i was messing around in photoshop cs2 the other day, encouraged by some of the tut's on sigs....and well...i came up with this



i think it looks good...there are a few problems that come to my eyes that i want to fix later today. such as the text to me is kinda bland...i was thinking of adding a backdrop to it or maybe emboss it....i think the backdrop would be better...more suttle. also on the right side you cant really see the 3 pix boarder so i wanted to put something over there that would britten it up...idk what though...but a little messing around could uncover sumtin good....

the shape on the left was made with two layers...for the top layer i did a fill effect in which it left the little square outlines transparent (dont remember what that fill effect is called) but it looked neat, the original color was a lighter blue, so i used a filter...difference clouds so it wasnt just one bland color. it came out a little darker as i wanted. if you look close you can see the patches of color variations (i like it much better than a flat color) then for the second layer i just created a rectangle the size of the sig and colored it purple (made a good accent with navy blue) and i did do a little brushing (dont remember what brush but it was a grunge type one...) but i blurred it so it didnt pop out soo much...so you dont really notice it...you could actually just skip the brush and just blur the color. but with those two layers it created a nice little shape for my sig....then i used the lens flar filter to get the shine on the shape to give it some pazazz....i started with the flar at 100% then dropped back by 10% each time i went back to the middle of the shape...the very middle of the shape is only 50%...it looks better than having them all the same flar...gave it some shape...at least i think it did. then, cause i dont like doing pixel work in cs2, i went into paint and added the ever popular three pixel boarder.

overall i think it looks pretty good for being just a spontaneous sig...had no idea what i was doing...just messing around in cs2. this isnt the first sig ive done...but it is certainly the best.

i found this other really neat effect that i want to make a flash animation out of and use it on my site...or possibly my sig ....it is a diffusion blur or sumtin like that ...it is under filter->distort->and it is the first effect....but i had a background pic i found off of wincustomize.com that i was messing around with and i used this effect on it. if you set the graininess to 0 and the last slider to 20 (cant remember what it is) and mess with the second one...you can create this bomb like effect in which it looks like someone set off an atom bomb in your pic....then if you set the middle bar to 20 and mess with the last slider....it can turn the pic completely white with the same effect....i started making each pic and importing into flash...but i kept messing up. i have to start with a blank pic each time otherwise it will carry the effect over and make it go faster and not as smoothly....but i hope that i can get that done soon too... then ill post it later...

i also want to do some tuts on the sig and possibly the bomb animation


what do you guys think ? am i a n00b?

This post has been edited by microscopic^earthling: Nov 4 2005, 11:43 AM

OK as someone looking at this purely desgin forgetting what program you have done it on i would say it is not bad. The light although does ruin it a bit i would suggest one light every 2 lines instead on every line!!
But other then that i would give it the go thumbs up (once youve added what you said you would!!) Keep at it

Nice. My only nitpicks are:

The text seems to standout to much, and the border needs a little more work.
OVERALL 8/10

Its good but if you want to make it perfect here is what I think - listen or not its your choice :D

* the font doesnt really work with the futuristic style of the rest of it
* i cant atually read that is says ebbinger_413, the E looks like and F
* i think the sig might be a little to high for forums and such, might be better lower and wider?

just my opinion - have fun

Its really basic and i hate basic things so try and make it more intense and more warmed up . I suggest you use filters in photoshop like Glow and use distort .

Personally, I actually think that that banner is pretty good, nice work! But you cound use a much better font because the font you are using now is kind of bland and plain. But apart from that I like the design and the pattern, nice work!

At first glance, your signature makes me think of Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon album cover.

The design seems a little discordant to me. You're mixing realistic and abstract elements. It's interesting what you do with the lens flares, but I don't think it goes well with the squares at all.

I think I see what you were trying to do now; the squares and flares are meant to indicate depth, right? Like a rectangular tunnel? If so, then you could easily make it seem more three-dimensional by using shadows and highlights, rather than lens flares.

If you just meant this to be entirely abstract, then perhaps you and I merely have irreconcilable aesthetic preferences.

i like it, but i agree with Uzumaki-Naruto, it could use some filters possibly. I dont mind basic things though they can be very good.

although changing the text could work also, the font doesnt really go with the rest of the picture in my opinion.

anyhoo its a good sig and i do like it

i havent worked with this piece for a while...but i like your guys ideas...yes that purple rectange shape is suppose to be a three demensional tunnel but when i put the shadows and highlights on them they just took up too much space....and it distorted the image that i wanted a little...so i went with the flares instead...idk...i have lots of other work now....i like hl2 sig the best...but there are certainly others

link to my other works

I like what you have there so far. I would think about toning down the brightness of the "stars" just a tiny bit - at least when they get close to the text (your username). Great job.

Photoshop's fun, isn't it? I'm not very good with it, but I still enjoy playing around sometimes - especially when someone annoys me and I happen to have a digital pic of him or her that needs, err, altering. Hehe.