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Apple iPhone X Live Wallpapers - Illustrator Tutorial
The iPhone X, the most anticipated phone that Apple has ever built since the iPhone 4 (in my opinion). If you go beyond the actual phone, one thing I always loved about Apple is how they produce stunning visuals either it is for print, web, videos and social media platforms. They are doing such a good job in finding ways to sell their products with strong visuals as you probably saw the iPhone X ads literally everywhere. Like many others, I would watch many unboxing videos on YouTube. And I couldn't help to notice what they called the "Live Wallpapers" on the packaging. From the Space Grey iPhone X, you will a wallpaper that is filled with warm colours like pink, red combined with white. The other wallpaper which is the Silver iPhone X with the accent colours of cyan, navy blue, and orange. This is what we are taking a look in the tutorial, how to easily create your own Apple iPhone X Live Wallpapers using Illustrator. More precisely using the Mesh Tool (U) for which after my second attempt, I was able to accomplish a result that I was quite happy about. So here we go! iPhone X Live Wallpapers I also wanted to point out that it was a nice feeling to get back to my roots. Not just making tutorials but just trying to figure things out. The simple act of creating! Before the industry shifted all of us designers into being UI/UX designers or product designers. There were amazing tools like Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign. There wasn't a wide range of design tools like we do now, I really think there should always have room to design things in many different ways instead of having us using one "ULTIMATE" tool. Some food for thoughts. More Links Follow my tweets @aoirostudio Follow my pictures on Instagram Illustrator Tutorial Step 1 Start with a new file with the iPhone X screen dimensions which is 1125px (W) x 2436px (H). Afterwards, add a background colour #1C51A5 using the Rectangle Tool (M). We will try to make our own version of the wallpaper for the Space Grey iPhone X. Step 2 Select the Mesh Tool (U) and I am using #FAF4F1 to start it off with the white colour. Some readers will first make a grid using the Mesh Tool (U) without any colour, I prefer using a fill colour, it removes the extra anchor all over the artwork, you will understand what I mean later. In the end, it's whatever works the best for you. Step 3 Still using the Mesh Tool (U) and I am adding the pink fuschia colour #FD0186. You should add also the accent of red #FF0026 for the top left corner. Now, this is where the fun starts. You will now switch gear by using the Direct Selection Tool (A) which is next to the Selection Tool. Whenever you click on one of the anchors, you will have the choice to move the anchor as you please or also play with the shape using the anchor handle. This is where the creativity kicks in. Step 4 Once you are satisfied with the result, you can start adding more colours including the orange #FF0026. Also the combination of colours at the lower right corner which is orange #FF0026 and a lighter shade of orange. Step 5 A tip, at some point. Try to add fewer anchor points with the Mesh Tool (U), instead play with the Direct Selection Tool (A). You can simply select an anchor and choose another colour. I would say to experiment as well with the anchor handles. As a reference, I added a screenshot the final result where you can see the different anchor positions. In Conclusion I would say this tutorial is fairly easy where 20% is about the technique and the other 80% is about your creativity. It took me two attempts to actually achieve the final result. You need to experiment and try/fail rather than a step-by-step tutorial. Hopefully you have loved the direction on how easily you can create your own Apple iPhone X Live Wallpapers. First Attempt Bonus If you wanna try to re-create the wallpaper of the Silver iPhone X, see the images highlighting the colour palette and the image revealing different anchor positions. Enjoy! One more wallpaper... Using the very same technique, I made another version where I used purple as a base colour. I love the final result, this is actually my current wallpaper. What's great is that you can rock a beautiful iPhone X Live Wallpaper on an Android phone. Give it a whirl! Download Wallpapers and Files Click here to download the Zip file used for this tutorial
How to Create a Composite Dreamscape using two photos in Photoshop
