Sunday, August 22, 2010

Flowers, buildings, and a camera lens.

Once again, flipping through some old photos, I came across some that I thought I’d share as iPad wallpaper.

 

Monday, August 16, 2010

Muscle car & hot rod wallpaper for your iPad.

After recently skimming through some of my iPhoto albums from 2003, I came across some photos that I'd made at a local car show. I didn't think anything of it at the time, but during another session of Mower Meditation, I came up with a use for those photos.

A majority of the photos that I'd taken at this car show were more abstract and detail-oriented in nature, so I had a feeling that they'd make for some interesting iPad wallpaper.



Taking another look at my library, I found more abstract, "artsy" photos that I'm not displaying publicly so this is shaping up to be an ongoing feature for my site. I'm also working on iPhone and other mobile wallpaper images as well, so stay tuned!

Friday, August 13, 2010

Grid Goodness for your iPad or iPhone

My earlier iPad sketchbook post got me thinking about what could be done to make my iPad sketching experience better than it already is.  The answer, my friends, was hidden in a grid.

Here are two packs of grid “paper” background images (each with various grid colors and two grid sizes, 25px and 50px) that can be used on the iPad and iPhone/iPod Touch.  Certain sketching apps (Adobe Ideas and Brushes (iTunes links) are two of them) will let you pull in photos from your iDevice’s photo library letting you draw on it or add the photo as a layer.  Simply add the grid photo to your drawing and you can then add a layer above it and sketch out your idea.  Works great for logo ideations, layouts, and anything else you can dream up. Update: 12/28/2011 I’ve made available a premium set of gridded templates for those that wish to focus their designs on mobile apps and the mobile web.

iPad Grid Sheets - 25px

• Gray Grid
• Light Blue Grid
• Bright Blue Grid
• All Three Colors (Zip file)

iPad Grid “Sheets” - 50px

• Gray Grid
• Light Blue Grid
• Bright Blue Grid
• All Three Colors (Zip file)

iPhone/iPodTouch Grid “Sheets” - 25px

• Gray Grid
• Light Blue Grid
• Bright Blue Grid
• All Three Colors (Zip file)

iPhone/iPodTouch Grid “Sheets” - 50px

• Gray Grid
• Light Blue Grid
• Bright Blue Grid
• All Three Colors (Zip file)

If you want it all…

• iPad - All Three Colors with 25px and 50px squares (Zip file)
• iPhone/iPodTouch - All Three Colors with 25px and 50px squares (Zip file)

Happy sketching!

Sunday, August 08, 2010

IPad sketchbook app shootout

I’ve realized that my iPad has become my sketchbook on steroids. It's been a while since I've cracked open the pages of my notebooks, largely because of some great apps that have let me skip the pen & paper route and go with a completely digital workflow.

There are many apps that can let you sketch out ideas and get thoughts down on...glass. Here are my favorites.

iDraft - Free

I just picked up iDraft (iTunes link) a week ago and it's been my go-to sketching app ever since. What I'm the most drawn to with this app is the ability to make individual "project" notebooks that I can then email the entire book or just a few pages to anyone I'd like.

The drawing tools and markings are very natural, in fact, the pen width decreases the quicker you move your finger over the canvas. I've found this app to be a great alternative to my traditional sketchbook with some great benefits. It should be mentioned that the ability to zoom is missing from iDraft, an omission that I've noticed on a few occasions.

Pros

• Grouping of project sketches with notebook sharing as a PDF


• Differing width based on speed for a somewhat realistic feel


• Simple and intuitive UI


• No photo importing

Cons

• No ability to zoom


• Limited color choices for brushes

Adobe Ideas - Free


One of the first apps I downloaded for my iPad was Adobe Ideas (iTunes link).  This is a great app if you use Photoshop, Illustrator, or any other app in Adobe's Creative Suite line.  Sketching out quick ideas is easy and the app tries to "correct" or straighten out your lines.  One big appeal of this app is the ability to export and mail the sketch as a PDF that retains the vector imagery for further development in Photoshop, Illustrator, or your vector app of choice.

