Recent Work
-
I was asked by someone how do I display a large version of an image in the comments area. Some of you already know how to do this, however for those who would llike to know how please read on: This is the method for displaying a large image in your comments area: / / 1. Goto ‘view your public profile’ version of the image. / 2. Left click the image so it will now display the large version of the photo. / 3. Now ‘right’ click on the photo. / 4. From the pop-up menu select properties (the last option) / 5. Move the cursor to the ‘Address’ field click the ‘left’ mouse button just in front of the ‘http://... keeping the button pressed down ‘drag’ your mouse to highlight the whole URL address. / 6. Once it is all highlighted, release the left button (the URL address shold remain highlighted! if not repeat step 5!) now move the cursor back over the highlighted text and press the ‘right’ hand mouse button. / 7. From the pop-up menu select ‘copy’, / 8. Click the ‘cancel’ button on the ‘properties window. / 9. Left click on the big photo so you are returned to the small image again. / 10. Left click in the empty ‘comments’ box. Type in a ! then right mouse click inside the comments box and select ‘paste’ from the pop-up menu. (this will paste the full URL address which you copied from the properties window) / 11. Now type in another ! at the very end of the URL address, / 12. Lastly click the ‘Add Comment’ button!! Good LucK! Please drop me a line if you are still having trouble…... Please NOTE you need to have the ‘Discourage people from right-clicking…....’ option switched off… this can be found in your Public Profile setup. If it is switched on you will only be able to copy the URL address of the .gif file which is placed onto of your photo which protects it from copying…*
-
-
Vignettes are easy to create in Photoshop. You can try one out on the image below if you like. Make a selection with the rectangular marquee tool inside of the image, go to Select>Modify>Feather and choose about 75 pixels on a low res image – go to Select>Inverse – then use the keyboard shortcut of Ctrl + J and it will paste the selection into a new layer for you, and then you can change the blend mode to something you like and perhaps lower the opacity. If you would like to have an Action for the vignette it won’t really work using the rectangular marquee. Because of the different resolution (and size) of your images you need something that is going to work on all of the images. Matt Kloskowski over at NAPP came up with a way to create an action for a vignette ….. so, Lights, Camera, Action :-) You can click through on the image above to practise on if you like (remember that it is a low res image). 800 X 600 image at 72 dpi Open the image (start recording the action after you have the image open, and before you start the next step) and then create a new blank layer above it, fill the layer with any colour. Bring up the Transform Tool by going to Edit>Transform or clicking Ctrl + t on the keyboard and in the top toolbar lock the small chain icon (maintain aspect ratio) and then type 80 into the width and hit enter to accept it. See image. Now hold down the Ctrl key and click on the layer image that you just did the transform on and you should get the marching ants. You can go ahead and throw that layer in the bin now. You should have the original layer with the marching ants on it. Go to Select>Modify>Feather and for this image I chose 75 pixels – depending on the effect you want and the size of the images you are going to be working on, it will vary to this. Click OK to accept it then go to Select>Inverse … now press Ctrl + j on the keyboard and it should put the selection on a new layer for you. This is the point that you would probably stop recording the action so that the blend mode and opacity can be manually adjusted. The final image is below.
-
I can’t remember where I first saw this done, but it’s another effect that you can use on type. You can use this on images as well, and perhaps you could do the Grunge Type and use this effect as well. I’ve started with a 800px X 400px image @ 72 dpi and filled it with a blue colour. Grab your type tool and add some text – I’ve used redbubble. I’ve adjusted the tracking on my text (highlighted in red on the image below) You can go ahead now and add some effects to your text if you want. Once you have done that, turn off the visiblity of the b/ground layer and click on the text layer to make it active. Go to Select>Select All or use the keyboard shortcut of Ctrl + A then go to Edit>Copy Merged then create a new blank layer above your text layer by clicking on the new layer icon at the bottom of the layers palette – make sure that the layer is active, then go to Edit>Paste. Turn off the visibility of your original text layer – and should have something similar to the image below. We’re going to use the Pen Tool now to make some selections with the text. It is painless (for those who dislike the pen tool). Make sure that once you have selected the Pen Tool that in the top toolbar it is set to Paths Go ahead and make a selection similar to the one below – or however you want – I’m showing you how to create the effect it doesn’t mean that it is the only way that it has to done. Once you have closed off the path, right click inside the path and click on Make Selection, accept the default of 0 feather, anti alias checked and new selection. Once you get the marching ants go to Edit>Cut create a new layer above the merged layer by clicking on the new icon layer at the bottom of the layers palette, then go to Edit>Paste. Grab your move tool and position the text similar to the image below. It would also be worthwhile naming the new layer ‘Top’ and the copy merged layer ‘Middle” – or something that makes sense to you. Click back on the copy merged layer and do the same thing to the bottom half of the text – create path>make selection>Cut>new layer>Paste>move into position with the move tool – and perhaps name the layer bottom. Now you are going to move some of the pieces of the letters around to displace them a little. Grab your lasso tool and select which layer you are going to work on i.e. top, middle, bottom and lasso around part of the letter like in the image below – then grab your move tool and move it slightly, either to the right or left, up or down. Go ahead and continue moving the pieces of text that you want to move. I have over done the effect in the image below so you can see what is going on. I also used the transform tool on a couple of the pieces. Now you need to load the transparency of the layers you just worked on. If you have 3 like I do, and named them the same, you will be using Middle, Top and Bottom. Hold done your Ctrl key and click on the ‘Middle’ layer, then hold down the shift as well and click on the ‘Top’ and Bottom’ layers – you will see the marching ants appear. Click on the new layer icon at the bottom of the layers palette and then fill the transparency with a colour – any colour will do for now. Then drag the layer below the layers you were working on, and above the original text layer – you can now deselect and then duplicate the layer. Name one of the new layers Stroke and make sure that is the layer that is active. Then go to Edit>Stroke in the top menu bar and select width 2px, colour black, center, mode normal, opacity 100% – click OK. You will now have something similar to this image. You can carry on now and do some effects to the b/ground if you like – this is what I did to get the final image below. Working on the other layer that is filled with a colour … in my case layer 1…. I went to Filter>Sharpen>Unsharp Mask and really bumped up the sharpening Amount 500%, Radius 7.9 and Threshold 0. I then used Filter>Blur>Radial Blur … 100%, Zoom and Good. I then used the eraser to soften the effect near the outside edges. I turned the opacity down to 80%. I also named this Text Blur. I then created a new layer above the original text layer and drew a rough circle with the lasso tool, then I picked some colours and did a Filter>Render>Clouds. I then did the same as in the above paragraph. I changed the blend mode to soft light and took the opacity down to 80%. You can probably come up with a thousand better finishes than this ….... so go play!