It's Friday and we would like to share this fun tutorial from Adobe in collaboration with photographer named Jaxson Pohlman. It's about creating a composite dreamscape using two photos in Photoshop. As most of us like photography, it's always nice to add some spark to your pictures with a simple technique. Let's take a closer look. Our friends from Adobe has released an easy step-by-step tutorial by fine art photographer Jaxson Pohlman. You can follow the steps from the Photoshop's Instagram post and we have stepped them out below in the article as well. In their words Hey guys! It's @jaxsonpohlmanphotography here. I'm going to show you how to create a composite dreamscape using two photos in just a few steps. Swipe through to see my mini #Ps_Swipe tutorial! • Using sunrise or sunset photos will add some spark to your final creation. Begin by opening the foreground photo in #Photoshop. We are going to mask a portion of the background out to create a smooth transition between the horizon and stars. • Use the Rectangular Marquee tool (M) and click and drag across the photo. Make sure to select in between the horizon and the top border of the photo. Go to Select -> hold the "Shift" key and click “Select and Mask.” Adjust the edge by dragging the "Feather" option to approximately 200px, then click ok. • Next, use the Move tool (V), click and drag the selection over to your star photo (background). Make sure the foreground layer is above the star layer. Use the Crop tool (C) to extend visibility. Using the Move tool, drag your foreground layer down to the bottom of the cropped area. • Duplicate the foreground layer by going to Layer -> and click "Duplicate Layer.” Label it as "no. 2" and click Ok. Select the original foreground layer. Go to Edit -> "Free Transform" and increase the vertical size. Double click to confirm, and then drag the photo down so that is transitions smoothly into the stars. • Using the Brush tool (B), we are going to add a bright star to make the transition between the horizon and sky feel a bit more real. Click the Brush Preset picker and adjust to 25px with a hardness of 50%. Change the mode the "Lighten" and have an 85% opacity and flow. Select the duplicate layer "no. 2" and apply the brush where the horizon fades into the stars. • After applying the brush to create a star, we are going to apply a second brush to give a glow to the star. Adjust your brush settings to 175px, 0% hardness, 50% opacity, and 25% flow. Apply this brush over the star just created. • Add final touches such as exposure, contrast, color balance, etc. And that's how you can create a simple composite dreamscape! A post shared by Adobe Photoshop (@photoshop) on Jul 28, 2017 at 9:27am PDT Step 1 Hey guys! It's @jaxsonpohlmanphotography here. I'm going to show you how to create a composite dreamscape using two photos in just a few steps. Swipe through to see my mini #Ps_Swipe tutorial! Step 2 Using sunrise or sunset photos will add some spark to your final creation. Step 3 Begin by opening the foreground photo in #Photoshop. We are going to mask a portion of the background out to create a smooth transition between the horizon and stars. Step 4 (Video) Use the Rectangular Marquee tool (M) and click and drag across the photo. Make sure to select in between the horizon and the top border of the photo. Go to Select -> hold the "Shift" key and click “Select and Mask.” Adjust the edge by dragging the "Feather" option to approximately 200px, then click ok. Your browser does not support the video tag. Step 5 (Video) Next, use the Move tool (V), click and drag the selection over to your star photo (background). Make sure the foreground layer is above the star layer. Use the Crop tool (C) to extend visibility. Using the Move tool, drag your foreground layer down to the bottom of the cropped area. Your browser does not support the video tag. Step 6 (Video) Duplicate the foreground layer by going to Layer -> and click "Duplicate Layer.” Label it as "no. 2" and click Ok. Select the original foreground layer. Go to Edit -> "Free Transform" and increase the vertical size. Double click to confirm, and then drag the photo down so that is transitions smoothly into the stars. Your browser does not support the video tag. Step 7 (Video) Using the Brush tool (B), we are going to add a bright star to make the transition between the horizon and sky feel a bit more real. Click the Brush Preset picker and adjust to 25px with a hardness of 50%. Change the mode the "Lighten" and have an 85% opacity and flow. Select the duplicate layer "no. 2" and apply the brush where the horizon fades into the stars. Your browser does not support the video tag. Step 8 (Video) After applying the brush to create a star, we are going to apply a second brush to give a glow to the star. Adjust your brush settings to 175px, 0% hardness, 50% opacity, and 25% flow. Apply this brush over the star just created. Your browser does not support the video tag. Step 9 Add final touches such as exposure, contrast, color balance, etc. And that's how you can create a simple composite dreamscape! More Links Check out Jaxson Pohlman's site: jaxsonpohlman.smugmug.com Follow Jaxson on Instagram Learn more Adobe Photoshop Blog: blogs.adobe.com/photoshop
