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Being a creative student is a weird, topsy-turvy feeling. On the one hand, you feel like you’re a success already. After all, you got on the course, which is no mean feat in itself. You’ve worked hard, and you earned the respect of your peers and your teachers. At times, you’re feeling good about your prospects, and ready to take on the world. But then there are those darker moments, when you get The Fear. Maybe you’re not as good as you think. What if nobody wants you? When you go for a job, will you be outclassed by rivals? Will your future be full of disappointment and bitterness? Don’t worry, we’ve all been there. Swinging between optimism and pessimism is just part of the student experience, so if your ambition is to work at a top creative agency, don’t let it put you off. Instead, put all your emotional energies into taking practical action, and confidence and certainty will eventually come as a result. Here, we lay out seven steps to achieving your dream... 01. Interrogate your motives Is working at a big firm like W+K London really your dream, or is it other people’s?Before you devote yourself to landing a job at a top agency, you first need to work out whether you’re fully committed. Be honest: is this truly your dream, or that of your parents, teachers or friends? Would you be better off working at a smaller, less well-known agency, where you’d probably get given more responsibilities right off the bat? In fact, you don’t even have to work at an agency at all: there are many great opportunities working as an in-house designer. Or if you’ve already got a flow of freelance work going, you could even just go freelance full-time. If you decide that working at a top agency is your undying goal, then great. But it’s a tough road ahead, so you really have to be sure you’re genuinely committed, and willing to put in 100 per cent… or it’s unlikely that you’ll succeed. 02. Do your research Top agencies like Pentagram have a ton of information and case studies on their sites, so take advantage and read everything thoroughlyThere’s one thing you must know about the seniors with the power to give you a job at a top agency: they have busy schedules and are constantly short of time. So if they give up vital minutes to read your CV, design portfolio or covering letter, or to chat to you in a job interview, they’re making a big sacrifice. And if you give the impression that you couldn’t be bothered to put in the effort to properly research or understand the company you’re applying to work at… well, they’re not going to be happy, to say the least. The good news is that, by definition, a well-known agency should be a doddle to research. So hoover up all the information you can glean from its website, its LinkedIn page and its social media accounts. Scour any mentions or press coverage of them on Google. Seek out insightful nuggets of info you might be able slip into conversations where relevant. That said, if you do get a job interview, don’t spit out facts like a machine: that’s just embarrassing. It’s not about showing off your knowledge of the company; it’s about being prepared for anything they ask you. And even if they don’t test your knowledge at all, that preparation will give you an inner sense of confidence that will be just as impressive. 03. Work on your passion projects Gavin Strange combines a full time job with Aardman with being a dad and completing multiple side projects. So what excuse do you have?You’ll find plenty of advice on Creative Bloq about the mechanics of applying for a job, from the things employers are looking for in your portfolio to 20 tips for design interview success and how to create the perfect resume. But when you’re applying for a job at a top creative agency, you have to assume that your biggest rivals will have nailed all these areas too. So what is it that will get you noticed, and truly swing the jury? Ultimately, when it comes to students and graduates, top creative agencies are looking for one, all-compassing thing: high-quality work. But at this stage in your career it’s unlikely you’ll have worked on many, or any, real-world client projects, so this is really going to fall down to your passion projects. What have you been working on, on the side, that conveys what you’re about, gives a sense of your personal style, and shows the kind of work you enjoy doing? (Conversely, if you don’t have any passion projects to show, then it’s basically a sign you have no passion, which is not going to get you very far at all.) So think about what really inspires you, and get moving. Can’t find time? Cancel your Netflix. Visit the pub less. Get up two hours earlier. You’re creative, so find creative ways to manage your schedule and create more time for what you enjoy doing. For more advice on this, check out our guide to Why you should make time for passion projects. 04. Enter competitions Winning a D&AD New Blood award can be a huge boost to your careerCreating impressive side projects is only one side of the coin. You need to let the world know about them, and hopefully get them liking and sharing them. The obvious way to do that is via an online platform like Behance or Dribbble, as well as on your own portfolio site and social media accounts. But one thing students often forget about – or lack the confidence to enter – is student design competitions. There’s no real downside to entering, because even if you’re not successful, nobody’s really going to know. And if you are successful, it’s a great way for you to get on the radar of top creative agencies, either because they’re following the contest themselves, or because the winners’ work gets shared by the design press and social media. Not all student design contests are equal, of course, and many lie on a spectrum between time-wasters and out-and-out scams. But others, such as the annual D&AD New Blood Awards, are well established and highly respected. Your tutors should be able to advise you on the best contests to enter for your discipline and skillset. 05. Network, network, network Design conferences, such as our own Generate event, can be a great way to network in the physical world It won’t surprise you to hear that jobs at top design agencies aren’t always awarded to the person who wrote the best covering letter, or even to the person with the best portfolio. A lot of it comes down to ‘cultural fit’: a vague, nebulous term that essentially means they like you on a personal level and think you will interact well with others in their team. Convincing them that you can do so is a lot easier if they know something of you already. So the more you can get your face out there and network, the better your chances. And that applies to both online and physical networking. So if there’s someone you really admire and would like to work for, why not send them a polite email asking for advice? Or check the conferences they’re attending on LinkedIn, and stroll up to introduce yourself in person? It’s important not to become too stalker-y, of course, but you’d be surprised at how often busy people appreciate the direct approach. 06. Be confident but not cocky Confidence will help you stand out, but cockiness is a turnoffFollowing on from that last point, when you’re seeking a job at a top design firm, you need to be direct about what you want. It’s unlikely that your passion project will be so brilliant that they will come to you and beg you to take a job. So at some point, you’re going to need to ask them for it, whether that’s through a formal application process, a chat in a conference bar, or somewhere in between. But being direct doesn’t mean being cocky, and being humble and friendly works better than being aggressive and pushy, in the creative industries at least. Steam in thinking you’re the big I-am, then, and you’re heading for a fall. Instead, balance self-belief with a recognition that you have a lot to learn (and are keen to do so). Hit that sweet spot, and people will be interested. For more advice, read How to thrive as a young designer. 07. Celebrate your mistakes Don’t beat yourself up over past mistakes, use them to your advantageWhen you’re at student or graduate level, you’ll have had more design failures than successes. So your natural inclination when interviewing will be to bend the truth and make out that you’ve achieved more than you really have. But that can be hugely counterproductive. Your employers have been around the block a few times, and will be able to sniff out exaggeration and false claims at a thousand paces. After all, they were once in the same seat as you, and as the saying goes, you can’t BS a BSer. But the good news is, design is not just about results, it’s about process. And if you can demonstrate that you’ve not only made design mistakes, but can identify how you would do it differently next time, that can be pretty impressive in itself. We’re not saying put terrible design work in your portfolio, of course; that would be dumb. But just remember that we all make mistakes – at senior level as well as junior – and an ability to demonstrate that you can learn from them shows a level of maturity that will set you apart from many a graduate. For more advice on getting work as a graduate, read our 5 golden rules for getting your first design job. Read more: 5 design agencies that do things differently 5 uses for stock images you might not have thought of 6 rock-solid ways to improve your graphic design portfolio View the full article
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You're reading Explore and Share Your Skills with Skillshare, the Learning Platform for Creatives, originally posted on Designmodo. If you've enjoyed this post, be sure to follow on Twitter, Facebook, Google+! Two years ago, I became a subscriber to Skillshare, a community of learners and creators. The creative director of a project I’ve been working for sent me an invite. Since then, I’ve been a loyal follower. Why? Because “the future belongs to the curious.” Designmodo readers can also enjoy two months of premium learning, which […] View the full article
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How to avoid creative burnout
