Whiteboarding: An effective & modern way to collaborate

Original Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Designrfix/~3/Sb5hLpM2DEU/whiteboarding-an-effective-modern-way-to-collaborate

Interactive whiteboards have brought a new technological evolution. Their presence is not necessarily new, but recently their advantages in meetings and presentations have come to the forefront of modern businesses.  Over the past decade, interactive whiteboards have witnessed a significant improvement in its adoption within businesses and educational institutions. Today, schools and businesses are utilizing […]

The post Whiteboarding: An effective & modern way to collaborate appeared first on designrfix.com.

How to Create a Physics-based 3D Cloth with Cannon.js and Three.js

Original Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/tympanus/~3/yRIzrJHYskA/

Following my previous experiment where I’ve showed you how to build a 3D physics-based menu, let’s now take a look at how to turn an image into a cloth-like material that gets distorted by wind using Cannon.js and Three.js.

In this tutorial, we’ll assume that you’re comfortable with Three.js and understand the basic principles of the Cannon.js library. If you aren’t, take a look at my previous tutorial about Cannon and how to create a simple world using this 3D engine.

Before we begin, take a look at the demo that shows a concrete example of a slideshow that uses the cloth effect I’m going to explain. The slideshow in the demo is based on Jesper Landberg’s Infinite draggable WebGL slider.

Preparing the DOM, the scene and the figure

I’m going to start with an example from one of my previous tutorials. I’m using DOM elements to re-create the plane in my scene. All the styles and positions are set in CSS and re-created in the canvas with JavaScript. I just cleaned some stuff I don’t use anymore (like the data-attributes) but the logic is still the same:

// index.html
<section class=”container”>
<article class=”tile”>
<figure class=”tile__figure”>
<img src=”path/to/my/image.jpg”
class=”tile__image” alt=”My image” width=”400″
height=”300″ />
</figure>
</article>
</section>

And here we go:

Creating the physics world and update existing stuff

We’ll update our Scene.js file to add the physics calculation and pass the physics World as an argument to the Figure object:

// Scene.js’s constructor
this.world = new C.World();
this.world.gravity.set(0, -1000, 0);

For this example, I’m using a large number for gravity because I’m working with big sized objects.

// Scene.js’s constructor
this.figure = new Figure(this.scene, this.world);

// Scene.js’s update method
this.world.step(1 / 60);

// We’ll see this below!
this.figure.update()

Let’s do some sewing

In the last tutorial on Cannon, I talked about rigid bodies. As its name suggests, you give an entire object a shape that will never be distorted. In this example, I will not use rigid bodies but soft bodies. I’ll create a new body per vertex, give it a mass and connect them to recreate the full mesh. After that, like with the rigid bodies, I copy each Three vertices’ position with Cannon’s body position and voilà!

Let’s start by updating the subdivision segments of the mesh with a local variable “size”: 

const size = 8;

export default class Figure {
constructor(scene, world) {
this.world = world

//…

// Createmesh method
this.geometry = new THREE.PlaneBufferGeometry(1, 1, size, size);

Then, we add a new method in our Figure Class called “CreateStitches()” that we’ll call it just after the createMesh() method. The order is important because we’ll use each vertex coordinate to set the base position of our bodies.

Creating the soft body

Because I’m using a BufferGeometry rather than Geometry, I have to loop through the position attributes array based on the count value. It limits the number of iterations through the whole array and improves performances. Three.js provides methods that return the correct value based on the index.

createStitches() {
// We don’t want a sphere nor a cube for each point of our cloth. Cannon provides the Particle() object, a shape with … no shape at all!
const particleShape = new C.Particle();

const { position } = this.geometry.attributes;
const { x: width, y: height } = this.sizes;

this.stitches = [];

for (let i = 0; i < position.count; i++) {

const pos = new C.Vec3(
position.getX(i) * width,
position.getY(i) * height,
position.getZ(i)
);

const stitch = new C.Body({

// We divide the mass of our body by the total number of points in our mesh. This way, an object with a lot of vertices doesn’t have a bigger mass.
mass: mass / position.count,

// Just for a smooth rendering, you can drop this line but your cloth will move almost infinitely.
linearDamping: 0.8,

position: pos,
shape: particleShape,

// TEMP, we’ll delete later
velocity: new C.Vec3(0, 0, -300)
});

this.stitches.push(stitch);
this.world.addBody(stitch);
}
}

Notice that we multiply by the size of our mesh. That’s because, in the beginning, we set the size of our plane to a size of 1. So each vertex has its coordinates normalized and we have to multiply them afterwards.

Updating the mesh

As we need to set our position in normalized coordinates, we have to divide by the width and height values and set it to the bufferAttribute.

// Figure.js
update() {
const { position } = this.geometry.attributes;
const { x: width, y: height } = this.sizes;

for (let i = 0; i < position.count; i++) {
position.setXYZ(
i,
this.stitches[i].position.x / width,
this.stitches[i].position.y / height,
this.stitches[i].position.z
);
}

position.needsUpdate = true;
}

And voilà! Now you should have a falling bunch of unconnected points. Let’s change that by just setting the first row of our stitches to a mass of zero.

for (let i = 0; i < position.count; i++) {
const row = Math.floor(i / (size + 1));

// …

const stitch = new C.Body({
mass: row === 0 ? 0 : mass / position.count,

// …

I guess you noticed I increased the size plus one. Let’s take a look at the wireframe of our mesh:

As you can notice, when we set the number of segments with the ‘size’ variable, we have the correct number of subdivisions. But we are working on the mesh so we have one more row and column. By the way, if you inspect the count value we used above, we have 81 vertices (9*9), not 64 (8*8).

Connecting everything

Now, you should have a falling bunch of points falling down but not the first line! We have to create a DistanceConstraint from each point to their neighbour.

// createStitches()
for (let i = 0; i < position.count; i++) {
const col = i % (size + 1);
const row = Math.floor(i / (size + 1));

if (col < size) this.connect(i, i + 1);
if (row < size) this.connect(i, i + size + 1);
}

// New method in Figure.js
connect(i, j) {
const c = new C.DistanceConstraint(this.stitches[i], this.stitches[j]);

this.world.addConstraint(c);
}

And tadam! You now have a cloth floating within the void. Because of the velocity we set before, you can see the mesh moves but stops quickly. It’s the calm before the storm.

Let the wind blow

Now that we have a cloth, why not let a bit of wind blow? I’m going to create an array with the length of our mesh and fill it with a direction vector based on the position of my mouse multiplied by a force using simplex noise. Psst, if you have never heard of noise, I suggest reading this article.

