Let Imagination Be Your Guide
Just thought I’d throw that disclaimer out there before I started explaining.
I’ve zipped up every last one of my Photoshop brushes and uploaded them to my web host. Don’t ask me why, I actually have no idea (it took 2 hours to upload them all). Considering every brush in this zip file can be found on Deviant Art, some people may just consider this “eliminating the need to browse”. However, I often get asked where certain brushes can be found, etc. So… to better answer that question, I will simply give you a direct link: you can find them all right here (you *MUST* right click and SAVE to download the zip from my blog).
I am sure by now, most of you know the drill. You should unzip this zip file into your Adobe/Presets/Brushes folder. The zip file contains sixty-two (62) categorized folders of “types of brushes” (what can I say? I’m a hyper organized freak — it’s a flaw). The categories include such gems as:
Abstract
Coffee (rings/stains)
Clouds
Eyelashes
Fractals
Grass
Glowies
Hair (pieces and drawing)
Lightning
Mist
Moons
Smoke
Space
Sparklies
Stars
Tears
Water
Wings…
…among many others. It is nearly 1 gig of brushes uncompressed, so be sure that you have ample space on your hard drive.
First thing you will need to do is unzip this folder into your Brushes presets folder in your Adobe Photoshop directory. This folder is generally located here: C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop X\Presets\Brushes. When you unzip this archive, you will see 62 folders, each titled appropriately, unzipped into your Brushes presets folder.
Once you’ve done that, open Photoshop and follow along!
1. Click on your Brush tool in the menu bar on the left side of your screen.
2. Above this menu bar, you will see a small icon of the brush you currently have selected, with a small arrow to the right. Click on that arrow.
3. By clicking on this arrow you have brought up a list of your available brushes, and a slider bar called Master Diameter, among other things. To the right of this “Master Diameter” slider is another small, circled arrow. Click this arrow.
4. A list will expand. Now, you’ll notice that this list is quite huge, and undoubtedly consumes your entire screen. In the very first column of this list, there is an option called “Replace Brushes”. Click this.
5. A window will open allowing you to browse to your newly installed brushes. Browse to your Presets/Brushes folder, where you will see all 62 folders that you just unzipped. Open one of these folders and select any brush set you like. Once you have selected one, click the “Load” button. This will replace all of your current brushes in the list with the newly selected set of brushes.
“But wait! How do I get my default list of Photoshop brushes back, Ryker? You know, the one with the hard brushes, the soft brushes, and those annoying leaves that never go where you want them to?”
6. To reset your brushes to the Photoshop defaults, Repeat steps 1 through 4 above **HOWEVER** — instead of choose “Replace Brushes” from the list, choose “Reset Brushes”. This will reset your brush list to the Photoshop defaults.
I hope this isn’t too confusing! Happy downloading!
PS: I’m sure a filing system which is intuitive to ME, may not necessarily be intuitive for YOU. Hopefully, all of the folders in this file will be easily labeled enough that you’ll be able to find what you’re looking for. Enjoy!
Tutorial: Combining Depth Shots w/Color Snapshots
Whew! I finished this video about 30 seconds before I started sneezing uncontrollably, so… forgive me if I sound a little congested! Why do I keep doing these when I’m sick I wonder? Huh. Anyway!
I came to the realization this morning that I’ve been promising this tutorial for a while, and I suck, my apologies for not getting it out here sooner.
This video actually sucks in comparison to my other tutorial videos (quality wise, not intellect wise :P), because for some reason my computer was going all hokey this morning and not letting me produce the video as a flash file… so here it is as a Quicktime video with shitty quality. But… que sera sera. At least it will explain how to combine the shots! :P
Hope you guys find this a little useful. :) Any questions, feel free to IM me!
Check out the tutorial video here!
PS: It’s going to be about 45 minutes before the video is actually live… it’s a 200mb file (damn MOV files) and still uploading while I run to work! <3
New Tutorial: Quick & Dirty Drop Shadows
Here is my latest installment: a quick and dirty drop shadow technique to use and master for your enjoyment.
This will show you a very, very simple and basic technique on how to create a drop shadow from a green screen snapshot. Hopefully someone finds this useful!!!
The Crestock Photoshop Contest 2007
Again, this is TOTALLY NOT Second Life related, BUT… for all my designer babes out there Crestock.COM is having a Photoshop contest with prizes so crazy spectacular, that if I were a guy, I’d be blowing a photoshoppy-load right now.
Culled from the official blog post about the contest:
There are four rounds with different themes, and you can contribute one image for each round. Sign-up and submission is completely free and without commitment.
For each round we will supply a set of source photos from our image library. Your entry must be based on one or several of these photos, but you are free to do with them whatever you like. You may also use other elements in your design, as long as one or more of the source images can be recognised as a central part of your design.
The winner is determined 40% by public vote, 60% by our highly qualified judges’ votes. The public voting will open after the deadline for each round and run for one week.
The winning entry will have incredible visual impact and exhibit fantastic creativity and technical skill, perhaps also with a twist of humor. Amaze us or make us laugh – or both. It’s up to you and your skills, creativity and imagination, but whatever you do, don’t miss out on the action!
You will need to go to the block post (linked above) to download the stock photos needed for the Photoshop contest. Then, once you have finished your picture, click the “Submit an Image for Round XX” button!!! That’s it!
Remember, this is going on for four weeks, so PARTICIPATE!!! And omg… MacBook Pro. *drool*
New Pages Released
Hi everyone!
I realize it’s been… all of 24 hours since I last wrote, but I swear I have a good reason!!! Aside from being suddenly stricken with the plague, that is (damn the cold weather).
I’ve been doing some work compiling a few things for the blog. Links, resources, and what not. You know. USEFUL shit, and not just the constant rambling of a Second Life junkie, namely moi. So here’s what I’ve been up to:
This is a page where I’ll be keeping an ongoing list of all of my favorite fonts and photoshop brushes. You can view them and download them from this page. If you’re at all interested in seeing the things I use on a near-daily basis, this would be the place to look!
This is the page I hope will become the most useful on this blog. It is a compiled list of all the links I currently have for various reasons (SL tutorials, general tutorials, art websites, photoshop filters and brushes websites, font websites, etc). I will be adding to it consistently, as I’m always looking for new and exciting material. *such a junkie* If you have anything you’d like to add, or find a dead link somewhere, please don’t hesitate to drop a comment on that page! Hopefully, with some work, it’ll be a good resource for many one day.
Whew! That was a lot of work, and it’s no where near done… but damn, I’m excited to be sharing the wealth!
Next up… a compiled links page of all Second Life related blogs/websites I can manage to round up, conveniently organized into corresponding categories (fashion blogs, designer blogs, Second Life news, Second Life bloggers, etc, etc…). This is a work in progress, but I hope to have it up soon!
Sharing the Wealth: Tutorials Page
This page, you’ll find, is probably going to be your most favorite ever. At least, I hope. Hey, I can dream, right?
The new tutorial page is an accumulation of the Photoshop tutorial videos I’ve managed to complete while engaging in the land of Second Life photograph touch-ups. I figure, if there’s something I don’t know how to do — then there’s likely someone else who doesn’t know how to do it. And believe me, there’s PLENTY I don’t know how to do. So when I figure something out… I want to share. This is my way of doing that.
Don’t worry. I’ll add more as I make them. Hopefully someone, somewhere will find these useful! Enjoy.