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Creativity is a finite resource and something that needs to be managed properly and replenished at regular intervals before it’s used up. If creativity is our currency, we need to make sure we spend it correctly. But, with projects coming thick and fast for creative professionals, how can we do this? We all know a colleague who ignored the ‘red light’ signal until they drained themselves and crashed. If this happens, either your work quality will drop off or you'll start drawing blanks in client meetings. It takes a long time to recharge and recover from that. Having a system for idea generation is vital, while taking a break and soaking up the world around you is just as important. With that in mind, here are some tips for avoiding creative burnout. 01. Be a sponge Creatives need to act like sponges. They need to soak up what’s around them all the time. You never know what will be useful. Now, this isn’t a moan about there being less time to get work done. In fact, many talented creatives thrive in fast-paced, high-pressure environments. But when you’re taking projects from brief to roll-out as quickly as we do, it’s important to understand how your creative process works. So, in the interest of self-preservation and sanity I’ve learned to identify the ‘trigger points’ that spark creativity in myself. Some of what works for me may either be obvious or counter-productive to other people, but the point is being able to turn creativity into a process allows me to be more effective and efficient at work, without unnecessarily exhausting myself. 02. Go big I never think about ‘the project’ when I start working on an idea. I go straight for the wildest ideas with no regard for cost or practicality and then work back from there. Once you’ve explored the outrageously crazy ideas, then daring ideas seem much more realistic. 03. Zone out My best ideas come when I’m not really thinking about the idea itself and I’m left to my own devices. It can be a tough ask when you’re in the middle of a meeting and everyone’s staring at you, but letting your mind wander can really help. There’s evidence that being tired can help creative problem solving too, as your inhibitions are down. 04. Be social Having someone to bounce ideas off is invaluable. Firstly, physically speaking your ideas out loud forces you to examine them closely. And secondly, another person can stop you going off on strange tangents that take you further and further from the brief. 05. Bring on the wall Like bouncing ideas off someone, putting your thoughts onto a wall lets you stand back and examine what works together and what doesn’t. Elements that don’t fit can either be tweaked or removed altogether. It’s becoming a designer cliché to stick design work up on the wall and scratch your chin, but it really does work. Just don’t photograph it happening. 06. Restrict yourself I like to know what the boundaries are. “What can’t we do?” is one of the first things I’ll ask. A restriction gives you a framework to work within and, occasionally, a barrier to break down. 07. Ask questions It might sound silly but I interview myself about my ideas. I have a list of around 50 questions ranging from “How does this meet the client’s needs?” to “Have I seen this done before?” I don’t just mull these over in my head, either. I write down answers to each question. If there’s an answer I don’t like I go back to the concept and work on it. It’s a little Jekyll & Hyde but it really helps. Related articles: Can pro artists achieve mindfulness through art? How to balance money and happiness as a designer Doodle art: 52 great examples View the full article -
Justinmind is a prototyping platform that lets you design digital products without messing around with code – and it has just introduced an intuitive new interface that should put designers and developers on the same page at last. By adding Justinmind into their workflow, UX and UI designers can make their prototypes developer-friendly and ensure what they design is translated into the final product, with no miscommunications. The new interface includes a design inspector where developers can download assets, grab CSS styles and see all the information they need to start coding. What's more, Justinmind understands how developers think – screens are displayed in tree mode, to make them easier to understand and work with. Take a look at the video below, or read on to find out more. So how does Justinmind make things easier for developers? First up, it enables UI designers to pack graphical assets in a way that makes sense as part of the development workflow. Developers can see and copy all the CSS styles and UI element locations required to put the design together, and they can also download any necessary graphical elements. Secondly, it makes it simple for developers and designs to start collaborating early on in the prototyping process. In Justinmind, UX/UI designers can share prototypes for others to comment on. Not sure if your idea will be effective (or even possible) in reality? Share it with the dev team and ask for their thoughts before you waste hours designing it in detail. Finally, with Justinmind, you can add as many developer role users as you want, for free. That means you can make sure the whole team is on board, from brief to shipping. Download Justinmind now to streamline your prototyping workflow and remove the barrier between design and development. View the full article
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The past 24 hours has been a thrilling time for any Star Wars fans looking forward to Episode 8: The Last Jedi. Not only was the final trailer for the movie unleashed – revealing some exciting spoilers and along the way, so view it (below) with care – but to get everyone even more pumped, Disney also unveiled the official poster, and it's packed with things to talk about. Created in-house at Disney, the poster's a visual symphony in red, and it suggests that things are likely to get bloody in the second part of the third Star Wars trilogy. That's not a great surprise if the series is following a similar arc to the original trilogy, which would make The Last Jedi equivalent to The Empire Strikes Back, when things got really dark in the Star Wars universe. Disney's art team has done a fine job of cramming in as many characters as possible as per its favoured glossy composite classic movie poster design. There's Rey (Daisy Ridley), wielding a lightsaber, opposite confused emo bad guy Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) with his overblown weapon. We're delighted to see General Leia Organa right in the centre for what's going to be her final Star Wars appearance since Carrie Fisher sadly died last year, and she's surrounded by a host of other characters including Finn (John Boyega), Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) and creepy General Hux (Domhnall Gleeson), plus old favourites Chewbacca, R2-D2 and C-3PO. Spot the big similarityTowering above them all, though, is a hooded and grim-looking Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), and it's an interesting compositional choice. If you go back to the original Star Wars trilogy and look at the poster for The Empire Strikes Back, who will you find in a similar position? None other than arch Star Wars baddie and (spoiler) Luke's dad, Darth Vader. We're sure it's a deliberate choice on the part of Disney's designers; you'll have to draw your own conclusions as to what it might mean, though. We're sure the trailer might give you a little more food for thought, so if you've missed it so far today, here it is. Star Wars: The Last Jedi is out on 15 December 2017. Related articles: Star Wars artist on how to land that dream job 5 striking Star Wars posters 30 stunning poster designs to inspire you View the full article
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If you’re a 2D designer or illustrator who’d love to move into 3D but feel intimidated by 3D software, you’ll be interested in Cineware for Illustrator – a brand new Illustrator plugin that enables users to add and edit 3D objects directly inside Adobe Illustrator CC. Get Adobe Creative CloudCreated by MAXON, Cineware for Illustrator uses the same powerful 3D engine as the developer's other 3D modelling, animation, painting and rendering solution, Cinema 4D. The new plugin marks a welcome addition for artists and designers who regularly work with 3D art , creating a faster, more flexible workflow. Here's how it works: users can import any Cinema 4D file and tweak the view, lighting and textures to integrate 3D elements with 2D design. Alternatively, you can use 3D elements as templates when creating vector artwork in Illustrator CC All this means you can now complete a wealth of 3D tasks in Illustrator. These include visualising objects like product labels, incorporating rich 3D content into Illustrator compositions, and even arranging 3D elements as guides for form and perspective when creating vector artwork. Is this a Project Felix killer? One key difference between Cineware for Illustrator and Project Felix – Adobe’s simplified 3D app for graphic designers and illustrators – is that with Maxon’s plugin, you don’t have to leave the app for rendering. With Project Felix, when you’ve finished your design you’ll need to render your design into a high-quality asset that can be opened in Photoshop CC or Illustrator CC (and so on) to refine further. If you change your mind about part of the design - or the client requests a new edit - it’s back into the app to amend the changes, which you’ll, have to render out again. With Cineware for Illustrator, you import a Cinema 4D file in Illustrator, where you can rotate, zoom and position the 3D Object – and even change cameras, textures or light sources – directly in Illustrator. When you’re satisfied with the result, you can render your image directly in Illustrator. Changes can be made at any time and the image will re-render automatically. A jump start into 3D The creation of Cineware for Illustrator is the result of a partnership between MAXON and TurboSquid, the leading online source for 3D models. TurboSquid hopes that its input will give users of the plugin a "jump start" into the third dimension, thanks to a collection of ready-to-use 3D models. Users of Cinema 4D will also be able to create and share their own custom 3D content for use in Illustrator CC. “Cinema 4D has long offered a fantastic, easy-to-learn toolset for product visualisation and graphic design,” says Harald Egel, managing partner at MAXON. “With Cineware for Illustrator we’re making both the Cinema 4D toolset and 3D in general more accessible to designers, and plan to develop this workflow even further in the future.” Cineware for Illustrator features The tool makes it easy to imagine how 3D products, like packaging, could lookThe main features of Cineware for Illustrator include: 3D objects - Rotate, position and show/hide individual 3D objects from any Cinema 4D scene, all within Illustrator CC. Materials - Adjust the colour, reflection, luminance, transparency, and bump directly within Illustrator CC. Users can even apply vector artwork to the surface of 3D models. Cameras - Switch between preset cameras or use simple navigation tools to choose preferred viewing angles. Lights - Enable or disable lights, and change their colour to set a mood and emphasise shapes. Integrated workflow - Easily remove the background by choosing the automatically created alpha map so 3D elements can be integrated into existing vector artwork. Cineware for Illustrator is available at no cost for macOS and Windows 10 through the MAXON website. For Illustrator CC users that desire a rich, full-features 3D content creation experience, MAXON offers an attractive upgrade path to Cinema 4D. Related articles: 100 amazing Adobe Illustrator tutorials 30 free 3D models Adobe CC 3D tips for graphic designers View the full article
