The first rule of making PDFs is easy... do it in InDesign, don't even think of doing it in Quark. Navigation, linking to the web and even playing movies can be sorted out in InDesign first before the PDF is made. This way when the client has added his changes these elements don't have to be re-done … [Read more...]
Designing at Tate
I have been doing some work at Tate Britain recently. As you can imagine, designing a booklet on contemporary and modern British art compares favourably to some of the more corporate work I've been doing. I've also been very impressed with their design guidelines, typeface and logos that were set … [Read more...]
Gamehouse games
As a Mac user I am limited in the number of games I can download. Recently, I've been getting them from Gamehouse usually at $20 a game! The first three, Tumblebugs, Zuma and Luxor have the same addictive but stressful gameplay – shooting coloured balls making matches of three or more to destroy … [Read more...]
Using the Quick Mask Mode in Photoshop
The Quick Mask Mode is a much overlooked method for making selections. In particular, "burning" or darkening skies more at the top of the image than at the horizon. To do this, go into Quick Mask Mode, either by clicking on the icon at the bottom of the tool bar or by pressing Q. Immediately, the … [Read more...]
Improving photos with Photoshop
This is about the very basics of improving landscape photography. For years I've been taking rather bland photos of both natural landscapes and cityscapes and then pushing those pixels to bits in Photoshop. One of the most important things to learn in Photoshop is selecting areas of pictures. For … [Read more...]
A free and easy way to give up smoking
Fanfare! I have just published a new website detailing the method I used to quit cigarettes. I started smoking when I was 18 and very quickly developed a 20 a day habit. I immediately noticed a dip in my health – not to mention an increase in my asthma. But still I soldiered on. I tried to give … [Read more...]
The future of work
I'm at school at the moment. In WC1, hiding in between the Islington's Lloyd, Wilmington and Granville Squares is Framfab LBi, Europe's largest web agency, where I'm working now, in a building that used to be a school. And it actually feels like a school. The staircases, the rooms, the panelled … [Read more...]
Flash … no flash
Here's another thing that I hate about doing websites ... Flash. When I first set eyes on it I thought it was great but for me it hasn't really lived up to expectations. The problem is not everyone has the Flash Player installed in their browser – not everyone can see it! And it is bad for SEO – … [Read more...]
Cutting out
How do you cut out a high resolution photo? It depends on the picture of course. If you are cutting out a product – a mobile phone, say – then use the pen tool in Photoshop. Blow the image up big and follow the edge one or two pixels in using Bézier curves. Bézier is a town in the south of France … [Read more...]
More about SEO, Google and recriprocal links
This article is massively out-of-date and virtually everything said in it is now incorrect but it is useful to show how quickly things can change in this area! If you now type "freelance graphic designer and artworker in London" into Yahoo! I'm number one. In Google I'm hundred and fifty … [Read more...]
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