Fruit Crate Label.

This image was created in 2 steps. The first step was using Inkscape to create the label following the style of some labels that I own. The main letters were broken into individual paths and a radial gradient was applied to each letter individually. The label was exported as a png image.

The second step was to open a wood texture in Gimp. The label png was imported as a layer and some weathering and a drop shadow were added. Text was added to the wood to create the effect of a stamp on the crate.

Vector Art Noveau.

This was drawn in Inkscape using the spiro function instead of the bezier function. The spiro functions make smoother curves simpler to draw. The flourishes in this drawing were created by adding interesting curves together and mirroring the results to produce the four corners.
The colours used help produce the retro feeling of the image. A white hilight was added to the gold portions of the image. These hilights were created by making a copy, changing the fill to white and the stroke off, adding a dynamic offset to reduce the width, and adding a blur. I still need more practice to consistantly produce this style, but it is a fun style to play in.

Ideal Workspace.

I have been thinking about all the posts on various blogs about ideal workspaces. So I present my take on what needs to be in the ideal creative workspace. The first thing that should be prominently displayed is your Artistic Licence. The full list of items needed for a fully functioning space are: Creative Juices, Liquid Courage, a pair of rose colored glasses, Elbow Grease, brass tacks, Gumption, bootstraps, a thinking cap, circular file, Pearls of Wisdom, Nuggets of Truth, Seeds of an Idea, Reality cheques, and a full deck. Any space that is stocked with these items will be guaranteed to be a good workspace.

Hungry Skull.

This is a quick drawing that I did using Inkscape. I was playing with the idea of replacing one of the bones in a pirate flag with a half chewed chicken leg. I think it turned out kind of fun. I didn't use any transparency or gradients. I am still not sure if the final image is a warning sign for trans-fats and fried foods or a bad logo for a fried chicken restaurant.

Serendipity.

This is the view from my front porch this morning. If you keep your eyes open opportunity can appear anytime. The combination of the vintage truck parked in front of the local service station without any distracting elements worked out nicely. This image can also be a starting point for further digital art. It just goes to show the value of viewing the world with composition and cropping in mind.

A Realistic Contact Sheet.

Here is a method for creating a realistic looking contact sheet using Inkscape (available here). For those of you who don't fondly remember contact sheets from earlier days wasted in the darkroom, they were a method of previewing your images. I haven't seen any realistic contact sheets made digitally so here goes.


Any comments on the format of the tutorial are welcomed. I hope it is simple to follow.

Why Tilt Shift Sucks?

The title of this blog came to me as a way of summing up my feelings about the current state of digital art. The tilt shift effect currently used in photo shop was kind of neat the first fifty times, but now is getting kind of tired. As somebody with a foot in both camps of photographers and modelers I feel the effect does a disservice to everyone. One of the great things about model photos is the double take when you realize that the photo is of a model scene and not real life. This gives you something to strive for as a modeler. As a photographer and artist seeing a digital image that is amazing is enough without being able to list all the photo shop plug-ins that were used to create it.

Creativity is not about following the crowd. Adding techniques as part of a range of knowledge is good. Expanding the current range of techniques available is even better. Hopefully I will be able to document some of my projects here and share some techniques and ideas.