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Web developers keep the gears turning on all of our favourite applications and sites. It's a job that is as important as it can be rewarding and creative. If you want to get in on this exciting field, grab the Ultimate Front End Developer Bundle. You can get it now for just $39 (approx £30), which is a massive 96% off the full retail price of $1,016. For any aspiring web developer, the Ultimate Front End Developer Bundle is the perfect place to start learning. This collection of eight professionally-taught courses will teach you how to understand and code with the most important languages in web development, from JavaScript to HTML5 and CSS3. You'll finally be able to bring your dream designs to life as you work through 48 hours of actionable lessons. You can get the Ultimate Front End Developer Bundle on sale for just $39 (approx £30), 96% off the retail price. That’s a massive amount of savings on a bundle that could help you launch a new career, so grab this deal today. About Creative Bloq deals This great deal comes courtesy of the Creative Bloq Deals store – a creative marketplace that's dedicated to ensuring you save money on the items that improve your design life. We all like a special offer or two, particularly with creative tools and design assets often being eye-wateringly expensive. That's why the Creative Bloq Deals store is committed to bringing you useful deals, freebies and giveaways on design assets (logos, templates, icons, fonts, vectors and more), tutorials, e-learning, inspirational items, hardware and more. Every day of the working week we feature a new offer, freebie or contest – if you miss one, you can easily find past deals posts on the Deals Staff author page or Offer tag page. Plus, you can get in touch with any feedback at: deals@creativebloq.com Related articles: An introduction to frontend testing 3 handy Chrome extensions for frontend developers 25 top-class website templates View the full article
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We all know about the therapeutic benefits of creativity. Most of us, at some point, have experienced the sensation of becoming so immersed in a creative act that the world, and our worries, have melted away. Indeed, for many people, mindful drawing and colouring is an effective practice for achieving a focused, meditative state. But what about when you’re a professional artist? Can art still function as a vehicle for mindfulness or wellbeing when you’ve been drawing, painting or creating all day? What can artists do to escape when it all gets a bit much? Our article by Tom Manning of D&AD on How to balance money and happiness has useful everyday wellbeing advice for creatives, but here we'll delve into the art of creative mindfulness, with insights from professional artists on how they look after their mental health. Achieving inner peace "When you’re working to a brief it can be stressful to try to kerb your ideas and style to fit certain criteria," explains concept artist Izzy Burton. "You have to keep checks on yourself, which can break the flow." “I’m still looking for the perfect activity to release stress,” says Francesco MazzaLondon-based Francesco Mazza had a similar experience. "I started my career as a concept artist because of the mindfulness I experienced when I was drawing. After a few years of doing it as a professional, though, I’ve realised that drawing isn’t such an effective way to achieve mindfulness, because most of the time you have to meet the clients’ needs." Lately, Mazza has been working on personal projects in his spare time in an attempt to recreate a sense of inner peace. And it’s working. "I feel that this is the best way to escape from the pressure of a hectic life," he says. Toronto-based artist Bobby Chiu agrees that client work is often the source of stress. He also points out that far from being a guaranteed gateway to a meditative state, sometimes the creative process can be difficult and stress-inducing. Spring is Coming is one of the first images Bobby Chiu created after coming out of an 'artistic slump'"I've always found the initial steps of a painting or concept to be the most mentally tiring, because you have so many different things to think about and coincide. The stress comes when I have a creative task to accomplish, but I can’t seem to find an idea that I really like, and the deadline is looming." However, it’s a different story when it comes to execution. "If I just have to spend the rest of the day rendering something like fur on a creature or foliage, it can feel quite meditative," he says. "That’s when hours can go by in what feels like minutes. I usually leave these kind of tasks till the end of the day when I’m already a bit tired." To deal with stress, Chiu often goes jogging. He also practises the Wim Hof Method. "It’s a combination of breathing exercises, yoga, stretching, meditation and cold therapy," he says. "It’s quite refreshing." A mental refresher For Blue Zoo director and storyboard artist Chris Drew, swimming three or four times a week offers a similar mental release. "All I can focus on when I’m in the water is my breathing and my technique," he says. As a director he’s involved in every aspect of a production, which often means having several things to deal with at once. At times, this can feel overwhelming. He advises trying to focus on one thing at a time. "Multitasking isn’t a productive way to work," he adds, "so I try to finish one thing before moving onto another." An elf from 2015 Blue Zoo short More Stuff, which animator Simone Giampaolo directedSwiss animator Simone Giampaolo finds drawing on paper particularly effective for escaping reality. He says that switching everything off for an hour or so – phone, computer, tablet – and creating tangible art enables him to reach a state of mindfulness similar to meditating or dreaming. "In fact, after a few hours of addictive drawing I feel a little dizzy, like after a long sleep, but happier and more inspired than before starting. I come up with the best ideas for shorts or stories during or immediately after drawing or building something." Be aware of the here and now "Artistic escapism is great," agrees Dr Danny Penman, a qualified meditation teacher, journalist and author. "Creating something new is deeply satisfying and wonderfully therapeutic, but it’s important to avoid spending all of your time living in a mental fantasy world," he points out. Penman’s new book, The Art of Breathing, provides a guide to practising mindfulness, which he says is the single biggest thing an artist can do to enhance overall wellbeing. "My art style is fluid and sketchy," says Izzy Burton. "I like the energy that it has."Better still, mindfulness can be extremely good for boosting your creativity. To see how this works, Penman suggests taking a step back and asking yourself: What do I need to do to become more creative? He believes it requires three things: "First, you need to cultivate an open mind that can gather and then integrate new ideas. Second, you need to consciously notice the new ideas created by your mind and realise their significance – otherwise they’ll pass you by. And third, you need the courage to follow your ideas wherever they should lead – and the resilience to cope with the inevitable setbacks." Penman walks through a number of meditations and exercises in his 2015 book, Mindfulness for Creativity, which aims to help artists achieve all three objectives. Open your mind One creative who practises mindfulness is vis-dev and concept artist Almu Redondo. She says mindfulness is key to having an open mind and looking at the world in an objective way – which is what being an artist is all about. “Be open and curious about the world,” advises Almu Redondo"In both my personal and professional work, I purposely look for that mindful moment in my brain in which everything flows and is relaxed, but is also focused and receptive at the same time," Redondo says, adding that music, routine and exercise all help her achieve this state. "Have patience," she advises. "Everything comes if you put in the hard work – and remember to try to enjoy yourself while doing art." Burton agrees. "We do art because we love it. If you find yourself becoming stressed, take a step back and relax. Find a new way to approach art that doesn’t stress you out. I’ve found physical painting with acrylics helps me stay creative and calm when my digital work gets too stressful. That’s my meditation." This article was originally published in ImagineFX issue 151. Subscribe here. Read more: 26 books every graphic designer should read How Tove Jansson and the Moomins continue to inspire Doodle art: 52 great examples View the full article
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When approaching a model or scene that requires the refined modelling offered by sculpting, many 3D artists might assume this would be best achieved in a dedicated sculpting application. However, this may not be the best route because many of the leading 3D applications have their own sculpting workflow. This is true for Cinema 4D, which has an impressive sculpting platform, especially when mixed with BodyPaint, Cinema 4D’s 3D painting toolset. The sculpting toolset in Cinema 4D offers all the core features that most sculpting tasks will need, including symmetry, wax, and a non-destructive layer system, which is a powerful tool for managing the detail and additions in a sculpt. There is also the ability to project a sculpted mesh onto another one. This enables versioning of topology from an initial sculpt, alongside a robust baking toolset, which can create normal and displacement maps from a sculpt to use on a low-poly mesh. This is particularly useful for game asset creation. It isn’t just the tools that make the Sculpt workflow in Cinema 4D so refined; it has its own dedicated layout as well as the ability to customise an interface to the artist’s liking, while working with other workflows such as dynamics and animation. The Soloing function within Cinema 4D can be really useful for isolating a sculpted object in a scene to modify it. The fact that a sculpt can be tweaked while in the middle of an animation task is a potentially huge time-saver when compared to using an external sculpting application. Couple this with the financial saving of not having to buy another sculpting application, and it’s clear that if any sculpting needs to be done, the tools that Cinema 4D offers may well be all that is needed. 01. Prepare the base mesh Preparation makes all the difference (Click on the top-right arrows icon to enlarge this image) As with any 3D art, preparation is key. Before sculpting, ensure the base mesh has polygons of similar size over its surface. Doing this means that sculpting tools will flow consistently with no stretching of brush strokes. Having a polygon flow like this for the base mesh also means that when textures are baked from the finished sculpt, they should reapply to the base mesh reliably. 