Web design is heard about every day on the Internet, on message boards, in forums and in chat rooms and this is because for any owner of a website it consumes them. Having a well designed website is not only to please the site owner, it is to attract visitors to the website and keep them there.

It is important to keep visitors at a website long enough to purchase whatever is being sold on the site and if the site is not pleasing to the eye then potential customers will not stay long enough to purchase anything being sold. This is where the web design company comes in because they are professionals that understand what is needed to make a website appealing, to make it easy to read and to navigate.

Many website owners try on their own to make their website appealing to their visitors without success. This is often because they miss things that attract visitors to stay on their website such as something as simple as the color of the background, because some backgrounds make it difficult on the eyes when trying to read. It can also be something as simple as the size of the font, while it may look the right size it is not always the right size or font that makes it easy to read for others. The design company professional will know these factors and while it will have a background that is appealing it will also be one that visitors will not have problems viewing.

There is one fact that experienced website owners know and that is if the site is not attracting visitors who stay then there is a problem and if it is not a problem that can be seen immediately it can take months of trying to figure it out. The design company can also take care of the SEO part of the website and will be able to see problems right away because this is what they have trained to do and they also have results that show they are professionals. This can save a website owner not only time but also money because the site owner is now free to pursue other parts of their business.

There is an old saying that it “it takes money to make money” and this still holds true when it comes to websites, spending money having the website company build or change a website it will come back to the owner. Money spent on websites means that it will be what the potential customer wants to see when they visit the site, where everything is clear and is easy on the eyes at the same time.

Posted: June 26th, 2008 under web design.
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One of the most used tools in Photoshop is the brush tool. The best thing about this tool is that it comes in a variety of different shapes and can be any size or colour. However many people don’t use this tool to its full potential. Almost any image can become a custom brush.

First of all chose an image you wish to become a brush. Patterns and shapes are the best to use for this but other, more detailed images can be used as well. You don’t have to but I recommend decreasing the colour depth of the image to two colours so that it is easier to edit. After doing this you need to select the background colour of the two colours, this will usually be white, and use the eraser tool to delete it so that the background is transparent.  

You now have an image that can become a custom brush. You can use the eraser tool to rub out some unwanted areas if you wish. Finally you are ready to make the image a brush by going to Edit and then Define Brush Preset. You will then need to name your brush. Sometimes the image may be too large so you might have to resize it before doing this. Simply go to image and then resize and pick the correct size (usually about 500 pixels).

You’re custom brush can now be accessed in the brush tab in the tool menu bar. It is customisable just like the preset brushes. You can alter the colour of your brush by simply click on the desired colour at the side. You can also alter the hardness of your brush and the opacity. You can also rotate your brush using the tool options. This can be very useful for creating patterns. 

Posted: June 17th, 2008 under Uncategorized.
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In graphics one of the most over looked patterns is the checked pattern. The checked pattern or similarly the grid is a necessity for us to make sense of the complicated things around us. In graphics grids are used to gain perspective and measurements.

Josef Albers famously experimented with checks and squares in his series “Homage to the Square”. He explored form, texture and colour. As well as being an artist Albers was a mathematician as well. Many of his painting are a precise configuration of squares overlapping each other in diminishing scale.

His work looked at the experience of colour from a subjective point of view. As well as the effects adjacent colours have on each other. He discovered that one colour in between two colours would take on the same hue as those colours. He called this the interaction of colour. This would give the illusion that the painting was receding or advancing towards you. The op art movement frequently used this technique.

Albers chose the square as his subject for exploring colour because of it’s neutral properties. The square has a plainness about it that enables it to show an idea without being the subject. If Albers had used circles instead of a square it would have become about the pattern the circles created rather than the idea. The square has been called a tool of abstraction. This is largely due to it’s usage by masters such as Picasso or Braque during the cubist movement. The cubists wanted to explore the form and volume of their subjects, the square (or cube) allowed them to do this without it becoming about the squares. The subjects were still subjects in their own right.

The square is logical and serves it purpose. From cubism to modernism it was used as a tool for expression rather than a subject of expression. As mundane as the square is it is essential in any graphical work. It represents structure and organisation. It is a language that everyone can understand.

