Artwork - digital vs traditional

Welcome to 2008!

In reviewing my 2007 blogs I noticed a trend in my topics -- a lot of duality. Compare and contrast. Yin and yang.

Apparently, 2008 will be no different from me.

High Concept deals with a lot of architects and we get a lot of feedback about renderings -- the 2 schools, the traditional "Mike Brady" way and the high tech 3d visualization route.

We position ourselves as a 3D modelling company and there is a level of speed and accuracy that comes with that approach, no question about it.

However, a hand rendered piece presented on a nice watercolour paper has a sense of magic to it -- the soft lines and vague shapes invite the potential tenant to bring his or her imagination and dreams to the table to fill out the image.

As a company we are playing with ways to bring both to the table. I have mentioned in a previous blog, that Corel Painter has become my software of choice.

I miss the feel of paper under my fingers, the ink building up on my caloused hand and all those old smells that go with my well-used tools.

...but, I don't miss throwing away ruined art pages! I love how easy it is to experiment and simply "undo" or throw a layer away if it didn't take me closer to my destination.

So, I guess I am going with the best of both worlds -- I put a sheet of paper down on my Intuos tablet to create some friction/resistance for my stylus and choose a product which simulates traditional media perfectly. It also Allows me to incorporate images, patterns, vector shapes, and text while painting with oils/inks/watercolours/chalk on a textured surface.

I don't use masking tape to get a smooth line anymore - click, click, click - draw a mask and paint around that detail easily!

If you like to draw or paint I suggest you check out the free 30-day trial (there is one for both PC and Mac) -- you'll love it (and understand why I rave about it)!

Then when you are asked, digital or traditional -- you can choose both.

Get the trial: http://www.corel.com/servlet/Satellite/ca/en/Product/1166553886612

Are you a Mac or a PC?

Are you a "PC" or a "Mac"? Chevy or Ford? Canucks or Rangers?

It will tell a person a lot about you.

In this world we are constantly inundated with information from blogs and RSS feeds and regular websites (oh yeah, our TV with the tickers, radio with the news updates and so on). It would be safe to say we are exposed to TOO much information to reasonably sift through it all and determine the priceless from the worthless.

How do you make your decisions, how do you determine what is the right fit for you with technology? There are different platforms and different operating systems, different versions of different software from different vendors -- it can be pretty overwhelming.

We just went to Adobe's CS3 launch event in Vancouver yesterday where this was readily apparent. Mac and PC users all asking platform relevent questions, did they need the Creative Suite Standard or Pro or the Master Collection? Would it be best to move to Leopard? Should they resist upgrading to Vista?

It all comes down to enthusiasm, customer experience and at the end of the day, you make those decisions the same way you did in High School -- just what are your friends doing?

The funny thing about technology (like most things) is that when you find that thing that solves your issues, it is relieving and exciting and you have a tendency to climb to the top of the hill and shout it to anyone who will listen.

As a technical solution provider that specializes in an array of custom services, we have the benefit of working with a number of technologies and that usually allows us to pick the one that we love the most (sometimes the one we hate the least). Occasionally we will choose software that has the most integrated workflow because we are working on a campaign that stretches from 2D & 3D to print to large scale signage to web and media based stills and animation.

The workflow integration tends to be a big part of a persons love of all things Mac, or CAD design through the Autodesk lifecycle of products, or working with Corel or Adobe's suites of products. It is great when the tool doesn't get in the way of your workflow!

So what technology do you love? Is it your Vectorworks? Is it your ipod? Your Blackberry? Your X-Box 360? Whatever you have become a champion of, let your love show and look for converts wherever you can -- because there are people you trust that are looking for the answers you were looking for and your passion may be as important as a technical review.

As an example, Corel Painter is one of my favourite products personally because I can do conventional artwork better and more efficiently that I can with traditional tools -- the finished work is so much better than I can do by hand anymore. I have all the conventional tools that I would have in an extremely well-stocked art studio, I can easily save various iterations, I can import/export digital images and even swap back and forth with Photoshop. Using a pressure sensitive Wacom tablet, the only thing that is missing is the ink stains on my fingers.

So when someone asks (and even if they don't), I am always going to stand up and gush about my love for Corel Painter. I only ever standup and cheer on the things I believe in -- sometimes to excess -- and not always to my financial benefit, because you can't fake the passion of evangelising your favourite technologies.

BTW: the thing I love best about Corel Painter versus inking pages by hand? It has to be "Control-Z" certainly a lot better than crumpling up art pages!

Ooops, I guess that should tell you whether I am a Mac or a PC!