We could imagine the noise looking like this image, except where we have angles in each cell, we’ll have a force between -1 and 1 in our case.

https://lramrz.com/2016/12/flow-field-in-p5js/

After that, we’ll add the forces of each cell on their respective body and the update function will do the rest.

Let’s dive into the code!

I’m going to create a new class called Wind in which I’m passing the figure as a parameter.

// First, I’m going to set 2 local constants
const baseForce = 2000;
const off = 0.05;

export default class Wind {
constructor(figure) {
const { count } = figure.geometry.attributes.position;
this.figure = figure;

// Like the mass, I don’t want to have too much forces applied because of a large amount of vertices
this.force = baseForce / count;

// We’ll use the clock to increase the wind movement
this.clock = new Clock();

// Just a base direction
this.direction = new Vector3(0.5, 0, -1);

// My array
this.flowfield = new Array(count);

// Where all will happen!
this.update()
}
}

update() {
const time = this.clock.getElapsedTime();

const { position } = this.figure.geometry.attributes;
const size = this.figure.geometry.parameters.widthSegments;

for (let i = 0; i < position.count; i++) {
const col = i % (size + 1);
const row = Math.floor(i / (size + 1));

const force = (noise.noise3D(row * off, col * off, time) * 0.5 + 0.5) * this.force;

this.flowfield[i] = this.direction.clone().multiplyScalar(force);
}
}

The only purpose of this object is to update the array values with noise in each frame so we need to amend Scene.js with a few new things.

// Scene.js
this.wind = new Wind(this.figure.mesh);

// …

update() {
// …
this.wind.update();
this.figure.update();
// …
}

And before continuing, I’ll add a new method in my update method after the figure.update():

this.figure.applyWind(this.wind);

Let’s write this new method in Figure.js:

// Figure.js constructor
// To help performance, I will avoid creating a new instance of vector each frame so I’m setting a single vector I’m going to reuse.
this.bufferV = new C.Vec3();

// New method
applyWind(wind) {
const { position } = this.geometry.attributes;

for (let i = 0; i < position.count; i++) {
const stitch = this.stitches[i];

const windNoise = wind.flowfield[i];
const tempPosPhysic = this.bufferV.set(
windNoise.x,
windNoise.y,
windNoise.z
);

stitch.applyForce(tempPosPhysic, C.Vec3.ZERO);
}
}

Congratulation, you have created wind, Mother Nature would be proud! But the wind blows in the same direction. Let’s change that in Wind.js by updating our direction with the mouse position.

window.addEventListener(“mousemove”, this.onMouseMove.bind(this));

onMouseMove({ clientX: x, clientY: y }) {
const { innerWidth: W, innerHeight: H } = window;

gsap.to(this.direction, {
duration: 0.8,
x: x / W – 0.5,
y: -(y / H) + 0.5
});
}

Conclusion

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and that it gave you some ideas on how to bring a new dimension to your interaction effects. Don’t forget to take a look at the demo, it’s a more concrete case of a slideshow where you can see this effect in action. 

Don’t hesitate to let me know if there’s anything not clear, feel free to contact me on Twitter @aqro.

Cheers!

How to Create a Physics-based 3D Cloth with Cannon.js and Three.js was written by Arno Di Nunzio and published on Codrops.

10 Online Courses To Become A Better Web Designer

Original Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/1stwebdesigner/~3/NujbkXWxTs4/

Whether you’re first entering the world of web design or own a well-established agency, one thing applies to all: you can always learn more. That’s what makes online courses so fabulous. You can learn at your own pace and pick and choose the topics you want to delve deeper into.

Instead of having to hunt around for great web design courses to take, we’ve put together a list of some of our favorite online courses. Each of the following will help you to become a more solid web designer, expand your skill set, and/or improve your business direction.

Your Web Designer Toolbox

Unlimited Downloads: 500,000+ Web Templates, Icon Sets, Themes & Design Assets


DOWNLOAD NOW

UX & Web Design Master Course: Strategy, Design, Development

UX & Web Design Master Course: Strategy, Design, Development - online courses

Become a real expert in web design by taking this master course on Udemy. Instructor Joe Natoli walks you through UX principles for creating better web designs that work for visitors and customers.

Ultimate Web Designer & Developer Course: Build 23 Projects!

Ultimate Web Designer & Developer Course: Build 23 Projects! - online courses

Here’s another great course on Udemy. The instructor this time is Brad Hussey and he breaks down all the details of what it takes to become a full-stack developer. This covers it all from front-end design to back-end programming.

Web Design for Beginners: Real World Coding in HTML & CSS

Web Design for Beginners: Real World Coding in HTML & CSS - online courses

If you’re new to the world of web design, you’ll greatly benefit from this web design for beginners course by Brad Schiff. It shows you how to create HTML5, CSS3, and responsive design in real-world examples.

Grow Your Web Design Skills

Grow Your Web Design Skills - online courses

This fantastic online course on Pluralsight is an obvious choice for expanding your web design skills.

User Experience for Web Design

User Experience for Web Design - online courses

Another course you might want to consider is this breakdown of user experience in web design put together by Chris Nodder. It’s just under two hours long and aimed at beginners, but even pros could use a refresher now and then.

Introduction to Web Design and Development

Introduction to Web Design and Development - online courses

Here’s another beginner-level course, this time a full intro to web design and development. It consists of about three and a half hours of instruction that offer in-depth exploration of topics you need to know to advance your skills.

Web Design: Efficient Workflow

Web Design: Efficient Workflow

For creating a better workflow for running a web design agency or business, this mini-course is a sure bet.

Creating a Responsive Web Design: Advanced Techniques

Creating a Responsive Web Design: Advanced Techniques

Responsive design is a must nowadays. Learn more than just the basics here in this just-over-an-hour long advanced course.

Careers in Web Design and Development

Careers in Web Design and Development

If you’re interested in the business side of things, you won’t want to miss this course all about careers in web design and development.

Treehouse: Front End Web Development

Treehouse: Front End Web Development

The last course on this list is one from Treehouse. It focuses exclusively on front-end web development and covers HTML, CSS, Javascript, and more.

Expand Your Web Design Education

Hopefully you now have the tools at your disposal to further your web design education. Completing the above ten online courses will further your skills and help you take the next step in your career. Be sure to also check out our extensive library of tutorials to add to your toolbox. Best of luck in the effort!