-
This is a really simple way to add a little depth to someone’s eyelashes and even eyebrows if you wanted to. It isn’t beauty retouching, and there are quite a few eyelash brushes available on the net if you feel inclined to give someone a whole new set of eyelashes. You can practise on my son’s eyes, just click through for the larger image. So you’ve got your image and you’ve duplicated it and are working on a copy, create a new blank layer above the b/ground layer by clicking on the new layer icon at the bottom of the layers palette. Zoom in to 200% and choose a small, soft edged brush and black – or brown if you want. I used a 3px brush, black and the hardness turned all the way down for this particular image. You can see what I have done in the image below. I changed the blend mode to soft light to see what it looked like. Still working on the eyelash layer go to Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur and for this image I used a radius of 1.5 pixels. You can lower the opacity of the layer if you like as well. You can do the top and bottom eyelashes of each eye on seperate layers as well. Here is the final comparison, probably a little bit overdone but each image will be different and the important part of this technique is the Gaussian Blur.
-
A couple of weeks back the redbubble gods put a new phone on my desk and from that moment on, I became the telephone sales person for Australian customers who want to talk to a real human being. (I came fully equipped with my Australian accent and friendly banter) Over that time I have taken a few notes and created a list of tips that I thought I would share… Offer t-shirt designs in as many colours as the design suits. A few times now I’ve contacted the artist asking if they would make it available in another colour in order to close a sale. And by offering a range of colours, I’ve had customers decide to pick up an extra one in a different hue while they are at it. Offer the full range of wall art products where you feel it is suitable for the work. And if you have a suggestive sell – put it in the description. I’ve fielded a couple of “I guess I should get them a card too” comments by hunting down an appropriate design to compliment the print they are buying. If you already have a good “pair” or “set” make it obvious and use links Spell check your artwork titles, no really, the search engine will love you more. Ok, I will love you more too. It makes it easier to find your work and that means faster customer service for the person on the phone. Tag tag tag tag tag tag tag tag tag tag tag tag tag tag tag tag tag tag tag… / and do it properly please / Not every customer who calls up is tech savy and understands the ins and outs of using a search engine, but when they say to me, “do you have any images of xyz” I want to be able to plug ‘xyz’ into the search box and find your work. Thank you, love from your telephone sales girl /
-
Here’s a cool effect that you may want to try out at sometime. Create a new file 500px X 600 px with a transparent b/ground @ 72 dpi and then duplicate the layer. This is just a file to practise on :-) Grab your Shape Tool and choose Custom, then go to the top toolbar and pick the black triangle shape. Working from the centre of the image, draw the shape upwards past the top of the file edge (see image below), you might want to bring up the transform tool by using Ctrl + T on the keyboard to get the shape how you want it, then duplicate the shape layer. Once you have duplicated the shape layer, go to the history palette and take a snapshot of the work so far. If your history palette isn’t visible go to Window>History and click on History. To take the snapshot use the middle icon (it looks like a camera). With the duplicate layer active, bring up the Transform Tool by clicking Ctrl + T on the keyboard. In the centre of the box that appears for the transform tool you will see a small circle with four small arms sticking out (this is the rotation axis for the transform) you will need to drag that down to the centre of the bottom line. With your cursor outside of the transform bounding box, rotate the shape to the right or left – whatever takes your fancy. Then you can hit the enter button to accept it. You’re probably wondering why I told you to take a snapshot when you had duplicated the shape layer – it was because the next part of this doesn’t always turn out correctly spaced and you will have to go back to the snapshot to start again :) Taking the snapshot after you duplicated the shape layer, means that you can bring up the transform tool again and try a different rotation – more or less, depending on how it turned out the first time. You should still be working on the shape copy layer, now, hold down the Ctrl + Shift + Alt keys and then press the T key repeatedly until you have as many of the shapes in place as you want. You should end up with something similar to the first image – although yours may be properly centered :) When you click onto the previous shape layer or b/ground layer, the bounding boxes will go away. You can see that mine didn’t quite end up centered and that I would need to paint in the small area top right that didn’t quite fill. You could merge the 2 shape layers at this point and lock the transparency to fill the shapes with a gradient or different colour. You could also clip an image with the shapes, you could also fill the b/ground with a colour or image – play around with it a little bit and see what you can come up with. On the first image I filled the b/ground layer with black, merged the 2 shape layers, locked the transparency of the layer and then filled with a circular gradient. On the 2nd image I simply used a 3 pixel black centered stroke on the shapes after I had filled it with the gradient.
