Freelance Projects, Design and Programming Tutorials
We have a new set of vector illustrations available exclusively for Vector Premium members. In this pack you will find a great selection of cute, shiny backgrounds of all seasons. These illustrations are perfect for postcards, posters, and adverts for different purposes: from tourism to children’s illustration. Learn more at the jump!
Continue reading “Premium Vector Pack – Seasonal Landscapes”
Easily turn a circle into a gold wedding band, or if that’s not your style, make a rubber wristband instead. It’s fast and easy with Illustrator’s 3D Extrude & Bevel effect. This is a great tutorial for beginners, let’s get started!
Continue reading “Quick Tip: Create a Wedding Ring and Wristband Using Illustrator’s 3D Effects”
In this tutorial you’ll learn how to make a realistic 3d sphere logo. This tutorial is for designers who use CorelDraw as their main software. This kind of logo works well for technology focused companies, as it has a high-tech feel. After working through this tutorial you’ll be able to create similar designs in your work.
Continue reading “Create a Realistic 3D Sphere Logo from Scratch Using CorelDraw”
Creative Typography is more than just a fancy font, it’s an expressive form of typography that transforms letters into works of art. Using the letter-forms as a medium for expression and storytelling, Creative Typography takes words or phrases and matches them with illustrative and artistic finishes that further enhance the mood of the design. The following roundup of tutorials from the Vectortuts+ archives showcases some of the best Creative Typography tuts we have published to date.
Continue reading “Beautiful Creative Typography Tuts from Vectortuts+”
Adobe Illustrator CS5 features a slew of fantastic new tools and functionality, but the one that jumped out at me and really grabbed my attention was the Variable Width Stroke Tool. The concept was great. And when I actually put it to use – the experience was even greater than my expectations. In part one of this two part series we’ll be creating a tribal design and improving our Illustrator work flow along the way.
Continue reading “Illustrator CS5 Variable Width Stroke Tool: Perfect for Making Tribal Designs!”
As you will have heard countless times, white space is a very important element to a successful layout. A large proportion of a white space will typically be occupied by margins. The purpose of this tut is to give new InDesign users the knowledge on setting up margins and their functions relating to two main layout types, which are single and facing page layouts.
Continue reading “Quick Tip: Setting Margins using InDesign”
Conceptual art has to be one of my favorite themes. It’s a piece of art that plays out an event, situation, or concept to it’s viewer. Sometimes you get it straight away on first glance, sometimes it’s a real head scratcher. Throw vector into the equation and I’m in heaven. Today I give you twenty pieces of amazing vector art from the galleries of deviantART to make you think, inspire you, and hopefully put a smile on your face.
Continue reading “20 Amazing, Conceptual Vector Artworks to Explore”
Just because you missed that awesome conference, doesn’t mean that you can’t still watch the lectures! This weekend, we feature an inspiring talk that Paul Bennett (British branding and design guru) did at TED. Paul Bennett explains that design doesn’t have to be about grand gestures, but can solve small, universal and overlooked problems. Solutions can be found by taking a look at design problems from different viewpoints.
A few times a each month we revisit some of our reader’s favorite posts from throughout the history of Vectortuts+. This tutorial by Jesse Hora was first published on October 20th 2009.
There are numerous ways that you could approach using a reference photo in illustration, an obvious option being to ‘trace’ the photo. Since there are so many microscopic details in a photograph you have to make numerous decisions on how you want the image to look in the end. Do you want it to look photorealistic? Or more stylized? Comic book-esque? Cartoon-like?
All of these decisions will result in the look and style of your final image, and your work as a whole. As a commercial designer/illustrator, the style and look of your work will make or break you. This tutorial will cover these decisions as we create an illustration from a reference photo.
Continue reading “Tracing a Vector Face From a Reference Photo”
Authentic, retro looking T-shirt designs are all the rage these days. In this Psd Premium tutorial, author Mark Mayers will take a heavy dose of inspiration from the 70s and create a cool, surf-style graphic with tons of retro appeal. This tutorial will also demonstrate how to incorporate an aged and distressed look to replicate washing machine wear and tear. In the final part of this tutorial you’ll see how easy it is to print your designs onto special iron-on transfer paper and apply it to a T-shirt, which is an ideal solution if you just need a handful for your local club or friends. This tutorial is available exclusively to Premium Members. If you are looking to take your t-shirt design skills to the next level then Log in or Join Now to get started!
Author Mark Mayers is a talented designer and illustrator from the UK. He has worked as a designer and creative director for several design/advertising agencies and specializes in print, branding, packaging, and exhibition graphics. Mark began his career when the tools of the trade were markers, layout pads, and most importantly, the ability to draw, but he embraced the digital revolution in the early 90′s and swapped his drawing board for a Mac. Today, Mark freelances from his studio in Cornwall for such clients as American Express, BMW, Future Publishing, IDG Communications and Imagine Publishing.
Premium members can Log in and Download! Otherwise, Join Now! Below are some sample images from this tutorial.