02. Subdivide the model Cinema 4D has a Sculpt layout (Click on the top-right arrows icon to enlarge this image) Switch to the Sculpt layout using the Layout dropdown. This reconfigures the Cinema 4D interface to present a toolset best suited for sculpting. Make sure that the base mesh is selected and press the Subdivide button to start increasing the amount of non-destructive subdivision levels upon which you can sculpt. A Sculpt Tag is added to the mesh in the Object Manager. To stop a rectangular object turning into a blob when subdividing, press the cog beside the Subdvide tag to reduce the Smoothness options. 03. Start sculpting Add layers to work with when sculpting, and use the Pull tool to, erm, pull (Click on the top-right arrows icon to enlarge this image) Although it is possible to jump in and just start sculpting straight away, if you want to keep organised it is a good idea to work with the sculpting layers system. Press the Add Layer button. With this new layer highlighted and renamed, select the Pull tool and start sculpting. Use the Ctrl/Cmd key to invert the pull to make gouges. The size and pressure can be adjusted in the Attributes palette, as can symmetry control and the ability to control pressure and size with a tablet. 04. Use masks Add images such as text on to your sculpt as masks (Click on the top-right arrows icon to enlarge this image) Images can be used for a range of tasks within the sculpting workflow, such as creating embossed text. Select the Mask tool and in the Stencil tab of the Attributes palette, import a black-and-white text bitmap. Apply this as a mask to the sculpted object. Once the mask is painted on, use sculpting tools such as the Pull and Smooth tool to create the embossed text. 05. Add noise and details Noise and details such as cracks add realism to your sculpts (Click on the top-right arrows icon to enlarge this image) Cinema 4D’s sculpting workflow has many ways to add noise and details to a sculpt. In the Settings tab of a sculpting tool, press the Brush Preset Load button (all the brushes are also available in the Content Browser). There is a choice of custom brushes, from noise to cracks, which are great for adding detail. Bitmaps can also be used, and materials are useful for bespoke noise brushes. 06. Bake the sculpt Bake out normal and displacement maps (Click on the top-right arrows icon to enlarge this image) When the sculpt is finished, use the Bake tool to bake out normal and displacement maps that are mapped back onto a base mesh to provide a low polygon asset that can be exported to other 3D applications or game engines. These assets also require fewer resources, so will improve viewport performance. When using the Bake Sculpt Objects tool, Cinema 4D creates a new low-poly mesh with all the correct maps applied and hides the sculpted object, finishing off a clean and simple approach to sculpting. This article originally appeared in 3D World issue 226. Buy it here. Related articles: Make realistic plants in Cinema 4D 14 essential Cinema 4D plugins 30 inspiring examples of 3D art View the full article
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One of the hardest challenges facing all artists is making the time to knuckle down to work. In an interview with Pascal Champion in issue 154 of ImagineFX magazine, the artist reveals how his workflow has changed over the years, and how unexpected events have made him more productive. Maybe his life story will inspire you to make changes and get on with creating amazing art? Buy issue 154 of ImagineFX here! Also inside issue 154, you'll find plenty of inspiration with our workshops, studio tours and artist profiles. There's also a host of incredible art from our readers to get your creative juices flowing – and don't forget, we're always open for submissions from our readers! Explore the headline features for the latest issue of ImagineFX by scrolling through the images below. Click here to subscribe to ImagineFX Art experts give you the lowdown on your burning questionsNot sure how to communicate a character's personality to your audience quickly? Or perhaps you don't know how to lip-sync your character with audio? You'll find the answers to these tricky conundrums and more thanks to the expert help in our Artist Q&A. Cracking feature, Gromit!We take a trip to the legendary Aardman Animations studio to meet the creative team behind such legendary characters as Morph, Wallace and Gromit, and Shaun the Sheep, to discover how its work ethos makes its famous creations possible. Bring your art to life with a splash of colourThe man behind our radiant cover, Randy Bishop, shows us how he makes use of clean lines, layer modes and lighting to create colour illustrations that seem to leap off the page. Discover how he did it with this workshop. Lovely weather for ducksWhat could be more perfect for the dank autumnal weather than this moody illustration tutorial? (Apologies to our readers in the southern hemisphere enjoying warmer climes.) In this workshop, Pascal Campion reveals how to use a scene to create a story thanks to characters, lighting, and focal points. Master another artistic medium with this core skills workshopGouache is an incredibly versatile medium that has all the advantages of watercolour, yet can be built up in opaque layers. To help you get to grips with gouache, Laura Bifano demonstrates the importance of edge control using four basic techniques to paint clouds. Related articles: 20 best iPad art apps for painting and sketching How to draw and paint - 100 pro tips and tutorials 10 incredible online art schools View the full article
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Here at Creative Bloq, we’re not against change: far from it. Every brand identity needs to evolve and change over time. So whenever a new version of a well-known logo is released, we like to give it the benefit of the doubt, especially if it follows a logo design tip from the experts. Rather than join the inevitable knee-jerk reaction against any redesign (which is nowadays amplified beyond all proportion by social media), our attitude is to sit back and wait a while for the new design to bed in, before making a rush to judgement. There are a small number of cases, though, where even in the fullness of time, a radical redesign of a much-loved logo seems like a mistake. In this post, we gather together seven such cases. 01. American Airlines The classic American Airlines logoWhen your logo has been created by an iconic designer like Massimo Vignelli, you want to hang on to it as long as possible. And to be fair, American Airlines stuck faithfully with this beautiful 1967 design (shown above) for a whopping 46 years. In 2013, though, they ordered a redesign. Of course, we don’t have a problem with that. Even our favourite classic logos, like the Coca-Cola logo, need updating now and again. But in this case, American Airlines weren’t looking for a few small tweaks, a light touch of modernisation, but a root-and-branch replacement (shown below). The new American Airlines logo introduced in 2013Created by Futurebrand, this new logo did give a few nods to its predecessor, using the same colours and incorporating the eagle, and we don’t deny it’s a lovely design. Yet call us sentimental nostalgists, but we miss the bold, majestic and distinctively American look of the original; while the current design feels like it could be a logo for any airline, anywhere on Earth. 02. Best Western The classic Best Western logoBest Western has had a number of distinctive logos since its founding in 1948. But it’s this 1993 creation, with its unusual colour scheme, weird typography and slightly crazy crown emblem, that we still hold dear in our hearts. Admittedly this logo, which had received only very minor tweaks over the years, could have done with a touch of modernisation, along the lines of redesigns by TGI Friday or Hooters, for example. But sadly in our opinion, last year the hotel chain instead threw the baby out with the bathwater, commissioning this brand-new logo from San Diego agency MiresBall (shown below). The new Best Western logo introduced in 2015This streamlined look is a perfectly serviceable design, but we’re sad that it makes such a break with the past and loses all the brand equity built up by the previous logo. Even the distinctive blue-and-gold colour scheme has been ditched, making it far harder to spot a Best Western hotel in the distance from your car or train carriage. Furthermore, by jettisoning the building-motif border, the new design fails to conveys ‘hotel’ in any meaningful way; it could easily be the logo for a software firm, a pharmaceutical company... anything, really. 03. Black & Decker The classic Black & Decker logoHere’s another beloved logo (above) that generations formed a deep emotional connection with. And sadly, it’s another design that’s fallen victim of the mania for uncontrolled minimalism. This classic 1984 logo for the hardware company, with its distinctive nut icon and bold condensed font, was replaced in 2014 by a brand new logo designed by New York consultancy Lippincott (shown below). The new Black + Decker logo introduced in 2014All that remains from the original is the justified stacking of the name, the ® mark and a similar, if muted, colour scheme. The new font is a vanilla sans-serif, the beloved icon has been discarded, and the ampersand has been replaced by a more modern plus sign. Don’t get us wrong: by itself this is a beautifully sleek and modern logo that would suit, say, a T-shirt brand, a sportswear company or an internet startup perfectly. But the sense of grunt and raw power conveyed by its predecessor is gone: and for a company known for its power tools that feels like a mis-step. Disagree with our opinions so far? Well, now you can relax. Because for the remaining logos on our list, even the companies themselves agree they shouldn’t have been ditched... 04. Gap The classic Gap logoThe Gap redesign debacle of 2010 has now passed into legend as a cautionary tale for logo designers everywhere. The mid-range clothing retailer had been happily using this classic type-based logo (shown above) since 1984 when suddenly and unexpectedly it introduced a dramatic revamp designed by Laird & Partners (below). The short-lived Gap logo introduced in 2010A complete departure from the original, the new logo was claimed to represent an evolution of the company from “classic, American design to modern, sexy, cool,” according to a Gap spokesperson at the time. But most people just thought it looked daft, and it kicked off one of the first design-related consumer backlashes of the social media stage. Gap withdrew the new logo after just one week of use and went straight back to the old design. 