-
I’m pretty sure that Corey Barker over at Layers Magazine is the person who originally did this effect. So, what you are going to be doing, is using some type and the pattern maker inside of Photoshop to make a background. It’s a really cool effect, and remember that this isn’t necessarily limited to type – you could also use an image for another cool effect. To practise on, create a new file 800px X 600px @ 72 dpi and fill it with a colour. You can see in the image below that I used blue. Grab your type tool and type something, I also did a drop shadow and stroke on the text. Go ahead now and duplicate the text layer and turn off the original text layer. You should now have something similar to the image below. When you go into the Pattern Maker it is going to ask you to rasterize the type click OK, also, the text will be white and won’t stand out very well against the transparent b/ground. If you haven’t got white text, that is OK. If you have and you want to change it (you can change it back later) go ahead now and fill the text with another colour – I used the same blue as my b/ground. Once you’ve changed the colour of the text, click on Filter>Pattern Maker>Click OK when the small dialogue box appears – then you will be inside the pattern maker filter. Something to make sure you have correct before you proceed – on the upper right hand side of the …. very … large pattern maker dialogue box is a small button with Use Image Size on it – make sure that you click on that. It should be the same as your original image size – mine is 800 X 600, yours will be whatever you made it. You can see in the above image that I have made a selection around the text using the marquee tool, which is the first of the tools located at the top left hand side of the dialogue box. You’ll notice that the selection is just a little off centre – there is more free space to the top and left of the text – you can do this to the bottom and left etc., – but try not to select the text square on. Then you can go ahead and press Generate and you can keep pressing Generate Again until you come up with something you like. At the bottom right hand side of the dialogue you will notice that you can also scroll back and forward through the patterns you have generated and even save them as a preset pattern if you like. Once you find something that you like – click OK and see what happens :-) If you want to change the text back to white on the pattern you just generated – lock the transparency of the layer and fill it with white. Drag the layer that you generated the pattern on below the original text layer. I went ahead and changed the blend mode of the pattern layer to soft light and reduced the opacity to 20%, I also enlarged the original text a little bit. You can go ahead and mask out some of the new pattern by adding a layer mask and using the gradient tool – change blend modes to see what you come up with – only use the pattern on part of another image etc., Below is my finished image, but you can carry on trying out different filters on this to your hearts content :-) Also, using a single word might give a better effect.
-
I just read a very insightful journal entry by DanielMartin about “Writing and making things that come from the heart that maybe no body will like or things that lots of people will enjoy which is cheap and crappy but earns you more money?” I wanted to write him a comment and found that I had more to say about it than I originally thought (and I hope this is helpful to all). Thank you, Daniel, for such a thought invoking query! Here is my response: I find that wiritng form the heart means “being true to one’s heart” and, thusly, true to one’s self. There are a lot of artists out there who create only for profit because money makes the world go round. And, sometimes, rightly so. I know and have lived through and seen the cost of “Bohemian lifestyles” and what a toll it takes on one’s life and the lives of those who care about them in order for one to be “All about the art” and live and breathe “Only art from the heart” (shoot, I am living that life right now at this moment…and it is bittersweet). I have battled with this concept as well and will admit that I have thought about just giving in and producing what will make the most money. But, I haven’t…yet. I have always just produced what I liked and hoped others would like it too. I too have felt that some pieces were unpopular and that popular pieces are those that “sell out” because the artist/author is pandering to the masses and not being true to their own voice. But, maybe some of those creatives aren’t always “selling out”; maybe, they have just figured out the formula and have solved a very simple/complex equation. Lately, I have been trying to find a certain place in my work: producing what I like and what is from the heart and, at the same time, making it what people want (and by “want”, I mean “buy”). I am slowly beginning to learn that what people want is actually to buy something from someone who believes so much so in their own work that others have no alternative but to see it as if it has come from their own hearts as well, and thusly want to buy it. What peope want is passion – passion for the creation process, passion for the sales process, and passion for the way the peice speaks to the world (or what it says about that world). A photo is just a photo, a poem is just a poem, a graphic is just a graphic, until someone (meaning us creatives) shapes and molds it, and gives it meaning and purpose. Every piece we produce should evoke some sort of human emotion (other than boredom). If a piece makes someone happy…or sad…or enraged…or inspired…or ready to fight for a cause…or…you get the point… Then, we have done our jobs as creatives. It is when we get no response that we have failed (this does not literally mean “no response in our comments sections”, but rather if the peice evoked no inner response from the viewer/reader). This is why it is so important for us creatives to offer constructive feedback and honest responses to our fellow creative comrades. To comment on someone’s work with “Excellent” or “Wow” or “Lovely” (you get the idea), might actually do us all more harm than good. Think about it. These words are filler words. I, myself, have been