Cover photo courtesy of ShotStash


Motion & Production for "We Need To Talk" Opening Sequence

Original Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/abduzeedo/~3/7tu2gLw6MJs/motion-production-we-need-talk-opening-sequence

Motion & Production for “We Need To Talk” Opening Sequence

AoiroStudioFeb 10, 2020

A couple of months ago, we have shared on ABDZ a very outstanding tribute for the cult AKIRA animated movie by Ash Thorp in collaboration with zaoeyo. zaoeyo has administered to introduce a new project and it’s a motion & production for “We Need To Talk” opening sequence. You can totally feel the inspirational vibes from Blade Runner, Mr. Robot and neons! I am totally digging this visual entrance, especially when it’s used for an opening sequence. Make sure to check out his Behance for more.

WE NEED TO TALK is a documentary directed by Ricky Staub. Last year, I’m glad to have the chance making full-CG sequence for this documentary and it’s my first full solo production commercial opening sequence in my career, and I am very thankful that the director gave me the chance and let me do my things!

About zaoeyo

zaoeyo is a self-taught Visual Designer currently based in Xiangtan from the Hunan province. He focuses most of his work in 3D visuals, motion design and title design.

Behance
Credits

Client: NeighborhoodFilmCompany
Director: Ricky Staub
Solo Production: zaoeyo (xiaolin zeng)
Fluid Vfx: shuifx


Build a JavaScript Command Line Interface (CLI) with Node.js

Original Source: https://www.sitepoint.com/javascript-command-line-interface-cli-node-js/?utm_source=rss

Build a JavaScript Command Line Interface (CLI) with Node.js

As great as Node.js is for “traditional” web applications, its potential uses are far broader. Microservices, REST APIs, tooling, working with the Internet of Things and even desktop applications: it’s got your back.

Another area where Node.js is really useful is for building command-line applications — and that’s what we’re going to be doing in this article. We’re going to start by looking at a number of third-party packages designed to help work with the command line, then build a real-world example from scratch.

What we’re going to build is a tool for initializing a Git repository. Sure, it’ll run git init under the hood, but it’ll do more than just that. It will also create a remote repository on GitHub right from the command line, allow the user to interactively create a .gitignore file, and finally perform an initial commit and push.

As ever, the code accompanying this tutorial can be found on our GitHub repo.

Build a Node CLI

Why Build a Command-line Tool with Node.js?

Before we dive in and start building, it’s worth looking at why we might choose Node.js to build a command-line application.

The most obvious advantage is that, if you’re reading this, you’re probably already familiar with it — and, indeed, with JavaScript.

Another key advantage, as we’ll see as we go along, is that the strong Node.js ecosystem means that among the hundreds of thousands of packages available for all manner of purposes, there are a number which are specifically designed to help build powerful command-line tools.

Finally, we can use npm to manage any dependencies, rather than have to worry about OS-specific package managers such as Aptitude, Yum or Homebrew.

Tip: that isn’t necessarily true, in that your command-line tool may have other external dependencies.

What We’re Going to Build: ginit

Ginit, our Node CLI in action

For this tutorial, we’re going to create a command-line utility which I’m calling ginit. It’s git init, but on steroids.

You’re probably wondering what on earth that means.

As you no doubt already know, git init initializes a Git repository in the current folder. However, that’s usually only one of a number of repetitive steps involved in the process of hooking up a new or existing project to Git. For example, as part of a typical workflow, you may well:

initialize the local repository by running git init
create a remote repository, for example on GitHub or Bitbucket — typically by leaving the command line and firing up a web browser
add the remote
create a .gitignore file
add your project files
commit the initial set of files
push up to the remote repository.

There are often more steps involved, but we’ll stick to those for the purposes of our app. Nevertheless, these steps are pretty repetitive. Wouldn’t it be better if we could do all this from the command line, with no copy-pasting of Git URLs and such like?

So what ginit will do is create a Git repository in the current folder, create a remote repository — we’ll be using GitHub for this — and then add it as a remote. Then it will provide a simple interactive “wizard” for creating a .gitignore file, add the contents of the folder and push it up to the remote repository. It might not save you hours, but it’ll remove some of the initial friction when starting a new project.

With that in mind, let’s get started.

The Application Dependencies

One thing is for certain: in terms of appearance, the console will never have the sophistication of a graphical user interface. Nevertheless, that doesn’t mean it has to be plain, ugly, monochrome text. You might be surprised by just how much you can do visually, while at the same time keeping it functional. We’ll be looking at a couple of libraries for enhancing the display: chalk for colorizing the output and clui to add some additional visual components. Just for fun, we’ll use figlet to create a fancy ASCII-based banner, and we’ll also use clear to clear the console.

In terms of input and output, the low-level Readline Node.js module could be used to prompt the user and request input, and in simple cases is more than adequate. But we’re going to take advantage of a third-party package which adds a greater degree of sophistication — Inquirer. As well as providing a mechanism for asking questions, it also implements simple input controls: think radio buttons and checkboxes, but in the console.

We’ll also be using minimist to parse command-line arguments.

Here’s a complete list of the packages we’ll use specifically for developing on the command line:

chalk — colorizes the output
clear — clears the terminal screen
clui — draws command-line tables, gauges and spinners
figlet — creates ASCII art from text
inquirer — creates interactive command-line user interface
minimist — parses argument options
configstore — easily loads and saves config without you having to think about where and how.

Additionally, we’ll also be using the following:

@octokit/rest — a GitHub REST API client for Node.js
@octokit/auth-basic — an implementation of one of GitHub’s authentication strategies
lodash — a JavaScript utility library
simple-git — a tool for running Git commands in a Node.js application
touch — a tool for implementing the Unix touch command.

Getting Started

Although we’re going to create the application from scratch, don’t forget that you can also grab a copy of the code from the repository which accompanies this article.

Create a new directory for the project. You don’t have to call it ginit, of course:

mkdir ginit
cd ginit

Create a new package.json file:

npm init -y

And edit it to look like so:

{
“name”: “ginit”,
“version”: “1.0.0”,
“description”: “‘git init’ on steroids”,
“main”: “index.js”,
“scripts”: {
“test”: “echo “Error: no test specified” && exit 1″
},
“keywords”: [
“Git”,
“CLI”
],
“author”: “<YOUR NAME>”,
“license”: “ISC”
}

Now install the dependencies:

npm install chalk clear clui figlet inquirer minimist configstore @octokit/rest @octokit/auth-basic lodash simple-git touch

Now create an index.js file in the same folder and require the following dependencies:

const chalk = require(‘chalk’);
const clear = require(‘clear’);
const figlet = require(‘figlet’);

Adding Some Helper Methods

We’re going to create a lib folder where we’ll split our helper code into modules:

files.js — basic file management
inquirer.js — command-line user interaction
github.js — access token management
repo.js — Git repository management.