05. Tropicana The classic Tropicana logo Here’s another design that even the company realised should never have been changed. In May 2009, PepsiCo juice brand Tropicana decided that its classic logo, with its cartoonish feel, pleasing curve and leaf icon, was old hat. To bring it into the 21st century, they asked the agency Arnell (which has since closed its doors) to create new packaging. The redesign, shown below, was a radical one, featuring a new, minimalist wordmark and losing the iconic ‘orange speared by a straw’ emblem. The short-lived Tropicana logo introduced in 2009It was a complete disaster. Sales dropped 20 per cent because people didn’t recognise their favourite brand on the shelves. The company was bombarded with complaints, and it reverted to the previous design within two months. 06. Kraft The classic Kraft logoOkay, this one’s a bit confusing, but stay with us. This classic ‘racetrack’ logo for Kraft Foods shown above was in place from 1988-2012. But in 2009, Kraft Foods Inc the corporation (NOT Kraft the brand) released this totally new logo design, shown below, which had zero in common with it. The short-lived Kraft Foods logo introduced in 2009This bright and colourful logo is pleasant enough, but Kraft had sacrificed all its brand equity for no apparent reason; the ‘starburst’ emblem had zero connection to food and looked more like something you’d associate with an Olympic City bid. Thankfully, it didn’t last long. In 2011, Kraft Foods Inc. announced it would split into two new companies: Mondelez, for the global snacks business, and Kraft Foods Group. The former got a brand new logo; the latter reverted to a modified version of the old red-and-blue Kraft logo, and the confusing starburst logo was gone forever. Phew. 07. Co-op The classic Co-op logoIt’s rare for a retail brand to make a true emotional connection with the public. But the Co-op’s roots in the history of Britain run deep. Developing over 165 years from the merger of co-operative wholesale societies and independent retail societies, it remains today the largest consumer co-operative in the UK and is owned by more than 4.5 million active members. The Co-op has had a few logos over the years, but it’s this classic 1968 ‘clover leaf’ design that is most fondly remembered by generations of Britons today. The new design that replaced it in 1993 (shown below) is in our opinion starker, less friendly and welcoming, as well as being a little less legible. The Co-op logo introduced in 1993When North was asked to come up with a new identity for the Co-op for 2016, it pitched the idea of reinstating the 1968 logo... which is just what happened. “It’s a symbol and a wordmark and that’s impossible to beat for a graphic designer. It’s never dated,” North’s Sean Perkins told Creative Review. We couldn’t agree more. Related articles: 6 ways to improve your logo design 6 rock-solid ways to improve your graphic design portfolio 5 uses for stock images you might not have thought of View the full article
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Halo is an independent creative agency that has grown significantly over the past few years. Thankfully, an inclusive culture has ensured that everyone in the business can thrive as the numbers rise. Here, account manager Jo Bryan-Smith and client partner Hannah Williams share how accepting ideas from non-creative departments gives a healthy feeling of shared ownership in the studio, and has helped the studio to retain a strong identity to go alongside its impressive design portfolio. Read on to discover their tips, or scroll down to watch the video interview. 01. Play to everyone’s strengths “If you don’t have an in-house accounts team, everyone needs to have a defined role, and be clear about what they’re doing to help the client,” says Hannah Williams. “There will always be someone who’s better at rallying the troops and making sure everyone’s doing what they need to, and there’s always someone who’s really good with a client. Smaller agencies need to focus on their individual roles, and how they work as part of the collective.” When Williams joined Halo two years ago, there were 16 staff – now there are 28. “We’ve grown quickly, and the way we work with clients has changed dramatically, so communication is absolutely key,” she adds. 02. Encourage everyone to pitch in Halo has welcomed a lot of new studio members over the past few years“Our best work is created when everybody has had an input, and is aware of what’s happening,” argues Jo Bryan-Smith. “And it’s not just designers who get a chance to come up with concepts – it’s the web team, the accounts team, everybody has a voice.” Bryan-Smith believes that despite Halo’s rapid growth in recent years, the agency has managed to keep that strong ‘collective’ mentality intact because the original small team all had to pitch in to make the fledgling company a success, and it's still keen for everyone to do so. “We’re all aiming for the same goal,” Bryan-Smith points out. 03. Add specialised roles as you grow “As you get bigger, roles need to be more defined,” continues Bryan-Smith. “That’s how you get everything to work – account managers make sure that everybody is doing what they’re supposed to be doing, and everything gets delivered.” “I’m not being biased, but I think a really good accounts team is integral to a successful agency,” agrees Williams. “We’re making sure projects come in on time, on budget, and let’s be honest – we’re the ones who get shit done.” Video interview For further advice, watch Computer Arts' video interview with Jo Bryan-Smith and Hannah Williams of Halo below. This article originally appeared in Computer Arts magazine. Subscribe here. Read more: Studio vs freelance: The pros and cons How to make it in a top studio 10 rules for running a killer studio View the full article
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Web accessibility refers to the degree to which a website's UX design is available to as many people as possible. Most often, when we’re talking about web accessibility, we are describing how people with disabilities can access the web. 10 steps to an engaging user experienceThe common symbol of web accessibility is screen readers. A screen reader, as the name suggests, is an assistive technology that reads the text content of the screen to the person using the computer, output as speech audio or braille. Screen readers are usually associated with users who are blind or have impaired sight, but they can also be valuable to people with learning difficulties who find reading strenuous, or people who would just prefer to listen to audio content rather than reading text. Much like the accessibility of a building is not just about wheelchair access, the accessibility of a website is not just about screen reader access Much like the accessibility of a building is not just about wheelchair access, the accessibility of a website is not just about screen reader access. Paying attention to making a site accessible for one set of needs can often benefit other people, too. When we design our sites to be usable by many people, with a wide range of needs, we call it inclusive design. When we’re looking at how to make our sites usable for a wide range of needs, we can focus on five broad areas: visual, auditory, motor, cognitive, and motion-sensitive. We'll look at those areas in more detail now. Visual accessibility: Make it easy to see Making our sites easy to see can benefit people with visual impairments, people who are colour blind, and even people who are just trying to use their mobile device in bright sunlight. Screen readers can benefit people who cannot see the contents of the screen. So in order to make our sites accessible to screen readers, we can start by trying to use relevant HTML elements to describe our content. For example, use <ul> for an unordered list. Not only will this make it easier for a visitor to understand how that chunk of content differs from plain text, but it will also enable the browser to provide additional cues and behaviour. When we use <ul> to describe the list, and <li> for each list item, the browser can inform a user that there is a list, how many items are in the list, and enable the user to easily skip between items. Providing text alternatives to visual content is another easy win. If we use the alt text attribute on images to provide descriptive alternative text, it won’t just benefit people using screen readers. If someone is on a poor internet connection, and a page’s images haven’t loaded, the alternative text can benefit them too. Plus when a search engine bot indexes a site, it will also use the structure defined in the HTML to assess the relevance of the content, and what to present in search result previews. Auditory accessibility: Make it easy to hear Freelance TV has beautifully designed transcripts that complement the interview video, as well as being an accessible alternative to the video content Providing alternatives to audio content can benefit people who are profoundly deaf, have mild hearing impairments, or even people who have forgotten their headphones but are trying to watch a video from the quiet carriage on a train. Audio and video content can be completely inaccessible if alternatives are not provided. Captioning and subtitles can be costly and time-consuming, but are increasingly used for videos on social media, as these videos often autoplay without sound. Captioning these videos doesn’t just work for people with muted audio, but also for people with hearing impairments. For longer audio and video, transcripts can be an efficient text alternative, and they are also easily indexed by search engines. Motor accessibility: Make it easy to interact with Laura Kalbag is the author of the book Accessibility for EveryoneSince the advent of touchscreens and mobile devices, we are more aware of how differently people can interact with the web, depending on how they hold a device and the input required. People with limited fine motor control can additionally find it difficult to move a mouse accurately, or can find typing time-consuming and tedious. One important way to improve a site’s interaction is to ensure keyboard navigation is possible We can make the interactive elements on our sites more accessible by increasing the hit areas on links and buttons, so they require less accuracy with a mouse or touchscreen. Making forms with fewer free text fields can limit how much typing is required, and providing preset options through checkboxes and radio buttons can help someone provide more information without needing to type so much. These considerations could also benefit a person just trying to use a touchscreen out in the rain, where their touch and typing accuracy is reduced. Another important way to improve a site’s interaction is to ensure keyboard navigation is possible, since many people using screen readers will rely on their keyboards to interact with a page. Considering how a person could use a site without hover or click functionality may also benefit people using mouse alternatives such as head-tracking, eye-tracking, or