Picture Worth A 1000 Words

This image took me quite some time. In the completed image, you can see that it is entirely made up of my name in different fonts. It didn't fill out enough spaces so I took random text and pasted it in, which bridged a couple gaps. I finished it off with a gradient effect. The blue yellow red worked out nicely. It gave it a very sunset feel.

3D Text CD Cover

So I recently got a new album, but I couldn't  find a decent album art online, so i thought I'd create my own.
A simple CD cover with a 3D text effect.

I started off in Illustrator, creating squares and removing sections to form the letters, spacing them proportionally.

 

Then, moving over into Photoshop, I duplicated the layer, enlarged it, lowered the opacity for visibilty, and started joining the bottom layer to the top one using the colour of the bottom layer. Sounds more complicated than it actually is.

 Bringing the opacity back to it's 100% and changing the colour slightly gives the text it's full effect.

Small touch-ups might be necessary to make sure they look clean and on the same layer, even though they are two seperate layers.

 

I then got my dimensions for the CD cover, created a cool, party-like image which was not too over-powering.

Pasting the text into the image, changing the colour and adding a grunge effect to the lettering completes the CD cover. 

Quick, simple and effective!

Here is another example I created using the 3D text effect:

Vol. Energy Drink

One of the most expensive and strenuous assignments for college from this year (2010) was my Energy Drink.
The assignment was to create a brand for an energy drink, package it, photograph it, and literally make it.

My inspiration was music, because music symbolises energy. I named my brand 'Vol.' which also relates to music, as well as the visual additions; the well-known volume logo, and the knob like O, all play an important part. I made my can silver and used reds, pinks and blacks for the design of the music waves and beat levels. I tried to make it look as universally acceptable as possible, not being stereotypical or gender-specific. The nice thing about my can is that, everyone knows without a shadow of a doubt, that music is what it's all about.

My brother helped me with the photography, and my mom and younger brother were my models.
As draining as this assignment was, it's by far the most fun I've had, when you look at something tangible that you've created in the space of two weeks, it's kind of mind-blowing and ego altering.

Katy 'Grunge' Perry

Working on a personal assignment on Christmas eve has proven to be worthy. I took a picture of Katy Perry and grunged the hell outta it. With my increasing knowledge of Illustrator, it made the process a lot more enjoyable because it let me include elements I would usually leave out. This post is proof that there is nothing wrong with working on a public holiday, if this is the result :)

String Lake - I Have To Use Earplugs

I found this pretty cool process to hone in on my Photoshop advertising skills.

Make your own random album cover:

To Do This

1 - Go to Wikipedia. Hit “random” or click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random The first random Wikipedia article that comes up is the name of your band.

2 - Go to Quotations Page and select "random quotations" or click http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3 The last four or five words of the very LAST quote on the page is the title of your first album.

3 - Go to Flickr and click on “explore the last seven days” or click http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days The third picture in the top row, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

4 - Use PhotoShop or whatever to put it all together. 

This is my process and the final concept...
I think I lucked out in all aspects; the band name, album title and cover were all awesome!

Durban Destruction!

So here is a picture I found from 2009 which I took from a friend's flat. It's of Durban harbour and surroundings and there was something burning in the distance. This was the inspiration I needed! I wanted to destroy Durban! Flaming buildings, smoke-filled skies, and planes plummeting from above. There are lots of small things I added into the image, like the lighthouse on the left or the car in flames on the street, and every element of the picture is made using photos from my own pc - no stock photography (kudos to me!). I really, really love this picture. It was my first attempt at digital painting and I can honestly say, I LOVE it!

Vintage Feel

 

Lately I've been playing around with editing photos, and I'm really getting into it!
This picture is of an intersection in Morningside. I really love altering the sky, it gives it a surreal feel.