Creative Postcard Club—R50 Stamps

I’m pleased that I was able to participate in the Creative Postcard Club’s 50th round. Congrats to Travis on a fantastic milestone!

For this round, I knew I wanted the theme of my stamp to be Art Deco. But the genre encompasses such a large variety of work, I wasn’t sure what to narrow it down to. I spent time thinking and researching and decided on “The Art of Wine” in the Art Deco style. I did many a thumbnail sketch and somehow, they just never felt right. So I put them aside for awhile and I was listening to a story on U.S. Postage stamps and they mentioned that typical themes on stamps are the flag, flowers, or American art/artists. Bingo! My idea was born: American Art Deco, represented by an American flag.

Below: flat color version in Illustrator.



After a few sketches, I followed my usual procedure and scanned my sketch into Adobe Illustrator where I set up my colors and layout. I then imported that file into Photoshop where I added textures and lighting.

Below: final image and final image with stamp border appplied.

Creative Postcard Club—R49 Numerals

This was a tough assignment for me. While I did actually vote for this theme, in general numbers make my eyes glaze over. So to find a meaningful number/numeral for me would prove to be the most challenging part of this assignment.

So I thought about numbers and did a littel research and then I realized that there was one number with a storied history that would work quite nicely, 13. While I don’t personally find 13 unlucky or bad luck, most people do. I decided to take advantage of this stereotype and create a creepy image.

I used some new tools for me: A Faber Castel Brush pen and my new Moleskine notebook to hand-render the numbers which I then scanned into Photoshop where I added texture and lighting to give the number the proper mood.

Click here to learn more about the Creative Postcard Club.

And the winner is....

....Devon is the winner of my Lucky 13 giveaway. Congrats! And thanks to everyone who played the game!

Reminder: Last Chance to Enter Lucky 13 Giveaway!

All entries are due at Midnight EST today, Friday, March 13!

http://nsquaredesign.blogspot.com/2009/03/lucky-13-giveaway.html

Lucky 13 Giveaway!

Since I don't believe Friday the 13 is unlucky, I'm going to try to break the “spell” of the so-called unlucky Friday the 13th and make it a Lucky 13 day for one lucky person!

One week from today, on Friday March 13, I’m going to give away one hand-signed print of my “February Moon” illustration as featured in my recent art exhibit. Print size is 7 inches wide by 17.5 inches high, with a bit of white around it for me to sign.

What do you need to do to win? Answer me these questions three in the comments section on or before Midnight EST on Friday, March 13:
1) What was your luckiest Friday the 13th?
2) Do you think Friday the 13th is lucky, unlucky or neither?
3) What is your favorite Pantone Color?

The best answers, as judged solely by me, get the one and only prize. No purchase necessary. And no fair trying to bribe me with cookies. Unless they are chocolate chip. Sorry, I can only ship to US addresses.


More about this image: I needed one more image to complete my art exhibit for February with a them of "Love." So after some thought, I dreamed up a bare tree with hearts starting to bloom under the silver light of the moon as an analogy to spring and warmth that would be coming soon. I worked a bit differently this time since I wanted to try out my new Faber-Castell Artist Pens. I used the brush nib and did some quick sketches in my trusty sketchbook. I then scanned it into Photoshop and then added the background textures, moon, and lighting.

Friday Fun: UD Players Can Fly!

Or at least that's what I'm led to believe by the program they handed out earlier this season:

Let's take a closer look:

Yep, his feet are clearly at the wrong end of a bad Photoshop job! I guess we should just be glad that they didn't add a lens flare somewhere...

Friday Fun: Amish Ad

I've seen the following ad twice over two issues in National Geographic without giving it much thought. After all, I've trained myself to overlook ads, and this advertorial didn't spark my interest…until I gave it a second look:


Let's take a closer look:


WTH? I've seen some bad Photoshop jobs before, but what on Earth was this person thinking? At least black out the fireplace part! Are we really supposed to believe that a) this guy is putting the finishing touches on a working unit that is plugged in and b) that the Amish have some sort of magical power to turn on electric devices w/o electricity?

Now for the fun part: comment on what object you think the fireplace mantles replaced in the original photo. I don't know the answer, but I'd love to hear people's guesses! :D

Geo Goofed?

I love National Geographic magazine. I've been a subscriber for about six years now and I really appreciate the diversity of stories and how they manage to astound me with the beauty of the planet we all live on. Their indepth stories and wonderful photography really bring the far reaches of the world right into my living room. That's why I was a bit baffled by a photo taken by George Stienmetz that ran in the July 2008 issue:

Is it just me or does the shadow of that mountain appear to be, well, very perfect and straight on the sides. And look at how the tip of the mountain's "shadow" goes out onto the clouds, flat. Now, I have never been to Bolivia's Altiplano region, but I'm fairly certain that shadows usually follow the contours of whatever object they fall on to. I'm hoping that I'm wrong, maybe there is an explanation for such a phenomena. But for now, I have to wonder, is it real or is it Photoshop?