Illustrator pen tool.

Using the pen tool to create an image is something I need to continue to work upon. It's fun, and I think I am definitely developing my own style of portrait.

Wanna be a member?

NAPP (National Association of Photoshop Professionals) is a worthwhile investment of about $100 a year. Great tutorials, great conferences. Yeah. I'd recommend it.

Spring

Spring, and a girl's fancy leads to green. I love the colors of green one sees in the spring. So many varieties, so many fresh light options. Green is not a color I lean toward in graphic design, but it is one I like in fabric. My goal for this week is to take my love of green fabrics and translate it into my graphic work.

Adobe Premiere Fun

Another video I pieced together for class using Adobe Premiere. I learned from this assignment that I have good family and friends who are willing to try new things to help me.

Working with Adobe Premiere

I have been working with Adobe Premiere for class this quarter. It's amazing what a good transition or two and the auto level controls can do to blend several videos taken at different times and places. The program is very powerful... and expensive. But if you are going to work on multiple files, want to detach sound from video and combine disparate video pieces, I highly recommend it.

HOW to boost your career

HOW magazine's website has an interesting article on improving your career potential at work. I particularly like and believe in the advice to show your appreciation to your administrative staff. Admins have great ideas, work hard and can make or break an organization. They deserve our thanks!

For more of the article, check here: http://www.howdesign.com/design-career/resume-portfolio/12-month-career-boosting-guide/

Web page design

For class I designed this simple web page in Photoshop. I had already created the logo for this prototype company, and the web page was a natural progression. The page would include rollovers on the images for the "About," "Products," and "Contact Us" pages. It would be a fairly easy website to create with html and css if I included a shopping cart plug-in.

Denzomag

Just found an online magazine called Denzomag that purports to provide tutorials, inspiration and resources for the graphic design professional. It has some stunning work on the site, and I think it may well be a place I might go to seek inspiration. They are going to have a series on typography, and the first installation has some great examples of work with type.

This looks like a spot I will check out monthly.

Urbanized is out

"Urbanized," a documentary by Gary Hustwit, is out on video this week. If it's anything like "Helvetica" or "Objectified, this should be a great film. Each of Hustwit's trilogy deal with the way design permeates our lives. The first two were thought provoking and visually stunning. I look forward to seeing "Urbanized."

LAFTA Jitters

LAFTA, aka Louisville Area Fiber Artists, is an organization that brings together artists who work with fiber of some kind: surface design, collage, weaving, knitting and crocheting, quilting, felting, and so on. I am a member. Tonight I will present some of my work to the membership in a program "get to know the artist." I have the jitters. I am enthralled by the work of many of these people, so to show my own work is a little intimidating. Here are a few of the pieces I will show:

Wayne Brezinka

I saw a presentation by Wayne Brezinka last night at the Green Building in Louisville. Brezinka is a graphic designer and illustrator who is moving into collage as his preferred medium. Born in Minnesota, Brezinka and his family have lived in Nashville, Tennessee, for the last nineteen years.

Brezinka's work can be seen on his blog: http://brezinkaillustration.blogspot.com/ or on his website: http://brezinkadesign.com/.

(I bought a print of the collage seen above.)

Fiber meets digital

In this piece, I scanned in some. fabric I hand dyed then overlaid an image of a bird that I had manipulated in Photoshop. I like blending my two loves together.

Cemeteries

I have a thing for cemeteries. They are peaceful places perfect for contemplation. In addition, their stonework is often breath taking. This angel will make her way onto art that I create. I love the detail in her gown.

Louisville Graphic Design Association

Last year, I joined the Louisville Graphic Design Association. The group's mission is to "enhance the quality of graphic design in its home town of Louisville, Ky. The organization holds interesting talks most months of the year. It also holds an annual design contest at the end of each year.

I've had the opportunity to attend several of the discussions, and hope to attend more in 2012. I'll be attending a presentation and showing of the work of Wayne Brezinka at the Green Building on February 9. I'm looking forward to it!

The Pen Tool Redux

Here's another Adobe Illustrator pen tool effort. I like the look. I still need to work on shadows, but this piece evokes the soft gentleness of the child, and I am pleased with the coloration.

Using the Pen Tool

I've been working to perfect my skills with Illustrator's pen tool. While I still need to work on lessening my nodes and smoothing my curves, I'm getting the hang of it.

A friend of mine asked me to create a portrait of her using the pen tool. So I took the picture to your left and created the portrait seen to your right.

I'm not entirely happy with the ear and I should have added her freckles, but I am pleased with the smile and the eyes.

Welcome to my blog

Every blog must have a first entry, and this is mine. Welcome to my blog. Here you will learn a little about how I design and what draws me to design. Don't be afraid! It should be a fun ride.