foot-operated mice. Cognitive accessibility: Make it easy to understand Make it easy for your users to find what they wantThe content itself also needs to be accessible. Making your content and interface easy to understand could benefit someone with learning difficulties. Ensuring text content is concise will make a difference to someone who finds reading difficult and time-consuming. Using plain language could also help someone who speaks a different language natively, so doesn’t understand metaphors or jargon. Even if a person is in a stressful situation and just needs to find the information quickly, using headings and lists will make it easier to skim through a large block of text to find the required information. The Legal Services of Northern California website knows its visitors are likely to be there because they need legal help, so the homepage is designed to quickly direct them to the most relevant information. Designing for seizure-prone and motion sensitive visitors We can generally avoid causing seizures in visitors to our websites by avoiding rapidly flashing content. Motion sensitivity is a little more complex. Since animation and parallax scrolling became very popular, it can be easy to make people with motion sensitivity ill through inconsiderate design. It is always best to give the visitor control over how much motion there is on a page, and to avoid suddenly triggering animation without first giving the visitor the ability to disable it. Get started with accessible web design Inclusive Design Patterns is a useful resource for accessible web designsThese simple examples are just a tiny preview of how we can improve accessibility on the web. Much like learning about responsive web design or frontend web development, accessibility is a field where best practices are continually evolving and improving. Following the work of accessibility experts and advocates will help you stay up to date. Integrating accessibility into your research and testing practices will ensure you understand accessibility in the context of your own projects. To get you started, here are a few accessibility resources: Accessibility For Everyone book by Laura Kalbag Inclusive Design Patterns book by Heydon Pickering A Web For Everyone book by Sarah Horton and Whitney Quesenbery Color Accessibility Workflows ebook by Geri Coady Tink blog by Léonie Watson The Paciello Group's Axess Lab articles The A11y Project accessibility tutorials Web Axe blog and podcast HTML5 Accessibility site – tests which new HTML5 features are accessibly supported by major browsers W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines Related articles: 30 Chrome extensions for web designers and devs 23 steps to the perfect website layout 3 top ways to build a website prototype View the full article
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Where would we be without punctuation marks? In a land of grammatical misunderstandings, that's where! (See, we're only three sentences into this article and punctuation is already helping to make sense of everything.) However there are some typographic symbols that have fallen out of fashion, and it's the mission of the Progressive Punctuation movement to bring them back. Chances are you've sometimes wished that the forgotten symbols dusted off by Progressive Punctuation – such as the sarcasm mark – were more widely used. After all, written communication is a complex thing, and it can be easy to misinterpret what a person means simply by reading their words alone. As Progressive Punctuation explains on its site, "nuances like sarcasm, certitude, and irony can be difficult to convey because of the gap between our expression in verbal language versus written language." 50 top typography tutorialsSo what are these mysterious symbols, and how can they help us? The full list of 14 symbols on the Progressive Punctuation site covers emotions and ideas such as sarcasm, doubt, and irony. You could argue that if a person wants to convey these feelings then they should rely on their words instead of their punctuation, but we've all probably had a straightforward text message or email completely misinterpreted at some point because they read differently to how the writer intended. Plus, they look more professional than emoji. The sarcmark could come in handy when making jokes on the internetOn the Progressive Punctuation site you can explore the meanings behind all of these forgotten typographic symbols, as well as finding out who invented them and examples of when they should be used. By raising awareness of these symbols, Progressive Punctuation wants to bring them back into the mainstream and get typographers to include them in their work. The site is also interested in hearing about any symbols it has missed. So if you know about one that isn't yet on the homepage, or perhaps you've even invented your own, be sure to send Progressive Punctuation an email to let it know all about it. Related articles: 10 typographic mistakes everyone makes (including us) 100 amazing Adobe Illustrator tutorials The 28 best typography apps View the full article
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You'd be forgiven for thinking that the images in this article are photographs. But we assure you, they're not. Each and every one is hand-drawn pencil art – many of them in beautiful black and white. Here, some seriously talented illustrators have pulled out their best pencils and drawing techniques to create some truly exceptional pencil art. Featuring celebrity portraits, animals, natural scenes, everyday objects and famous landmarks, there's something to inspire you in each artwork here. Enjoy... How to draw and paint - 100 pro tips and tutorials01. Franco Clun – Anne Hathaway Amazingly, Clun has had no formal artistic training This incredible portrait of Hollywood actress Anne Hathaway is the work of Franco Clun, a self-taught artist from Italy who has picked up everything he knows about drawing from reading manuals and plenty of practice. 02. Paul Cadden – Shower Cadden's illustrations are frighteningly realisticWhen we first saw the work of Scottish artist Paul Cadden, it took a while for us to realise that they were in fact pencil drawings – the hyperrealist artist used just graphite and chalk to create these stunning images. "Although the drawings and paintings I make are based upon a series of photographs and video stills, I use softer and more complex focuses on the subject so that the resulting art presents it as a living, tangible being," he explains. "These objects and scenes in my drawings are thus meticulously detailed to create the illusion of a new reality not seen in the original photo." 03. Cath Riley – Flesh This series by Cath Riley features hyperrealistic pencil drawings of fleshCath Riley's pencil drawings are amazing to look at, but she regards her hyperreal work as just a stage in her ongoing evolutionary process of exploration and development. She's now moving in more experimental and abstract directions in her work, including very large scale drawing projects based around the human figure. Her incredible pencil drawings are included in collections all over the world, and she has worked with clients including Nike, GQ, M&C Saatchi, The Economist, and The New York Times. 04. Armin Mersmann – Trees Mersmann's work has been featured in exhibitions all over the worldGerman artist Armin Mersmann is the man behind this chilly woodland scene. Although he also works with oils, Mersmann is most known for his intense naturalistic graphite drawings. His work has been featured in more than 150 exhibitions and has won him over 30 awards. "The very act of drawing every branch, twig, highlight and shadow, rendering textures from the extreme winter skins to the silkiness of new-fallen snow, transforms the scene into an intimate journey. This undertaking is considerably different than merely taking a photo or simply being there," he explains on his site. "The drawing process immersed me for hundreds of hours, interpreting and translating what I saw and felt from hundreds of reference photos, collected branches, twigs, and revisits to the site." 05. Diego Fazio – Sensazioni It's almost impossible to believe this incredible image is a pencil drawingEntitled Sensazioni (sensations, in English) this mind-blowing pencil drawing was created by artist Diego Fazio. Over a period of roughly 200 hours, Fazio drew this intricate piece, which we still – no matter how long we look at it – cannot believe is a drawing. Simply amazing. 06. Stefan Marcu – Gorilla Stefan pushes himself to create his best work possible"From the age of five I started drawing, and over time I added more skills, such as drawing, painting, sculpture, all types of graphic design, caricature and digital photography," explains Stefan Marcu, the artist behind this stunningly realistic gorilla portrait. "My focus is on the study of art and my personal development in all its branches, and I am obsessed with excellence in the creation of any product." Marcu created this study of a gorilla as his entry for The National Open Art Competition UK. "I'm pleased with the piece as it personally represents a big leap in scale, detail and patience," he says. "It is roughly twice the size of my previous work and I learnt a lot working on this beast." 07. Giacomo Burattini – Apnoea Burattini believes his work highlights the beauty of imperfection"Hyperrealism in my work displays the beauty of the imperfections perfectly, opening a door within the subject that is not normally depicted in real life," says Italian artist Giacomo Burattini, who drew this unusual portrait. "I believe reality is a beauty in itself so I don't need to find ways to hide the imperfections of human nature so my work shows the perfection of the imperfections of life." Burattini found an audience by sharing his pencil drawings on Tumblr, Facebook and Instagram, where he regularly shares his works in progress. This drawing was created using black coloured pencils, graphite pencils and charcoal. 08. Paul Lung – Mui Chu Lung specialises in super-realistic furThis mindblowingly realistic image of a cat was created by traditional artist Paul Lung. The Hong Kong-based creative's portfolio on Deviant Art is astonishing, featuring realistic portraits of both humans and animals. The time in which each takes depends on his subject matter, with this particular A2 pencil drawing taking Lung approximately 60 hours to complete. 09. Jay Varma – Inner Courtyard Varma captures every tiny detail in his coloured pencil drawingsGive self-taught artist Jay Varma a set of coloured pencils and a piece of paper and it will undoubtedly result in a gorgeous illustration, like this architectural study. Art runs throughout Varma's family, his grandfather being master oil painter Raja Ravi Varma – one of the most highly regarded artists in India. Jay Varma's skills have been recognised by many, with his work featuring in various prominent publications. In his pencil drawings, Varma pays particular attention to mood and lighting. 