and other things that are all around us can serve as excellent sources of design inspiration. But since most web and graphic designers are online for hours at a time, gallery sites and blogs often become a go-to source of inspiration.

While web design and CSS galleries have been popular for several years now, specialty or niche galleries often prove to be the most useful sources of online inspiration. In this post we’ll feature 35 different galleries that may prove to be very helpful for you.

HTML5 Beauty

Showcasing sites that make use of HTML5.

HTML5 Gallery

Showcasing sites that make use of HTML5.

Ars HTML5 Gallery

Showcasing sites that make use of HTML5.

Ars CSS3 Gallery

Showcasing sites that make use of CSS3.

jQuery Style

Showcasing sites that make use of jQuery.

CartFrenzy

A gallery of well-designed e-commerce sites.

eCommerce Gallery

A gallery of well-designed e-commerce sites.

CartCraze

A gallery of well-designed e-commerce sites.

Folio Focus

A gallery of beautiful portfolio sites.

Foliostars

A gallery of beautiful portfolio sites.

Pixel Perfect Portfolios

A gallery of Flash-based portfolio sites.

Mobile Awesomeness

A gallery of mobile websites.

CSS iPhone

A gallery of mobile websites.

eduStyle

A gallery of higher education websites.

Teespiration

A gallery of creative and inspiring t-shirt designs.

Packaging of the World

Packaging design inspiration from various products around the world.

The Die Line

More of a blog than a gallery, but a consistent source of package design inspiration.

Sustainable Packaging

A showcase of environmentally-friendly package design.

Card Observer

A gallery of creative and well-designed business cards.

Cardview

A gallery of creative and well-designed business cards.

Card Nerd

A gallery of creative and well-designed business cards.

Cardonizer

A gallery of creative and well-designed business cards.

Ads of the World

A gallery of creative advertisements.

The Creative Ad Awards

A gallery of creative advertisements.

I Believe in Advertising

A gallery of creative advertisements.

Adverbox

A gallery of creative advertisements.

Motion Graphics Served

Showcasing beautiful motion graphics, from the Behance Network.

Motionspire

Showcasing beautiful motion graphics.

MotionGraphics.nu

Showcasing beautiful motion graphics.

LogoPond

A user-submitted logo design gallery.

Logo of the Day

A logo design gallery.

Logo Faves

A logo design gallery.

LogoMoose

A logo design gallery.

illyPads

A user-submitted illustration gallery.

Illustration Served

An illustration gallery, from the Behance Network.

For more design inspiration please see:

25 Examples of Amazing Packaging Design

Showcase of Amazing Vector Art

Brochure Design Showcase

37 of the Best Web Designs from the Travel Industry

27 of the Best Real Estate Websites

How To Turn a New Photo Into an Old Photo

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 22:23:00 +0530

In this Adobe Photoshop tutorial i will show you how to turn a new photo into an old photo.

Final Image Preview

Resources

Small Bridge

Step 1

Start by opening photo. Go to Image > Image size to reduce photo size to 1000px width and 750px height.

Step 2

We are going now to create noise effect. Create new layer, press D to set up foreground and background colors as black and white and then apply Filter > Render > Clouds.

Step 3

After that apply Filter > Noise > Add Noise with next presets:

Step 4

Change layer mode to Soft Light for this layer.

Step 5

Now we are going to create light sepia effect. For this purpose I created new layer above and fill it with color of #e6e1cc.

Step 6

Then change layer mode to Color and you should get next effect.

Step 7

After that create additional layer with Layer > New Adjustment Layer > Levels:

And set up following levels presets:

Step 8

To add scratches to the photo create new layer, press D to set up foreground and background colors as black and white and then apply Filter > Render > Clouds again.

Step 9

Apply Filter > Render > Fibers:

Step 10

Now apply Image > Adjustments > Threshold:

Step 11

Now apply Image > Adjustments > Threshold:

Step 12

Apply again Filter > Blur > Blur More.

Step 13

Change layer mode to Soft Light and you will see the difference.

Step 14

Reduce layer opacity to 70%.

Step 15

Create a new layer. Select Gradient Tool, select some appropriate colors, for example colors of #e5e5e5, #000000 and drag a radial gradient.

Final Image

After that change layer mode for this layer to Overlay and tutorial is complete.

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Giveaway: 3x 100 Standard Postcards of Next Day Flyers

noreply@blogger.com (Mr.JSY) — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 13:45:00 +0530

Next Day Flyers have partnered with Photoshop Star to give away 3 sets of 100 4 x 6 Standard Postcards.

Next Day Flyers is a online printing company that offers an array of custom printed products including tickets, club flyers, business cards, postcards and posters just to name a few.

Next Day Flyers is committed to printing their customer’s orders by the next business day.

Contest Giveaway Details

Thanks to Next Day Flyers, three winners will receive one set of 100 4 x 6 Standard Postcards, full color printing on front, black printing or blank on the back, next day printing turnaround time.

This prizes can only be shipped to Continental U.S. and only one entry per person allowed.

To win you need to leave a comment on this post letting us know how would you use the Next Day Flyers prize using a valid email address so we can contact you in case you win.

This giveaway will end on February 17th. NextDayFlyers will choose the winners and those will be contacted by email and announced at Photoshop Star.

You can also follow Next Day Flyers on Twitter (@nextdayflyers) and on Facebook to get the latest info about their products.

Good luck to everyone!

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If you want to receive updates from PhotoshopStar, please consider subscribing our RSS feed. You can also follow us on Twitter.

If you prefer, you can also subscribe to our monthly Newsletter.