PLEASE LOCK!

[Clay_More12]

Lock!

[RoxSabre]

Photoshop...is a program. I'd recomend downloading the trial version CS4 from the adobe.com whebsite under the trials section. Its a 1 month trial.

 

 

 

 

 

After that I'd recommend joining up to planetrenders.net

 

 

 

You'll need to join the forums and gallery section if you plan on making sigs. From here go to forums/Graphics Tutorials/Free tutorials..Viola.

 

 

 

This site is graet for sigs because of all the pre rendered images.

 

 

 

If you plan on making things from scratch its all about trial and error. I myself use it in school everyday so I would call myself pro at it/

 

 

 

Uhh Goodluck finding what you need and if you have any questions post on Planetrenders.net as its a website more focused on what you are asking.

 

 

 

~Sabre

[Clay_More12]

Thanks! but uhh... which one is it? Adobe Creative Suite 4 Design Preminum or Creative Suite 4 Master Collection?

[RoxSabre]

Downloads/trial Downloads/Adobe Photoshop Cs4 extended.

 

 

 

 

 

Gotta sign up first.

[Hawks]

Get GIMP. (http://www.gimp.org) Works on any platform, has a great community, and is just like PS without the cost. And there's lots of tutorials for it. A few of my favorites:

 

http://daconman.deviantart.com/art/CREA ... t-94374158

 

http://blakemoso.deviantart.com/art/Gim ... loggedin=1

 

http://www.gimptalk.com/forum/enguarde- ... 19378.html

 

http://www.gimptalk.com/forum/penguins- ... 10820.html

 

 

 

If you plan on making sigs, you should probably sign up at http://www.planetrenders.net so you can download their renders and sprites. You can post your work in the Gallery here as well and get help. (though I don't recommend posting the first sig you make)

 

 

 

If you need more help, post in The Gallery; the people there know stuff about lots of stuff.

[RoxSabre]

^ Anothr good Idea. I never liked GIMP because it being free doesnt let you go into as much detail as photoshop

[dsavi]

^ Anothr good Idea. I never liked GIMP because it being free doesnt let you go into as much detail as photoshop

 

Excuse me? Being free has absolutely nothing to do with which features a program can have. I could name quite a few programs that are free that are undeniably far superior to their proprietary counterparts. Beyond a certain level, what you can do with Photoshop or The GIMP is directly proportional to your skill and not the software license.

 

 

 

GIMP is a good program to start out with. I would not go for Photoshop right away, it costs several hundred dollars for a legal license, and you don't know if you will need all of the features that even GIMP has.

 

After that I'd recommend joining up to planetrenders.net

 

 

 

You'll need to join the forums and gallery section if you plan on making sigs. From here go to forums/Graphics Tutorials/Free tutorials..Viola.

 

 

 

This site is graet for sigs because of all the pre rendered images.

 

On the contrary, I would say that website is terrible because of all the pre-"Rendered" images. Other people worked hard, and it's their work you are taking and slapping on a signature, not your own. The best signatures are those that you made entirely yourself.

[Mil]

Check out http://smashingmagazine.com/

 

Two big names on Web design, photoshop, and so on. I think for newcomers to Photoshop, it's best to follow tutorials to understand how Photoshop works, then you can let your creative side take advantage of the skills you learn.

[Sam]

This thread may be better suited in the gallery.

 

 

 

 

 

I would definitely recommend joining http://planetrenders.net and it's forums.

 

 

 

also, some tutorial sites

 

 

 

http://www.deviantart.com/#order=9&q=signature+tutorial

 

http://psd.tutsplus.com/

 

http://www.tutorial9.net/

 

http://www.good-tutorials.com/

[RoxSabre]

Savi....you realize they are posting them for users to use?

 

 

 

Have you even been on the website? From personal experience GIMP is decent and what i mean by it being free is it is usaing some of photoshops features in a bad way. Looks are not smooth and sometimes finding how to do something without a tutorial is hopeless.

 

 

 

Besides who are you to opinionate what a good signature calls for? The Rendered Images are for the use of signatures...

[Smapla]

Savi....you realize they are posting them for users to use?

 

 

 

Have you even been on the website? From personal experience GIMP is decent and what i mean by it being free is it is usaing some of photoshops features in a bad way. Looks are not smooth and sometimes finding how to do something without a tutorial is hopeless.

 

 

 

Besides who are you to opinionate what a good signature calls for? The Rendered Images are for the use of signatures...

 

 

 

you just don't know what you're talking about... only someone with limited knowledge of gimp would say you can't go into as much "detail", that makes absolutely no sense.

 

 

 

as for being able to do things without a tutorial, obviously it gets easier the more you use the program.

 

 

 

"looks are not smooth" perhaps you're using the pencil tool or something. best guess is something relating to AA

[Jernlov]

GIMP is capable. It's just a matter of finding where the bloody hell everything is. It's one of my contenders for most awkward placement of useful utilities ever.

 

 

 

Also, anyone who pays for Photoshop is out of their [bleep]ing mind.

[Nadril]

Photoshop is far superior to GIMP in pretty much every way, if you can't see that past your personal preference then shame on you.

