30 Days of Adobe CS4

As I mentioned in my last article on this subject, I use Abobe Creative Suite until my eyeballs fall out every single day. I recently downloaded the free trial versions of InDesign CS4, Photoshop CS4, Illustrator CS4, and Dreamweaver CS4 from Adobe.com, and I decided that, in order to learn by doing, I would complete one graphic design project for each of the 30 days of my trial period.

My method might be "doing it the hard way," but I like to learn new features and graphic design software by doing, which usually involves a bit of online research, a little stumbling around the user interface, and getting a "lightbulb moment" of information that then becomes easier to remember and implement in the future.

Here's an open call to other designers: Who wants to join me in my CS4 Trial Graphic Design Challenge? As far as pooling information, tips, and tricks is concerned, the more, the merrier.

CS4 Trial Challenge: Day 4

Design Project: Webcomic Character Design

The idea for this cute character came to me early in 2008. Hot Wing, the Littlest Blues Chicken, had popped into my head out of nowhere. He was literally just a tiny little egg in my mind's eye at the time.

My initial designs for Hot Wing were always very dimensional. The first model I created was actually more of a handicraft made from a hollowed-out eggshell and a few strategically placed bits of orange paper. Later came pencil-and-paper and MSPaint sketches; finally, I got the initiative to create Hot Wing in Photoshop.

Since the original concept was very 3D, I decided to venture into Photoshop CS4's 3D tools. I'm certainly no expert on the subject yet, but I found the 3D shapes remarkably easy to manipulate. Check out this awesome tutorial video, which mercifully features a cheery musical soundtrack instead of the monotone droning of some designer.

CS4 Trial Challenge: Day 5

Design Project: Webcomic Variations and Assembly

The following day, I continued working on Hot Wing, rounding out his repertoire of expressions and creating more environments, such as a chicken coop and a television sound stage, in Photoshop. As I painted, smudged, burned, and dodged my way through about a million different elements, I noticed that a lot of these tools, especially those for color correction, work a lot differently in Photoshop CS4. The burn tool isn't making my images too saturated, and everything seemed to preserve the original colors a lot better.

However, although the tones were truer, this did take some getting used to. I was trying to burn the outside edges of a cherry sunburst Les Paul electric guitar (one of Hot Wing's props), and instead of getting a CS3-type saturated burn, the colors seemed to inch toward gray.

The final results were great; I was able to generate five Hot Wing webcomics in about 24 hours from the time I started working on the character himself.

CS4 Trial Challenge: Day 6

Design Project: Graphic Designer's Portfolio Cover

For the sixth graphic design project of my challenge, I decided to revisit my own portfolio, a long-overdue task for most designers! Since I'm a writer and editor as well as a designer, I have my work cut out for me in terms of representing myself as a well-rounded creative professional.

I opened InDesign CS4 and generated a 16-page, landscape half-legal blank book. I had spent some time thinking about what to do for the cover, but all I knew was that I wanted dark color and great typography. I began with the typeface: a big, beefy slab serif. The longer I worked with it, the more I realized that it reminded me of an old LP cover. Since I love music and collect vintage LPs, it was a perfect fit.

As I played with type and colors, I knew the design was good, but I had to age and distress the whole page a bit. Thanks to InDesign CS4's blending modes (in Effects), I was able to do so without having to create a separate file in Photoshop. I learned to jerry-rig in this way back when I only knew how to use InDesign in Creative Suite 2; it's a nice shortcut for me these days. I'm a lazy designer; what can I say?

Here's the encyclopedic Adobe Help section on InDesign blending modes. Along with blending modes in Effects, you'll also find other transparency attributes, such as Outer Glow, Feather, and Drop Shadow. I didn't play around with the other effects much since I wanted to leave the cover with a distinctly retro, flat look; but the blending modes came in super handy when I applied "tape" to the edges of my custom LP cover for a worn finishing touch.

The blending modes are old news; what's new and wonderful for InDesign CS4 are the Smart Guides. They appear as tiny lines and arrows to show you--as you're dragging an object or text box--exactly when it aligns on the page or with other objects. They also pop up to let you know when spacing between objects is equal. It's the most god-blessed intuitive thing I've ever seen; here's a tutorial video on InDesign CS4's Smart Guides from Layers magazine.

Check out the portfolio cover, and let me know what you think.

Be sure to let me know if you have any helpful hints for learning Adobe CS4 or better using the time in the 30-day trial version. And I'd love to have more graphic designers join the challenge!