I get a lot of people asking me what the best way is to get started with graphic design. I always have some immediate resources that I use and refer them to, and I also have my standbys. Here are some of my favorite recent resource finds and standbys that you can visit for some great inspiration, tools, and techniques to use with Adobe Photoshop CS4.

  1. old-photoshop-logo.jpg.jpeg
    Well, this is the first step. You can download a free evaluation copy to use for 30 days before making your (very worthwhile) purchase!
      
  2. Qbrushes.com
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    Qbrushes is one of my favorite new finds. It is a great resource that is FULL of amazing, detailed, and hi-resolution Photoshop brushes to use in your projects!
  3. Dafont.com
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    There are a lot of great font resources out there, and this one almost never fails me. Most are free for personal use, and you can test out your typography with custom text before you download!
  4. Tutorialvault.net
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    It can sometimes be a daunting task to find just the right online tutorial for the project you’re looking for. There are some great subscription-based resource libraries (see below), but if you’re looking for some quality, free help, this is the place to go. With over 2500 tutorials on almost anything you could imagine, this site constantly inspires me in my projects.
  5. Lynda.com
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    As far as training libraries go, THIS IS THE TICKET. They have an unbelievably extensive database of VIDEO tutorials for all Adobe products (currently to CS4) ftw! They have hours of extremely helpful videos on each Adobe product available for subscribers to watch at any time. You can, however, watch a select number of videos from each product without a subscription (aka: free). I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this site to anyone who wants to learn all the nooks and crannies of Adobe CS4 in the most efficient way possible.

Enjoy these resources as you get to know the amazing possibilities held within Adobe Photoshop!

Cheers!

Eric M Chicago

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So here’s some unambiguous warning sings that you’re well on the way to becoming a design nerd or that you already work as a graphic designer:

  1. You can spot bad typography from 100 meters away.
  2. You can name more than 200 fonts in under five minutes.
  3. You are completely immune to subliminal advertising.
  4. You look upon a well-designed project with either: sympathy OR extreme jealousy.
  5. Your hand is permanently stuck in the shape of a mouse.
  6. You practically take caffeine intravenously.
  7. You have an appreciation for everything unique.
  8. You’ve been spending three days non-stop on a project and it still looks like shit. You find yourself overcome by Deathlust.
  9. You buy a CD or DVD only for the artwork.
  10. You look at the clock and see it’s about midnight and think “I’ll go to bed now”… and you actually go to bed at about 2-3 am.
  11. Seing someone use Lens Flare or Comic Sans adversely affects your blood-pressure.
  12. You have a thing for chairs. You don’t know why.
  13. You maintain a grid system for your refrigerator magnets.
  14. You sit at work for eight hours straight just looking at your monitor, waiting for a spark of inspiration that doesn’t come.
  15. You’re up ’til 5am because you came up with the best idea ever while brushing your teeth.
  16. The hottest dream you ever had was “Trace contour… Find Edges… Pinch… Extrude… Smudge Stick… Motion Blur…. Sprayed Strokes…”
  17. You know Lorem Ipsum by heart.
  18. Activating your entire font collection makes your computer crash.
  19. You spend $200 on a font for your personal website because “it’s the only one where the lower-case g is just right…”
  20. Looking at a menu makes you go “hmmm, ITC Baskerville italic” rather than “mmmm, lunch!”
  21. You use words about fonts you dislike that other normal people reserve for fascist dictators and serial killers.
  22. When your significant other/ friends have threatened to never speak to you again if you point out one more font to them.
  23. Apple+Z is the first thing that goes through your mind if you drop and break something.
  24. You actually understand this post and pass it on to your friends.

Thanks to Frau Haselmayer for this post!

Written on March 16th, 2009 , Graphic Design, Humor Tags: , ,

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Eric M Chicago

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