September 12, 2008

Creative

As you will all see now, I have updated my website slightly It's far from perfect, but it will do for now.
At some point I hope I can have the header image rotate through other images. That would be cool.
Content and layout stayed pretty much the same. Until I find some really flashy gadgets to have 3D animations for cycling through links etc, i think this will be just fine.

More creative news: I am in the process of making a photo book of some of my images. Sounds difficult? Well, actually it's not.
There are many online providers that allow you to download a software package for generating your personal photo book.
Some providers are better than others. At the moment I am working on a book using Blurb . The package is actually very extensive, and I suspect quality is good from what I saw online. Price isn't bad at all, but varies depending on what you want.
However, I will use Blurb purely for proof printing. Because I found another provider called Asuka . These guys are real pro's! They allow you to work in either sRGB or Adobe RGB. They work very simple, as they give you a basic template for Photoshop, and that's it. Creativity is up to you. This also has a drawback, e.g. when you don't HAVE creativity... In this case, Blurb is a better option because the amount of templates is quite staggering. There is some flexibility for creativity in Blurb if you want to use your own templates, but it involves tricking the software package. Very simple and low risk, but maybe not the neatest solution...
Once I finished my Blurb book to satisfaction, I will create one using Asuka. Now Asuka is actually for professionals. They expect you to work as a professional photographer and ask for proof. Well, i don't have any, but I managed to convince them I am, so they allowed me to register (yep, only "pro's" can register successful with these guys). However, I have to say, from their services so far, I am well impressed! After successful registration, I got discount vouchers for my first books. Now, you should know that you will be needing these vouchers as their prices are rather steep, and I mean, inflation stimulating steep! After 50% discount, a 40 page book will still cost as much as 45-50 GBP depending on the finishing. Now the finishing is amazing. Pages can be laminated or varnished. Although the laminated pages look impressive, they also feel a bit tacky. It's like the laminate provides protection in case your book is sexually arousing if you know what I mean...

Anyway, it will be a slow process at the moment, and I will keep you posted on progress...