In this week’s Audio Premium content, Bobby Owsinski starts a new series on music production inspired by his new book “The Music Producer’s Handbook” and his decades of experience in the industry.

To learn more about what you get as part of Audio Premium, read this. To take a peek inside this tutorial, hit the jump!

A new book of mine just came out called The Music Producer’s Handbook, so I thought this might be a good time to go over some basic production techniques while the topic is still fresh in my mind. Music production is sort of a black art because the very nature of the job is nebulous in many people’s minds, but we’ll try to clear that up in this series.

Table of Contents

• What is a Producer?
• How to Become a Producer
  • The Musician/Producer

  • The Engineer/Producer
  • And The Other Way
  • You Still Need A Client
• Elements of Music Production
  • Creative

  • Financial
  • Politics
  • Project Management

Existing Premium members can log-in and download. Not a Plus member? Join now.

Everybody loves MIDI controllers. They’re so much fun, some people buy a few of them. Before version 9, FL Studio used all connected MIDI controllers to control only one channel, but now each one can be configured to control something completely different.

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Step 1

Plug in and set up your MIDI controllers. Make sure the inputs are enabled in FL Studio’s MIDI settings and everything is working properly. I’m going to be using my Evolution MK-449C keyboard and a Korg PadKontrol.

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Step 2

Add the instrument channels you want to control with each MIDI controller. I want to control some drums with my PadKontrol and a bass sound with the keyboard, so I’ve added FPC and 3xOSC channels.

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Step 3

Now we can configure the MIDI controllers and the channels in FL Studio so that each channel is controlled by a seperate controller. When multiple channels in the step sequencer are selected, the MIDI channel that each note is sent on determines which channel (each instrument in FL Studio, like the 3xOSC and FPC, is called a ‘channel’, it’s confusing) it controls, from the ones that are selected. So, when 16 channels in FL Studio are selected, the first channel responds to MIDI notes sent on MIDI channel 1, the second on channel 2 and so on.

The MIDI channel is part of the note on and note off messages sent by the controller. When we set up a controller to send notes on MIDI channel 1, it doesn’t tell FL Studio that it’s being operated on channel 1, each note message just happens to be on channel 1. In the case of the PadKontrol and many other controllers, we can send notes on any MIDI channel we want. Knowing these limitations, we can predict how FL Studio will respond to different MIDI channels.

For example, let’s select 2 different channels in FL Studio’s step sequencer. FL Studio doesn’t know how we’ve configured our MIDI controllers or what MIDI channels we might be using. Any notes on MIDI channel 1 will be sent to the first channel in the step sequencer. Notes on MIDI channel 2 get sent to the second channel, as do any notes on any of the remaining MIDI channels.

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Step 4

Read the manual for your MIDI controller to find out how to determine and change which MIDI channel(s) it’s operating on. My PadKontrol sends all notes on channel 10 by default, because in prehistoric times, channel 10 was always used for drums. My keyboard is set up on channel 1 by default, so this works out well. If the keyboard used any other channel, I would have to change it to channel 1, as any notes on channels 2 and above will get sent to the second selected channel in FL Studio. Since the PadKontrol is sending notes on channel 10, the FPC channel should be below the 3xOSC channel in the step sequencer. Selecting it (by clicking the little green light next to it’s name) and pressing Alt+ Up or Down Arrows will move it up and down.

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Step 5

Now with both the FPC and 3xOSC channels selected by right-clicking the green lights next them, the PadKontrol plays the drums while the keyboard plays the bass. If you have a friend, this is a great way to collaborate.

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Extra Step 1

Let’s revisit the PadKontrol to do some really amazing things with this. Each pad can be configured to any MIDI channel, so with a bit of planning, multiple drum sounds can be triggered at the same time with just Sampler channels and no FPC or Layers. I’ve set up 4 pads sending notes on MIDI channels 1-4. To make things a lot easier, I’ve set each pad’s note to C4, which FL Studio sees as C5. This is just so that there’s no weird pitching going on.

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Extra Step 2

If you’re having fun with this, go into FL Studio’s MIDI settings window and click the ‘Record to step sequencer’ button. Now, if you play a cool beat on the pads, FL Studio will record each hit right into the step sequencer and it can easily edited from there. Whoooa!

Rust can often produce beautiful colors, textures and linear qualities on surfaces. Rust textures are not only inspiring but are also a great way to add an extra dimension to any project. Today, we have compiled a huge collection of over 250 free and premium rust textures from around the web for you to use in your designs.

