Want to make a precise selection using the Photoshop Marquee tool, say 300 x 250 px? This brief tutorial show you how:

• Select the Marquee tool
• Up in options bar, select the style drop down menu entitled Normal and select Fixed Size (you can also select Fixed Ratio which will lock in a specific ratio such as 5×7)
• Set you size parameters and make your selection
• Your selection will be locked into that specific size.

Note: You can also add feathering to the edges to soften the selections edge or use the Refine Edge dialogue.

I came across this blog post over at Frank Chimero’s site. It has some great advice for current graphic design students and those just entering the design/studio work force. As a MFA student at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, a lot of his words resonated with me and so I thought I’d pass it on.

For me, these gems stood out:

If you can’t draw as well as someone, or use the software as well, or if you do not have as much money to buy supplies, or if you do not have access to the tools they have, beat them by being more thoughtful. Thoughtfulness is free and burns on time and empathy.

The best communicators are gift-givers.

Think of every project as an opportunity to learn, but also an opportunity to teach.

Helvetica is nice too, but it won’t turn water to wine.

[read more]

Thanks Frank. Timely words.

I love the challenge that a new design job brings, particularly web design. I lose sleep, in a good way, thinking about all the design details and solutions. My newest project was for a concrete company called Specialty Concrete. Their only form of outward advertisement (besides magnetic signs on their vehicles) was a local Craigslist ad. They asked me to help them change that with a website.

Plumer (the owner) was a great person to work with and was very prompt in generating content for the site. We had very good collaboration and I believe the final product shows this. One element I personally enjoyed was adding an interactive showcase gallery using lightbox.

Here are some of the pages:

Want or need a crash course on everything design from typography to color theory to layouts and grid? Here is a great starting place: 50 Free Lessons in Graphic Design Theory.

Excerpts:

10. Master Web Typography: 8 Detailed Typography Tips for the Web: “One of the most under–rated elements of beautiful Web design is the subtle art of typography. Part of this, I know, is a lack of a solid font support for Web sites. But never fear! Today I’ll show you some quick things you can do to appear to be a type master.” [read more]

27. How Colors Impact Moods, Feelings, and Behaviors: “While perceptions of color are somewhat subjective, there are some color effects that have universal meaning.” [read more]

Whenever I find a good resource, whether for training/how-to or simply inspiration, I will pass it on here. I needed a good tutorial on creating vector characters in Adobe Illustrator CS4 and came across this little gem from Colorburned. It walks you through the entire process, step-by-step, from sketch to final render with shading. I found his basic techniques very helpful. Here is an excerpt:

Step 1

To start, create a sketch of your character. I like to use my Wacom pen tablet and Photoshop to create the sketch, but you can use whatever medium you choose. After creating the sketch, scan it (if you are using traditional media) and save it on you computer in an easily accessible spot.

Step 2

Now to Illustrator. Create a new document and place you sketch in your new document by going File > Edit > Place. Find you sketch on your computer and center the image on your document. [read more...]

… 

This does require a basic understanding of Illustrator CS4′s Pen Tool so I have also included this online video tutorial on how to use the Pen Tool. Happy vectoring!

Adobe Illustrator CS4 Pen Tool Tutorial by Harry Hamernik.

FontExplorer: A free explorer from, you guessed it, FontExplorer, which helps you corral all of those fonts. Sick of those hard-to-see previews in the Adobe CS font previews? Bored of “The quick brown fox …”? This intuitive program allows you to type in a phrase and the scroll through your fonts, rendering that specific phrase in the chosen font, among many other things. You can quickly and easily choose the right font for those tight deadlines. Download Now.

Type Classifications: Once you install FontExplorer you can use this handy type-classification-ebook, created by Jacob Cass over at Just Creative Design, to organize and group all your wandering fonts. Not to mention it’s just good, basic knowledge to have when hiking the jungles of typography. Download Now.

I hope you find these two resources as helpful as I have.

Happy designing!