As you know, we run a premium membership system here that costs $9 a month (or $22 for 3 months!) which gives members access to the Source files for tutorials as well as periodic extra tutorials, like this one! You’ll also get access to Net Premium and Vector Premium, too. If you’re a Premium member, you can Log in and Download the Tutorial. If you’re not a member, you can of course Join Today!
Toyota is recalling 2.17m vehicles in the US over reports that accelerator pedals could become stuck in floor mats and carpets.
The company has now recalled more than 14m vehicles globally since 2009 over safety concerns.
The US government recently cleared the company after an inquiry into reports its electronic throttle system had led to unintended acceleration.
The Japanese company is one of the best-selling carmakers in the US.
In a notice on Thursday, the company announced a voluntary recall of several model years of its Highlander, GS, RX, 4Runner, Lexus LX 570 and RAV4 models.
It warned that if the floor carpet surrounding the accelerator pedals were not placed properly, the pedals may become stuck in a depressed position rather than returning to idle.
Toyota and Lexus dealers will fix or replace the carpets at no charge to vehicle owners, the company said.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
A suicide bomber kills at least eight people in the Iraqi city of Ramadi, reportedly wounding the deputy governor of Anbar province.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Protesters have been consolidating gains in cities in the east Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi has told state TV that Osama Bin Laden and his followers are to blame for the protests wracking his country.
In a phone call from the town of al-Zawiya played live on TV, Col Gaddafi said young people were being duped with drugs and alcohol to take part in “destruction and sabotage”.
Col Gaddafi is battling to shore up control of Tripoli and western areas.
Protesters have been consolidating gains in cities in the east.
The telephone call was said to be an address to the people of al-Zawiya, 50km (30 miles) west of the capital, where there has been renewed gunfire reported in the streets.
Col Gaddafi said the protesters had no genuine demands and were being dictated to by the al-Qaeda leader.
He said that Libya was not like Egypt and Tunisia, which have seen their leaders deposed, because the people of Libya had it in their own hands to change their lives through committees.
“This is your country and it is up to you how to deal with it,” he said.
He called on families to rein in their sons, saying many of the protesters were underage and beyond the reach of the law.
But he also vowed that those carrying out violent protests should be put on trial.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Traders worry that much bigger oil suppliers in the Middle East may soon be affected Oil prices have continued to climb, hitting their highest levels in two-and-a-half years, amid fears the unrest in Libya could spread to larger oil producing nations.
Brent crude rose by more than 2% to $113 a barrel in Asian trade, while US light crude was up about 1% at $99.19.
The last time prices were this high was back in October 2008, and analysts said more gains may be on the way.
The high oil price weighed on Asian stock markets, and trading was mixed.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index lost 0.9% while South Korea’s KOSPI shed 0.7%. Indexes in Singapore, Australia and India also declined.
Markets in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Taiwan posted modest gains.
“It’s not a very good day,” said Jackson Wong, vice president at Tanrich Securities in Hong Kong.
“The market is still trending down because of high oil prices, high commodity prices because of the Middle East unrest,” added Mr Wong.
Oil prices have been rising for months, but the uprising in Libya has caused a sharp increase in crude costs.
Libya is the world’s 12th-largest exporter of oil, with the majority of its output going to Europe.
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Supply concerns were amplified after French oil giant Total said it has started to shut down its oil operations in Libya.
Other oil companies have made similar moves in recent days.
Barclays Capital estimates that so far about 1 million barrels per day of production has been shut down.
“The futures market may be forced to price in a major loss of Libya’s output for at least a few weeks,” Ritterbusch & Associates said in a report.
The report also predicts that continuing instability in the Middle East will probably keep pushing prices up into the spring.
“This still feels like a market that is far from achieving a top,” Ritterbusch & Associates said.
The International Energy Agency and Saudi Arabia have promised to increase supplies in order to cover any shortfalls.
However, that has not eased the tensions in the oil markets.
Analysts say is oil prices keep climbing, it could push up the cost of fuel and food.
That would hit consumers in the pocket and would result in slower economic growth and weaker corporate earnings.
“It would nail the economy,” said Mark Zandi of Moody’s Analytics.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Fighting has erupted in western Ivory Coast, breaching the six-year ceasefire between ex-rebels and government troops, the United Nations says.
A UN spokesman told the BBC there were clashes in the village of Teapleu in the early hours of Thursday morning.
He said given the political stalemate, the reports were very “worrying”.
Tensions have been rising since President Laurent Gbagbo’s refusal to hand over to Alassane Ouattara, widely seen as the winner of November’s poll.
“This is a very serious issue because it would be the first time the ceasefire is broken in six years,” Hamadoun Toure, the spokesman for the UN mission in Ivory Coast, told the BBC’s Newshour programme.
“It will also change the nature of the tension because so far we’ve been witnessing violence between civilians and the army – but now if we have two armies face to face it will be very very complicated.”
He said details of the fighting were sketchy.
Meanwhile, the clashes between rival supporters in the main city of Abidjan have claimed up to 20 lives since Monday.
An armed rebellion in 2002 split the world’s largest cocoa producer between the north, held by New Forces rebels, and the government-controlled south.
November’s presidential vote was supposed to reunify the West African nation.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.