 

 

 

And to Savi, just no no no. People render images for your use and if you want EVERYTHING to be made yourself then make your own game, take a screenshot, render it then create a signature out of it. Just no, I work in the Web Design business and its just way to much effort to create EVERYTHING from scratch. Sxc.hu and any other royalty free image websites are perfectly fine to use for commercial use. And I know that games are copyrighted, but really you think that there going to sue you for personal use of an image of there game?

 

 

 

Please don't give the OP the wrong impression on Graphic Design, its really not fair on him.

 

 

 

Why does it matter? I mean, if I steal someones artwork over dA or even here they aren't going to sue me. Does that make it alright to do so?

 

 

 

Using pictures of video game characters in signatures is amateurish and an insult to good artists such as those who made the characters. It is one of my pet peeves to see someone just slap a good image onto a filter pile or, even worse, just a bunch of brushes (that the user also did not make) and then call it their own work. Really, it's just an insult.

[Nadril]

No, you use there art as a tribute in a sense, either as a learning tool or to showcase there work. Not to steal it...

 

 

 

So if I steal your signature, put a bunch of filters and brushes all over it and consider it my own would you really see it as a "tribute". These people aren't tributing anything, they're taking something good and then taking a dump over it.

[rangeor]

Why does it matter? I mean, if I steal someones artwork over dA or even here they aren't going to sue me. Does that make it alright to do so?

 

 

 

Using pictures of video game characters in signatures is amateurish and an insult to good artists such as those who made the characters. It is one of my pet peeves to see someone just slap a good image onto a filter pile or, even worse, just a bunch of brushes (that the user also did not make) and then call it their own work. Really, it's just an insult.

 

You're missing the whole point of making tags. People don't make them because they think they're making art, they make them because they're fun, quick, look cool when done right, and help them better understand the program they're using. I really doubt two years from now these graphics artists in the gallery will be making signatures; they'll be making real art and using the techniques they learn making the tags. While most of the techniques are actually rather useless, the experience of exploring the program and its capabilities on a guided path really helps prepare for more dynamic work.

[stevepole]

No, you use there art as a tribute in a sense, either as a learning tool or to showcase there work. Not to steal it...

 

 

 

So if I steal your signature, put a bunch of filters and brushes all over it and consider it my own would you really see it as a "tribute". These people aren't tributing anything, they're taking something good and then taking a dump over it.

 

:thumbup:

[dsavi]

Photoshop is far superior to GIMP in pretty much every way, if you can't see that past your personal preference then shame on you.

 

Indeed it is. However, Photoshop is not necessary in all cases, especially for beginners or simple jobs.

 

And to Savi, just no no no. People render images for your use and if you want EVERYTHING to be made yourself then make your own game, take a screenshot, render it then create a signature out of it. Just no, I work in the Web Design business and its just way to much effort to create EVERYTHING from scratch. Sxc.hu and any other royalty free image websites are perfectly fine to use for commercial use. And I know that games are copyrighted, but really you think that there going to sue you for personal use of an image of there game?

 

 

 

Please don't give the OP the wrong impression on Graphic Design, its really not fair on him.

 

You work in the web design business? Well so do I as it happens, and I'll gladly use AJAX or JavaScript animation libraries, because they are things I am not capable of writing and the best ones are all under free licenses (BSD, GPL, LGPL etc.) and the authors want you to make good use of it. As Nadril said though, it's just an insult to the person who created it, the results are almost always so terrible.

 

Savi....you realize they are posting them for users to use?

 

Yes, indeed I do. Hey, I'm going to put X program that you spent 5,000 hours programming up for grabs on the internet! It's okay, because I put it there for users to use!

 

Have you even been on the website? From personal experience GIMP is decent and what i mean by it being free is it is usaing some of photoshops features in a bad way. Looks are not smooth and sometimes finding how to do something without a tutorial is hopeless.

 

 

 

Besides who are you to opinionate what a good signature calls for? The Rendered Images are for the use of signatures...

 

Yes, I have been on the website.

 

GIMP is decent, and how does it "Use some of Photoshop's features in a bad way"? You honestly care about how your graphics program looks? It's the art that matters. If you have the skill already, or a certain amount of innovation, you don't need any tutorials at all.

 

Who am I? I'm someone who has produced original work. Yeah, and pirated Photoshop is for the editing of images.

[RoxSabre]

Savi, you not getting the point. Please show me where its copyrighted that i can not use images to create a signature. As opposed to stealing Deviant ARt images...you are to request usage of any images that are on Deviant that havent been given permission. Besides, if someone has a problem with a signature you made from their work they would ask the person who made it to take it down/remove.

 

 

 

Jusss saying btw I do original ARTWORK too. Sooo jus sayin/

 

 

 

The part about looks really does translate to ow you feel about making something. If you have to go through 30 interfaces to select a brush opposed to 1 I think it would make a difference.

 

 

 

 

 

To OP I simply mentioned that you can download a 30 day FREE Trial. After it is up you a free to delete it or if you are more interested you can then purchase it.

 

 

 

 

 

Its worth every penny...and besides sig making is like 1/1000000 of what you can do on Photoshop.