Perhaps it is this notion of squares being like a universal language that has made them so versatile. Many people would associate Burberry with Britain. It is recognised all over the world as a symbol of something, a symbol of a certain culture. It can communicate so much and yet it derived from something as simple as the square. The classic Burberry colours are all of a similar hue, as in Albers work.

In graphics we often try to jump ahead of ourselves, or over complicate things. If we design something we do our best not to make it “boxy”. It must look smooth and rounded to be complete. We are neglecting squares in design. What is wrong with right angles? What is wrong with something having an edge to it? Almost everything I see in design now, from cars to phones, to furniture, feels it cannot have any harsh corners. Everything must flow; everything must be smooth and chic.

I reject this ideal. An idea starts with a square.

Posted: June 16th, 2008 under Uncategorized.
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For the first time in over eight years Google have updated their icon design. This small icon can be seen in your browser next to the URL. Its technical name is a favicon.

Google have spoken openly about this new design, which is unusual because Google tends to keep quiet about most of its other technology changes.

The reasoning behind the new lowercase ‘g’ is due to Google wanting the icon to scale better on mobile devices such as Apple’s iPhone and other similar platforms.

Michael Lopez a web designer at Google revealed that a whole new set of logos has been designed. Over three hundred different designs were tried and tested. In what was described as a “rigorous” design process.

Google needed a symbol that means Google. Currently they only have a logo which is the word “Google” spelt using different colours for each letter.

Lopez stated ““We wanted something distinctive and noticeable”. They were after something more noticeable than just a block shape. Another important criteria is that the design at to be timeless.

The current ‘g’ design is not confirmed as the final design that Google will use. They are currently calling for other doodles that optimise the brand for mobile devices.

“By no means is the one you’re seeing our favicon final; it was a first step to a more unified set of icons,” Lopez said.

“We really value feedback from users and want to hear your ideas that we may have missed. If you have your own notions about the Google favicon, please send them to use. We’ll do our best to work them in, and maybe your idea will be the one that people see billions of times per day.”

The general view is that the new design is bland and boring. A simple lowercase g design may be clear and simple but is graphically boring. It is understandable though that due to the logo being used at a very small scale they needed to be clear. A busy design would have been unreadable at such a small size.

Posted: June 13th, 2008 under Uncategorized.
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Ever had one of those annoying zits? You go out with friends or family and take some great pictures. You get home and they all want to put them online and there are you, with a great big zit on your face!

Well there is a solution…
I’m sure your parents have tried to make you feel better by telling you zit are not for forever. That you will “grow out of it” and no one will ever know you had them. Wrong! Photographs will prove otherwise.
The answer… Photoshop!

Virtually every professional magazine touch up there pictures before printing them. Well now by following this tutorial you can to. This quick and easy method with have your pictures spot and blemish free in seconds.

For this we are going to use a tool in Photoshop called the clone tool. The clone tool works by taking a small piece of the picture that you select and using that to clone over the problem area.
This is really easy to do but will make a huge difference if you are concerned about looking your best.

Step 1 – Open the picture in Photoshop. You can do this by going to file and then open. Next select the picture and ensure that you are working on that layer. Sometimes the layer may be locked. To unlock it simply double-click on it.

Step 2 – Zoom in on the zit so you are now working in that area. Go to the bottom of the canvas and increaser the percentage of the workspace. This will increase the detail and allow you to accurately remove the zit.

Step 3 – Select the clone tool and on the top tool bar alter the size of the brush so it is an appropriate size. Also make sure that the brush effect is set to ‘feathered’

Step 4 – Find a patch of unblemished skin that is next to your zit and option + click it. It needs to be close by so the skin tone and lighting is similar. This area that you select will act as the ‘paint brush’ that you will use to make the touch up.

Step 5 – Click over the zit and it should start to vanish. You might have to click more than once depending on how big or small you made the brush. It is also better to make single clicks rather than clicking and dragging.

Step 6 – Save the photo and share it will all your friends!

Posted: June 12th, 2008 under Tutorials, Uncategorized.
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