Let’s start with lib/files.js. Here, we need to:

get the current directory (to get a default repo name)
check whether a directory exists (to determine whether the current folder is already a Git repository by looking for a folder named .git).

This sounds straightforward, but there are a couple of gotchas to take into consideration.

Firstly, you might be tempted to use the fs module’s realpathSync method to get the current directory:

path.basename(path.dirname(fs.realpathSync(__filename)));

This will work when we’re calling the application from the same directory (for example, using node index.js), but bear in mind that we’re going to be making our console application available globally. This means we’ll want the name of the directory we’re working in, not the directory where the application resides. For this purpose, it’s better to use process.cwd:

path.basename(process.cwd());

Secondly, the preferred method of checking whether a file or directory exists keeps changing. The current way is to use existsSync. This returns true if the path exists, false otherwise.

Finally, it’s worth noting that when you’re writing a command-line application, using the synchronous version of these sorts of methods is just fine.

Putting that all together, let’s create a utility package in lib/files.js:

const fs = require(‘fs’);
const path = require(‘path’);

module.exports = {
getCurrentDirectoryBase: () => {
return path.basename(process.cwd());
},

directoryExists: (filePath) => {
return fs.existsSync(filePath);
}
};

Go back to index.js and ensure you require the new file:

const files = require(‘./lib/files’);

With this in place, we can start developing the application.

Initializing the Node CLI

Now let’s implement the start-up phase of our console application.

In order to demonstrate some of the packages we’ve installed to enhance the console output, let’s clear the screen and then display a banner:

// index.js

clear();

console.log(
chalk.yellow(
figlet.textSync(‘Ginit’, { horizontalLayout: ‘full’ })
)
);

You can run the application using node index.js. The output from this is shown below.

The welcome banner on our Node CLI, created using Chalk and Figlet

Next up, let’s run a simple check to ensure that the current folder isn’t already a Git repository. That’s easy: we just check for the existence of a .git folder using the utility method we just created:

//index.js

if (files.directoryExists(‘.git’)) {
console.log(chalk.red(‘Already a Git repository!’));
process.exit();
}

Tip: notice we’re using the chalk module to show a red-colored message.

The post Build a JavaScript Command Line Interface (CLI) with Node.js appeared first on SitePoint.

Best Ways to Choose Outstanding Usernames for any Game

Original Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Designrfix/~3/QetmsafjBoQ/best-ways-to-choose-outstanding-usernames-for-any-game

Usernames are not a vital part of everyday life in the real world, but they can be used to build an entire image of you online. These tags are especially prevalent in the world of gaming, and they are considered a form of personal expression. Usernames create an illusion that stamps an impression with other […]

The post Best Ways to Choose Outstanding Usernames for any Game appeared first on designrfix.com.

The best laptops for graphic design in 2020

Original Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/CreativeBloq/~3/XUGlijVuFik/best-laptops-for-graphic-design

Welcome to our pick of the best laptops for graphic design that you can buy in 2020. On this page you'll find a range of laptops that are ideal for digital creatives, as well as key buying advice that will make purchasing the best laptop for graphic design for your needs as simple and easy as possible.

We've carefully curated this list of the best laptops for graphic design so that you can buy any one of the devices on this list safe in the knowledge that you're getting a brilliant laptop that can help you with your graphic design work – no matter what your specialism is, what your priorities are, or how much want to spend, we've got a recommendation for you here

Every device in our best laptops for graphic design buying guide has been hand-picked by us, so you can buy with confidence. Our dedicated tool will also pull in the best prices from the reputable retailers in your region, to help you make sure you don't get ripped off. 

With all the options out there, it's understandable if you feel unsure of where to start. If that's the case, scroll to the bottom of this article and you'll find handy pointers on what to look for when choosing a laptop for graphic design.

Get Adobe Creative Cloud now
What's the best laptop for graphic design right now?

Short on time? Here's a quick rundown of our top five right now.

Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (2019)Microsoft Surface Book 2Lenovo ThinkPad P1Dell Precision 3540MacBook Pro (2019)

As you can see, we think the best laptop for graphic design is the Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch. Apple has once again made a superb laptop for graphic design, and while it is expensive, it's one of the most powerful laptops money can buy right now – as well as one of the most stylishly designed as well.

However, we understand your budget might not stretch to that high end option. If so, then the Microsoft Surface Book 2 (at number 2) is a great alternative. Aside from being an excellent all-round laptop, it also doubles up as a ridiculously good tablet. And as a bonus, there are some great deals around on the versions that have less impressive specs.

Prefer working on a desktop PC or Mac? Then take a look at our pick of the best computers for graphic design. And if battery life has you worried, then you may want to check our list of the best power banks available.

Apple's range of MacBook Pro laptops have always been beloved by creatives and graphic designers – in fact, you'll find the (slightly) smaller 15-inch MacBook Pro is also included lower down in our list of best laptops for graphic design. However, towards the end of 2019, Apple really pulled it out of the bag when it released its brand-new 16-inch MacBook Pro.

This new model brings everything we've come to love from the MacBook Pro, including a gorgeous thin and light design coupled with powerful hardware, and somehow made it even better. You get a larger screen with a higher resolution, making it ideal for graphic design where image quality is of the utmost importance.

Apple has also updated the hardware within the new MacBook, so there's some seriously powerful components in there, including professional graphics cards from AMD – again, essential for graphic design. This is, without a doubt, the best MacBook for content creators, designers and other creative professionals. With amazing (and loud) speakers and a much, much better keyboard to boot.

Also read: MacBook Pro 16-inch review

Microsoft's Surface Book 2 is an incredible 2-in-1 laptop – even in its lowest spec option. If you're a designer who draws as well, this is the best laptop for graphic design you can get. It’s fast and immensely powerful, thanks to Intel’s quad-core Coffee Lake Core i7-8650 processor and 16GB of RAM. And it boasts an impressive battery life, plus a stunning, crisp display with superb colour accuracy. 

It’s also incredibly versatile: use it as a graphics, video or photo-editing workstation on the go, or as a sketchbook. Just detach the screen and use it as a tablet with the Surface Pen (which doesn't come included, our one gripe) or buy the innovative Surface Dial  and have an intuitive way of controlling your creative tools. Even better, flip the screen around, reattach it and you can use it to draw at a more natural angle. 

Too expensive? If you can cope with less screen real estate, the 13-inch Surface Book 2 is significantly cheaper, with a similar core specification and only slightly less impressive overall performance. For even cheaper, Microsoft's original 13-inch Surface Book remains a ridiculously accomplished laptop, with a smaller price tag. But if you've got the cash, the Surface Book 2 is an utterly fantastic laptop for graphic designers.

