February 2015 Video Tutorial -- Creating a Casino Poster Part 1

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My Bad, Larry. Two things: In never covered putting a white circle inside the roulette border, but I will, plus a bonus effect this March middel to late in the month (as usual!). All you do is draw a white circle (hold Shift+Ctrl while uning the Ellipse tool to constrain the ellipse to a perfect circle, and start from the inside point outward, instead of going diagonall from corner to corner. Color it wjite, Press Ctrl+B to put it to absolute back, and then press Ctrl+Shift+F to move it front by one object and do this key combo until the white circle is behind the roulette circle.

Folks, I'll mention it in next months tutorial, but if you want to get a leg up, the text I used was Johnny Lunchpail and Automatic, both fonts I paid for at Stu's Font Diner, which speciaizes in exquisite Retro fonts, nothing even close to them and I used them a lot. However, most of us, and certsinly this tutorial is on a budget, and Stu is kind enough to offer us some dynamite Retor fonts for free.

First, go to The County Fair (no idea why Stu calls i this!) and there are 12 free typefaces, I'd say six of them are invaluable.

Then go to Stu'd archive where there are still mode free fonts. download as many as you like, if you use these fonts extensively, I'm sure Stu would appreciate a sale or two(!), and definitely download Featured Item for the headline in our composition (instead of the $$$ Automatic), and then download either FD Swanky, or Motel King on [url=http://www.fontdiner.com/menu_cfp.html]this page. Oh, and get Dairyland, too, because it might look better than Featured Item in ytour final layout.

Why did Gary chose Retro fonts? Because people who go to Casino Nights at churches, fire houses and other community places here in the US are older people, so they can related better to vintage text. Also, it takes some of the edge, it adds contrast to the slick poster you're making. If you make the design slick and the text a little dorky, you've set up a dynamic poster that resonates and people will take a look at it longer.

Once you download and try out the Font Diner fonts, I think you'll agree that they are captivating in a non-threatening way. They suggest in no way you have to dress up or lose a lot of money. They say "Fun. Come on in."

Fonts say tons about your work, and hopefully this summer I can devot a chapter of the page layout series to just Typography.

In the meantime, just experiment with different phrases with the fonts, and see what you discover. I'll guide you this month (crap, it's March already!), and provide advice at that time on video. I'll just have to rush over to the drug store and get the video developed.

They say one hour, but I think that's horse hockey.

My Best,

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Originally Posted by Gare

Hi Hajeem—

I am attaching the solved problem.

After you create all the triangles around the circle, you hold CTRL and then click on the circle, and the status line says you've selected a shape inside the blend. Without deselectinhg the circle, take a corner control handle, hold Shift to scale equlilaterally from the center of the circle, and then drag toward the center of the shapes.

Watch the video once again, and take a look at the solved circle I've attached. If it still doesn't work for you, contact me here, okay?

My Best,

Gary

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Hi Gary!

Thanks for the file. I kept it beside the one I made myself for comparison during my efforts. I was successfull in making the shrinking circle. I held the shift key and selected one of the selectorboxes and dragged diagonally towards the circle. My circle shrunk indeed and centered the slots in the middle. However, it did not become a perfect circle. I adjusted the circle in the measurements box on the infobar to get it perfectly round. I proceeded to the point where I filled the band with a black fill. However the command Ctr + shift + E lead me to a saving action of the programme. When I used shift Ctr S I could convert them to editable shapes. Then at 6.18 minutes into the video you mention that one needs to select the red innercircle and something else. This something I simply cannot make out what it is. I hear the word not good enough for me to understand what other item I need to select.Furthermore I noticed that you use DSP extreme 10 (which I also work in). I noticed that you had another drawing tool in your flyout bar that actually works. However much I try to get that pentool into the drawing toolbar, it seems to work a bit like the shapeditortool?
Yep.......I scrutinised your video over and over and over again

I hope I make sense.

Hélène

That's exactly how I put the white circle in there Gare. Thanks for confirming.

There is some nice casino posters in this thread and none sticking to the original colour of the light pinky colour so I too have used a different bevel colour. Can change it when Part 2 is done if it does not suit the final image. :D

Stygg

It works and you did good, stygg.

Now, tuck this guy away for a week or so, because layout composition will be the mainstasy of March's tutorial, and that means both elements location (composition) and use of colours. Now, your color is fine, becuaee there will be white poker chips in the final compositon.

@Everyone: think of what you can do with green, red, black, and white. The palette sounds limiting, but not if you use dropshadows, glows, and gret creative as to shwere you add the colro in the finished design.

I know I'm asking a lot and nobody has all day to do this stuff (except me), but we;'re doing REAL WORLD, professional, published work here. Even if it isn't published, I will take the submissions around and get REAL WORLD opinions from people who might want the poster for an event.

How about that for pressure?

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Originally Posted by Gare

nobody has all day to do this stuff (except me),Attachment 106454

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And me.

Though I have no idea what Gary is going to do, going forward with this?!

I thought I would add some cards to the scene.

my attempt this evening (i'll save the neon flashing for another night...although i don't think i can share gifs yet coz i've had a post containing one waiting in moderation for a few days now in Gary's March 2013 Neon thread :( )

A little bit late coming but still would like to thanks Gare for the tutorial, especially enjoyed the technique drawing with light pink on the bevel.

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Plus I never used to clone the shadows, that is interesting one too