45 Tutorials for Learning Pixelmator
Published September 21st, 2009 in Design - 29 Comments
Pixelmator is a popular image editor for Mac OS X. While Photoshop is the industry standard, Pixelmator has a lot to offer for Mac users. In this post we’ll feature 45 tutorials for using Pixelmator, including a number of video tutorials. Some of the tutorials are rather basic and will help you to get familiar with the interface and tools, and others teach specific techniques. You may notice that some of these tutorials are re-makes of popular Photoshop tutorials, except this time showing how to create the same end result in Pixelmator.
80′s Style Text Effect in Pixelmator
27 New and Fresh Illustrator Tutorials
Published September 17th, 2009 in Design - 29 Comments
If you’re interested in learning some new tricks and improving your skills in Adobe Illustrator, there are plenty of great tutorials out there that will lead you through the process. In this post we’ll feature some of the best Illustrator tutorials that have been published within the past few months. For more Illustrator tutorials, see the following posts from our archives:
- 30 Text Effect Tutorials for Adobe Illustrator
- 40 Tutorials for Working with Shapes in Illustrator
- 25 Tutorials for Using Illustrator and Photoshop Together for Outstanding Results
Create a Character Mascot with Adobe Illustrator CS4
60+ Helpful Resources for Portfolio Design
Published September 14th, 2009 in Design - 32 Comments
One of the most important things a designer can do for his or her business is to create an attractive portfolio site that communicates effectively with visitors and draws in potential clients. In this post we will look at various resources and articles that can help you to create the right portfolio site for you. We will look at several sources of portfolio design inspiration, tutorials that will lead you through the process of designing a portfolio, scripts that can be used, helpful articles and tips for portfolio design, and WordPress themes and HTML/CSS templates.
1. Inspiration for Portfolio Design:
Checking out examples of creative, effective portfolio sites from other designers can help to give you some ideas that you may be able to use in the design of your own portfolio. While many web design/CSS galleries include a lot of portfolio sites, there are some galleries that are focused exclusively on showcasing well-designed portfolios.
Practical Tips for Taking Design Inspiration without Copying
Published September 9th, 2009 in Design Process - 34 Comments
Designers of all kinds rely on inspiration for their work in order to achieve their best results. Inspiration can come from just about anywhere, but for web designers who are online virtually all day it frequently comes from gallery sites, design blogs, or just websites that you come across in other ways. The amount of inspiration of this kind that is available can be a huge help when you are struggling with a project of your own, but one challenge that designers face is how to put that inspiration into practice while still creating something unique and of quality.
There are ways to take advantage of the inspirational work that is available from other designers and use it to create something of your own, and in this article we’ll look at the subject in detail.
Style Switchers Showcase and Resources
Published September 7th, 2009 in Web Development - 38 Comments
Style switchers can be used to give visitors more options according to their preferences, or they can be used simply to add something dynamic and interesting to the site. The potential uses are nearly limitless but some common approaches include using style switchers to give choices in terms of background images, color schemes, font sizes, and layout.
In this post we’ll look at a number of sites that are using style switchers and you’ll see screenshots to demonstrate how the site will appear with various options selected. At the end of the post there is also a resources section with tutorials and scripts that can help if you are interested in using a style switcher on your site.
Carreras con Futuro uses a hand-drawn background image with splatter effects. The style switcher changes the color of the splatters, and also changes the color of a few elements in the site’s content area, such as the background of “login.”
50 Websites (and More) for Your Design Inspiration
Published September 2nd, 2009 in Galleries - 70 Comments
A few months ago we launched a network of five niche gallery sites. For a long time this blog has included inspirational posts that showcase the work of various designers, so it seemed like a natural extension to launch the galleries. During the past few months the archives have been growing at each of the galleries, and they are becoming more valuable resources for designers who are looking for inspiration. Each gallery now includes between 185 and 350 items on display.
In this post I’d like to showcase a brief sampling of the inspiration that is available at each of the galleries. There are ten items shown from each of the galleries. The text links will lead you to the source, and by clicking on the images you will be led to the pages on the galleries.
Folio Focus:
Folio Focus currently includes more than 300 portfolio sites on display from various creative professionals. There are around 20 new sites added each week. To stay up-to-date with Folio Focus you can subscribe by RSS, email, or follow on Twitter.
17 Photoshop Tutorials for Designing Creative Advertisements
Published August 31st, 2009 in Design, Photoshop Tutorials - 30 Comments
Advertisements often display a lot of creativity in design, and Photoshop is an excellent tool for those who are designing advertisements. Fortunately there are a number of tutorials specifically for designing advertisements, and others that demonstrate techniques that are effective for advertisements. In this post we’ll feature 17 different tutorials that can help you in your own advertising design.
Create an Amazing Ad in Photoshop
25 Websites with Lighting Effects – Part III
Published August 27th, 2009 in Galleries - 42 Comments
Using lighting effects in design is a common trend at the moment. Designers who want to add some flare to a design can use Photoshop to create interesting lighting effects. In the past we have showcased examples of sites with lighting effects, and today we’ll feature 25 more. Although all of these sites make use of lighting effects, you will see different approaches and different types of effects from some of the sites shown here.
9 WordPress Hacks to Encourage User Interactivity
Published August 24th, 2009 in WordPress - 96 Comments
All bloggers would like to get more interaction and participation from their readers and visitors. In this post we’ll look at nine different things you can do to your WordPress theme to add the possibility of some type of interaction. Some involves comments, social media, and other ways of getting readers involved.
1. Show Most Recent Comments
One of the most important ways that blogs can encourage readers to get involved is through the comments. There are a number of different strategies for increasing comments and participation from readers, and many of them involve placing extra emphasis on the comments. By displaying the most recent comments (in the sidebar for example) you may be able to encourage more comments because visitors will see that you value their participation.
Showcase of “Green” Typography
Published August 20th, 2009 in Galleries - 31 Comments
“Green” and eco-related effects and design styles can be used with typography for impressive results. Additionally, this style does a great job to help communicate a message or intent. In this post we’ll showcase a number of pieces for your typography inspiration.
Source: Marian Albu
