Keeping Things Looking Right

[bluedelft.livejournal.com]

When kaige68 first asked for volunteers and when I first volunteered to write a post about graphic making I had no idea what I would talk about and then I thought why not start with something basic. That way if someone is looking to start making graphics, especially icons, it’s a place to start.

My sister is the one who helped me out and showed me the ropes when I first started making graphics, and still does when I’m a bit confused about something, and one of the first things that she said was proportion, proportion, proportion. You always want to remember to keep your image proportioned correctly. So that will mean there are times when the picture/screencap that you want to use just might not end up working for you. That happens with me quite a bit when making icons since the end result is a square (100x100 is the size of an icon). Tucked under the cut is an example of what I'm talking about.



Wanted to use this picture for an icon with the theme being 'strike a pose'



Since the original size is 750 (height) and 500 (width) I knew the largest I could crop it would be a 500x500 to keep the proportions correct and this is what it would look like:

Looks good but not what I wanted to fit the theme. The only way to keep the whole image would be to mess with the proportions and this would be the end result:


As you can see with this it would work with the theme of the icon but Rodney is a bit squished and doesn't look right.

Ended up not using this picture and found another that when I cropped and resized Rodney still looked like Rodney. Can't post it here since it's part of a 20in20 set that I'm currently working on and hope to have finished and posted soon.


What I always do when cropping is to figure out either how tall or how wide I want something and go back and adjust to make sure that the length and width are both the same. Once I have the size adjusted move the box around to the area that I want to work with, crop the picture/screencap and resize to the 100x100 for icons. When resizing you want to make sure that you have checked off the lock aspect ratio that way you know you'll keep the correct proportions. There are times when I'll go back and adjust the size to make sure that when I crop I'm getting all of the image that I want. If I change the length I go and adjust the width to match and vice versa. It's a little trick that I found that makes it easier when cropping.

So what tricks do you have when cropping and resizing?

Hopefully this was a bit helpful. Any questions fire away!

Comments

[haldoor.livejournal.com]

Oh yeah, know exactly what you mean. Iconing for specific things can be tricky when it comes to getting them square if there are aspects you want to keep in. However, sometimes you can also make it not square and add an area of plain background in a colour that goes with the scene for the words.

I'm not a very good iconer and I'm just a 'player' in that I don't have any idea about technique and certainly don't enter competitions or anything, but I know when something looks 'okay' or 'really wrong' as well as WAY GOOD (ie, not mine! HA!).

I don't have any fancy programs or anything and tend to just use something online that I found helpful, and I have seen it done WAY better than my own ones, but I'm using this one I made myself to show what I mean (although please know I realise this isn't a great icon by any stretch of the imagination)!

[bluedelft.livejournal.com]

Argh...just typed up a response and LJ ate it! Let's try this again.

That's a great icon! The proportion is right, the coloring all blends together and the text is very readable.

I've used the trick with the background before and forgot to mention it. Thank you!

Quite a bit of what I've learned has been from trial and error. There are times when I like the finished product and can't remember what I did to get there. This icon is an example of it. I'd have to go back and look at the PSP file to see what I did with each layer.

[haldoor.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I made that some years ago and always felt the text was not quite in the right place, but am getting better at placement and sizing, I think! Here's another of my blank space icons; again not all that brilliant, but I love it anyway!

Your hints were really good though, and definitely make sense!

I don't really understand how to use layering, as I haven't got any programmes at home, but I love the way your icon looks! At some point I'd love to spend more time and effort with icons, but for now I just play as it's hard to find time (I think all of us have issues there!)

[bluedelft.livejournal.com]

Thank you! Glad to hear that the tricks I've found along the way are helpful.

LOL - LOVE the icon! When I bought my new computer I kept saying, 'I'll hug it and squeeze it and call it Atlantis'.

With this icon I merged two screencaps and of course there are layers to it.

[haldoor.livejournal.com]

Hee! I love that saying; it fits so many different things!

Lovely icon! You do some wonderful work. Layering is so clever!

[bluedelft.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much! Layering is one of those things that I struggle with to get it to look just right. You should see all of the icons that I've started and deleted since I didn't like the way they were looking.

This icon was one that I kept :-)

[thtwzjustadream.livejournal.com]

Yes, that suggestion from Haldoor is one I'd make, too - you can put your original image over a background that's the right ratio but actually larger in size than your image. You'll end up with the background color showing, but you can do some things with fading the image into the background, and use it for text.

