People often asked what programs I use when creating graphics and doing my design work. My answer is always the same; "The design triad, of course." Every design task is different. And the task at hand determines which program I use. Each has its own attributes and functionality.
Here are a simple break down:
Here are a simple break down:
Adobe PhotoShop (a.k.a. PS) is most commonly used for performing photo touching and preparing photos for use on the Web, in print, for multimedia, and so on.
You can change colors, touch up distracting areas, remove backgrounds or perform a complete overhaul of the photo. There is a multitude of special effects to mix and match and create a completely different look for your pics.
Here are some of my before-and-after photos showcasing the "Magic of PS":
Cocktail Shaker: Shiny objects can reflect everything in the room. No matter what you do during photography, they often require some photoshopping. After I airbrushed this piece, you'd never know it was a trouble maker.
Cocktail Plate and Glass: Blocks are often needed on the set to lift and hold pieces in place. They can later be removed using PS and no one is the wiser.
Pitcher: This item arrived to the photo shoot missing a handle. In PS, I simply selected the handle of a smaller pitcher, duplicated it and seamlessly marrying it to the broken piece.
Pie Crust Saver: The factory sent the wrong color. No worries. A simple color correction in PS and, voila, we have a red pie crust saver!
You can change colors, touch up distracting areas, remove backgrounds or perform a complete overhaul of the photo. There is a multitude of special effects to mix and match and create a completely different look for your pics.
Here are some of my before-and-after photos showcasing the "Magic of PS":
Cocktail Shaker: Shiny objects can reflect everything in the room. No matter what you do during photography, they often require some photoshopping. After I airbrushed this piece, you'd never know it was a trouble maker.
Cocktail Plate and Glass: Blocks are often needed on the set to lift and hold pieces in place. They can later be removed using PS and no one is the wiser.
Pitcher: This item arrived to the photo shoot missing a handle. In PS, I simply selected the handle of a smaller pitcher, duplicated it and seamlessly marrying it to the broken piece.
Pie Crust Saver: The factory sent the wrong color. No worries. A simple color correction in PS and, voila, we have a red pie crust saver!
Adobe Illustrator (a.k.a. AI) is, as the name suggests, an illustration program. You can create many things with AI, including illustrations and line drawings. It's extremely flexible and I spend most of my design time here. Like PS, it has special effects for your creations and you can even incorporate photos in your design.
AI can allow you to create practically anything. Here are illustrations I've done of a sea turtle, a sweatshirt design for our Ireland trip, a line drawing demonstrating the use of a product and a photo mixed with a mechanical drawing for a new bottle shape. The possibilities are nearly endless.
My personal AI moto … "If you can dream it, you can create it."
And, last but not least…
And, last but not least…
Adobe InDesign (a.k.a. InD) is used for desktop publishing, including laying out of ads, catalogs, brochures, postcards, flyers, sell sheets, sales kits ... anything that has a page structure.
InD mixes together text, photos and objects and allows you exacting control over font, character, paragraph and image styles and formats … all in one program.
Some samples of files I've created with InD are:
GREAT ADVICE:
If you want to learn how to use these programs, my best advice is to download a free trial and play around in the program for a while. Become familiar with their environment … then take a class. What you learn in that class will make more sense and stick better. After class, practice right away. Like learning a second language, if you don't practice, it will quickly be forgotten.
For more samples of the creative possibilities these programs have to offer, visit my online portfolio by clicking here.
Happy designing! ☺
Linda
If you want to learn how to use these programs, my best advice is to download a free trial and play around in the program for a while. Become familiar with their environment … then take a class. What you learn in that class will make more sense and stick better. After class, practice right away. Like learning a second language, if you don't practice, it will quickly be forgotten.
For more samples of the creative possibilities these programs have to offer, visit my online portfolio by clicking here.
Happy designing! ☺
Linda
RSS Feed