guilty of using them from time to time when in a rush. But they are just adjectives and they do nothing to show the workings of the inner self. Some of the best comments a creative can receive (and, I am sure most of you can attest to this) are those that give some insight into how the piece affected the viewer. For example, these are some comments I have received which exemplify my point. I first must say, that I appreciate ANY and ALL comments on my work, even constructive criticisms. These are not necessarily my most favorite comments (though some of them very well may be), however, I randomly selected them because I feel they illustrate my above point and are very good examples: “I love it to death!!!!” from Anne van Alkemade on Snail Mail Project – Page 1 “I love the romance of this composition” from Michael J Armijo on Faerie Dust “Just love the extreme fright one feels when looking at this image and reading the narrative.” from ltruskett on HE Waits “The stuff nightmares are made of.” from Paul Compton on No Escape “It looks so lonely!” from Sarah Moore on Little Tree ”...the thought of murdering Barry Manilow has surely occurred to others besides me hasn’t it?” from deliriousgirl on This One’s For You “I will never stop laughing.Thanks for the boost.” from MIKERUSSELL on Sitting Now, I did not mean to leave anyone out, so please do not be offended if your comment is not shown here as an example. There are just so many comments and these just popped up at me as ones that would help to make my point. If you notice, they all share a common thread: they let the creator of the piece know how their pieced affected that particular viewer. And, for an artist/writer, knowing how a piece affects another human being is worth its weight in gold. So, take this into consideration the next time you leave someone comments. I know I will try to. I am not saying to not leave the standard “Awesome” or “Excellent”, but maybe follow that up with a few words about how the piece made you feel or react. It only takes another few seconds from your busy life, but gives a world of knowledge to the person for whom you are leaving the comment. Ask yourself: How did this piece make me feel/react? Is the comment telling/showing how this piece made me feel/react? Am I leaving this particular comment because I have nothing else to say about it? Is my comment truly constructive? How will this comment help the creator of the piece? Am I being honest? Or, am I using filler to hide the fact that the piece caused an emotion in me that I think is not too positive (i.e. scared, afraid, creeped out, angry, enraged, turned off, sick to your stomach, etc.). [If this is the case, you can always send a private message to the creator of the piece letting them know how you feel. Remeber, there is always a way to express a negative emotion in a positive way.] So, why did I go off on this tangent about leaving comments? Because, your simple act of leaving a comment can help that artist/writer to discover what it is about their work that makes others tick. Is their work inspirational? Does it scare the viewer? Is it shocking? Does it induce fond memories? Does it convey the original emotions/feelings the artist originally intended on delivering? How are we supposed to know these things unless we tell each other? And, most of us here are creative types, so why not use each other as tools? After all, one of the best tools of our trade is feedback. And, as artists and writers, we can take that feedback and learn to solve that ever popular equation: What we love + What they want = Art that does not fail What I mean by “art that does not fail”, is art that is both from the heart & soul and that also touches the hearts and souls of others. Creative pieces should accomplish both of those tasks. And keep in mind If a few people think a piece is boring or it evokes no inner response…choc it up to a difference in taste If A LOT of people (especially people whose opinions you highly value) think it is boring or that it evokes no inner response…try looking at your work from outside your own box and getting honest, helpful criticisms (and appreciate those criticisms, which so many of us tend NOT to do). If you’re piece evokes less-positive responses, ask yourself if that was your intent. Did you mean for the peice to scare people? Were they suppsoed to get grossed out, or offended, or angered? If the piece upset someone or caused them to loathe what you created. Ask yourself “why?” Because, if that was the intent of your piece…then a job wll done! Re-examine your work often and update it (especially if it has had no response). First recognize how that work makes you feel/react and then ask people if it does the same for them; if not, re-examine it and try again. Ask yourself if your piece contains personal reflections that no other person, except those involved, would “get”? If so, try to re-imagine the piece so that anyone, anywhere, and at anytime can be involved with your piece and understand its meaning and relevenace. Read/view other works of art and keep in mind what others are saying about those pieces. Remember, the best writers are readers; the best artists are connoisseurs. Remember that you should be the biggest fan of your work. If you don’t love it, then how can you expect others to? If you are not “moved” by it, then how are others expected to be? And, remember, we artists and writers cannot please everyone. So, don’t even try. Just please yourself…umm…that came out bad…I mean…just know that if you build it, they will come…okay, so I went from smut to cheese, but you get the point! Artists. Writers. Photographers. Illustrators. Poets. Sculpturers. Designers. Architects. Songwriters. Graphic Artists. Webmasters. Screenwritiers. Painters. Chefs. Sketchers. Filmmakers. Assemblers. Decorators. Bakers. Playwrights. Crafters. Creators. And, “Smiths” of all kinds… The equation is OURS to solve. Anybody got a calculator? © Copyright Brian Jaime and bchrsidesigns, 2008. All Rights Reserved. Note: I am posting this to ALL of my groups as it is about art/writing in general and I hope all of my fellow creative comrades will be inspired by it. Cheers! ~ b.chris
-
Writing
Say "NO!" to the Orphan Works Act…I found about this ludicrous proposed law on Red Bubble...