Also read: Microsoft Surface Book 2 review

Best laptop for graphic design: Lenovo ThinkPad P1

The Lenovo ThinkPad P1 is one of the most powerful Windows laptops around, and is aimed squarely at high-level content creators. It gives you the option of an Intel Xeon processor and a professional-grade Nvidia Quadro P2000 graphics, up to 64GB of memory and has all the ports you could need (two USB 3, two USB-C Thunderbolt 3, an HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort and SD card reader). This machine sports a slick design, with a slim chassis and a 4K display with 100% AdobeRGB coverage. The screen alone makes it a joy for creative work, but with all the performance it offers too, the ThinkPad P1 is a seriously good laptop for graphic designers.

Best laptops for graphic design: Dell Precision 3540

Dell’s new 15.6-inch Precision 3540 has a specification that can handle even the most advanced features in tools such as Photoshop and Lightroom. It has an Intel Core i5 quad-core processor with a 1080P display and an entry-level discrete AMD Radeon Pro WX 2100 2GB graphics card, which will help with 3D and anything that uses OpenCL. A 256GB fast M.2 SSD, 8GB of system memory and support for Thunderbolt 3 round off a package that’s priced incredibly well as an entry-level computer for visual design.

MacBook Pro 2019

Apple is on great form with its 15-inch MacBook Pro 2019. If you need sheer power – and have the cash – this is one of the best graphic design laptops you can get. The new Macbook Pro offers a substantial upgrade over previous versions. Aimed at creative professionals, this is the most powerful MacBook device ever created, with more RAM, a choice of six and eight-core Intel processors, and better discrete graphics cards. It also comes with blisteringly fast SSDs and a quieter keyboard. This makes this year's model an incredible device and easily one of the best laptops for graphic design in 2019.

However, it's not all good news. On the downside, there are just four USB-C ports and one headphone jack port, so you’ll need an adapter if you want to plug in an Ethernet cable or legacy hardware. And while the screen is absolutely gorgeous, 4K would have been nice. Nevertheless, the Apple MacBook (2019) gives you the CPU and memory horsepower to make mincemeat of large files and complex tasks – and it absolutely looks the part too. 

It's also worth noting that the 15-inch model, while still available to buy, has been replaced by the larger 16-inch model (which is our pick for the best laptop for graphic design).

However, this does mean you could find some great deals for the 15-inch model.

Best laptop for graphic design: Huawei MateBook X Pro

Huawei may not be the first name that springs to mind when considering the best laptops for graphic design, but with the Huawei MateBook X Pro, the Chinese company has proved it has what it takes to go toe-to-toe with the biggest names in the laptop market. This is a gorgeously designed laptop with a stunning screen (albeit with a rather odd aspect ratio), and it comes packed with cutting edge components that allows it to perform brilliantly, and a battery life that runs rings around many of its rivals. It has a design and performance that rivals the mighty MacBook Pro. Also, it runs Windows 10, so you can install all the digital art apps you're used to using.

 Read: Our sister site TechRadar’s Huawei MateBook X Pro review

Best laptops for graphic design: HP ZBook Studio G4 DreamColor

If you’re looking for all-out power, check out the rip-roaring HP ZBook Studio G4. The top-end model isn’t cheap, but it packs incredible specs including a 15.6-inch 4K DreamColor display that can easily be colour calibrated, a blazing-fast Core Intel Xeon CPU, 32GB RAM, a 512GB SSD and NVIDIA Quadro M1200 dedicated graphics with 4GB VRAM. If you like to connect up your favourite peripherals and monitors, then there’s also a healthy range of ports – it features a Gigabit Ethernet port, HDMI port, a legacy VGA connector, SD card reader, one USB 3.0 port, and two USB Type-C (Thunderbolt 3) ports. Oh, and let's not forget the Bang & Olufsen speakers in case you want to crank up the tunes while you work. 

At just over 2kg (4.6lbs), it won’t break your back carrying it around, and it’s pretty thin at 18mm. If you're worried about security, then you'll be glad of the built-in fingerprint reader and the optional (and extremely fast) HP Z Turbo NVMe PCIe SED (self-encrypting drive) SSDs.

Best laptops for graphic design: Dell XPS 15

The Dell XPS 15 is a truly stunning laptop – and now that the 2017 version has been replaced by the Dell XPS 15 (2018), it's much more affordable, too. For your money, you get the virtually borderless InfinityEdge display at Full HD resolution, a Core i5 CPU, 8GB RAM and a 1TB HD and 32GB SSD. Spec it up a little (or a lot, actually) and you can have a 4K display with multi-touch, turning it – with the help of the Dell stylus – into a portable sketchbook. 15.6-inches of UHD definition (3,840 x 2,160) equals a lot of pixels, making for some incredibly sharp images. 

Depending on the complexity of the projects you'll be working on, you can pump the Intel HD Graphics 630 GPU up to an impressive Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050. We can't imagine what you could possibly be designing that the latter wouldn't be able to handle. If you don’t need a 15-incher, look to the XPS 13, which is perhaps the perfect blend of power and portability.

Best laptops for graphic design: Huawei MateBook 13

If you aren’t willing or able to fork out the high sums demanded by the most high-end laptops, but you don’t want to compromise on performance, the Huawei MateBook 13 is made for you. Huawei has sensibly built a mid-range MacBook clone that delivers the goods when it comes to processing, so is perfect for students and anyone on a budget. That means ultra-responsive Photoshop performance that can be used for any demanding graphics task you throw at it. With a bright 1440p screen, portable design and Nvidia graphics, it’s not much of a compromise in other areas either. 

Best laptops for graphic design: Apple MacBook Air (2018)

After a much-needed refresh, the MacBook Air (2019) has had a few choice updates that make it a real winner for graphic design work. Although it’s not quite the powerhouse the MacBook Pro is (or some high-end Windows laptops), it now has a bright Retina display, which is a great upgrade over the dated screen in the old Air and better for working with graphic design software. The processor is much faster and will cope with Photoshop, Illustrator, and so on with ease. But Apple has sensibly ensured the Air is as portable as ever, with a seriously lightweight design that makes it a great choice for graphics work on the go.

The 2019 model of the MacBook Air doesn't bring a huge amount of upgrades over the 2018 model, but if you've been eyeing up the MacBook Air for a while now, getting the latest version means you've got a bit more future-proofing built-in.

