Behind the Tutorials...... Vol 9 |
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Let me start by apologizing for being so
late with this issue. Real life took over with a vengeance :)
I have to back off the weekly schedule at least till after the holidays,
so I hope you understand, but I am aiming to put out two issues a month :)
There is just too many great tutorial writers out there to do it any less
:) Interview: This week we chat with Liz from Pixelating Graphics & Design, but first a little about her in her own words:
Greetings, all! My name is
Liz aka Shoshanah aka Pixelating Graphics & Design©
I live 7 minutes from
downtown Boston with Rich, my husband of almost 3 years (we met online
of all places), and our 6 year old Chihuahua LUCKY - we adopted him from
the local Animal Shelter I volunteer at. I help out with walking the
dogs on Thursday mornings, but I also take photos of all the new
arrivals for the shelter web site, and also for PetFinder.org
submissions. It is really a blast - and I use Paint Shop Pro for all my
post processing work!
My Graphic Arts/Computer
addiction took hold in High School, oh so many years ago - I majored in
Graphic Arts, and got my first job at 16 working as an apprentice in a
small printing company. My love of the field just took off from there. I
may have inherited some artistic background from my family also - three
artists in close proximity must have rubbed off on me just a little! ;-)
The first computer I ever
used was a MAC, now I am solely a PC gal. I have 2 PCs, and Hubby has 2
Macs plus 2 laptops for his job. I also worked for a large mail order
company for 13 years as a Customer Relations Rep, where being a "people
person" really helped. ;-)
The first graphics
software programs I ever used were LViewPro, Print Artist and Print
Master. Then I "graduated" to PhotoShop, and now I use Paint Shop Pro,
Photo Impact, Flash, Painter, oh this list goes on and on! ;-)
I am a Paint Shop Pro
junkie, and an email junkie as well - ask any of my friends - they will
vouch for me there! ;-) I was lucky enough to be one of the Private Beta
Testers for PSP 7, which was quite an experience. I even tied for 2nd
place in a "find the bugs in the software" contest, and won $400.00! ;-)
I could go on here for days - but I
will save you that adventure for another time - hehehehe ;-)
Liz, you have a very impressive PSP history, even being a beta tester for version 7. Now I see you are playing with PhotoImpact. Is this your new passion?
***** An addition actually. One can
never have too many software programs you know ;-) *****
The latest
version of PI has some awesome features...how would you stack it up
against PSP?
***** I currently only have Photo
Impact version 6 that I use on a regular basis. I think it has some
features that are much better than what we have in PSP, but there are
also some features in PSP that PI does not have either. I think I will
wait on trying PI 7 until some more of the bugs have been worked out. So
I use PI 6 and PSP 7.04 side by side whenever I can - double the
graphics enjoyment! ;-) *****
I hate to
admit it, but I sometimes find myself taking a graphic into PI to finish
it off, or just drag and drop those effects :) Are you planning any
tutorials that would combine the two programs?
***** I would love to! I am always
trying to think of new ideas for tutorials, but when I check they are
usually already done by someone else. My favorite way of sharing lately
has been sharing my favorite settings for certain tools in either
program - people really seem to like those little tips every now and
then ;-) *****
I know you
moderate a KPT group, and have always done fantastic tutorials using
these filters. Are you planning any for the new KPT7? And what do you
think of this newest filter?
***** Not as of right now. I haven't
even seen the newest KPT filters - KPT Effects I think they have named
them. I did apply to Beta Test the latest KPT filters, but alas, I
missed out on all the fun. I am still working on trying to round up
enough lessons/tutorials to keep the over 450 members at the
KPT101
email list interested... *****
You were
one of the first tutorial writers to put your work on disk and make it
available for sale. What were the factors that led you to make that
move?
***** Well, the main factor was the
blatant stealing that was going on. People would just take screen shots
of all of the images I had in my tutorials, then copy my HTML source
coding as well, put everything up on their own servers and claim it as
their own. That is what started the watermarking of everything for
me. Then I had quit my regular job after 13 years and decided to see
what I could do on my own - I had to help somehow with the household
income! ;-) So from there I started selling all of my tutorials and
other "goodies" on CD, which has gone very well, and have also been
helping people thru emails on a daily basis, along with the outside
clients that I do graphic work for. Now if the computer would only reach
into the bathroom... ;-) *****
Not to
give other tutorial writers ideas, but has this been a success for you?
***** For me, yes. But I am slowly
trying to add my newest tutorials on line again, when I have the time
and the creative ideas to write them that is ;-) *****
I was in
several groups with you a few years ago, and besides remembering how
helpful you always were, I remember your backgrounds the most :) You
always had the best looking ones around :) How would you classify
the CD with backgrounds?
***** Well, any time I find a new way
to make backgrounds, I get hooked big time. Recently I have been using
the Patterns effect in PSP to make tiles - I think I made almost 200 of
them in one sitting. That is one way I remember how to achieve certain
results with PSP also - I just redo and redo until the steps are burned
into my memory. I also try to offer a weekly/monthly tile or pattern for
free on my site - helps keep traffic returning also. I guess I am just
very picky with the way my images turn out. If I spend 3 hours on a
tutorial, I want it to be on a nice background that makes the image
"pop". I love color, clarity - things that catch the eye. *****
Now Liz,
for the question that I have been dying to ask :) Have you managed to
be one of the lucky ones to make a living off the web?
***** Well, it pays for the things I
want, so I guess the answer is yes. Plus my husband has a great job in
the computer software field, so I guess I am lucky in that aspect also
that I don't *have* to work - yet anyway ;-) *****
Before we
go, can you fill me in on what you have planned for the immediate
graphic future?
***** Hmmm, well, I think my next major
project is going to be helping out over on AOL, where I Host a PSP Chat
every Sunday night (Keyword: PSP - hint hint hint) - we are working on
revamping the PSP section on AOL - so that should be a fun project to
work on - I hope! ;-) *****
Thanks for
your time Liz :)
Connie
***** My pleasure! Ask me anything any
time ;-) *****
Tip of the Week - Auto Save Tip from Liz
***** Well, my all time favorite is
using the AutoSave feature in PSP. Go to File/Preferences/Auto Save
Settings. Put a check mark in the Enable Auto Save box, and set it to 5
minutes, then click OK. Now, whenever you start a new image or PSP
project, as soon as you open the initial canvas, go to File/Save As -
save it in the .PSP file format to a folder of your choice ( a folder
that you will know where you saved it to ), then continue with your
project. Auto Save will save your additions every 5 minutes so if PSP
crashes, your work will be saved for you! *****
Sites to Visit: A friend of mine has put together a great search engine, and it focuses mainly on free stuff :) If you get a chance, head on over to Freesites Find what you're looking for at Freesites.net!Questions, comments or if you would like to submit an article or special tutorial please contact me, If you would like to have this newsletter delivered to your in-box, please sign up at Behind the Tutorials. Please feel free to pass this to someone who might enjoy it :) If you have missed an issue they may be found at www.pspmadeez.com/Newsletter#.htm (just insert the number of the issue you wish to view). Connie
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