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Free Textures

Rust Textures 2 (5)

Green Door 3

Free Texture Tuesday: Rust (5)

Rust 04

Grunge Package (4)

Metal / Rust texture #899

DSC01108 Rust

Rusty 134

Dumpster Scenery

Rust Textures (5)

Rusty Bolts #1378

Blisters

9 Colorful rust textures (9)

Speckled

Red and Yellow Rust Texture

Cracked Orange Rust #1447

Rust 2

Rusty Metal #301

Free High Res Texture 139

Rusted Metal Texture #1670

Colourful Rust 6

Rusted Metal #780

Old and Rusty High resolution textures (4)

Rust on Green Metal #1584

Rusty days (6)

Stock Texture 004

Rust 001

Rusted Metal #790

Rusty Metal #1103

Green Boat Scratch

Rusty Metal #1104

Rusty Yellow Metal #1225

Turquoise Rust-Texture

5 Old and Rusty Textures (5)

12 Unusual Free High-Res Rust Textures (12)

Texture 149

Rust on Blue Metal

Rust Texture Pack 02 (4)

Junk Truck Rust Texture

 

Rust Abstract #1

Rust texture 6

Rust 01

Teal 1

Vintage Rust

Texture pack 2 (8)

Rust / Metal texture #1529

Free Rust Textures (9)

Rusty Grunge Texture

Stock – Rust Textures (10)

Rust

Earth Map

Seat

Caution 02 of 03

Nobody Knows

Nr 79 (5)

Ft Worden 05

Rust ‘n Such Textures (10)

Metal / Rust texture #805

Pixmaniaque18BO26151

Rusted Metal Pack 01 (8)

Rust Splatters

Rust Textures Pack (21)

DSC08611

Rust Photos (5)

Rusty Texture 5

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Premium Textures

23 Miscellaneous Textures (23)

Paint Texture Pack 3 (5)

Rust METAL Paint

Metal Textures (5)

Rusty Pack 01 (5)

Metal Texture Pack 2 (5)

Rust Pack (4)

Metal Background II

Industrial Pack (4)

Splattered Grungy Metal (2)

Grunge With Rust and Paint

Rust Textures (12)

3 Metal Plates + Bonus Tileable Versions (3)

Corrugated Metal Pack 1 (8)

Orange Texture

I created this Microscope’s Field of View using 3 particle systems. The Base Layer is a water animation created using a fractal noise; the first level of particles is created using CC Particle World and it’s meant to look like quickly-moving bubbles. The Second Level of particles is created using Particular with a custom designed sprite, and is meant to look like a microscopic organism. The Third Set of particles are also created using Particular, and are added to mimic more floating debris. Finally, an arrow indicator is added to accurately simulate a microscope’s FOV.

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Tutorial

Additional Resources

• Simulate a Realistic Sniper Scope Perspective – AE Premium
• Achieve a Microfilm Machine Look – AE Premium
• All Bets Are Off Microscope Free Project File
• Video Copilot’s Medical Zoom Series

Illustrator’s Transform effect makes it quick and easy to create a pattern from any object. Add some careful highlighting and gradients, and you’ve got a metallic industrial background.

Continue reading “Quick Tip: Create a Metal Grille using the Transform Effect”

In this tutorial, you will learn how to create a 3D sandwich using easy to understand steps and techniques. We will use the 3D Extrude & Revolve Tool with some simple shapes to make a tasty looking BLT sandwich.

Continue reading “Make a Delicious Sandwich with Easy 3D Illustration Techniques”

Which microphone do you actually use the most?

Each Tuesday we open our mic to readers and lurkers alike to come out of the woodwork and tell us your thoughts and opinion, your experiences and mistakes, what you love and what you hate. We want to hear from you, and here’s your chance.

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You may have a collection of microphones in your arsenal, or be starting out with just one. Which microphone do you use the most, and why?

This might not be your best mic, or most impressive mic. It’s the one you find yourself turning too more often than the others.

Sometimes, all it takes to create a stunning piece of art is a stock photo, a bit of creativity, a great idea, and some time. Today, I will demonstrate how to create a piece of art that I created titled, "Beauty of Gold." Let’s get started!

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Step 1

Let’s start by creating a new document in Photoshop, I used A3 format but it doesn’t really matter what size you use. I always find it easier working in high resolution because it’s easier to add the details. After that, search for a nice piece of stock art. I bought mine on Dreamstime.com but you could also try DeviantArt or any other site. Place the stock on your canvas as shown below.

