9 Outstanding Websites for Design Inspiration. When it comes to web design and development, we've offered up our top picks for tools of the trade.
We've shared great tips from pro developers. We've even wrangled exemplary sites to learn from. But sometimes, a healthy dose of artistic inspiration is in order. If you're a web designer (or web design afficianado) and low on creative juice, take a gander at some of these sites — recommended by top designers themselves — that push the limits of what artistic and technical expression can be on the web. Have you come accross a truly spectacular site design that deserves the web's attention? Image courtesy of iStockphoto, skodonnell. 8 Essential Web Typography Resources. 8 Powerful & Inexpensive Desktop Design Apps. The Cross-Platform Apps Series is supported by VMware Fusion, the best way to run Windows on your Mac.
Click here to learn more about VMware Fusion. To keep up with VMware Fusion updates, follow the "TeamFusion" blog or on Twitter or Facebook. One of the most costly and critical sets of tools for any designer is software. Settling on the right tools for the job can be daunting, given the large and ever-increasing number of design software applications out there, ranging in price from free to thousands of dollars each. We all know who the big players are — industry standards like Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, or Corel's Draw and Painter applications. We've discovered some great design software that you may not have heard of — and they're all less than $50. 1. Sketch is a vector drawing application for the Mac platform. Platform: MacPrice: $40 2.
RawTherapee is a free tool for managing and processing RAW photos on the Linux and Windows platforms. Platform: Linux, WindowsPrice: Free. A 12-Step Guide to Fostering Your Creativity. The Web Designer Series is supported by Wix.com, a free Flash online builder that makes website creation a breeze.
Click here to create your own website now. One skill that every designer must learn — and quickly — is how to be creative on-demand. While there will always be specifications that guide a project as well as tried and true methods of solving common visual problems, one must still be able to get focused, get creative and produce work that doesn't end up looking formulaic or forced.
Unfortunately, though, not every project will be tantalizing and fun, and there will be days when you simply don't want to go to work, no matter how much you love your job. How do you keep the creative spark going when you're not feeling particularly inspired? While most of these tips are for the freelance designer who works independently, anyone in a creative industry should be able to relate and gain insight from them. Basics of Photoshop: Designing a Website - Lifehacker. But a design is just a design without the function. here, please notice, I'm actually speaking on a programming level, not a design level.
Photoshop is pure design. Wordpress, joomla and many other out-of-the-box sites are focused mainly on the design. I've seen many people hire "designers" to build their sites simply for the flash a design brings, thus, paying simply for someones design is certainly not worth it. I agree that design is critical and is actually par with programming. I would speak the opposite argument if LH did an article on using a textual programming suite to design a website. As to lumping Joomla, WP, and PS together, yes I am. My statement is simply this. Now as to your super site request, I would love to. Handpicked free fonts for graphic designers with commercial-use licenses. CSS3 Generator - By Eric Hoffman & Peter Funk.