I found about this ludicrous proposed law on Red Bubble and wanted to let everyone else know what they can do about it! If you have not heard about the Orphan Works Act, then you should research it and speak out before it is too late (especially if you are an artist, writer, and/or musician)! No, this Act is not about displaced children or found animals. It revolves around works of art (including fine art, photography, writing, music, etc.) that are not registered with newly proposed agencies. ANY work not registered would be considered in the public domain. This is a dangerous concept and just goes to show how greedy and capitalistic our society, government, and big businesses have become. According to GoPetition.com: “If the Orphan Works legislation passes, you and I and all creatives will lose virtually all the rights to not only our future work but to everything we’ve created over the past 34 years, unless we register it with the new, untested and privately run (by the friends and cronies of the U.S. government) registries. Even then, there is no guarantee that someone wishing to steal your personal creations won’t successfully call your work an orphan work, and then legally use it for free. In short, if Congress passes this law, YOU WILL LOSE THE RIGHT TO MAKE MONEY FROM YOUR OWN CREATIONS!” We would be forced into a world where big business can bully us and use whatever they wanted and not be penalized for it. And, this law not only affects artists, writers, and musicians. It also affect the everyday consumer! If you are planning to get your the photographs of your cousin’s wedding developed at a Wal-Mart or other big box retailer, then you better be prepared to get every image copyrighted or you may just end up seeing them on Wal-Mart’s billboards! Gone would be the days of having rights the minute you create something. Now, if you don’t pay to protect it, then it is like no one created the image and it is up for grabs! Who wants to live in this kind of world other than greedy politicians and businesses? And, it does not surprise me that this has all happened under the Bush administration. Who were the idiots that voted for him and thought he would do us some good? Well, seems like the joke’s on YOU! In an April 10th article in Animation World Magazine, award-winning animation producer/director and speaker, Mark Simon, writes: “It is currently against international law to coerce people to register their work for copyright because there are so many inherent problems with it. But because big business can push through laws in the United States, our country is about to break with the rest of the world, again, and take your rights away. With the tens of millions of photos and pieces of artwork created each year, the bounty for forcing everyone to pay a registration fee would be enormous. We lose our rights and our creations, and someone else makes money at our expense. This includes every sketch, painting, photo, sculpture, drawing, video, song and every other type of creative endeavor. All of it is at risk! If the Orphan Works legislation passes, you and I and all creatives will lose virtually all the rights to not only our future work but to everything we’ve created over the past 34 years, unless we register it with the new, untested and privately run (by the friends and cronies of the U.S. government) registries. Even then, there is no guarantee that someone wishing to steal your personal creations won’t successfully call your work an orphan work, and then legally use it for free.” So, what can you do about it? Well educate yourself on the issues, write to your congress men and women, and sign as many petitions as your can. To get your started, check out this petition, which I have already signed: Say ‘NO!’ to the Orphan Works Act on GoPetition.com Also, be sure to check out these resources for more information: Say ‘NO!’ to the Orphan Works Act on GoPetition.com Mark Simon’s Mind Your Business: You Will Lose All The Rights to Your Own Art IPA Orphan Works Resource Page for Artists U.S. Copyright’s Office Orphan Works Page ASMP’s Update on the 2008 Orphan Works Act You can also find more information about the Orphan Works Act on Red Bubble: Helen Bascom’s Protect Your Copyright – URGENT ACTION REQUIRED Erin Jay’s Something every artist should know about! Crockpot’s The Orphan Works Act of 2008 ~ RELEASE WanderingAuthor’s Writers’ Concerns bchrisdesigns’ Say ‘NO!’ to the Orphan Works Act The Red Bubble forum dedicated to this discussion
-
I am not sure if someone else has already posted a tutorial on this, so I thought I would have a go at it. I read this very insightful tutorial by admin Xavier Shay about posting a Portfolio into an email signature. I was toying around with the code, and discovered how to place the code on your Red Bubble profile page. I have noticed that some people have already figured out how to do this, so there are some who probably already know about this. I, however, did not know this until I toyed around with it and, so, I am sure that there others out there who might find this of value. I would first recommend that you read Xavier’s post and the comments that follow, as they were a very big help in learning how to do this. (1) The first step is to use the image location link that was provided in the forum tutorial: http://redbubble.com/people/username/recipe:banner;back_color:ffffff;orientation:horizontal;limit:4/username_banner.jpg (2) Next, paste this image location link somewhere in your “About Me” section between exclamation points, like this: !place the image location link here! (3) Now, notice the bold areas of the above link. You must insert your Red Bubble username (not your real name) where it says username (there are two spots in the link where you have to do this). So, my link would like like this: http://redbubble.com/people/bchrisdesigns/recipe:banner;back_color:ffffff;limit:4_;orientation:_horizontal;/bchrsidesigns_banner.jpg Can you tell where I have replaced “username” with “bchrisdesigns”? (4) Finally, if you take note of the italicized text in the image location link directly above, you will notice that the values of “back_color”, “orientation”, and “limit” are all italicized. These values are yours to control and manipulate to get the proper look and feel that you would like on your page. back_color: is the image’s background color, which you can change to any color using the standard HTML Color Code. Note, that you do not need to use the # (pound sign) that normally precedes HTML Color Code (i.e. ”#ffffff”) – you just need the code (i.e. “fffffff”). #ffffff is the color code for “white”. limit: is the number of thumbnails that will be seen in your banner. I have experimented with this in my blog and have discovered that the most you can set it to is “6”. On your Red Bubble profile page, the most you can really set it to is “4” for horizontal images and “6” for vertical images orientation: is the way your portfolio will be seen. This can be changed to either “horizontal” (from side-to-side) or “vertical” (up and down). And, that is it. Once you have decided how you want your image to look, just save your profile and presto! You’ve got a nifty banner on your page. BUT… If you would like your banner to be click-able, you need to add a link code to it, such as: ”! image location here ! ( link description here )” : hyperlink here You can copy and paste this example into your “About Me” section and then fill in the blanks with your information (make sure you delete any and all spaces). In the above example, replace the underlined text as follows: image location here: replace this text with the finalized image location link that we worked on in steps 1-4 above. link description here: replace this text with a description of what you would like people to see when they hover over your banner. (Mine says “View My Red Bubble Gallery”.) hyperlink here: replace this text with the actual hyperlink that you would like your image to link to (i.e. a specific Red Bubble section or your profile page; you can also link to your blog/website/etc.). Once you replace the text as indicated, simply save your edited profile and check out your radical awesomeness! Here is an example of mine (with hyperlink): I hope this helps everyone! Cheers! P.S. I am adding this to all of my groups in the hopes that everyone can use this tool to display their beautiful works of art (from Atmospheric Optics to Zoophoria). Much love!