I think Paint might have some of that functionality for free, though I haven't used it in a long time. If you want to invest a little, there's a great program called Pixelmator. It cost $35 but it has a *lot* of functionality, almost as many tools as Photoshop.

Biggest challenge I have so far on LJ is the 100x100 final size - dang hard (for me at least) to do text that shows up well. Any tips on that? Best fonts, etc?

[bluedelft.livejournal.com]

Meant to add that about the background and totally forgot. I've used that trick before especially when I've wanted to add some text on the icon and had no luck with the original image and looking just the way I wanted it too.

Art Brush is one of my go to fonts. When I get home I can take a look and see what the others are that I use all the time. Usually I end up trying different fonts until I get it to look just right.

Another trick that I've found with adding text is I don't add it until I've resized the image down to 100x100. If I'm merging 2 images that I'll do at a larger size and than resize to the 100x100.

[haldoor.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I think it's a lot about trial and error with fonts, isn't it?

I must admit I find it easier to add the text while the pic is larger, then reduce it and see if it works (and if it doesn't try something different). However, it's true that it's sometimes not as clear to read then, so you may have a point. I will have to experiment more!

Here's one I think works, but it's hard to tell if it's understandable outside of NZ!

[bluedelft.livejournal.com]

I really like the text on that one!

I really have found that I have a few fonts that I'm always using. I'm always on the look out for new fonts to try.

[haldoor.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I can't really remember what fonts I used, but it just seemed to suit the giant weta! (and no, bugs that size aren't everywhere here, though we do get wetas about the size of an index finger in our garden quite often)

[siluria]

I tend to find a picture I like and then just adjust the size numerous times, moving the image around until I get a crop I like. I might end up with 3 or 4 different icons from one image based on what I've resized it to or where I've positioned it.

The hard part is if I want something specific and it just doesn't work with a 100x100 space, then it's a case of going with another image or just fiddling until it's close enough to what I want that I can fudge the background.

I don't class myself as a good icon maker - I'm still learning techniques and my imagination for creating art is really limited, but I like giving it a go :) I just wish I could master text in icons!

[bluedelft.livejournal.com]

Sounds like what I do with a picture to crop it for an icon. If I can't get it to work I'll go in search of another picture or screencap to use like I did with the example.

Text drives me crazy! There are times when I get it to look just right and others when I just leave the text off. I'm finding the more I use text the easier it seems to get.

The icon I'm using is one that I like the way the text looks. That was after trying quite a few fonts and playing with the size.

[haldoor.livejournal.com]

Playing with the size does get frustrating sometimes, doesn't it? But that does work and with the B & W is very readable in red. Choosing the right colour for the text can be tricky too, I find. Do you have any tips for what works best for different backgrounds? I tend to just go with instinct, play a bit (as you keep saying too!) and then when something looks right, save it fast!

[bluedelft.livejournal.com]

That's about the only tip that I have to keep playing with the different fonts and the colors. I've found sometimes just adjusting the color, either lighter or darker, will work.

[haldoor.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I figured that's pretty much it, but you never know what tips people might have!

[siluria]

I'm definitely playing with text still. I went through a stage where I saved a lot of those tiny text brushes, now I just download a lot of fonts and attempt to get something that works, but I generally make textless icons. I like loopy handwriting type fonts but they don't always work well small.

[bluedelft.livejournal.com]

Pretty icon!

I like the loopy handwriting too and I seem to use that type of font quite a bit when I'm making headers or wallpapers. I really do have certain 'go it fonts' for icons. I'll try using something different and I alway go back to the ones I use over and over again.

I have some of those tiny text brushes and will use them also from time to time. As a matter of fact I just used two text fonts on some icons that I'm making for a 20in20.

[siluria]

Thank you! :)

I definitely have go to fonts too, I don't even know why I bother trying others in the end :) I am definitely a creature of habit :)

[bluedelft.livejournal.com]

I am definitely a creature of habit :)

So true!

I'm the same way when making wallpapers and headers too! I have a ton of different digital scrapbooking kits and always find myself going back to the same ones and using the same elements all of the time.

[haldoor.livejournal.com]

Is that yours? I think the text works wonderfully well! Don't sell yourself short!

[siluria]

Yep, that would be one of mine - so thank you!!! :) I think that was fluke rather than design :)