[ 2 ] PREVIOUS PAGE • NEXT PAGE [ 4 ]
[ FIRST PAGE ] • [ HOME ]

XX-Day 1999. Click image for larger view and discussion.

Creative Mac: What are the applications you use mainly for graphics creation? Could you elaborate on what you use each one for (compression, photo manipulation, original art creation, etc.)? Also, what software do you use for the Web site?

Rev. Ivan Stang: Photoshop and Bryce are the two biggies for me personally. I have strong, almost perverted feelings for these tools. They are cruel mistresses, though. Demanding. (Am I mixing metaphors?) I find myself using Photoshop more often for freelance graphics jobs—logos and minor website spruceups, box labels, stuff like that; Bryce I play with for fun "art-art" and for SubGenius illustration.

Up until 1995 or so, all of the SubGenius graphics were made by others, although some things, like our hieroglyphs, were basically "scripted" by me or my partner Philo Drummond. My graphic arts background is in film special effects and animation. I can't draw for hooey, but I used to do claymation and tabletop stop-motion work. As much as I admired computer graphics, I don't think I ever would have tried it myself had I not, out of curiosity, opened up a Bryce 2 demo that came with a MacAddict magazine CD.

The first two minutes with that Bryce demo was one of the most memorable experiences of my life. It was like losing my cherry. I thought, "My god, even I can operate this!" The concept that making 3D graphics was just like building miniature tabletop sets for stop-motion animation, that was a thrilling mental breakthrough for me. It meant I could get back to playing with cool little monster toys and setting up dynamic camera angles and dramatic lighting, just like when I was 14, only it wouldn't be nearly as strenuous or expensive. (HA!!! Think again!)

Of course, in short order I began running into Bryce's limitations. Like the fact that there were no people. And if you brought people in from Poser 2, you had to paint in their hair, clothes, etc. Needing to polish up Bryce pictures was the only reason I cracked the Photoshop manual. But it wasn't too long before I was one of those "filter-a-holics," desperate to get my paws on whatever the latest groovy new filter set was. I got to the point that I was reading graphics software manuals for entertainment. It wasn't that there was any tearing need for me to do this, I just loved working with the tools themselves.

Then I wheedled myself a job doing the graphics for a SubGenius/INWO role playing game set for Steve Jackson Games, and that forced a great deal of on the job training in Photoshop and print prep. I tried learning various other general graphics progs like Painter, but it always seemed like Photoshop or some filter thereof already had it covered. I learned Ray Dream Studio and Poser, and between those and Photoshop I've had all I've needed so far. I guess I should say, all that my hardware can handle at this time.

I'd say the single piece of software that gets used the most in my computer is Boxtop ProJPEG, simply because I'm constantly having to resize and recompress other people's things for Web use.

Conversely, I frequently have to print from, or otherwise blow up, little 72 PPI art pieces that were originally done by others strictly for newsgroup fun, and for blowing up low-res pics, Genuine Fractals seems to make a big difference.

My main Web editting tool is GoLive Cyberstudio 4 ... that and a wonderfully useful piece of shareware called Quicknailer, which makes thumbnail pages from piles of graphics. I'm not doing much interactive or Java oriented fanciness yet.

I plan to learn Flash next. My son says he can teach me in about an hour!

[ 2 ] PREVIOUS PAGE • NEXT PAGE [ 4 ]
[ FIRST PAGE ] • [ HOME ]

Post a message on the Creative Mac World Wide User Forum!