As with any drawing app worth it's salt, you can choose pen colors and erase lines so that goes without saying.  One nice, added feature is the ability to zoom into the drawing or zoom out to reveal more drawing space

Pros

• Vector drawings that can be tweaked in other full-blown apps


• Photo importing


• Layers (minimal)

Cons

• The "auto-correcting" can get annoying if you're not used to it.


• While Ideas has the ability to do layers, there are only two. A few more would be nice.

Brushes - $7.99

Last, but not least on my list of sketchbook fighters is Brushes (iTunes link).  I bought this app for my iPhone and found it fun, but also a bit frustrating due to the small screen size.  With the iPad, I decided to give it another shot and have grown to enjoy the experience more and more.

With a robust toolset of multiple brush types and sizes to great zoom and detail control, Brushes is more geared toward creating an artwork vs sketching out a layout but you never know what an might grow into

Pros

• If you want to create a great work of art, this is your app. I guess that's a pro, right?


• Great variety of brushes and tools allow you to push the limits of this app and your imagination.


• Ability to import photos.


• Zoom in and out to make fine, detailed adjustments

Cons

• Bitmapped final image

The winner?
What kind of a shootout would this be if there wasn’t a winner declared?  Truth be told, I can’t pick just one app, they’re all great and excel in different areas.  Some shootout this turned out to be.  More like a love-fest.

Thursday, July 29, 2010

How to make an engaging and dynamic desktop/wallpaper image.

I'm guessing that most of you have a wallpaper or desktop image on your computer. They let us express ourselves and customize what would be an otherwise bland experience. If you have a custom desktop image for your brand, there's no doubt that you'd like it to say more and do more than show off your logo. Below are some examples of how you can use your desktop image as a tool as well as a decoration.

Make a date with a calendar.
If you're like me, your always looking for a calendar to see what the date is or working to estimate a timeframe for a project. Adding a calendar to your desktop is a great way to help with that.

There are a few ways to add add dates to your desktop. There are software add-ons that will dynamically update the calendar to he current month and can also highlight the current day. These add-ons come in many flavors, so you're bound to find one that works for you.

• Windows


• Mac OS X


• Linux

If you're looking for a more customized look, you can add your own static calendar to your wallpaper. The only drawback is you'll need to swap the imaged out every month, but you can craft the calendar to match any look you choose (like your branding perhaps?). Check out some examples.

To-do list or project board.
Another great way to benefit from your desktop image is to create compartments that can hold folders, apps, or whatever you need to help you with a project.

Taking this to the next, crazy step would be to develop something like Panic did for their project board. You could call it desktop image-ishe-sque, or you could just call it hardcore.

Create a mini-portfolio or a featured work board.
You've just designed an amazing Website and branding solution for a client and can't wait to show it off and generate more business. Why not create a scene, on your desktop, and make your recent projects the highlight?

By displaying your work on your desktop, you can quickly and easily give an example of what you can do to help an organization reach their goals.

I've even gone as far as posting projects that are in-progress to my desktop for critique and examination. One of the best ways to decide if a solution works is to see if you can live with it.

Add a QR code.
A new technology that is slowly crawling into mainstream view is the QR code. Simply put, a QR code is a barcode that many mobile phones are able to read and decipher using a variety of apps. When the code is scanned, it can redirect someone to a web page, twitter profile, a SMS message, email address, or other forms of digital content.

In a recent project for Escape Route, I incorporated a QR code into iPad and iphone wallpaper images. Now when the client is at a convention or trade show, they can display their iPad and let a prospective customer capture the code for later use. In this case, it will direct someone to the Escape Route site. Think of it as a business card on steroids.

I'll be the first to admit that QR code use in the United States is just in it's infancy and there's no telling how long it will take to catch on, but it's a great way to add some cutting edge tech into long-standing piece of static imagery.