-
/ “It’s a hot tranny mess up in here!” There has been much talk recently about Red Bubble Groups and how things need to change. Some common gripes include: There is little group involvement (so why even join in the first place, people?) People complain about bubble mails (I am not one of them because by joining a group, I pretty much expect it) Hosts complain about investments of time and resources RB admins claim that groups are just a dumping ground for images Many members simply use these groups for shameless self-promotion without even reading the rules and/or following them correctly (you know who you are!!!!) New groups that could possibly be beneficial have been put on hiatus because there are supposedly “too many groups”...gasp! Some groups, which are hosting off-site blogs and websites to promote their groups and give their groups additional functionality (which could actually help members with free promotion), have come under fire for violating member’s rights Group challenges are either lacking in entries, votes, or overall support (even when money is involved, which is beyond me, quite frankly) Many hosts feel taken advantage of and under-appreciated by the Red Bubble community, and subsequently abandon their posts or lose interest and the groups suffer for it Hosts are sometimes at a loss with going about how to feature work and artists in their groups, and what constitutes “fairness” Many members cannot understand why their work was not accepted and many hosts have either very unreasonable expectations or their expectations are way too low Adding your work to groups involves skimming through a long list of un-alphabetized and un-sort-able group names, which makes posting to groups a chore. I can understand why some people just click everything and submit and leave it to the hosts to decide. I have NEVER done this, but I can understand why some would. Groups get inundated with art/clothing/writing/journals and then visitors have to skim through 20 or more pages of work, which can make it daunting for viewers (I personally think this is just one more thing to complain about and not really that big of a deal) Many groups limit the amount of work a member can post (or can post at one time) and sometimes this seems unfair (I agree with this 100%); but hosts say that the purpose of this is to keep the galleries so fresh and so clean (which seems a bit nit-picky yet needed, to me). This represents just a few rants that I have seen expressed throughout the RB community, and some of them I share my opinion with because I have experienced it firsthand. Being a member of quite a few groups and also a group host, I have been able to see perspectives from both sides. And, having been involved in many internet groups in the past, I can attest that Red Bubble still needs to work it out for better functionality. However, what Red Bubble has is a diamond in the rough that has so much potential. Now, I know this is getting word-y and I have been criticized in the past for not exemplifying brevity. But, when I am passionate about a subject matter I cannot help but ramble on. All I can hope for is that people (especially RB Admins and Group Hosts) continue reading because I think I have some good ideas to toss into the mix. Currently, Red Bubble is talking about a sort of division that would make groups for the people and would establish galleries for the art. This is just an idea that Red Bubble has been toying with and their is nothing official about it. And, while this idea has many supporters, I am not a huge fan of it. I think it will initially cause a lot of chaos and confusion and require volunteers to offer more time, which many of us are already at our wits end with. I question why Red Bubble is trying to establish new features as a way to “help the group situation” rather than actually focusing on the group’s part and trying to revamp that. We do not need something new. What we need is for a better operating group system. Maybe, if we started there, then we would fix some of these problems in the first place. Here are some ideas I have, that would probably help to end (or at least aid with) the current group conundrum: Bubble Mails Bubble mail woes could be a thing of the past if Red Bubble were to find a way for Group Hosts to send notifications to the group that, instead of being sent to member bubble mail accounts, would automatically be posted in a group tab called “Updates” (they could put it right before the “Activity” on the group’s menu). An option to post a message to the group could be placed under the “Moderation” section (group hosts know what I am talking about). Also, so that members would not have to visit every group, every day, for news and updates… Red Bubble could make a “feed” for it under our main “Activity Feeds” menu (much like they did with the “Challenges Feed”). Shameless Self-Promotions To avoid this nasty little habit, group hosts could enter key words (tags, if you will) that describe their group and what they expect. The number of tags could be limited to twenty fours (to avoid over tagging and confusion; plus, usually if you go over 24 tags, they become unusable in a search anyway). Then, when members are uploading a new work or editing a pre-existing work, only groups which the member belongs to and which share the tags the member has used for their work would appear in the “Add this work to your groups” section. This section should also be made alphabetical, search-able, and sort-able AND there should be a pop-up link to the group’s guidelines so that, at the time of posting, members can skim through group guidelines to determine if a piece is suitable for said group. This way, the member has no reason to have spammed groups with their unrelated images. Also, maybe there should be a notification section of the moderation tabs for group hosts to be able to see who has submitted more than five rejected pieces within a three month time period. They could then send a warning to the member and put them on a sort of probation, and the member could face possible removable. This type of system would SHOW members just how often they do this and would hold them accountable for their actions and would eliminate a lot of the debates as to why a host kicked someone out of the group. Group Involvement Continuing on with the idea of a notification system, Red Bubble could implement a point system that would record group activity for individual members (and hosts too)...kind of like sporting statistics. Members (and hosts) could be able to see how many forum posts they have made, how many challenges they have entered, how many they have won/lost, how many works they have had accepted/rejected, how many