Harmful Nature Case Study
There's no limit to our imagination and with the right tools and drive we can translate our most creative ideas into beautiful artwork. For this week's case study we feature a project titled 'Harmful Nature' from our friends over at Lightfarm Studios. We featured this image for the wallpaper of the week and on this post we've decided to give you a little sneak peek behind the scenes, enjoy. Harmful Nature is the new promo video from Lightfarm Studios. Conceptually the image brings a dark and tragic metaphor about the impossible love with the classic tale of the Diver and the Mermaid. Along one month we used the latest 3D technology in cloth simulation on this piece where everything was modelled, from the ship wreck to the corals. The model was shot in a diving pool for the best realistic results as possible to seamlessly blend photography and 3D. From the underwater shooting session to post production we blended all of our knowledge in 3D and post production into a piece that is as real as dark, always aiming at breaking our own limits as artists. Video Harmful Nature - Making of from Lightfarm Studios on Vimeo. For more information visit http://www.lightfarmbrasil.com/
Abduzeedo 2013 Symbol Case Study
Personal projects are the best way for a designer to learn because it's much easier to try different things. It's just about making decisions and building them. With Abduzeedo we try to keep it as personal as possible, at least when it comes to changes. We redesign it at least once a year, not only the overall site design but the brand identity. Things have been a bit busy however and it's been over two years since the last time we designed a symbol for the site. With that in mind, here's a start on the 2013 symbol for Abduzeedo. This post we will show you the idea behind the new symbol. It's still a work in progress but we'd love to know what you think about the symbol and the creative process behind it. Old symbol The old symbol was created in 2009 and used for 2 years. The idea was basically a triangle with references to the letter A of Abduzeedo. References The first goal for the new symbol was that it had some similarities with the old one. The idea of a triangle and the letter A were the guide points. This time however, I wanted to make it super simple, no colors, just black and white and no effects. Triangle Letter A Simple Space theme Star trek Here are some images that inspired me. Sketches Starting out with some basic sketches trying to get a simple "A" based on the references. The main inspiration comes from the Star Trek logo and of course the old symbol. Digital Sketches After a few sketches I went to Illustrator to translate the idea into something digital. Below you can see the basic construction of the symbol. Final After a few iterations I got to a symbol that I really like. I was really indecisive about the shape I would use to frame the logo. In the end I went with the circle because it's more flexible for the applications I have in mind. There are still some optical adjustments and adapting the typography to the new logo, however you can see some examples of the final symbol below. So that's pretty much it. Now I will work on some stickers but before that I'd love to hear your opinion about the new symbol. Do you have any feedback or suggestions? Share your thoughts with us and you may be the lucky recipient of a sticker or poster :)
Colorful Bokeh Effect in Pixelmator
A few days ago the guys behind Pixelmator released the new version of their really cool app, and if you check out the Pixelmator site you will notice that they are using my Bokeh image. I'm very happy :) not just because of that but, also because I had the chance to test Tempo very early and it's good to be part of the testing team. Anyway, this tutorial is the original Bokeh effect I created, the one I use for my twitter background and the inspiration to the Photoshop version. You will see that this effect can easily be done in Pixelmator, actually much easier than in any other tool. Step 1 Open Pixelmator and create a new document, I used 1920x1200 pixels. Fill the background layer with Black. Step 2 Add a new layer and go to Quartz Composer>Generator>Defocus. Play with the settings, you can adjust size, blur, density, colors and even use hexagons. The best thing is the Blur because that will simply avoid the