Best of the Web – November 2009

This month we have some very cool content for all our loyal readers. A little bit of everything this month, including some amazing tutorials on typography as well as Photo Manipulation. Then for the freebies we have some nice wallpapers, as well as some high quality textures. And finally some articles including a contest for Mozilla Firefox, and a look at the latest releases from DepthCore and SlashTHREE. So lets get into this months roundup.

Tutorial Wrap

• 

  Create Frozen Liquid Effects

  Our first tutorial is a very cool one, The author shows us how to take a simple picture of a man and using various techniques we can turn him into ice. On top of that the author also stresses the importance of experimenting because that is what led him to create this cool technique. This is a must try for everyone because the result looks very clean and sleek, and bring a very nice vibe to your art that you can
  incorporate in any piece.

  Visit Tutorial

• 

  Creating Mile High Typographic Art

  This is a very original typographic technique the final design looks very clean. A small bit of Illustrator is used and the majority is Photoshop, this gets you a very cool typographic technique that you can then mix with other elements like stocks to turn it into a photo-manipulation illustration. This is another tutorial that everyone should check out because of the
  originality of the technique and final result.

  Visit Tutorial

• 

  Star Lighting Tutorial

  Here is a tutorial that is a bit easier than the first two, so a lot more people can try this one out. The result is vibrant and
  colorful and the author explains proper lighting as well as using some simple filters to get you a specific effect. The result
  isn’t dull at all and that’s why you guys should check this one out too, apply these lighting techniques to your own work and it should look a lot better.

  Visit Tutorial

• 

  Creating a Pumpkin

  This tutorial is for the icon designers, the author shows us how to create a realistic pumpkin that can also double as an icon if you like it. The basis of the pumpkin is made with layer styles, so you can check it out if you would like to make one. The end result is very realistic so it is
  definitely a informative tutorial.

  Visit Tutorial

• 

  Master Special Finishes

  This is another great tutorial, the author emphasizes the importance of finishing touches that will bring out your illustration. Simple techniques including 2D shapes can brighten your illustration, and certain colors can bring out the focal point of your design. So read this tutorial and try to master the final touches so you can apply it to all your art from now on.

  Visit Tutorial

• 

  Creating a Typographic Poster

  This is our second typographic tutorial of the month, even though this one
  isn’t as original as the first it is still a solid tutorial that most people should read. This is a video tutorial which is even better because you can see exactly what is being done, the author used textures and stocks and
  mixes them on top of some typography to create a very nice poster.

  Visit Tutorial

(FREE!) Download Picks

• 

  Noir Grunge Texture

  The first freebie we are featuring is a great pack of textures. They are a pack of 5 high quality Noir grunge textures, they will give your art a nice dark dirty feel. So make sure to download them and see if you can work them into any of your art.

  Visit Download Site

• 

  Fresh Free Fonts

  Here we have a great set of free fonts, the set has 4 very cool and modern fonts. Not much else to say but check it out, and that these are some very nice looking fonts that every designer should have in their collection.

  Visit Download Site

• 

  Paint Stroke Brushes

  Next freebie is a very cool brush pack. This brush pack contains 12 high quality paint stroke brushes. This is another good
  download because you can always tweak them and apply them to your art if you are going for a painted feel to your art.

  Visit Download Site

• 

  Grunge Pattern Texture

  Here is a second set of textures for your downloading. This is another grunge texture but this one is much different from the first one, all of these textures have very cool patterns on them, from checkered to diamond. This is another solid download, a set of great high quality textures.

  Visit Download Site

• 

  Bastien Allard Wallpaper

  Our last freebie of the month is a very clean looking wallpaper made by Bastien Allard for Abduzeedo, like always the wallpaper comes in various sizes including the iphone resolution. So if you are into cool black&white wallpapers then check this out and if you like it use it as your background.

  Visit Download Site

Article Wrap

• 

  Depth Cores Freestyle IV

  Our first article isn’t really an article but more on the inspirational side, Depthcore one of the best design communities has recently released their latest pack of art. This packs theme was Freestyle so all the art is random, there is a lot of inspiration to be had in this pack so everyone should skim through all of these great illustrations.

  Visit Article

• 

  SlashTHREE’s Steam Punk

  We couldn’t feature Depthcore but not SlashTHREE especially if they have also released a pack this month. This pack had a very interesting theme which was Steam Punk, there is a lot of incredible looking art that is also original. On top of that there is also an interview with a featured artist, so everyone should check this pack out as well as all their others.

  Visit Article

• 

  Mozilla Poster Challenge

  Everyone’s favorite internet browser has just turned 5 years old. And to celebrate Firefox is calling out all the designers to create a poster
  commemorating their 5 year anniversary. Everyone should check this out and enter because there is some good exposure to be had.

  extremely helpful and should not be forgotten when designing. So check it out and make sure you know about them before you try and create some more art.

  Visit Article

• 

  51 Inspirational Movie Posters

  Vintage movie posters were made without Photoshop so they have a much different feel to them than the current ones we all see. So if you want a look at some retro posters then this is your post, 51 very cool posters are featured including Star Wars,
  Indiana Jones, and a bunch of other favorites.

  Visit Article

• 

  Facebook Marketing For Designers

  Getting your work out on social networks is a great idea since there are millions of prospected viewers of your art.
  That’s why this is such a good article, there are endless possibilities with websites like MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter. So check it out and learn how to
  properly market yourself on Facebook.

  Visit Article

• 

  The Typical Freelancers Life

  If you are a designer who wants to become a freelancer but doesn’t know what it involves on a daily basis then you should check this article out. The author gives us a run down of a typical day in the life of a freelance designer.

  Visit Article