10. Randy Owen – Samuel L Jackson Owen creates portraits like this in his spare timeRandy Owen creates incredibly realistic pencil drawings – like this image of Samuel L Jackson, drawn using Mars Lumograph black pencils – in his spare time. On his ridiculously good Deviant art portfolio, he explains his aim: "Portraying the human essence in a traditionalist manner, while not being ignorant about contemporary trends, is my goal as a craftsperson." Next page: 10 more incredibly realistic pencil drawings 11. Linda Huber – Light bulb Even the simplest of objects can make stunning illustrationsLinda Huber has been practising the art of drawing with a pencil for several decades. Inspired by her surroundings, Huber draws everything from portraiture to inanimate objects, with each piece taking anywhere from 20-80 hours. Huber comments on her site, "Drawing in the style of realism is what I love to do, to recreate life as we see and know it with just a simple pencil is exciting to say the least." 12. Ken Lee – Girl on Fire It took a while for us to believe this was hand-drawn. You can see why...UK-based artist Ken Lee is the man behind this stunning pencil drawing. He was inspired to draw this image, based on the Hunger Games blockbuster Mockingjay (Part 2), as a follow up to a Spider-Man 3 drawing that earned him plenty of fans. The level of detail in this – from the mockingjay bird to the fire effects – proved to be a particular challenge. "I must say I did have reservations about drawing this," he says on his Deviant Art page. "I knew I was in for the long road once I started it... I need a long break now!" 13. Mark Stewart – Peter Capaldi Stewart has spent years perfecting the art of pencil drawingsArtist Mark Stewart drew this incredible portrait of Peter Capaldi as Doctor Who in graphite pencil. Stewart's artistic career began when, after graduating from an art and design course in London, he was hired as a wildlife illustrator. The years that followed saw Stewart perfect his skills, producing highly detailed traditional wildlife illustrations in watercolour and gouache. He now works exclusively in graphite pencil producing highly detailed drawings, mostly portraits. "My aim is to produce drawings that are realistic in nature but highly stylised," he explains. "I also very much want them to be recognised as drawings and not mistaken for photographs." 14. Martijn Versteeg – Audrey Hepburn We love this realistic illustration of film icon Audrey HepburnMartijn Versteeg is an artist from The Netherlands, who appears to have a small obsession with Audrey Hepburn, judging by the number of portraits he has drawn of the film star. But, more importantly, he also has massive amounts of talent in the art of pencil drawing. For the past few years, he has also been experimenting with oil painting. If you're having trouble believing that this is a drawing rather than a photograph, you can watch a making-of time-lapse video above. 15. Keith Moore – Big Ben Practise makes perfect with Moore's hyperrealistic work"I love the challenge of creating small scale hyperrealistic graphite pencil art without compromise," says artist Keith Moore. Practising his personal techniques and refining his toolset, Moore has been embracing the liberation of high definition digital photographic referencing. And we think his work is all the better for it. 16. Andy Buck – Dimples This adorable pencil drawing was done by UK artist Andy Buck'Dimples' is, unbelievably, an A-Level coursework piece created by UK artist Andy Buck as a teenager. His online portfolio has a fantastic selection of realistic graphite drawings, some of which took him up to 100 hours to complete. Buck comments on his site, "Whenever I start a drawing it is always my aim to achieve photorealism, this strive for perfection is the reason I have continued to draw." 17. Justin Meyers – A Door in Homer, Nebraska This illustration makes it easy to see why Justin Meyers specialises in graphite drawingsUS-based artist Justin Meyers specialises primarily in graphite and charcoal drawings on paper. And with this textured old doorway as an example of his work, we can see why. Talking about his work on his site, Meyers says: "My works in graphite and charcoal strive to explore the use of simple material to portray simple subject matter and composition with a borderline eccentric approach to detail." 18. Dirk Dzimirsky – Magnetic Field This Dzimirsky pencil drawing is startlingly realisticGerman artist Dirk Dzimirsky draws and paints the most stunning up-close-and-personal portraits. A master of his craft, the artist captures every bit of fine detail perfectly, from the moisture in his subject's eyes to lines and fine hair. Although, like most hyperrealist artists, he works from photos, Dzimirsky emphasises that this is only an intermediary step. "Before I take photos for a new project I already have a precise idea of how the future work should look as a drawing or painting. I set up the photographs that I then use as templates," he explains. 19. David Kao – Audi R8 David Kao's R8 looks so realistic you can imagine it cutting you up on a motorwayDavid Kao first started drawing cars when he was just three years old. But it was only at the age of 19, after his father took him to his car garage, that Kao began to take his art and realism seriously. Now the artist has a stunning portfolio of ultra-realistic car drawings. Included is this gorgeous Audi R8, which Kao created using a graphite pencil, tissue, eraser, and brush in approximately 10 hours. 20. Josi Fabri – Frodo and Sam At first glance, you'd be forgiven for thinking this was a press shotThis amazing illustration was created by Brazilian artist Josi Fabri, who draws inspiration from favourite musicians and movies – including The Lord of the Rings trilogy, of which she is an avid fan. "For many, The Lord of the Rings means a fantasy book with its clichés. A story full of fantastic characters, about honour, loyalty, ambitions, sacrifices, power, great deeds taken by great men," Fabri says. "But there is another thing that has nothing to do with pure fantasy or magic… This drawing is about friendship." Related articles: How to draw a dog portrait Top tips for drawing in black and white 10 expert tips for charcoal drawing View the full article
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Have you ever seen a colour that you absolutely love but have no idea how to describe or recreate it? There are great colours all around us, and with the Nix Mini Color Sensor, you can finally capture any colour that you see with ease. You can get it for just $69 (approx £53). Colours can spark creativity the second you see them, and you never know when you’re going to have one catch your eye. When it does happen, you can capture the exact colour you spot and reproduce it in any capacity with the help of the Nix Mini Color Sensor. This scanning device matches any shade to a colour library of more than 28,000 brand name paint colours, as well as RGB, HEX, CMYK, and LAB colours, so you'll never have to guess and feel uncertain about your colours – you’ll always have the exact one you're after. The Nix Mini Color Sensor usually retails for $99, but you can save 30% off the full price of this powerful tool with this deal, available for the next 7 days. That means you pay just $69 (approx £53). Get the Nix Mini Color Sensor and never miss out on the perfect colour again. About Creative Bloq deals This great deal comes courtesy of the Creative Bloq Deals store – a creative marketplace that's dedicated to ensuring you save money on the items that improve your design life. We all like a special offer or two, particularly with creative tools and design assets often being eye-wateringly expensive. That's why the Creative Bloq Deals store is committed to bringing you useful deals, freebies and giveaways on design assets (logos, templates, icons, fonts, vectors and more), tutorials, e-learning, inspirational items, hardware and more. Every day of the working week we feature a new offer, freebie or contest – if you miss one, you can easily find past deals posts on the Deals Staff author page or Offer tag page. Plus, you can get in touch with any feedback at: deals@creativebloq.com Related articles: 12 colours and the emotions they evoke How to master colour theory The best colour tools for web designers View the full article
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The latest major release of Node.js brings many significant improvements to the JavaScript community, including an updated JavaScript engine, npm version 5, Google's V8, Node.js API, async_hooks, a WHATWG URL parser, more secure Buffers and more. Here we'll update you on these features and the other most important aspects of this release. Node.js 8 is released under the code name Carbon, and is available now from the Node.js site. It will be actively worked on for another 18 months (no new features, just bug fixes, security improvements and npm updates), before going into maintenance mode. As with previous releases, during maintenance mode releases will only receive critical security updates and bug fixes. 20 JavaScript tools to blow your mindIt is safe to say that since Node.js has been around, this is one of the biggest updates that the runtime has ever received – it changes how native add-ons are written and also brings additional security and performance improvements. RisingStack has been helping companies succeed with Node.js for four years with training, consulting or development. One of the biggest struggles we had was adding native dependencies to projects. Before Node.js 8, if applications were dependant on modules with native code, whenever major new Node.js versions arrived, as an application maintainer you had to recompile your dependencies. If you were lucky, they worked at first. This process was made possible with the tremendous work module maintainers put into making their modules work across incompatible Node.js versions, mostly with the help of a module called NAN (Node.js Native Abstractions). This process is far from ideal, as lots of companies failed to get their dependencies updated if they could not be compiled, and it also put a huge extra workload on module maintainers. To solve this issue, the Node.js API (or N-API) was introduced. 