Graphic That Made It To Broadway…

This was a pretty interesting project I got to work on a few months ago. One of my clients was contacted by the people that run Guy’s and Dolls and was asked to produce a crystal gift. Before I knew It I was working on getting this Guy’s and Dolls logo in an eps. or pdf file. I thought I would have to trace the whole thing but I ended up free handing various parts as well in Illustrator and then cleaned it up a little in Photoshop.  Above is the finished product; a crystal paperweight that was given to the 2009 cast of Guy’s and Dolls. By the way, when you want to be as perfect as you can; work at a very high resolution to draw on the computer. This will give you more control of your pen and when you set back to 100 percent you’ll see great results. So that’s my story, I designed a simple graphic that made it to Broadway, you never know what’s around
the corner.

Why Google’s Android Will Eat The Delicious Apple

Recently I’ve been hearing tons of talk about the new release of Apple’s 3g Iphone. Typically I wouldn’t be phased by another Apple release because it seems like every other year they are releasing some kind of new or upgraded “I” something.  I loved my Ipod Nano and used it all the way up till I bought my Google phone. I have nothing bad to say about Apple products either,  Apple users will back up the quality in a second and I believe them. Now all that being said here’s where I’m lost on this new hot discussion of the smart phone. On tons of blogs, YouTube, and Twitter I’ve been reading and hearing people debate the quality of the Iphone vs. all the other phones out their. Which is why I’m typing right now. For starters comparing the Iphone with the Palm Pre is kind of a weird side by side and many Iphone users are doing it. I want to see someone do a side by side comparison of Google’s HTC G1 vs. the Iphone 3g.  This would be the G1′s open source platform also known as Android developed by the Xda team Vs. Apple’s closed platform.  Well instead of waiting for someone to do a side by side comparison I’ll just do it myself. In Android’s 1.0 software for the Google phone they delivered 99 percent of what Apple’s 3g new release has before Apple (way before Apple I should mention). They delivered everything minus the Safari goods. Additionally in making Google’s Android open source they are allowing developers to drive the future of the software which is exceeding what Apple’s Iphone is capable of handling such as having Flash content on the phone. Right now the Iphone is not capable of handling this technology or apparently it will push the phone beyond it’s battery life, meanwhile Google’s G1 was displayed for all to see this past year running Flash on it’s web browser. I’m not here to bash Apple but the facts are the facts. This is not one of those situations, “I’m a Mac, your a PC” . Google is a pretty hip company, just check out their office space along with the new technology they are developing. As I mentioned before, Papervision 3d is one of the most innovative 3d technologies in the works for video and web development. I respect Apple for what they brought but if they continue to close themselves off from new innovations surrounding them they will eventually be left on a bookshelf while everyone shares. We are entering a world where information is being shared everyday and the most successful companies are gathering to bring us new and better things hence why Adobe and Google are partnering to get Adobe Flash Player to run on a smart phone.  As for Google’s future with Android and their smart phone, their’s already a new branch over at xda called Donut. Yes that tasty pastry everyone loves, and the information floating around now is that they are working to have Android run on multiple resolutions.  Meaning, better games and possibly having some type of Android platform for computers as well.  When all is said and done I believe we all win. The more everyone competes for a larger audience the better the product!

Q&A Time From The Mailbox

Message I received today via the DesignsbyJonathan.com website.

Hey Jonathan,

Awesome website! I am curious, how did you get started in your desire to create videos, pictures, etc? Did you study it on your own or take formal classes somewhere? I have done video editing for a while as a hobby but would like to increase this skill by taking formal classes and was wondering if that’s really necessary.