use of other filters. For this first layer use a big size and very blurry. I used 0.50 for the Size and 0.30 for the Blur. After that duplicate the layer and change the Blending to Color Dodge. Step 3 Add another layer and simply repeat the previous step, this time however, create much smaller circles. Also change the Primary Color to white and for the Blur use 0.01. The Blendings of this layer will be Screen. Step 4 Again, add another layer on top of the others and repeat again the Defocus filter. For this we will create the medium size circles. I used 0.36 for the Size and 0.04 for the Blur. Also the Primary Color is white and the density is 0.50. The Blending for this layer is Screen as well. Tip: The Defocus filter is a Random so probably you won't have the same result in terms of positions. Step 5 Duplicate the medium size bokeh layer and just change the Blending to Color Dodge. Step 6 Duplicate the Small size bokeh layer and move it up to the other layers. Then just change the Blending to Color Dodge as well. The color dodge will create a very nice light effect and add some depth to the layers. Step 7 Select the Gradient Tool (G) and choose the default rainbow gradient preset. Then create another layer on top of the others and fill it with the gradient. Use the image below for reference. After that just change the Blending to Overlay. Conclusion The Defocus filter in Pixelmator is really easy to use and the result that you can get just repeating the process changing some values and playing with blendings is really cool. That's why I like and recommend this app, you can create nice effects pretty quickly and with a gorgeous interface. As I said in the other tutorials you will be impressed by how fast some filters are compared with Photoshop. It's definitely worth downloading and testing it. Click on the image for Full Preview Download the Pixelmator File Click here to download the Pixelmator file used for this tutorial
Learning the new Adobe CS4 Apps with Lynda
Last week Adobe started shipping the new version of their CS suite of applications. The Adobe CS4 family comes with a redesigned interface and a ton of new features. To get up to speed with all of the new features Lynda.com has created the CS4 University. I had a chance to access the CS4 University, and found that you'll have everything you need to upgrade your skills for the new Adobe Apps. There are videos lessons such as: New Features, Getting Started, and Essential Training for Photoshop, Illustrator, Fireworks, After Effects, InDesign, Flash, Soundbooth, Premiere, Contribute, and Encore. “We are excited to offer in-box training from lynda.com and have worked closely on the development of their CS4U video training to help our designers and developers discover new possibilities and unleash their creative potential”. Thomas DeMeo, Director of Product Management Adobe Creative Suite ABOUT CS4 University: CS4 University is comprised of very diverse, specialized course titles that cover virtually every aspect of the Adobe Creative Suite 4 product family. Some of these courses are very advanced, while others include special applications for people working more at the consumer level. All of these courses are designed to help lynda.com’s Online Training Library® subscribers get the most out of the new Adobe software. Included within these courses are three new series: The “New Features” series focuses on what has changed since Adobe Creative Suite 3 software was released. The “Getting Started” series is designed to get Creative Suite 4 users up and running quickly. The “Essential Training” series supplies the ground-up fundamentals needed to master each application in Creative Suite 4 Lynda Weinman, co-founder of lynda.com, said: “As the software landscape continually evolves, a lynda.com Online Training Library subscription remains the most comprehensive and efficient way for designers, instructors, students, and hobbyists to keep their skill sets up to date.” “Packed with hundreds of new, innovative features—the Creative Suite 4 product line advances the creative process across print, Web, mobile, interactive, film and video production,” said Chad Siegel, group product manager for Creative Suites at Adobe. “lynda.com shows our customers just how to incorporate these innovations within their daily creative workflows with their new training offerings for CS4.” After a few days taking the Lynda Courses, I have to say, they are really good. I’m taking the After Effects and Cinema 4D courses, and I’m pretty happy with my evolution on those apps. I highly recommend that you check their courses out. They have both subscription plans and DVDs; but the access to their online library is definitely worth it.