01. Enter the Node.js API Machine agnostic: Native modules now work with Microsoft’s Chakra as well as different Node.js versionsThe Node.js API is one of the most significant improvements of Node.js 8. It brings a well-defined ABI (Application Binary Interface) to Node.js to make its virtual machine agnostic. This means that native modules will not only work with different Node.js versions using Google's V8 JavaScript engine, but with Microsoft's Chakra too. For now, the N-API is in an experimental state, meaning significant changes may happen to both the implementation and the API. With this said, native module maintainers are encouraged to try out the new interface and give feedback. If you are a module maintainer, you can release an N-API version of your module in parallel with your main module version. To do so, the official recommendation is to publish a version of your module with the n-api tag to npm. To publish an N-API version, you have to: Publish the non-N-API version as normal. Publish the N-API version: Update the version in the package.json file by adding a dash and the napi tag – so if you had 1.0.0 previously, it becomes 1.0.0-napi Publish to npm using npm publish --tag n-api This way you ensure that the N-API version won't become the latest release, so if someone installs your module, by default they get the non-N-API version. Yarn, the package manager created by the engineers of Facebook, was released in October 2016. It tried to address some shortcomings of the official npm client, mostly by becoming more performant and deterministic. Most of these innovations are featured in npm 5 as well. 02. Say hello to npm 5 Just like Yarn, npm 5 introduced a lock-file mechanism – whenever you are installing a new dependency to your project, it will be added automatically not just to package.json, but a new file called package-lock.json as well. You may ask what the difference is between package-lock.json and npm-shrinkwrap.json, as npm-shrinkwrap has been in npm since forever? Long story short, they are essentially the same, but package-lock.json is automatically created. Their purpose is to describe exactly what dependency tree npm must create for your package. If you have both, npm-shrinkwrap will take precedence. Based on npm's recommendation, you should use npm-shrinkwrap.json if you want to publish it, so your module consumers will use it too. On the other hand, you should use the package-lock.json internally – even checked into repositories. But improvements to npm 5 have not stopped with adding a lock file – with the new version, all the modules you are installing are automatically saved as well, and they will be added both to your package.json and package-lock.json file. The way npm scripts work has also changed a bit. First of all, preinstalled scripts now run before everything else, so they can modify the node_modules directory before the CLI actually reads it. Besides this, two new scripts have been added – prepack and postpack. They both run on npm pack and npm publish as well, but not on npm install. In the heart of Node.js is the JavaScript engine that interprets your JavaScript code, creates bytecode from it and lets your application run. With the new Node.js 8 release, this was updated as well. 03. Updated JavaScript Engine Big news: Node.js will be able to update the V8 engine without a major release With the updated V8 engine, major performance improvements are introduced – but more importantly, it is guaranteed to have a forward-compatible application binary interface. This means that Node.js will be able to update the V8 engine without a major Node.js release. This is crucial, as the newer versions of the V8 engine will introduce a new compiler pipeline, which will introduce further performance improvements to Node.js. This update was so important that it was the reason the original Node.js 8 release date was postponed. The current pipeline is way too complex, and introducing new language features usually means touching multiple parts of the pipeline. With the new pipeline, it will become a lot simpler. Ignition, the new interpreter, and TurboFan, the new optimising compiler, have been in development for almost three and half years. They are the foundation on which new language features will be built upon. They include the experience that the V8 team at Google collected from measuring real-life JavaScript applications. 04. Welcome Async Hooks To better understand what Async Hooks are, let's take a step back and get to grips with continuation-local storage first. They work like thread-local storage in threaded programming, but in Node.js it uses callbacks to pass down context. Imagine that you are writing an application that fetches a product from the database, then later on you want to send it out in your HTML response: Later on, if you want to access the user object, all you need to do is grab it from the local storage: This technique is extensively used by application performance monitoring providers, such as Trace by RisingStack, to keep execution context and collect monitoring information from production systems. With Async Hooks, a similar feature is moved to the Node.js core – it helps track asynchronous requests and handlers through their lifecycle. The async_hooks module provides an API to register callbacks tracking the lifetime of asynchronous resources created inside a Node.js application. 05. Improved promise support Before Node.js 8, if you wanted to use the core modules in an application that uses Promises, you had to manually wrap the core modules so they could be used the same way. It looked something like this: With Node.js 8, a new helper method is added to the util core module, util.promisify. It allows standard Node.js callback-style APIs to be wrapped in a function that returns Promises. Using this function, the above snippet is simplified and becomes this: 06. More secure Buffers Before Node.js version 8, Buffers allocated using the new Buffer(Number) constructor did not initialise the memory space with zeros. As a result, new Buffer instances could contain sensitive information, leading to serious security problems – even popular modules such as mongoose, ws or the request module were affected. But how did we get there? When JavaScript was moved from the browser to the server side, there was a need for fast and easy data processing – so the Buffer class was added. Buffer is a mutable array of binary data. When used with the constructor that asks for the size of the new Buffer, it just reserved the memory space, but did not clean it. As your server can serve multiple users at the same time (unlike your browser), it is possible that the freshly allocated memory space contains sensitive information from other users (even passwords!), and can potentially be exposed to an attacker. While it was an intentional decision to boost the performance of the new Buffer creation, for most of us, it was not the intended use – even if it was documented. Because of this, starting with Node.js 8, Buffers allocated using new Buffer(Number) or Buffer(Number) will be automatically filled with zeros. 07. Changes in debugging Before Node.js 8, if you wanted to debug your Node.js applications, one of the easiest solutions was to start the built-in debugger, using node debug index.js. With Node.js 8, this is being removed and replaced by node-inspector. You can still use the CLI debugger, but it will be removed shortly. From now on, you should use node --inspect index.js, or node --inspect-brk index.js if you want the debugger to put a breakpoint on the first line of the application. Once you run it, you will receive a WebSocket link that Google Chrome can use to connect its debugger. You should head over to chrome://inspect in your Chrome browser, and it will automatically recognise the running Node.js application, enabling you to connect. After you have connected to your process, you will get Chrome's debugger to inspect your running Node.js application. 08. Introducing static error codes Previously, if you wanted to check an error you received in runtime and act accordingly, in most cases you had to check the error message. This was error prone, as error messages may have changed with new Node.js versions. With Node.js 8, static error codes have been assigned to most of the errors – it is still a work-in-progress, but once it is finished, these error codes won't change, even if the message in the error does. For example, the newly introduced WHATWG URL API will throw an ERR_INVALID_URL error in the following snippet, as the parameter is not a valid URL: As you can see, the release of the Node.js 8 update has brought plenty of new and exciting improvements to the JavaScript community. To start experimenting with all of these new features yourself, head over to nodejs.org, download the Node.js 8 binary and start playing with your new toolset! This article originally appeared in net magazine issue 296. Buy it here. Related articles: 20 Node.js modules you need to know 30 Chrome extensions for web designers and devs 3 top ways to build a website prototype View the full article
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Yesterday, three leading artists from around Europe set off on a road trip like no other. Road to MAX is a nine-day journey across America, sponsored by Adobe, that aims to open up fresh viewpoints, push creative limits, and inspire the next generation of photographers. You can join the artists as they document their trip at #RoadToMAX17. The journey kicked off in Los Angeles yesterday and will end in Las Vegas ready for the launch of Adobe MAX, The Creativity Conference, which will run from 18-20 October. The lucky individuals on board are Rich McCor from the UK, Thomas Kakareko from Germany and Nathalie Geffroy from France – all celebrated photographers with their own unique aesthetics. The #RoadtoMax17 photographers will be creating inspiring work along three visual themes: Nature, people and the artificial world. With the aim of using creativity to unlock new perspectives, the trio will be challenged to capture iconic landmarks – from Beverly Hills to Palm Springs to the Grand Canyon – in novel and exciting ways. They'll also be pushing their own boundaries by exploring their travel companions' distinctive visual styles. Rich McCor is one of the talented artists on his way across AmericaTo make this all possible, the artists will be making the most of the entire collection of Adobe apps, from Photoshop to Capture CC. They'll also have the chance to play around with the latest Creative Cloud photo tools (which will be officially launched at Adobe MAX), to see what possibilities they offer. The Road to MAX journey is all about using creativity to challenge perspectives: Enabling creative collaboration, using new tools and plenty of experimentation to see the world through new eyes. If you want to join these three top photographers on their journey – and get a sneak peak of the new tools Adobe will be announcing at MAX – you can follow their progress in their travel diary. View the full article
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You're reading Web Development Portfolio Tips: Ultimate Guide to Show Your Skills, originally posted on Designmodo. If you've enjoyed this post, be sure to follow on Twitter, Facebook, Google+! Portfolio design articles usually focus on creating portfolios for visual designers. But web developers & programmers need portfolio sites too! Custom developers portfolios typically have varying trends for showcasing their work. It’s tough knowing where to start a new website but it helps if you can study others to get some ideas. That’s why I’ve […] View the full article