Thanks,

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Thanks buddy, always good to hear some good stuff bout the site. This made me think of some funny stories of when I first started out. Back in 2000 after graduating high school I went to college for a couple years for graphic / web design. To say the least the 2 years I received in education was not enough to hold a solid job in this field, or at least I didn’t think It was, so I began freelancing for a shopping bag company while working on other small projects.  I also was creating logos back then and created a logo for a company in Connecticut, charged the woman fifteen dollars and she didn’t like what I created and said to just keep the check!  I guess It was good to get some rejection of that kind in the very beginning.  It only motivated me that much more to prove to myself that I could accomplish anything I wanted to in this field. This began with 8 – 10 hours of time alone studying the Adobe software I had, I also had Macromedia stuff back then when they owned Dreamweaver and Flash. Yes it was that long ago! I’m 27  now, ouch I’m feeling the old age coming on. But really, if you want to get better and progress you need to have the desire and time to do so. I couldn’t see myself having that kind of time these days as I get older and have been a lot more busy than back then, but I made the time. Today I’m on CS4 with the Adobe software and I create time for myself to address things that I want to have in my array of skills. In this business your skill set is your foundation and who knows what will be around the corner for you. As for the guy’s question, I think it’s a good idea to get some kind of formal education. It helps to have someone their correcting you. But after you get that education you need to take the knowledge and do something with it. As for that lady who told me to keep my money all I have to say is that eight years later I’m proud to say I’ve worked on marketing campaigns that have reached nationwide and world audiences.  Since launching my own website, designsbyjonathan.com; people from almost every country of the world have visited! This sounds very cliche but I can easily say  the success has only come through the dedication put in.  Hard work and determination, you are on your way to success.

cheers,

Jonathan

Talent And Art In All It’s Glory

A couple of months ago I met a very talented photographer looking to work on some web related projects, her name is Terri Gold. After the very first meeting I knew I was getting myself into a very interesting project. Not so much because of the actual work but because of who I would be working with. Terri Is by far the most talented photographer I have ever worked with or have seen work of. If you ever questioned photography in it’s artistic form just check out some of her work, I’ll put a link at the end of the post so you can check it out. She’s traveled around the world and her images will put you in awe. Not only could she work the camera but she has the skill set to take her work to the computer and push the images even further. Photoshop Lightroom Magazine spotlighted her recently and I could see why. The colors, the subjects in the images are just amazing.  She is quite the accomplished photographer working with renown fashion designer Betsey Johnson and also making time for her world travels photographing people or as she says “Images that celebrate the human spirit”. And I guess this would be a good time to explain why I’m writing an article about her and her work. It’s not too often I’ll be inspired and impressed like this. but her work is definitely something that I would want to share with people who appreciate art.  I’m looking forward to working on future projects with Terri to see where she takes her art next. To see Terri’s work
you can visit terrigoldworldimagery.

New Home For The Designs by Jonathan Blog

Well I started thinking recently that I did not want to keep my old blog going. Not that I had a problem with the layout or content but more so just not liking the domain name for the blog, just wasn’t that appealing. So I decided to move over to a new space, the all new and improved Designs By Jonathan Blog. You’ll notice a big chunk of the posts will be posted today May 19th. I did not write all of them in one day! I usually will work on the blog every couple weeks or more depending on time etc etc.. I’m going to try to put a lot more time into my teaching videos,twitter, and of course the new space for the blog.

My New Favorite Gadget, The TMobile G1

Since I haven’t put up a post in a while I figured I would put some info on the Tmobile G1. I just purchased it a little over a week ago and it’s amazing. Now I know theirs some issues with battery life and all that kind of stuff but I’m happy with the buy. Also next month video recording and touch keyboard is coming to the phone through Android. We aren’t that far from seeing Flash on the operating system also. Adobe did a demo at their last convention displaying Flash content on the phone. Apparently Apple still wants to be stubborn or hasn’t invited Adobe over for dinner. Regardless I’m glad that Google is working with Adobe on various projects. Papervision 3d is another Google/Adobe project. Adobe and Google joining forces, theirs no limit! If you want to hear updates about the G1 check out my twitter page, I’m following the latest news.

cheers ,

Jonathan

This Is Progressive, The Best Way To Put Video Onto Your Website

Well this is my tutorial explaining how to publish video to your web site. Using progressive programming via Flash your output will be html and swf. As I explain in the guide you will have to upload an flv file to your web site, I used Dreamweaver CS4 to do this. So check out this helpful video!