 

 

 

 

 

So heres what to do...

 

 

 

Do the Photoshop Trial

 

One month later go To GIMP, if you dont feel like dishing out the dough.

[JoeDaStudd]

Ok first off GIMP has about 99% of the features photoshop does.

 

 

 

The reason professionals will use photoshop over GIMP is for one of 3 reasons;

 

1. Staff are normally taught how to use photoshop as well as the basics at school/college so less training required.

 

2. Integration with the CS suite.

 

3. Its the professional standard and alternatives are normally dismissed instantly.

 

 

 

Its like why a lot of graphics designers use OS X, its not necessary better its just what there taught or told to use.

 

 

 

Short answer without you have $/£600+ free get GIMP.

[dsavi]

Savi, you not getting the point. Please show me where its copyrighted that i can not use images to create a signature. As opposed to stealing Deviant ARt images...you are to request usage of any images that are on Deviant that havent been given permission. Besides, if someone has a problem with a signature you made from their work they would ask the person who made it to take it down/remove.

 

Since when am I "Savi"?

 

Go to the website of the movie/artist/game/etc. Because it is copyrighted, you are neither free to redistribute nor modify the pictures without permission from the author, and that's exactly what you are doing by using it in a signature. You seriously think that they are going to track down every case of usage? No, they stated that they didn't want distribution or modification by using a license that does not allow that. :wall:

 

The part about looks really does translate to ow you feel about making something. If you have to go through 30 interfaces to select a brush opposed to 1 I think it would make a difference.

 

Yes indeed. However, I was talking about looks, not the actual menus and dialogues.

 

 

So heres what to do...

 

 

 

Do the Photoshop Trial

 

One month later go To GIMP, if you dont feel like dishing out the dough.

 

And waste a month trying to figure out what the words on the menus mean? Not a good idea. Use GIMP for a month or more first, then try the trial version.

[Hawks]

The only renders PR lets in their galleries are ones that are rendered from publically availble images on the internet (wallpapers, stock photos, etc).

 

 

 

GIMP has all the features and more of PS, you can write your own plugin if there's something it doesn't do that you want it to do. The pen tool is apparently very different from PS's but I think it's fine. You can rearrange its tools and add/remove dialogs if you feel the need, and edit the skin to your preference.

[Nadril]

The only renders PR lets in their galleries are ones that are rendered from publically availble images on the internet (wallpapers, stock photos, etc).

 

 

 

All of your signatures and art are publicly available on the web. I think I'll go take them and throw some brushes on top and call it my own. Christ, it's like you guy's have never heard about copyright laws at all.

 

 

 

Really, you think the this is going to change anytime soon? People are going to suddenly go "Oh no I used a copyrighted image" No its not going to happen, its the way it is and the way it always will be. Telling someone to create everything by himself when he just wants to start is going to get him laughed at when he posts bad pieces and goes "But I made everything by myself!"

 

 

 

@Nadril

 

In certian circumstances then that will be called stealing but 9 times out of 10 its for a learning purpose or a hobby. Honestly, how much harm is a hobby going to do?

 

 

 

There are numerous images out there that are stock photos, designed to be used by others. The use of a "render" in your signature is a crutch. It is an easy way to create an appealing focal point instead of the artist having to do that themselves. Creating your own work is so much more satisfying than just churning out signature after signature.

 

 

 

I learned photoshop and most of the time I did not use "renders". I will admit there were some moments where I have had a brief stint in using them (mostly as requests for another forum) but over my 7+ years I maybe used "renders" for a year of that time.

 

 

 

I mean, hell, feel free to use stock 3D renders if you want and aren't adept enough to create them yourself in a 3D software. Between 3D stock renders and my own that I made in Cinema 4D back in the day I managed to learn just fine.

 

 

 

The thing is too is that times have changed. 5 years ago you'd pretty much get flamed out of the gallery for throwing a "render" (god I hate how that term is used by people) into a signature without trying, or even just slapping brushes that you didn't make onto a canvas. It certainly has changed but I still think that learning art without any of these crutches helps out in the long run for the artist.

 

 

 

@Nadril

 

In certian circumstances then that will be called stealing but 9 times out of 10 its for a learning purpose or a hobby. Honestly, how much harm is a hobby going to do?

 

 

 

it's not about if it is hurting anyone or not, it's about having some integrity as an artist and respect for those who made those video game characters or whatever you choose to use as a "render". People tend to whine when they see someone rip an image yet are perfectly content with destroying an amazing wallpaper for their own purposes. It's a silly double standard.

[Sam]

Roxsabre, you really do not know what you are talking about. Dsavi DOES actually know what he's talking about and is much more experienced.

[Racheya]

Hehe. Screw Photoshop and GIMP. Paint Shop Pro is my baby

 

 

 

I don't think it matters what program you use, I'd try out all of them until you get a get one you like the feel of. I've tried PS before and it didn't feel right to me, so I've stuck to PSP for many years and I'm still exploring new aspects of it (I'm recently learning how to use the vector tools more efficiently).

 

 

 

As for renders... never used one, never felt the need to *shrugs*

[dsavi]

PSP... No. Just No. Why someone would pay for that I do not know.