UI Skin test for LOLapps

So this is a bit of a diversion from the normal types of art I pursue (I'm keeping my options open for full-time work as you can probably imagine), but about a week ago I finished a skin test for a user interface for LOLapps (an up and coming app/game developer for facebook). I think it turned out very well. They gave me the test after speaking for a few minutes on the phone saying it would take two hours. Well if I did user interfaces on a regular basis I could have probably churned it out in two hours, but only after the necessary research into the style they wanted. All in all after the research was done, I think it took about 4 hours. So not too bad. I'll have to wait and see what they really think about it later though as they have decided to put off hiring for the position for a few months - bummer.

There are a few things I could fix and make better about it, but I was kind of on a time limit of course. It was designed in Photoshop, with a few pieces made in Illustrator and Flash. What do you think?

Photoshop and Halloween fun

Having some fun with photos taken of my wife, daughter and myself from Halloween in our Peter Pan, Wendy and Tinkerbell outfits. I comped this together with a painted background in a pretty short time. Plenty more I could do, but I had to call it done before we went to visit the in-laws for a family dinner. It was lots of fun. Tight time tables can be quite liberating, and it feels nice to get something done so quickly.

Book Review: The Magic of Recluce, by L.E. Modesitt Jr.

So this is not a new book, but I just finished reading it after hearing about it from a number of friends. All in all, I thought it was an interesting and at times fun read. I liked it enough to want to read more about this land based in chaos and order, and I will chalk up some inconsistencies and irritations to a somewhat new author (at the time of publish - if you aren't aware, Modesitt is very prolific now but this book was published back in '92). From what I know of the author he had published some short stories and a couple other books by this time, but he may have still held a day job - making the tasks of being an author somewhat difficult as anyone trying can understand first hand.

This Epic Fantasy novel is centered on young Lerris, a potential order-master though he doesn't know it at first. Intelligent, but bored by the orderly life of Recluce, he is thrust into exile where he must discover and use hidden powers while he tries to stay alive long enough to discover his purpose. There are many things he takes for granted in life, and others he questions without fail, though he accepts his exile fairly readily besides calling it unfair.