Art Of Caged

[Caged]

I needed a place to post my images for my signatures so I've made this thread.

Feel free to comment, in fact, I welcome it openly :ok:

I had to shrink my original pic so that it fit the requirements and this is what turned out.

Sorry it took me so long Data.

[bohor]

hm, not a bad picture..

[Caged]

saw the rating page for sigs and avvy's and decided that mine was in desperate need of an overhaul.

Here it is and i think i even got it in the right size but man does it look odd this way. Its supposed to be 2" x 8" like i have it on another forum, LOL, but tell me what you think :ok:

[troop18546]

This one looks great! :ok:

[Tom Henrik]

Much better

[JJXB]

what do you use to create your images? by the looks of it the text is wordart. if you want to make better sigs, try getting hold of at least paint shop pro but i'd recommend photoshop 7/cs (thats what i use to make mine)

[Caged]

I use photoshop seven to do my images. I take free images from cognitivedistortion.com, apply some filters, find some pics off google of the games i like, and add a wordart. Quick, cool looking, and effective.

I used to also throw in some Image Ready from time to time, but the program has a bug in it and doesn't work anymore.

I also can get my hands on macromedia flash at school and make sigs for fun there. If anybody wants one, i have plenty of time to make em

[TaloN]

frankly filters are useless.

get urself some nice brushes and techniques.

not bad though for some first attempts.

[Caged]

i beg to differ. The filters I've used have my my crappy art look better than i could ever do. That, and they make some look really trippy and i like that so i use them frequently

[TaloN]

no offence ment (everyone totheir own style) but u cant really see whats going on, everything seems completely different

the background, render, text, dont fit. its like 3 differnt things flung together.

filters ae usefull for somethings, but over use and ur art becomes unrecogniseable.

[JJXB]

i think you should learn how to use the text and layer effects properly (and get some good fonts as well)

[taikara]

Filters can do nice things on occasion, but I don't personally use them much, unless I'm going for something "different."

It depends on the outcome you're looking to achieve.

And Caged, you're doing a good job, keep up the good work :ok:

[Caged]

thx a bunch

To those who need an explanation, the pic has my quake character in it, with the quake III arena symbol and just a trippy background

[Caged]

here's my latest work in progress :ok:

[DeathDude]

Cool stuff :ok:

[Sean]

Indeed, did you cut the images and paste them onto the 3D Render?

[taikara]

Coolio :ok:

Landscape's my favorite, good job :D

[Kon-Tiki]

Did you make that landscape yourself :huh:

[TaloN]

no offence but u need to learn wtf blending is. imo u seem to take images and stick them over other images. there is a fine art to blending images into others.

im not trying to show off but heres my latest piece:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v252/talon123/rogue2copy.jpg

as you can see the edges of the images fit together. this is done using a lasso tool iwth a feathered edge (about 3-5 pixels) in photoshop, also using the smudge tool will allow you to clean up the edges on your images.

[Sean]

He has a point :D

[Caged]

wow, i guess I didn't make it clear the fact that it was a
"work in progress"
....the advice is cool but man, you guys can be harsh, LOL

[Sean]

We dont mean to be harsh.. would you prefer were honest and help make your creations better or lie and give you a false sense of supremacy?

[Caged]

I don't need to feel supremacy over you guys. I know you are all far more experienced in creating art and graphics. Heck, you even are making your own game.

But comon, gimme a break. I've made maybe 10 sigs and a few pics. I don't even know what half the tools do in photoshop. I'm not asking you to lie but it doesn't hurt to try and build some confidence

[JJXB]

start learning how to use photoshop properly through tutorials (basics first) and get some better fonts as well (try Dafont (http://www.dafont.com/en/) for a starting point) and hopefully that should help :)

[taikara]

@Caged: Being an artist is hard, especially with digital tools, even as just a hobby. Sometimes, people who have been doing it for a while forget how difficult it can be to someone just starting out, and present their critiques insensitively.

Ignore the negativity, and focus on doing the best job you can. That's what's really important. Keep up the good work :ok:

[Maerlyn]

Art is different for every person - i havent looked at your work because i cannot be bothered, but if you are happy with what you are doing, whether you think you need to improve or not, then that is all that matters. If you believe you need to get better, then keep working at it. Most of the people who have commented negatively here are clearly suffering from some form of brain damage - id suggest ignoring them.

[Caged]

okay, found a font that impresses me and would like to use it. However, i have no idea what to do with it. Help?

[Strobe]

you could create a title screen of a fictitious computer game, for example,
or an alternative title screen for an existing game maybe...

and don't be discouraged by ppl who don't find an appropriate way to express
their criticism! Maerlyn has stated a good point: your own opinion should always
be more important to yourself, than feedback of others.

if however somebody gives you some advice in a nice and helpful way, you
should give it a try. but keep in mind that there's no "ultimate opinion", the
least in art, for art is very subjective, you know...

if you're keen on learning some techniques for photoshop and stuff, i suggest
you check out the pinned thread about graphic tutorials and resources which
have been collected by reup. you will find many useful links there.

furthermore, there are some very kind and skilled persons around - like taikara
void, maikel, tom henrik - who would be glad to help you in case you might come
up with questions...

keep it up, m8! :ok:

[Caged]

oh, i forgot

@Kon Tiki: No, I found the background off of cognitive distortion. It was a free image that I liked so I used it as the background as in UT2004, there are numerous beach maps and I thought it fit.

[TaloN]

sorry man i can be very blunt with my constructive criticism.

dont take it personally, you have a unique style that if developed nicely will be awesome.

drop by sovereigncraft.com and have a read through some of the stuff inthe hints and tips forum and drop us a bell if you want any help with PS mate, were here to help.