May the 4th be with you!

By TomsWorld642

Age of Ultron was awesome

Just went to see Age of Ultron with the missus and loved it. I really loved the part where the SPOILER went and SPOILER and then everybody SPOILER.

Even our cat Turnip was in an Avengers mood when she took possession of Mjolnir while we were cleaning.

Thor eat your heart out.

5 quick and easy V-Day ideas

Anyone can buy a rose, or get a box of chocolates but if you really want to surprise your lady this Valentines then check out my list of quick and easy V-Day ideas!

1.Cards

Buying a card can be a nice idea to show people you're thinking about them but why not go the extra mile and make your own? You could draw a cute or silly picture on the front write something sweet inside and bam. She will be impressed that you went the extra mile and made something from scratch.

2.Breakfast in bed

A tried and true classic for a reason. Just get up before your lady and head to the kitchen to whip something up. Fry some bacon, scramble some eggs, or even just make a bowl of cereal. Remember, it's the thought that counts!
(Bonus points if you can keep the kitchen quiet so she doesn't realize
until you wake her)

3.Write something

Is she really into books? Write her a quick story! If you're not the creative type then do something simple like summarize your first date. Any woman would love the idea of seeing the story from your perspective. Throw in what you were thinking, were you super shy? Did she make you nervous? Do
you still remember what she wore? Above all be personal!

4.Draw something

If you're the artistic type then try to draw her something. A nice valentines themed cartoon or something you can add a funny or cute subtitle to. If your skills fall more into the photo editing category then find a photo you both like and do a little edit. Maybe make the photo aged to look
like you were in the fifties. Be creative!

5.Spa night

Probably the best you can do for a girl who likes to stay home is to plan a spa night. Find her favourite girly movie, buy some cheap face masks and have fun with it! You can even use the masks with her for an extra laugh. Paint her toenails (even if you're horrible at it) and complain constantly about the movie that deep down you know you like.

In the end all you really need to do is try. People love gifts but people love gifts more when they`re unique or you`ve put a bit of thought into them!

3 Art movements that changed the face of art (for better or worst)

Art has always been a part of my life. From childhood doodles, to graphic design as an adult, but it wasn't until I went to college and learned a bit more that I found out there a few moments in history that would have a huge impact on art as we know it. Here are my top three moments that changed the face of art for better and sometimes worst.
IMPORTANT! Before reading just know that some links may be a little NSFW so click at your own risk.

1.The fall of Greece and the rise of Rome.

Anyone who is a fan of ancient art will always have a soft spot for Greece. Long before that innkeeper turned away that poor Jewish man and his very pregnant wife Greece was the hot spot for all things artistic. While other people were making clay pots, and finding out that red and blue makes purple, Greece had moved on to contrapposto and were making amazing works of art. Greek artists were the finest in the land and created pieces so beautiful that to this day we have not seen their like. Unfortunately this came at a price because although their artists were without match, their military wasn't so skilled.
Rome, who had been growing for some time, took over Greece and many of the knowledge and pieces created by their people was lost. Some Roman artists attempted to replicate Greek artwork but were less than successful. Unfortunately, when copying didn't work out for them they resorted to theft like with The Arch of Constantine.
Because of both the loss of all that skill and the audacity of pieces like The Arch of Constantine, the fall of Greece is the first entry on my list.

2.Duchamp and his ready mades.

Modern art really began to get a foothold in the early 20th century and it started spitting out some very creative people. It seemed that no one could get enough of art and everyone started creating art in order to express themselves. Anyone from the starting painter the aged master could create art and people would accept and share it.
It was at this point that Marcel Duchamp came along and asked everyone "What is art?" If your simple paint by numbers and my great masterpiece are both considered art then where does it end? This is when Duchamp had an idea and submitted a piece entitled Fountain. The piece was a simple urinal placed on a pedestal with the signature "R. Mutt." This piece flipped the art world on it's head! No one believed that this was truly art nor did they want to accept it but by their own definition they had to. People began to think of what truly constituted art and other people began to follow in Duchamp's footsteps and submitted their own "readymades."
Duchamp's questioning what was art led to a great deal of growth in the artistic community forcing it to branch out and embrace new forms of art. Unfortunately many took the wrong idea from this and began submitting anything they cobbled together proclaiming it to be art. This caused many people to lose faith in art and wound up hurting the entire community since less people would take art seriously.
The profound effect Duchamp's art had on the world's perception of art as well as the negative effect readymades had is why it deserves mentioning on this list.

3.Surrealism

Now I know by this point you probably think that I don't really like art. But it isn't all bad, let me tell you about my favourite artistic movement… Surrealism!
Surrealism was a type of art in which the artist bizarre and sometimes unnerving pieces that looked as realistic as possible. The end results usually contained everyday items arranged in creative and impossible ways.
Surrealism began in the 1920s out the dadaist movement althought it really caught on in the late thirties and began showcasing the talents of various artists including my personal favourite, Salvador Dali. One of the most iconic images of the surrealist movement was Dali's Persistence of Memory which consisted of an odd outdoor scene filled with melting pocket watches. Their goal was to blur the lines of dreams and reality and create art that flowed from the subconscious instead of the conscious mind. Surrealists pushed the limits of art and created new and unsettling images that opened up new ways of thinking and forever changed the face of art.

Now that you're done

Do you agree with my top three? What are some other times that you think should have made the list? Either way I hope you found this entertaining and if I'm lucky maybe you even learned something! Until next time!

Photoshop versus Illustrator: My view on the great debate.

Photoshop and Illustrator are both amazing programs that are both useful in the design world today. I know this now, but when I was younger it wasn't always the case...

I had always loved photoshop. To me, photoshop was the natural next step from MS Paint which I had been obsessed with from the moment I laid eyes on it. (If I had a nickel for every little pixelated Pikachu picture I made on there…) Then when I went to college and found out about design I dropped everything. "Wait, you can get paid to use photoshop? Where do I sign!" So for me photoshop had a bit of a running start in the competition between the two.

I've had friends in both camps too. I've known some diehard photoshopers, and some Illustrators who avoid it like the plague, but it wasn't until recently (and I'm talking months if not weeks) that I'm shedding my prejudices and using them both equally.

Do you want to change the lighting on a photo? Use photoshop. Do you want to draw a logo? Hop on illustrator. Need to change the colours on that image? Boot up photoshop. Retracing that image? Illustrator away!

Sure there's a bit of overlap where you can use your favourite, or other times where one could do the job better but you use the other since you're more comfortable, but these are the exceptions, not the norm.

In the end you should be open to using many programs, not stoically sticking to just one.
Share the love man!

Scott M
Graphic Designer
I majored in adobe products! :)

Ninefold Designs

Hey everyone,
My website is actually up and running.
There's still some bits and pieces that need to be changed around but it's there!
Come check out at the following link.

(Old link is no longer active)

In other news, I have my stage and will be working at that soon.
It's a good day to be me.

Ninefold Designs

Ninefold designs is almost up and running.
The website is coming together, the logos and general feel for it are all in order. The funny part was that the hardest part was to come up with a name for it. I'm sure I'll take that back once I get heavy in to the css.
Time to go back to coding!