Graphic Tips with Eric Saar

Logo, Logos and More Logos

2009-12-03T04:25:00.000-08:00

Logos are one of those items that are always a good challenge. This will be the identity and branding for a business or company that should be able to take them for many years. This is probably one of the most important design choices that a company will make. So with not a lot of pressure, do some research and soul searching before you start that next logo project. Here are a few sites that might help you out.

Making Unforgettable Logos

Drawing Inspiration From Creative Logos

Super Bowl Logos Since 1966

How Not to Design a Logo

21 Free Smoke Brushes

2009-12-01T05:00:00.000-08:00

The nice people over at Q-Brushes has a great set of realistic smoke brushes for free! Stop over and see what they have to offer up on a lot of different brushes. Try them out and have fun.

Turn OFF Docking Windows in Photoshop

2009-11-19T04:38:00.000-08:00

Over at CreativeTech Tips they show how to fix some thing that is pretty cool yet annoying at the same time. I get this question a lot these days, and I know how people feel. I thought it was very nice to have the tabbed images in Photoshop. But there are some times that you just hate this new feature.

Well go over and see what they have to say.

Logos, Logos and New Logos

2009-10-23T03:51:00.000-07:00

A lot of companies get make overs and you wonder what the logos look like before the the make over and after. Here are a bunch of logos that have gone under a transformation.

Enjoy and maybe get some inspiration.

7 Key Principles That Make A Web Design Look Good

2009-10-21T04:19:00.000-07:00

You know, every one knows some one that can build a web site for them. Some one's brother's cousin knows a kid that has a copy of Microsoft FrontPage and can build you a cool site. People like this keep a lot of real designers in business. Eventually the person that got the web site realizes that they really need some thing professional. This is where a true web designer comes in.

Take a look at these 7 key Principles.

Photoshop Brushes

2009-10-15T04:57:00.000-07:00

Yes it is only October, but winter is just around the corner. I had a need for some snowflakes in a project that I needed to produce. So where do you go for cool snowflake brushes in Photoshop? I found a great resource for these special needs.

So if you are looking for some great variations on some "cool" snowflake brushes. You can get them here.

Photoshop World Picks Guru Award Winners

2009-10-07T03:29:00.000-07:00

Last week in LaVagas Photoshop World was held, and they gave out the Guru Awards. There is never a lack of talent and creativity in these awards. This year is not any different, with some really nice images. Take a look at this years winners right here.

Should Photo Retouching Be Legally Regulated?

2009-09-24T04:57:00.000-07:00

How this could ever be policed and followed is beyond me. But here is a link to the web artical that talks about what they want to do. Here is what they said.

“In what’s poised to be the biggest uproar yet over the ongoing issue of Photoshopping in mass media, members of the British Parliament are calling for a ban on digitally altering ads aimed at children under 16, and disclosure of these modifications in ads aimed at adults, reports Jezebel.“

Take a look here.

River Walk - Photo Walk

2009-09-21T03:17:00.000-07:00

Well Friday we had the River Walk - Photo Walk. It looked like the weather was not going to be what we would of liked it to be, but some one was looking out for us. The sky was incredible and the evening was great. Here are a few of my shots from the walk. I hope to see you next time. You can view the Flickr group images here.

Aged Type Effect in Photoshop (w/Ps Action)

2009-09-15T04:21:00.000-07:00

I have talked about Actions in Photoshop before, but here is a action to create type that has that aged look to it. I have run into a need for this effect over the years, and I have created it. This action is a great way to make creating this feel, much faster and easier. Take a look and see how you can create a custom action.

The Font War: Ikea Fans Fume over Verdana

2009-09-09T03:28:00.000-07:00

Ok, I love typography and am passionate about it, but these people are crazy. Ikea is one of those cool stores that we have items from, and lots of people enjoy the very interesting look and feel of the Swedish Furniture maker.

The company thought that they would change one of their corporate fonts from Futura to Verdana. This is not seating well with a lot of customers. Read the full stories here.

Time Magazine
http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1919127,00.html

Business Week
http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/next/archives/2009/08/ikea_changes_fo.html

Geek Sugar
http://www.geeksugar.com/4530221

Binghamton River Walk -Photo Walk

2009-09-07T17:58:00.000-07:00

On Friday September 18 there will be a Binghamton River Walk - Photo Walk. Jim Danvers and I will be leading a walk starting on the Downtown River Walk that will take us along the river walk and into downtown. John Gal who is my co-hort in crime during the day, set this up and does a lot to promote the river trail. This should be a great time, no matter what type of photographer you might be. Weather you have a simple point and shoot film or digital camera, or you have a nice SLR digital, you are very welcome to join us. I will post more details very soon.

