I'm a Photoshop NERD.
So, my friend Saad got married last December. Saad moved to Seattle recently and he isn't the best at staying in touch, so when I FINALLY got to see some wedding photos, I was so happy! I can remember back in '01 when I met Saad I had helped him scan photos from his older sisters wedding. Her wedding (like Saad's) was a traditional wedding held in Pakistan. I believe they usually last 3 days? It's just BEAUTIFUL – just like this newly wed couple.
So, anyways, when I got the photos, the first thing I did was open them in photoshop. My husband was like "What are you doing? Are you FIXING those?" and I was all sheepish and said "No...I just want to see something." I was totally "fixing" them. Not that these two need to be "fixed", but I thought they would look awesome with the background desaturated and a nice, dreamy glow. Anyways, at this small size the changes are subtle, but click on the image above and check it out.
In case you aren't a photoshop nerd like I am, here are the quick easy steps to a dreamy photo shoot!
- Open image in Photoshop
- Double click the image layer and rename to "layer 0" - this removes the lock on this background layer
- Copy "layer 0"
- On the copy layer, select filter>blur>gaussian blur
- Bump the blur up until you are satisfied with the look.
- In the layers panel, reduce the opacity on the blurry, copied layer to 50%
- VIOLA!
2/28/2008 11:56:00 AM | Labels: Design, photos, photoshop, tips and tricks | 2 Comments
Sweets for Everyone!
Hand-sewn goodness! I've got plans for these little, stuffed treats. Hopefully I'll get all my ducks in a row soon. I just need to do a little shopping first!
2/26/2008 08:11:00 AM | Labels: crafts, creative, Misc | 1 Comments
Howiezine 11 : Alphabet / Diversion Mary Typeface
Another great 'zine has been designed & delivered! HOWiezine 11 : Alphabet arrived just yesterday and I must say I am still so impressed with this effort. Eleven hand-made, limited edition 'zines over a couple of years time is a great feat for any group of artists. I was impressed by the number of participants this time!
This 'zine theme was "Alphabet", so I offered up my handwriting as a downloadable font! See the text on my illustration below (my 'zine page) for a sample-click to enlarge. If you are interested in downloading this font, I will make a link available to anyone who emails me. If you are a HOWiezine 11 recipient, a URL to download this font is available on the back of my designed 'zine page!I used the Web site www.fontifier.com to create my font. Fontifier is a handy tool, but it does take quite a bit of tweaking before you get a file that is orderly enough to get the highest quality font set. My font requires a little kerning on certain letters, but many handwritten fonts are this way. Enjoy!
2/20/2008 12:29:00 PM | Labels: Design, download, HOWieZine, illustration | 1 Comments
Workspaces : My Studio is Finally Organized!
Granted, some people might look at the following images and say "She needs to organize". To those people, I would say "If you could have only seen this mess a few months ago, you'd call this room 'Heaven'". I still have stacks of things and I honestly just have too much stuff for one room, but here is my previously miserable and un-functional studio re-organized and relatively clutter free! I can actually work in here now!
I also picked out a chair! Nothing like the ones I had featured a couple of posts ago, but nicer, studier and much cheaper than my other choices! Check it out!
2/07/2008 04:27:00 PM | Labels: Misc | 3 Comments