- For Stronger Photographs, Understand Optical Filters
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By
David DuChemin
- Apr 24, 2015
- In this excerpt from The Visual Toolbox: 60 Lessons for Stronger Photographs, David DuChemin explains why and how he uses optical filters for his landscape photography.
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- For Stronger Photographs, Think Cinematically
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By
David DuChemin
- Apr 17, 2015
- The way we approach a photo essay is very similar to the way a cinematographer tells a story. In this excerpt from The Visual Toolbox: 60 Lessons for Stronger Photographs, David DuChemin explains how to use the technique to to think in terms of a consistent style, an intentional sequence, and the use of establishing, wide, and detail photographs to give both information and impact.
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- For Stronger Photographs, Consider Your Color Palette
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By
David DuChemin
- Apr 10, 2015
- A consistent color palette creates a flow when the images are presented together, creating a common mood or emotion through the work, even when the gesture within the images changes dramatically. In this excerpt from The Visual Toolbox: 60 Lessons for Stronger Photographs, David DuChemin shares how he works with color palettes in his photography and suggests some other resources for inspiration.
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- Hacking the Digital Print: SuperSauce White Image Transfer to Graphite Gelatin-Coated Paper
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By
Bonny Pierce Lhotka
- Mar 24, 2015
- This step-by-step technique from Bonny Pierce Lhotka, author of Hacking the Digital Print: Alternative Image Capture and Printmaking Processes, provides a recipe for making photographic image transfers via a concoction of graphite, gelatin, SuperSauce, and other common ingredients. The result is deliciously photogenic.
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- Preparing for the Shoot When Hacking a Digital Print
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By
Bonny Pierce Lhotka
- Feb 19, 2015
- In this chapter from Hacking the Digital Print: Alternative image capture and printmaking processes with a special section on 3D printing, Bonny Lhotka shows you how to make filters and screens by hand to alter a scene, including making a bracket to hold filters, using two tripods, combining images, and creating custom tools.
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- Creating Special Effects in Photoshop
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By
Glyn Dewis
- Feb 12, 2015
- In this chapter from The Photoshop Workbook: Professional Retouching and Compositing Tips, Tricks, and Techniques, Glyn Dewis shows you techniques for turning day into night, creating a cartoon/painterly effect, and making your own dust, debris, snow, and rain brushes. Plus, he shows a quick and easy black and white conversion technique, and how to fake the wet look.
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- The Use of Repetition in Design
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By
Robin Williams
- Dec 25, 2014
- In this excerpt from The Non-Designer's Design Book, 4th Edition, Robin Williams talks about the use of repetition in design and offers many examples of effective repetition.
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- 10 Practical Logo Design Tips
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By
David Airey
- Oct 14, 2014
- David Airey, author of Logo Design Love: A guide to creating iconic brand identities, 2nd Edition, shares ten tips that will help you think about how to design better logos.
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- Sketchnote Planning: Techniques for Taking Visual Notes You Can Use Anywhere
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By
Mike Rohde
- Sep 23, 2014
- Sketchnotes are well suited for planning. This excerpt from The Sketchnote Workbook: Advanced techniques for taking visual notes you can use anywhere shows you how you can use them to plan ahead visually for projects like simple task lists, family vacations, work assignments, and more.
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- David Airey on Laying the Groundwork for a Successful Brand Identity Design Project
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By
David Airey
- Sep 22, 2014
- Without knowing specific details of your client’s business, his reasons for seeking a brand identity, and his expectations of the process and final design, you can’t possibly be successful with the project. In this chapter from Logo Design Love: A guide to creating iconic brand identities, 2nd Edition, David Airey shows you how to lay the groundwork to achieve project success.
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- The Basics of Writing for the Web
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By
Nicole Fenton, Kate Kiefer Lee
- Jun 25, 2014
- This chapter from Nicely Said: Writing for the Web with Style and Purpose covers basic guidelines for writing for the web, common mistakes, tips for getting unstuck, and exercises for improving your writing.
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- Q&A with the Authors of Nicely Said: Writing for the Web with Style and Purpose
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By
Peachpit Press, Nicole Fenton, Kate Kiefer Lee
- Jun 18, 2014
- Nicole Fenton and Kate Kiefer Lee, the authors of Nicely Said: Writing for the Web with Style and Purpose, answer our questions on the biggest mistake companies make with web content, how to get your customers to care, and advice for those who seek a career in writing for the web.
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- Steve Krug Explains Several True Things about Usability Testing
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By
Steve Krug
- May 1, 2014
- In this excerpt from Don't Make Me Think, Revisited: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability, 3rd Edition, Steve Krug share three true things about usability tests.
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- Steve Krug on Why Nothing Beats a Good Tagline!™
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By
Steve Krug
- Apr 30, 2014
- Taglines are a very efficient way to get your message across, because they’re the one place on the web page where users most expect to find a concise statement of the site's purpose. In this excerpt from Don't Make Me Think, Revisited: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability, 3rd Edition, Steve Krug shares some attributes to look for when choosing a tagline.
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- Steve Krug on Creating Effective Visual Hierarchies
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By
Steve Krug
- Apr 29, 2014
- In this excerpt from Don't Make Me Think, Revisited: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability, 3rd Edition, Steve Krug explains that the appearance of the things on the page should accurately portray the relationships between the things on the page.
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- Steve Krug on Things that Make Us Think
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By
Steve Krug
- Apr 28, 2014
- Don't make people puzzle over stuff on your website! In this excerpt from Don't Make Me Think, Revisited: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability, 3rd Edition, Steve Krug shares some examples of things that make us think, so you'll begin to notice all the things that make you think in the sites and apps you use. And eventually you’ll learn to recognize and avoid them in the things you’re building.
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- Fundamentals of Game Design: Understanding Your Player
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By
Ernest Adams
- Mar 3, 2014
- In this chapter from Fundamentals of Game Design, 3rd Edition, you'll learn about the characteristics of certain kinds of players, what kinds of feelings different players like to experience as they play, and the importance of demographics: men and women, boys and girls, dedicated (“hardcore”) players, and casual ones. All this information will help you define what kinds of people you want to entertain and, in consequence, what kind of game you should build to entertain them.
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- Animal, Vegetable, or Mineral? Steve Krug on Why Users Like Mindless Choices
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By
Steve Krug
- Jan 27, 2014
- We face choices all the time on the Web. Steve Krug explains that making those choices mindless is one of the most important things you can do to make a site easy to use.
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- Night Photography: Observing Light at Night
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By
Gabriel Biderman, Tim Cooper
- Jan 15, 2014
- Our eyes are capable of adjusting to the contrast and colors of the night, but cameras often struggle to balance the many degrees of brightness. In this chapter, you'll explore color, light painting, and creative ways to play with light when photographing at night.
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- The Many-Faced Infographic: Brooklyn, Elephants, and the Visualization of Data
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By
Alberto Cairo
- Nov 25, 2013
- Alberto Cairo, author of The Functional Art: An introduction to information graphics and visualization, suggests that when creating interactive visualizations for general readers, you need to offer readers the opportunity to visualize the data in multiple and perhaps more traditional ways.
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