Hope to see you there!

Night Photography Tips

2009-09-07T17:37:00.001-07:00

This site "Digital Photography School" Has some very nice ideas on taking photos at night to get that great feel or that exciting night life image. They share some tips on how capture light, reflections and mood. I hope you find this site as educational as I did.

Top Logo Inspiration Sites

2009-08-31T18:03:00.000-07:00

When it comes to coming up with a different and unique logo design. It never hurts to look at some other ideas. This site has some of the best inspirational logo sites going. Take a look at these collections of logos that will help with any situation.

Gradient Strokes

2009-08-28T19:18:00.000-07:00

I found this tutorial and thought I would like to share it with all of you. This is a way to add a gradient to outline of text. It is a very nice effect that you don't have to jump through hoops to get. Go a head and give it a try!

Evolution of Photoshop: 1988 – 2009

2009-08-19T17:34:00.007-07:00

I was very lucky to start working with Adobe Photoshop at version 2.5. I have seen most of this evolution happen in front of my own eyes. My good friend Eric Hards was fortunate enough to actually work with the original beta version in college in California. After you getting working with a newer version and you have to work in a much older version, it is frustrating.

Take a look at this little trip down memory lane for some of you, and a view back in time for others.

Photoshop vs. Illustrator: Part 2

2009-08-17T17:51:00.000-07:00

Here is part two to this crazy question. I know that some of you have enjoyed part 1. See if part 2 helps out any more.

Photoshop vs. Illustrator: Part 1

2009-08-10T18:48:00.000-07:00

People are always asking me, what program is better, Photoshop or Illustrator? When I am creating a logo, which one should I use? Well the gang over at Gomediazine They take a detailed look at the the two programs. Take a look at the first part of this mystery and see what you think.

Free Metal Textures

2009-08-08T06:41:00.000-07:00

Bitbox has five nice high res metal texture images for you to download and use if you wish. I love stuff like this, because you never know when you can use some thing like this. I some time find my self using images like these and then you can hardly tell that I used them, but they make a different difference in the final project. Get them here.

30 Text Effect Tutorials for Adobe Illustrator

2009-08-07T03:42:00.000-07:00

Some new type effects are always nice. Here are some very nice Illustrator techniques that are fun to try. There are tons of Photoshop tutorials out there, heck you can't swing a dead cat with out hitting one. So enjoy these Illustrator tips and try them out in your next project.

New Photo Contest: “Shoot on the Sidelines With Scott & Mike”

2009-08-05T20:06:00.000-07:00

If you’ve ever dreamed of shooting a big game from down on the sidelines, have I got an awesome contest for you! It’s the brainchild of my buddy (sports shooter and famous guest blogger here, Mike Olivella), and well.. you just gotta watch the video below and you’ll see why you just gotta enter.

InDesign Placing Trick

2009-07-28T03:04:00.000-07:00

I learned a new tip the other day that I thought was great. It is little tips like this one that keep me smiling every now and then. When you have a image or graphic on the page in InDesign, and you want to replace that image. All you have to do is Command + D or Cont + D on the PC, just like you would to place the original image. Once you have that image/graphic loaded in your cursor HOLD DOWN THE OPTION KEY and then click on that image/graphic.

Now remember you can load your cursor with multiple images, so this works great if you have to replace several at once. I shared this tip with a few of my co-workers and they loved it. I hope you find this small tip as nice as we did.

Design Bump Blog

2009-07-22T03:38:00.000-07:00

Just like my blog where I try to show some of the best things from around the design world, Design Bump does that same thing. I love variety on design ideas and inspiration. Take a look at this blog to get your design fix.

TypeInspire is a Showcase of Excellent Typography

2009-07-21T18:26:00.000-07:00

I am a sucker for great or inspiring typography. Here is a site that gives you some great examples of type used in some fantastic creative ways. I hope you enjoy these artistic type creations as much as I did. Visit the site right here.

Photoshop CS4 Tips

2009-06-30T18:20:00.000-07:00

I just learned 2 new Photoshop CS4 tips that just made me smile. As many of you know, I am a short cut, keyboard junkie! If there is a way to make my life faster and or easier while using Photoshop, I am up for it.

One of my favorite short cuts is the the left and right bracet keys when you want to increase or decrease the size of a brush tool. Well in PS CS4 if you hold down the Control + Option keys and then click and hold the mouse down while draging the mouse to the left or right to change the size of your brush. This is great!

Also another way to Zoom in and out in PS CS4. If you click and hold while using the Zoom tool you will zoom continuous until you get to the zoom you want, then let go to stop.

Try these tips today.