Best laptops for graphic design: HP ZBook X2

Created specifically with creatives in mind, the HP ZBook X2 packs a serious amount of power, and with it a pretty hefty price tag. But if money is no issue and you're contemplating abandoning a desktop or laptop as a primary creative tool, the HP ZBook X2 deserves a look. It boasts some seriously impressive designer-focused specs, including a stunning 10-bit, 100% Adobe RGB, 4K multi-touch UHD dreamcolour display and extra ports to keep you well connected. 

It also comes pre-installed with Adobe's Creative Cloud desktop application for easy access, and sports a fully detachable Bluetooth keyboard so you can switch from laptop to tablet whenever inspiration strikes. That's all backed up with the power of an Intel Core i7 processor, 32GB RAM – double that of its Microsoft rival – and NVIDIA Quadro graphics. 

However, power requires more juice, so battery life on the ZBook2 is shorter than some of the other laptops featured in this list. It's also heavier than some of its competition, which isn't ideal when you're on the go. That said, while the X2 doesn't come cheap, it's still a serious option for designers looking to liberate themselves from a desktop without compromising on apps and performance. 

Best laptops for graphic design: Microsoft Surface Laptop 2

The Surface Laptop 2 is Microsoft's follow up to its popular original laptop, and once again the company has created a very good laptop for graphic design students. Microsoft has boosted the hardware of the Surface Laptop 2, making it an even better proposition for people looking for the best laptop for graphic design for their needs. As with its predecessor, even the lowest-end model is powerful enough to run Photoshop and Illustrator on a daily basis, and the fact you can use the optional Surface Pen to draw directly on screen makes it even more appealing. It no longer comes with Windows 10 S Mode as default either, instead you get the full Windows 10 experience, which means you can install Creative Cloud apps and other programs easily.

Read:  Our sister site TechRadar’s Surface Laptop 2 review

best laptops for graphic design: LG Gram 17"

The LG Gram 17 is a high-spec silver laptop built from a strong and light alloy. 17-inch laptops that are actually capable of serious design work are usually too big, heavy and bulky to be considered portable – but LG has well and truly bucked this trend with this machine. It weighs an impressive 1.34kg, which is comparable to many 13-inch models, and it measures just 1.7cm at its thinnest point, again impressive for a 17-inch laptop. Expect all the performance you’ll need for heavy duty Photoshop edits and effects, all the while looking sumptuous on its 2560×1600 WXGA IPS screen that has 99% sRGB colour coverage. At time of publish, it wasn't yet available in the UK. 

Read more: LG Gram 17 review

Laptops for graphic design: What to look for

So how do you pick the best laptop for your graphic design work? Clearly you'll be guided by what you can afford, which is why we have the best options for all budgets here. But there are a few other things to consider too. 

One is power versus portability: you need something that’s thin and light enough to throw in your backpack, but also powerful enough to run your suite of creative tools. You also need to decide whether macOS or Windows is right for you. The former used to be the staple of creative professionals, but it really doesn’t matter what platform you use these days. 

Whatever your preferences, each of the machines here will give you all the power and performance you need to hit the ground running with your latest, greatest project. 

Related articles:

The best 4K monitors for designers and artistsBest laptops for PhotoshopThe best laptop cooling pads

3 Lessons UX Designers Can Take From Netflix

Original Source: https://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2020/02/3-lessons-ux-designers-can-take-from-netflix/

If we look at this from a design perspective, there’s definitely something about the way the user experiences are designed that makes them more attractive than other movie or TV viewing options. Especially Netflix.

Today, I want to put the spotlight on Netflix and give you 3 lessons you can take away from the platform’s design and features.

1. Make Onboarding Painless

Obviously, Netflix is a household name, so it doesn’t need to mince words on its website.

While you won’t be able to get away with a navigation-less website, what you can do to emulate the Netflix UX is to deliver just as brief and benefits-driven of a message above-the-fold.

Unlimited movies, TV shows, and more. Watch anywhere. Cancel anytime.

It perfectly sums up what users get while also taking the risk and fear out of it with “Cancel anytime.” Can you do the same? Totally.

While you’re at it, build a shortcut to the conversion point (e.g. newsletter subscription, SaaS purchase, schedule an appointment, etc.) in the same banner. Most of your visitors will need some time to educate themselves, but this will at least shorten the signup process for those who are ready to take action.

When that happens, make sure your conversion funnel is streamlined, too.

In the first step of Netflix’s signup process, it lets customers know how many steps there are while reiterating the benefits. The interface is distraction-free and easy to follow.

Next, users see plan options. Again, the UI is simple and easy to follow. The table comparing the features and value of each plan is a nice touch, too.

The final step is just as minimally designed. With a clean and clear interface, and a benefits-driven message, there’s no reason a user should have any problems getting through this process nor should they have any doubts along the way.

2. Use Your Data to Create a More Personal UX

Every year, it seems like we have a new law that sends web designers and business owners scrambling to strengthen their website privacy and security policies. And while it might feel like we’re losing control over all that big data we’ve gained access to in recent years, that’s not really the case.

What’s happening is that consumers want businesses to more carefully protect their data. Plain and simple.

There’s nothing in these laws that’s telling us to stop collecting user data. If that happened, I think consumers would be just as outraged. Personalization is one of those things consumers actually look for in the user experience — and the better a website can deliver on it, the more loyal they’ll be as customers.

As far as being responsible with user data, that’s up to you and your clients to manage. As for using the data you’re given, Netflix has shown us a number of ways to use only the most necessary data points to create a very personal experience.

First, you need to start collecting data that’ll help you refine the experience. Netflix empowers customers to help with this here:

With each movie or show’s page, users can:

Add it to their personal viewing list;
Rate it with a thumbs up or thumbs down.

Netflix uses this information to provide helpful recommendations throughout the platform.

The first spot it does this is here:

When customers are rooting around for a new movie or show to watch, this percentage should give them a clue as to how much they’ll like or dislike it. This, in turn, encourages them to rate more programs so that Netflix’s ranking algorithm can become more attuned to their preferences.

The second spot Netflix provides personalized recommendations is the main page. It actually uses this page in a couple of ways to deliver custom suggestions to users.

The first is with “Because You Watched” categories:

If a user spends enough time with a particular product, service, or content on your site, there’s a good chance they’ll like similar ones. So, this is a great way to build those suggestions into the UX.

The other way Netflix uses this page to deliver a personalized experience is through its categories. Note the categories I was shown above:

Totally Awesome 80’s;
Violent Asian Action;
True Bromance.

I have a history of watching movies and shows in these highly specific categories, so it’s pretty awesome to see these aggregated lists ready to go for me. If you can deliver a tailor-made list of recommendations, you’ll find it much easier to keep customers engaged with your product.

