Top 10 Sites for Illustrator Tutorials
Published July 22nd, 2008 in Design - 37 Comments
Photoshop gets most of the attention when it comes to tutorials and blog posts, but Illustrator is also an excellent tool for designers. If you’re interested in brushing up your skills, here are my top ten (taking both quality and quantity of tutorials into consideration).
1. VECTORTUTS
Announcing the Launch of DesignM.ag!
Published July 21st, 2008 in Uncategorized - 13 Comments
Today I’m very excited to announce the launch of DesignM.ag! In attempt to provide a useful and resourceful site for the web design community, DesignM.ag includes a blog, a community news section, a design gallery , and a job board will be added soon. If you enjoy and appreciate the posts here at Vandelay Design, I think you will like DesignM.ag as well.
Here are the initial posts that are already published:
Welcome to DesignM.ag
A general first post.
50+ Fonts for Big, Bold Headlines
This is a big list of some excellent fonts that will make your headlines stand out.
11 Steps to a More Stable Freelance Income
Freelancers are always dealing with ups and downs in terms of work levels and income. This article looks at some things you can do to minimize the down times.
Favorite Design-Related Sites of 21 Designers
Since I was starting a new site for the design community I thought it would be fun to get some others involved in one of the initial posts. This provides an interesting look at what some top designers are reading on a regular basis.
Blog Navigation and the Ongoing Challenges that Arise
Published July 17th, 2008 in Blog Design - 17 Comments
Navigation is obviously one of the most critical aspects of usability. Developing effective navigation is a challenge for most websites, but it’s especially an issue for blogs because of the content that is continually being added.
Think about the typical blog. A few new posts are probably added each week, but navigation is almost never changed or updated, except by using internal links within the posts themselves. Finding posts is always possible by browsing through the archives, checking through some categories, or by doing a search, but the more content that is added, the harder it is to navigate.
25+ Inspiring Designs by Land, Sea & Air
Published July 14th, 2008 in Galleries - 36 Comments
I constantly come across excellent designs that feature various elements of nature and I’ve been collecting samples for a while now. Some use photos and others use illustration. Some feature bright skies and clouds, and others feature mountains, water, or grass. Feel free to list your favorites in the comments.
Tutorial – Create Your Own Custom Del.icio.us Badge
Published July 13th, 2008 in Design - 15 Comments
For a long time I used the Del.icio.us Tagometer Badge on this blog. If you’re not familiar with the Tagometer Badge (shown below), basically its purpose is to show visitors how many Del.icio.us users have bookmarked a particular page, what tags are commonly being used for that page, and it makes it easy for them to bookmark the page themselves.
Learning from Other Designers
Published July 10th, 2008 in Design - 22 Comments
One of the things that I like about web design is that there’s always plenty to learn, regardless of how experienced you are. I know that my knowledge really only scratches the surface of web design and development, and I appreciate the fact that seemingly unlimited resources are available to allow me to become a better designer.
40 Photoshop Tutorials for Lighting and Abstract Effects
Published July 7th, 2008 in Design, Photoshop Tutorials - 218 Comments
Photoshop gives designers the ability to create some amazing effects that can accomplish just about anything you can image. Fortunately, there are plenty of Photoshop experts who are willing to write detailed tutorials to show off the potential. Here is a look at some of the best tutorials for using various lighting and abstract effects.
Adding Light Streaks to a Photo
Effective Use of Blog Sidebars
Published July 6th, 2008 in Blog Design - 30 Comments
While sidebars aren’t the primary focal point of blogs, they still have an important role in usability and appearance. A well-designed sidebar can make it easier for visitors to find what they like, which will keep them at your site longer and improve your overall effectiveness. On the other hand, a poor sidebar can lead to lost and frustrated visitors.
Before the re-design of this site was started, the sidebar (or in this case sidebars) was a focal point of need. I felt that whatever direction the new design went, it needed to improve the usability of the site by making navigation easier and directing visitors to the appropriate parts of the site. The decision was made to use two sidebars in order to include everything that was needed without cluttering up the sidebar too much.
Are Paid Links a Necessary Search Engine Optimization Evil?
Published July 4th, 2008 in SEO - 28 Comments
This is a guest post written by David Brown.
What do nearly all high ranking websites have in common? As a search engine marketing consultant, I am confronted with the task of evaluating the inbound links of thousands of websites each month. In doing so, I have come to the realization that top ranking websites continue to pay for links despite Google’s public disapproval. Google’s minimalistic efforts to combat paid link building force ethical search engine marketing companies to buy links in order to compete. If done poorly, paid linkers run the risk of having short-lived benefits and potentially harmful consequences. The following tips will help you identify paid links that have positive and long-lasting results on search engine optimization efforts.
12 Realities of Pricing Design Services
Published July 2nd, 2008 in Marketing - 101 Comments
For most designers pricing services is not something that is the highlight of the job. Still, it is something that you’ll have to deal with if you’re freelancing or working for a small firm. Here’s my take on pricing web design services.
1. There’s no exact formula.
Unfortunately, there’s no right or wrong way to price your services. Every designer needs to develop his or her own method for pricing, and even then, you probably won’t be able to follow the same formula on every project. Because each job will be different, it’s difficult to develop a method that will work well every time.