groups they belong to/host, how many groups they have left and/or being ejected from, how many pieces they have had featured, how many times they have had been a featured member, etc. Each time they do something positive, they could earn points accordingly. And, each time they do something negative, like have a piece rejected from a group or not be an active member for an entire week, they could get a ding and their point value would decrease. With this type of system, members could then see their overall Red Bubble stats and know where they stand. This would make people more accountable, have more of an incentive to participate, and not be so offended when hosts make evasive decisions. Red Bubble (and group hosts) could also offer incentives for constantly active members (like a “Most Active Members” feature page) and hosts! The Main Group Page Currently, when we click on “Groups”, we are taken to a very simplistic (and quite boring) group page, which lists our groups, featured groups, recent groups, and random groups. Well, this is nice and all, but I feel it is a waste of that page. That page should be a portal for us into the world of Red Bubble groups. As it is now, it seems like an afterthought. This should be our group hub. We should be able to find our group activity feeds, group stats, favorite groups, groups we host, groups that are most active and featured, and newest groups. We should have the option of sorting through this information and deciding what it is that is important for us to view (each of us, individually). This way, we have no excuse to not know the current happenings or to not be involved. It would automatically put us in the center of it all and we would then automatically be involved. Information would go right to the source. We should also have the option of adding works to multiple groups (which we are members of and which match our tags criteria, of course) from this section as well as being able to delete them from groups. In the same respect, we should have the ability to quickly enter pieces of artwork and writing into group challenges. All of this should be made accessible right from this first page, without the hassle of surfing through the mountains of groups out there. There should also be a section on this page, where Red Bubble admins and Group Hosts could post group-wide announcements that all members would receive because it may be beneficial for them to know (regardless if they belong to a particular group or not). There could be an option when hosts post group updates, for it to be posted in this section as well. Group Challenges/Contests Right now, it seems that Red Bubble is on the right track when it comes to the way groups host challenges and contests. But, I would personally expand on that idea. There should be a section of the main group page just for challenges and contests. And ALL group challenges should be posted here. Members could then see ALL group challenges (even those from groups which they may not currently belong to). Also, it would be nice for Challenge winners to receive a little note on their art work description notifying people out there of their placement in the challenge. This is valuable marketing for us artists and might help us with sales (some people might like to buy an award winning piece). Currently, Zazzle does this and automatically posts various community wins on the actual art work page for all browsers to see. This would really encourage people to enter and participate in challenges and contests. And, hey, what about vendor challenges? A lot of art websites team up with outside vendors to hosts challenges for artwork photography, writing etc. Red Bubble should do stuff like that and place information on those in this area as well! Also, maybe Red Bubble could give each group so much in funds for challenge prizes. This way, if the challenge is approved to use the funds, the hosts could give out better prizes which might also improve upon challenge participation. As well, members could receive points that would up their statistics rating for each entry and each placement in a competition. Featured Work and Artists Instead of leaving it solely up to hosts to decide who gets featured in each group. Why not reserve some spots, which would automatically generate featured members from criteria such as: most involved group members, challenge winners (1st, 2nd, 3rd, place), most favorited pieces, most viewed, etc. Then the hosts could have their picks as well. This way, the pool is always more fair and even leveled. Also, featured works should also receive award markers on the actual work’s page (much like my above idea for challenges to receive them) because, then buyers could know that this piece not only won challenges, but it was also featured! Cha-ching! Group Restrictions & Archives Many group hosts cap the number of pieces a member can add to a group. Some even narrow it down to one or two, which is honestly ridiculous! I understand the hosts concerns that the groups will overflow with work and people will have full pages of work shown in the galleries. I understand how this issue is a Pandora’s Box and I am not saying to get rid of group restrictions. But how about making them more feasible, streamlined, and automated? Red Bubble should only allow members to post no more than 2-3 pieces in a single 24 hour time period (excluding challenge entries, journals, and special circumstances such as Drawing Day, etc.). Members should then be cut off from submitting any more than that until the next day. This simple act could alleviate all concerns of spamming. The logical next step would be establishing certain criteria for pieces to automatically be “archived” into the group’s history. Yes, ALL groups should have an archive. Why do we not have an archive? Can someone explain this to me? Even blogs have archives! This way, hosts and members do not have to worry about over-flooding of the group and having to delete and re-add images. The hosts could then archive the group by month and those archives could then be search-able by the masses. The hosts could set it to archive itself every month or every three months or they could do it manually. In addition, archived pieces could also appear in the feature section or in the group’s feeds for challenge winners, most viewed, most commented on, most featured, etc. that way they do not just get lost in archive hell. If these things were implemented, then hosts would not have to be all military style and making up outrageous quotas and restrictions (that, quite frankly, sometimes turn away potential members). It would make it the same and fair for every group and no one would have to try to remember what the