3. A/B Test All New Features

I’ve been a Netflix customer since 2007, so I’ve seen it go through a ton of changes over the years. WebDesigner Depot has, too:

From branding to layouts, and pricing to features, Netflix always seems to be switching things up. But here’s the thing: Netflix always implements changes that are meant to enhance the user experience. And when they don’t? It simply rolls the platform back to the way its customers preferred it.

One of the first times I remember this happening was with Max, Netflix’s talking bot:

This wasn’t a feature that was shoved onto users. It would sit in its dedicated space, waiting to be interacted with. Max would then welcome you back and ask what you’re in the mood to watch. You could pick a genre or you could let the bot provide recommendations based on how you rate other movies.

In all honesty, I was on the fence about Max. It was entertaining and I loved finding hidden gems through it. However, there were too many nights where I’d use Max hoping to find the perfect movie… only to abandon it and find something on my own.

That’s why it was no surprise when Max quietly slipped away. I have a feeling other users were just as ambivalent about it as I was.

There are a number of lessons, UX or otherwise, you can take away from this:

Be careful of trying the latest AI fads, they’re just too costly to invest in without hard data that proves that’s what your users want;
Give a new feature enough time to build up steam and provide you with reliable metrics — I remember Max being available for about six months, that’s more than enough time to gather user feedback and decide if a feature is worth keeping or not;
Personalization is great, but not necessarily if it’s at the expense of your customers’ time, sometimes the simpler feature is better.

Max isn’t the only example of Netflix playing around with its features. Do any of you recognize this?

This appears when the opening credits and theme song play at the start of a TV show. There’s really not a lot of value in sitting through this every time, and I’m willing to bet that Netflix saw that most of its users were manually fast-forwarding through them when it decided to try out this feature.

Here’s another recent feature that I think has some staying power:

While streaming services are responsible for the epidemic of binge-watching, it’s not necessarily in their best interest to allow customers to do so. Think of this “Are you still watching?” wake-up call as a form of ethical design.

This feature has been around for over a year, and it’s still going strong.

Bottom line? It’s really important to research your users when you’re in the process of building a website. However, there’s nothing more valuable than real user input from a live website.

Whether you plan to roll out a new feature or simply want to test the validity of one that exists, don’t run on assumptions. Use the new data coming in every day to further improve your design and features.

Invaluable Lessons UX Designers Can Take from Netflix

Although Netflix’s market share is slowly being chipped away at by the competition, it continues to reign supreme when it comes to streaming video services. I don’t see that changing anytime in the future either, considering how how long it’s demonstrated its willingness to innovate alongside evolving consumer needs.

And that’s really the key point I want to make in this post. While I could’ve pointed out its dramatic color palette or use of a responsive layout, we already are familiar with these concepts. The most important UX lessons we should be taking away from Netflix are the ones here.

Source

p img {display:inline-block; margin-right:10px;}
.alignleft {float:left;}
p.showcase {clear:both;}
body#browserfriendly p, body#podcast p, div#emailbody p{margin:0;}

Art terms: The ultimate artist's glossary

Original Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/CreativeBloq/~3/w2Cbds3wNUo/art-terms

Art terms are a fundamental part of creating art because they summarise complicated concepts succinctly. And given that art terms are used by course instructors and educational books across the board, it’s a good idea to get yourself familiar with them if you want to further your skills.

To help you learn the lingo, we’ve compiled this handy art terms glossary which makes important concepts easy to understand. These expressions are designed to be of practical assistance to creators, so if you feel like you’ve plateaued or you need to brush up on the basics of drawing and painting, there’s a good chance they can help you out of a creative rut. For more guidance, see our how to draw tutorials.

For mind boggling art with a name that you might need to look up, check out our guide to the best trompe l'oeil from around the globe. And if you want to put your newly learned knowledge to the test, see our best art books.

For now though, here's our A-Z guide to the most important art terms.

Abrasion

A process whereby paint is removed to reveal layers beneath the surface. Usually done via friction or scratches. Can be accidental or deliberate.

Accelerated perspective

A deliberate exaggeration of perspective. It is often used to make a shallow surface appear deeper than it actually is.

Acrylic paint

A type of paint where the pigment is suspended in an acrylic polymer emulsion. Acrylics are a popular medium with artists thanks to their fast drying time, bold colours and flexibility when mixed with water. Get the most out of them with our acrylic painting tips.

Ambient light

Light that is already present in a scene. This can include either natural or artificial light.

Axis lines

A straight line, either implied of visible, that runs through an object in its dominant direction. An axis helps to give structure to an object or composition.

Background

An area of a painting that appears to be furthest from the viewer. Objects in the middle ground and foreground appear closer, as if they are placed on top.

Balance

The arrangement of elements in a piece of art that creates a sense of visual equilibrium.

Binder

A paint substance which holds together the pigment and ensures that it sticks to surfaces. A binder also gives the paint a uniform consistency.

Blending

Blending is a painting technique where the transition between colours and shades appears smooth or gradual.

Blocking in

Painting process where the artist roughly establishes the composition and structure of the subject. It’s a popular technique with portrait artists.

Body colour

An opaque paint that can completely obliterate an underlying colour.

Brushwork

The way in which an artist applies paint to a support with a brush. Used to refer to the characteristics of the artist in question.

Canvas

A closely woven cloth that acts as a support for paintings. Get started with them with our beginner's guide to canvas painting.

Chiaroscuro

From the Italian for ‘light-dark’. Used to refer to a strong contrast between light and dark in drawings and paintings. Often used to create a sense of volume. See our guide to using chiaroscuro effectively.

Cityscape

An image where urban scenery and buildings are the main focus.

Closed composition

A piece of art where everything sits comfortably inside the borders of the image. 

Collage

From the French verb coller, meaning ‘to glue’. Used to refer to the technique and resulting piece of art where materials are fixed to a supporting surface with glue or another substance. Here’s what to consider when creating a collage.

Colour

The perceived hue of an object or substance. Also used to refer to a dye, pigment, or paint that imparts a hue. Become a master of colours work with our guide to colour theory.

Colour wheel

A circular diagram of the spectrum of colours. Useful for artists because it shows how the relationships between primary, secondary and tertiary colours.

Combine

A painting that works various objects into the surface material.

Complementary colours

A pair of colours which cancel each other out when mixed together. They are situated opposite one another on the colour wheel.

Composition

The arrangement of visual elements as distinct from the subject in a piece of art. It means ‘putting together’ and can be used in visual arts as well as music, writing and photography.