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Step 2

Now, have a good look at your stock, this technique is always easier when you have a stock with a lot of highlights and shadows. I have circled these areas in red and green below. It’s not necessary to draw the lines yourself. I just wanted you to understand what I meant.

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Step 3

Take out your ‘Ellipse Tool’ and begin to create circles that will form the shading.

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Step 4

Set the opacity of the ‘Ellipse Tool’ to about 20%. Now start filling in the dark and light areas with white and black. Don’t worry about the details yet, just create the basic shading like I did. (I set my stock to 50% opacity so that the circles are visible).

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Step 5

Work from large size to small size! This might seem a bit boring but in the end you will get the best results! As you can see below I’ve already added some very small details on the face just to show what it will look like on a later stage. (The stock is on 10% so that the shading is more visible).

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Step 6

Repeat this same step again, but this time add some circles around you stock to create some flow, this will be used for effects later in this tutorial. If some parts don’t look great, don’t worry, it can be fixed later on. Create a new layer and add more circles. I changed the opacity of the stock to 0% this time so its easy to see what I did and how much detail I added.

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Step 7

Now, we’re going to add some color. I decided to go for a golden/brown color which is about the same as what my stock had. Using the ‘Ellipse Tool’ start adding light colors on the light parts and dark colors on the darker parts.

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Step 8

Reduce the opacity of the color layer to 35% to bring down the colors a bit, after add more black and white shading on a new layer.

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Step 9

Our composition is finally starting to take shape, but its still a bit hard to recognize some parts of the stock. Take out your brush tool and apply these settings.

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Step 10

Now start brushing on the darker and lighter areas that we showed in Step 2. Make sure you don’t go outside the lines of the stock. Set the opacity of your brush to 30%, only use a black or white brush.

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Step 11

Here is what your layer stack should look like.

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Step 12

Duplicate all the layers above the stock, after that, merge them. Now duplicate the layer of your stock and place it at the very top. Now, create a clipping mask on the layer below it (this should be the merge of all the circles).

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Step 14

After this I merged the top 2 layers and set the result to overlay (20% opacity), then I duplicated that layer and set it to soft light (80% opacity).

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Step 15

As you can see there are still some areas that need more details. See the image below to understand which parts I’m referring to.

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Step 16

For this step we have to take out our ‘Ellipse Tool’ again, we’re now going to zoom in on each part we just highlighted and work on the detailing, add black and white where its needed! Keep repeating this step on the same layer until you are satisfied. (Our Ellipse Tool is still on 20% opacity).

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Step 17

After this we want to start working a bit more on the flow. As you can see when looking at my artwork, the main highlights are on the top left of the stock, so we’re going to add a gradient (black to white) where the bottom right is black and the top left is white. After that, set it to soft light and keep the opacity on 100%.

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Step 18

Things are starting to come together now but the background is still really boring. Since we want to keep the focus on the foreground we’re going to add a really soft background. I usually do this by taking a big stock photo and blurring it, then setting it to soft light. This time I used the stock of a desert which I bought on dreamstime.com (you should also be able to find good stocks on sxc.hu). Place it as shown below.

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Step 19

Now go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur and set the radius to 65. Set this layer to soft light (100% opacity), now duplicate that layer and set it to 15% opacity.

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Step 20

Now, we’re going to add more effects, at the moment all we have are flat circles which are a bit boring. I created some special circles with gradients etc. which I’m going to randomly place in the artwork. Its best to experiment with creating circles because it depends on what fits the artwork best.

Note: I put a gray background behind the effects in this screenshot so they are all visible. These are not on the same layer because then I wouldn’t be able to move them around and duplicate them.

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Step 21

Some parts still look a bit flat. We’re now going to add highlights but also darken the dark areas a bit more. A very simple way to do this is by soft brushing on a new layer and setting it to soft light. I did this with a 550px soft brush (black and white), which I set to soft light 50% opacity.

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Step 22

After that, we’re going to add very small details. I did this with a soft brush and hard brush with a small diameter. Set the scatter and spacing to high and brush in random areas. Do this with different colors but also with varied blending modes such as screen, overlay and soft light.

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Step 23

We’re coming to an end here, I took out my pen tool and a very large soft brush to create lines around some places of my main model. Also, I added some subtle effects to it. Check out the screenshot below what I mean. (Make sure you set it on simulate pressure).