limit rules were for each and every group they belong to. Also, hosts should be given the option for mass acceptance, rejection, and deletion of material. And, hosts should be able to create pre-written messages or templates to send to members when a piece is rejected or deleted. As a host, it would be beneficial for me to be able to choose, from a drop down menu, the appropriate response to send so that members are not constantly BM’ing you with questions. And, much like hosts can invite members to join the group, why not enable them to invite people to submit a certain piece to the group. As a hosts, I have often been surfing through RB and noticed some art and writing (and journals) that would be welcomed additions to the groups I host, but having to BM the artist/writer (especially if they are not a current member) is daunting and time consuming. I wish I could just click an invitation to submit their piece to my group. Who knows, maybe they do not even know that our groups even exists! Hello new membership! Creating New Groups There has recently been debate over the creation of new groups being placed on hiatus. I, myself, sent Red Bubble admins an email proposing three new groups, to which I have received NO REPLY. I know they are busy people, so I am not holding anything against them…yet. Hehehehehe… But, one thing that would help them in creating new groups would be to create and online form that members could fill out (and edit, and check the status of) which would be in pending mode until approved. This way, the potential host could enter the potential group’s guidelines, mission statement, etc. That way, this information is already set to go if the group is approved. Also, they should create a section of the main group page which would show all proposed groups and their descriptions, guidelines, and mission statements. This section should give members the option of adding themselves to the “waiting list” for that group (so that they are automatically added to the group upon the group’s inception – they would receive notice of this in their activity feed, of course). Then, RB Admins could see how many people are on the group’s waiting list and this could show just how much of a demand there is for that particular group. If a group is denied creation, the potential host can then re-examine that and make “significant” changes and re-submit it for inclusion. Group Blogs This has also been a hot topic of debate recently. Some hosts have created websites and blogs outside of Red Bubble to give their groups more functionality and marketability. Some hosts want to include all members in this. Some members do not want to be included (as to why, I will NEVER understand because free marketing is free marketing people…but that is a different post all together). So, how do we solve this? Some have suggested that we include an option upon membership to opt out of said promotions/inclusions. I sort of like this idea, but think it needs more functionality. Members should be able to do this on a per piece basis. What if I am cool with my writing being featured on the group’s blog, but not my art? Or I do not want my pieces placed on blogs, except this one t-shirt? It’s all about functionality. When we upload our pieces to a group, it should give us the option for inclusion for that particular piece only. Then, hosts could use an implemented search tool to weed through the group for pieces that are open to inclusion. There. Problem solved. Another way to combat this would also be to set up group blogs, where hosts could blog about the same stuff they blog about on their off-site blogs, but it would be here on Red Bubble and, thusly, members would not be all up in arms. Also, it would be beneficial for groups to be able to set up Group Zines that could be annual, bi-annual, quarterly, bi-quarterly, monthly, bi-monthly, weekly, or bi-weekly. This would be beneficial for writing groups and art groups alike. They could supply articles, features, etc. Many groups are already doing this off-site. Why not promote that here? It would definitely encourage people to up the quality of art and writing. The Bottom Line The bottom line is that right now Red Bubble’s group system is a Hot Tranny Mess (my apologies to the Trannies of the world, of whom I have nothing but love for) and what it needs to be is FIERCE! I know this is A LOT of information to take in and I will be proud of those of you who read through all of this. I hope, at least, that all Red Bubble Admins and Group Hosts have read though this as I feel I am offering valuable ideas. I am not one to rabble rouse and cause an uproar. And, I am not hating on Red Bubble or anyone. I want Red Bubble to succeed in everything it does. I love this website and want it to be the best it can be. This is why I offer my thoughts and ideas. I know that there will be many who disagree with some of my ideas. But, you cannot make everyone happy. But, at least I took the time to share my ideas and offer constructive help for a better Red Bubble experience for us all. All of these ideas combined would make our group experiences as members and hosts a whole lot better. I implore you Admins, to re-consider and re-evaluate your plans for RB because we do not need new features to go along side with our already confusing and chaotic ones. Shouldn’t we improve upon one thing first BEFORE we add something new to the mix? There is so much YOU (Red Bubble) can do rather than the whole Galleries idea to improve upon our experience with groups. So, why not take care of that first? Thank you to all who took the time to read this word-y mess! Much love to you all! And, Red Bubble, if you happen to like my ideas…hook me up with one of them Red Bubbles by my name…hehehehe…wink-wink! El Fin. [Phew!] ~ b.chris @>}-—- NOTES: See this forum topic, as well, for more information. For those curious about the SNL/Project Runway quote which precedes this offering, check this out (courtesy of Hulu.com): http://www.hulu.com/watch/11932/saturday-night-live-new-bravo-show#s-p2-st-i0 © Copyright Brian Jaime and bchrsidesigns, 2008. All Rights Reserved.
About This Group
Welcome to the How To group where you can learn how to do all sorts of creative and redbubble.com related things. Browse the journal entries, ask in the forums or offer your advice and expertise to others.
Everyone has something to offer and something to learn.
Avatar belongs to dvs1
How To RedBubble is just one of 536 creative groups powered by RedBubble.
RedBubble is the place to share your creative genius with the world through art, photography, design and writing.
Find out more about us, find more groups, sign-up for a free RedBubble membership or take the tour.