Contour

From the French for ‘outline’, this refers to the technique where an artist draws a line that defines a form or edge. As its word origin suggests, it creates an outline of the subject.

Convergence

Refers to linear perspective in a drawing or painting. It’s the phenomena whereby all parallel lines converge together as they run along to a point at a person’s eye level.

Cross-hatching

A mark-making process where lines that run in different directions are layered on top of each other to provide the illusion of shade.

Depth

The apparent distance from the foreground to background, or near to far, in a work of art.

Diptych

A piece of art, usually a painting, made on two panels that are traditionally attached by a hinge.

Doodle

A loose, fun drawing that often has little regard for accuracy. Usually completed while the artist’s attention is elsewhere. Check out some of our favourite examples of doodle art.

Elevation

A drawing of the front, side and rear of a structure. Usually used in architecture and scale drawings.

Figure drawing

The depiction of the human body in art. Master how to draw the human body with this guide to figure drawing.

Focal point

The area of a piece of art that is designed to draw the viewer’s attention.

Foreground

Visual elements in a drawing or painting that are positioned nearest to the viewer in terms of depth. These elements appear on top of the middle ground and background.

Foreshortening

A technique used in perspective drawing to create the illusion that an object, usually parts of the human body, recede strongly into the distance or background.

Frottage

A technique where textures are obtained by rubbing pencils, chalk or charcoal over a granular or relieflike surface.

Geometric

A piece of art made out of geometric shapes.

Gesture

A quick drawing that captures the most basic elements of the subject.

Gouache

A water-soluble paint that appears opaque on the support. Dries quickly and can be reactivated when mixed with water. This guide teaches you how to paint with gouache.

Hardboard

A uniform and stable surface for painting. It doesn’t have a grain which makes it easier to prime.

Hard-edge

A painting technique where the transitions between colours are abrupt. The opposite of blending.

Horizon line

A horizontal line that runs across a page or canvas that represents the viewer’s eye-level, or to represent where the sky meets the ground.

Hue

The actual colour of something. Often referred to as a colour, but hue is more technically correct.

Illusion

When a piece of art tricks the eye into perceiving a particular effect. For some amazing examples, check out our collection of the best trompe l’oeil art.

Impasto

A painting technique where paints are laid down on the support in very thick layers. Often, brush marks or palette strokes are still visible.

Landscape

A piece of art that focuses on natural scenery such as mountains, forests and coasts.

Line drawing

A fundamental type of mark making made up of a stroke of a pencil, pen or a brush. Consists of straight or curved lines. Used to represent shape and form.

Linear perspective

A technique where the illusion of depth is created on a flat surface.

Medium

The materials that are used to create a piece of art.

Middle ground

The central elements of a painting in terms of depth. Sandwiched between the foreground and background.

Mixed media

A piece of art made up of multiple mediums.

Monochrome

A painting created using only one colour or hue.

Negative space

The empty space between objects and structures in a piece of art. Can be used by artists to more accurately define the form of the subject. See how these brilliant examples of negative space make an impact.

Oil paint

A paint where the pigment is held in a drying oil binder. Oil paint is usually slow to dry. See our oil painting techniques.

Paint

Coloured substance which is spread over a support with tools including a brush and palette. Made up of pigment and binder. Get the most out of paints by choosing the right brush.

Palette

A surface on which an artist mixes colours.

Palette knife

A blunt plastic or metal blade which is used to mix colours and spread them on a support. 

Pastel

Solid art medium in the shape of a stick. Made up of pure powdered pigments and binder. Supplied in soft, pan and hard varieties. Artists can choose from oil and water-soluble pastels. This guide shows you how to get started with pastel art.

Perspective

A technique for creating the illusion of three dimensions on a two dimensional surface. A crucial method to master for drawing realistic pictures. Start learning perspective basics with this guide to one point perspective.

Pigment 

The colouring component of art mediums such as paint and pastels, as opposed to the binding agent.

Plane

A flat surface within a painting, picture or sculpture. Also used to refer to the flat surface on which a picture is created.

Portrait

A piece of art where the facial features of the subject are the focus. Also used to refer to a vertical orientation, as opposed to a landscape picture. These simple steps show you how to draw a face.

Pose

The position of the subject in a piece of art. Often in reference to the stance of a human model.

Profile

A side view of a subject, usually the human head.

Proportion

The harmonious relationship of parts to each other or to the whole.

Representation

The visual interpretation of a subject.

Scale

The ratio between the size of the subject and its artistic representation.

Sfumato

From the Italian for ‘smoke’. A painting technique that softens the transition between two colours and tones in such a way that they appear to melt into one another.

Shade

In colour theory, shade is a pure colour with black added (and not white or grey).

Sketch

A rough or unfinished drawing or painting of a subject. Usually completed to aid the creation of a more thorough study. Make your mark with these sketching tips.

Soft edge

When the boundaries of a subject in a painting appear to fade into the background. The opposite of a hard edge.

Still life

An artistic study, either a drawing or painting, of either natural or man-made objects, or both. This guide shows you how to paint expressive still life images.

Stylised

The representation of a subject that conforms to the rules of a certain style, as opposed to a natural depiction.

Subject

The primary focus of a piece of art, such as a building, human or object.

Tempera

A paint in which the pigment is held in a water-soluble binder. Also used to refer to a painting completed in this medium.

Tint

When white is introduced to a colour to make it appear brighter. The opposite of shade.

Tone

The intensity and strength of colours in a piece of art.

Triptych

A painting completed on three separate panels, or three paintings on different supports that are thematically linked.

Value

The relative lightness or darkness of colour. The highest value will be white, and the lowest value will be black.

Vantage point

The position of the viewer in relation to the subject they are representing.

Vanishing point

A point of disappearance in perspective drawings. At this point, receding parallel lines appear to converge.

Volume

The representation of mass in a piece of art.

Watercolour

Art medium where the pigment is held in a water-soluble solution. Also used to refer to pictures completed with these substances. See our piece on watercolour techniques.

Read more:

The best art easelsThe best Baby Yoda memes, rankedHow to clean paintbrushes: The ultimate guide

5 Ways Website Design Can Affect SEO

Original Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Designrfix/~3/eudGeAq6ia0/5-ways-website-design-can-affect-seo

Search Engine Optimization campaigns are essential to make a business more successful. Even though you may have a great idea to attract more people through different marketing strategies, your website’s design might be standing in the way. Having a great design might look attractive, but you need to rank higher to leave a long-lasting impression. […]

The post 5 Ways Website Design Can Affect SEO appeared first on designrfix.com.