Thou Shalt Not Covet

It isn't easy trying to obey the 10 commandments when one can easily be tempted by the beauty all around us, but perhaps appreciating beauty isn't a cardinal sin when one keeps in mind the origin of its design and gives credit where credit is due. So I didn't feel too guilty when trying out my new Sony Cybershot 10 megapixel camera on a beautiful bed of iris growing in a nearby affluent community, after all they were just along the sidewalk and so beguiling, and hey, I had to learn how to use my new camera.

I must admit the camera is really cool and came in a nice variety of stylish colors and so I had to choose the red one since it was just so unique. I've had good luck with Sony products and trust their brand so I didn't have to spend too much time comparing it to other products (but then I was captive in the Sony Style store and what else would I have purchased anyway?) Having my hubby beside me telling me he read it was a good bet was all the convincing I needed to splurge.

So this is one of the first things I shot with it (along with several other neighbors flowering shrubs). The resolution was pretty amazing as it shoots in HD and the images are massive. So after scaling it down in Photoshop I had a little fun with it as I wanted it to look more like a watercolor painting by applying some filters to it in Photoshop.

To achieve the watercolor look I wanted, I first saturated the colors a little and then I adjusted the levels to get the dramatic lighting desired. I then duplicated the orginal image onto another layer and applied the Dry Brush filter to that layer. I then set the layer properties to luminosity at 100% and then flattened the image and exported it as a jpg. As an artist I get a kick out of experimenting with filters to achieve the look I'm after and Photoshop always delivers. So next time you get the urge to do a watercolor painting, try this quick technique to satisfy your artistic urges. And try not to covet your neighbors flowers, I know, its really hard!

The Joy of Gardening

My friends know that I have a love of nature and a passion for gardening. There's just something about digging your hands into the soil and putting things perfectly into place and when necessary rearranging them. Enjoy.

Melding Art with Technology

Well its been awhile since my last blog post, mainly because I'm so busy! The one challenge to being a very creative person is the proliferation of ideas one is presented with and having so little time to devote to pursuing all of them! I recall my design professor once saying that "Design is Choice" which in hindsight seems rather simple but profound. One needs to become a bit discriminating with how one chooses to spend their time. Which can be a challenge in itself due to the never-ending stream of emerging technologies that tempt one to stretch their imagination even further not to mention the pro-bono requests that one tries to accommodate in an effort to give back to society. The other aspect of visual design success that one must project is that magical word called relevance. Imagery has to be relevant to the story. And to ensure I've met that adage, the image here of my blue hydrangeas is relevant to this post about licensing your art....read on.



Licensing Your Artwork

I've always wanted to license my artwork onto products for the mass market and was pleasantly surprised recently to discover CafePress.com which allows one to upload their images onto their server and impose one's artwork onto a good variety of products which can then be ordered by others. The beauty of their business model is that the artist doesn't have to worry about the costs of manufacturing, distribution nor excess inventory. For a nominal fee one can set up a storefront with minimal effort and essentially license their artwork or photos onto a wide variety of products.

So I'm having a little fun in my spare time doing that. Here's a link to my new storefront at Cafepress.com/realartstudios where you can purchase t-shirts, tote bags, aprons and other gift items with my artwork and photos. I'll be adding more in the near future... its just deciding what else to include since I have so many design ideas and travel photos to leverage from in my personal archives. Oh well, the joy of creating art is a happy and harmless obsession! It's also all about delivering products that people will actually want. To achieve that end you need to take time and do your research so that you can understand your target audience, and then its simply a matter of developing products that meet their needs and offer them unsurpassed quality and great customer service. And if you can differentiate yourself in the marketplace by offering a unique product and a strong value proposition, then you can't help but succeed - as long as you know how to market your product. Word of mouth does wonders but advertising is also a huge help. And if you don't have expertise in that area, well you can always contact this author for Web site design and SEO assistance.


Until next time, Ciao!

Introduction

Welcome to my first blog post, well it's not really my first blog post, I'm actually an avid blogger within Intel Corporation, but decided it was high time I started pointificating my views outside of their firewall and reach out to the rest of humanity to share my thoughts and perspective on this little blue dot called Earth.


I hope you enjoy visiting my Web site and blog. I'll try to impart a few words of wisdom to the next generation of designers and perhaps to a few potential customers and my contemporaries who'd like to connect with moi on an informal basis. I may stray off the topic of design on occasion as I have many interests so please don't hold me to one topic. As they say, variety is the spice of life. And what turns me on the most in life are endless possibilites. (Yeah, I'm one of those creative types, although I'm not the flakey variety, I'm actually pretty reliable and competent).

I've been with Intel for the last nine years and have learned a few things so perhaps I can help you with your challenge if you have a question on best known methods of Web design, multimedia authoring and video production. And if you're someone I've met along the way, feel free to say hi and let me know how you are doing and what you've been up to lately.

What's it like to work at Intel? Well, it is a very dynamic, challenging and competitive environment which can be both good and bad at times. But I do like challenges and I prefer to focus on the good things in life and will do so on this blog. I've worked with some wonderful folks there over the years and have learned a lot from working with some of their senior leaders on some of their high profile projects which I was thrilled to be part of such as the Intel WebOutfitter Service, numerous sites on intel.com and their Intranet. If you are interested in working there your best bet is to visit their Jobs page at www.intel.com/jobs.

I've enjoyed working in a variety of design related professions from traditional oil painting, graphic design, art direction, Web design and multimedia authoring and my current passion video production. I do like to learn and toy around with technology so if you'd like to share some of your thoughts feel free to express yourself. I will be moderating this post, so please abide by the rules of common courtesy and respect and I'll do the same.

Cheers!