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Step 24

Go to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur. Erase all the areas you don’t want blurred to improve the focal point.

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Step 25

We’re almost done now. I applied my image on a new layer and sharpened it. After that I played a bit with the colors/brightness and contrast/hue and saturation. This is my final result.

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Final Image

I flipped the image horizontally because for me, it looked better. After that I also added my logo.

Reading web comics on the weekends could be a nice way to freshen up your mind after five days of busy schedule.

This list contains some of my top web comics for adults, especially geek adults. My love for all things tech is reflected in this list too.

1. The Joy Of Tech

The Joy Of Tech is a popular web comic based on pop culture and sarcastic technology jokes. The comic mainly targets Apple products, their culture and the fanboys. It’s usually a hilarious read.

2. Indexed

Indexed is not exactly a web comic. It primarily publishes charts, graphs and diagrams that portray weird, and often sensible but funny statistics. An innovative venture, no doubt.

3. Xkcd

It’d be blasphemous to not include Xkcd in this list, especially when I’ve already said that most of the comics in the list are geared towards tech jokes and satire. And this one doesn’t need an introduction, does it?

4. Dilbert

Dilbert’s online version is something I have to read everyday. It’s too funny to ignore. Office humor at its best.

5. PHD – Piled Higher And Deeper

If you are a student, you’d love PHD or Piled Higher And Deeper. It’s mainly about student life hassles and fun.

What are your favorite comic strips on the web?

I picked up a teach yourself book at a friend’s today about speed reading.  It states that with speed reading one can maximize their time and improve their reading efficiency.  I’ve never met people who speed read but it seems like such a good idea. If we all could speed read we would be able to go through all of the information we go through every day much more quickly, allowing more time for our work.  It leaves me wondering why speed reading isn’t taught in school as a skill – along with algebra shortcuts and writing short hand.

Do you think speed reading techniques should be taught in school?  Do you think or know if it really helps?

The 7 Secrets of Running a Wildly Popular Blog
A top direct marketing copywriter shares his tips on using personality and likeability to build your blog’s popularity.

20 Strategies to Defeat the Urge to Do Useless Tasks
Ever find yourself refreshing Facebook or cleaning out your desk instead of doing what’s really important? Read this post!

Three Reasons You’re Not Charging What You’re Worth
Many freelancers and other self-employed folks sell themselves short, but this post shows them how to break this habit and start charging more.

5 Ways To Boost Your Best Business Relationship
These days, finding a job or getting promoted is all about relationships, and this post shows you simple ways to strengthen those contacts.

Freelance Decor: 6 Motivational Posters from the Movies
Lastly, we bring you a fun, light-hearted post from our sister site, FreelanceSwitch, with humorous motivational posters.

Here’s another of my favorite fast recipes. How many times have you been slaving away at the computer, trying to squeeze in that last bit of code, those final tweaks to the copy, or the final lines in your design when you were struck with an overwhelming urge for chocolate cake?

Sadly, this happens way too often here in my house. While I feel a bit guilty when I “forget” to tell my wife that I made a chocolate cake – I feel more so when there isn’t any left to share with her.

So I was delighted to come across this recipe – as it’s a personal-sized cake (well, really – what cake isn’t personal sized?).  And the best part is it will probably take you longer to eat it than it will to cook it!

This is a “Freelance Favorite” called Cup o’ Cake – but you don’t have to be a freelancer to enjoy it.  If you’ve got a microwave at work, you can bring the ingredients and mix them up for your afternoon coffee.  Why buy a $5 cupcake when you can make something like this?

Ingredients

• 4 tbsp flour (all purpose is ok, cake flour is better)
• 3 tbsp Cocoa powder
• 4 tbsp sugar (haven’t tried it yet – but you could probably use your fav. flavor Quik and skip the cocoa)
• 1 med egg
• 3 tbsp milk (evaporated milk might be pretty good, too)
• 3 tbsp oil (or melted butter if you want to be decadent)
• 2 tbsp chocolate chips
• 1 large mug

Add the dry ingredients and chocolate chips to the mug

Add egg, then milk and oil.  Mix very well. (A large mug is handy here, or this might be a bit messy)

Put the mug in the microwave, and cook on high for 3 minutes

Take out of the microwave, empty mug into a bowl.  Smother cake with canned chocolate sauce, ice cream, whipped cream or all of the above

Hide bathroom scale.

Enjoy!