Written by: Dominick at 11:11 pm
I’ve been using Flash for years. In fact, it’s one of my favorite programs to use for anything from web design to playing with graphics. I have no formal training when it comes to design. I just try to use my creativity and intuitive nature to figure out what I’m doing. Back in the day, you had to know a little bit about how Flash worked in order to use it. I struggled for some time, trying to figure out simple design concepts.
Like many other, struggling, self-taught designers, I scoured the web for tutorials, affordable courses, and anything else I could find. This brought me to the Cartoon Smart website. I’ve had a personal work relationship with Justin, the founder of Cartoon Smart for years, only he didn’t know about it until recently. You see, it’s Justin who has taught me everything I’ve needed to know about using Flash. Justin has taught me everything from animation techniques to Actionscript. Every step of the way, as I’ve learned Flash, Justin has been there.
Justin has been creating Flash Tutorial/Training lessons since before 2003. I know this because I have payments for lessons dating as far back as that year. I took some of his earliest courses and feel I’m all the better for it. Justin’s courses are unique because they make it easy for people of nearly any learning style to learn how to use Flash.
Those who are visual learners can watch the video and then copy what Justin does in their own projects. Auditory learners can listen to the instructions Justin gives on his videos. They are casual, informal and downright entertaining. Hands on learners have the opportunity to jump right in and get to using Flash as Justin is explaining how to do it. These tutorials are just so comprehensive, nearly anyone can and will be able to learn how to use Flash, thanks to Justin.
On the Left: Dominick - mid-tutorial on Part One On the Right: Justin's Completed Part One Tutorial Images
*Click on the Image above to see it in a bigger, easy to view form.
In this review, I had the chance to go through and complete a Five-Part Interface Design Mega Course. After completing this course, I’ve used some of the techniques Justin taught me on at least four or five different website designs and graphics. There are so many practical purposes for this course. I’ve used many of the elements that Justin explains in website design. From image reflection to giving images a glossy appearance, I’ve found this interface design course amongst the most useful tutorial courses that Justin has developed, to date.
The Mega Course is divided up into five parts. In part one, Justin goes through some common illustration techniques he uses. He discusses how he has a big file filled with examples of design elements that he’s used in past designs. This not only gives him ideas for future designs, but he also is able to save time by cutting and pasting parts of past designs, if he can use them, in new designs. I think that’s a smart idea. I know that I’ll sometimes cut and paste Actionscript commands, as opposed to having to rewrite them, over and over within the same project. It’s just another way to be more efficient when designing in Flash.
You can see a screenshot of what I learned in Part One, midway through the tutorial up above. For reference, I included a screenshot of Justin’s completed Part One tutorial SWF file. As you can see, I follow most of Justin’s tutorial closely, but I also add my own flair to the design. For example, you can see he’s used a basic font for the clock face, while I’ve used a font designed after a clock, to give it a more realistic look. These little things allow me to explore my creative impulses yet teach me the right structure for how to start designing and how to develop interface designs that Justin’s tutorial provides.
Moving on to Part Two, Justin goes into specific interface designs. I’ve actually modified one of the main illustrations he designs in Part Two for the new logo of LI Kids. You can check out my design below and then look at what Justin originally did in his tutorial, which gave me the idea for the LI Kids logo.
This Tutorial from Cartoon Smart Inspired the LI Kids Logo
And here is what Justin teaches in Part Two of his Interface Design Mega Course.
Justin's Interface Design that Inspired the LI Kids Logo
As you can see, with Justin’s designs, there is quite a lot of room for interpretation and the ability to take what he teaches while applying it to your own designs and illustrations. You can go to the LI Kids website to see other elements of design taught by Justin, in this course, too. For example, just by looking down the sidebar, you can see how the element of “reflection” has been used on the LI Kids RSS button. This has become one of my favorite element design tricks, actually. I’d seen it done before, but didn’t really put much stock into it until Justin discussed the appeal of reflective images in the Interface Design Mega Course.
In all, this course is six hours Long. The first five hours teach about a variety of design drawing and illustration techniques. You’ll get to design LED style screen images. Based off of Part Three and Part Five, I’m actually working on an illustration I’m planning to use right here on LI Reviews, but I don’t want to give too much away about that until it is designed. That’s what I like about Justin’s courses. You get what you pay for and it comes back tenfold with each new design you create, using the various techniques he teaches.
In Part Four, Justin goes through an actual design technique that could be used on a high tech, Flash website. I’ve always been more creative and artistic with my designs, but I do enjoy knowing that I could go for the Flashy, more high tech designs if I wanted to. Finally, in Part Five, the designs are given some actionscript and they actually come to life. This is the icing on the cake for this course. I can’t stress how important this course is, to designers of all levels. I’ve been using Flash for a while now, but I’m constantly learning new techniques from Justin. I’ve been a loyal customer of his for years and I intend to keep it that way.
CLICK HERE to see the Effect Above in Full Size. Click on a Link/Button to see what happens!
One more thing about the Cartoon Smart courses is how well laid out they are. Justin takes you from start to finish through Quicktime videos. He shows you every thing he does. He explains every step he takes. Example files are included, with the finished files that he completes in each tutorial. He’s thorough, engaging, easy to listen to and an all around nice guy. In the event you have a question about the tutorial or Flash in general, I’ve found Justin to be a nice, well-mannered, informative penpal. He will get back to you promptly and try to explain what you need to do in Flash, to accomplish the effect or design you want.
If I had to recommend any course to both beginners and established designers, it would be, hands down, the Interface Design Mega Course. You will find a practical and useful purpose for everything Justin teaches you. I’ve completed this course recently and I design in Flash every single day. This course is exactly what I needed to up the ante on my designs. In the few days since I’ve finished this course, I’ve found myself using the same techniques that are taught in this course innumerable times. There just isn’t anything else to say other than…YOU NEED TO BUY THIS COURSE!
You can purchase the Interface Design Mega Course through the Cartoon Smart Website. This course only costs $20. Seriously! For over six hours worth of training you’ll use for a lifetime of using Flash, this course pays for itself within the first hour of this tutorial.
You can check out all of the other great courses Justin has developed at Cartoon Smart. Justin is a talented Flash designer and he’s the reason I’m still using Flash today. Without him, I’d truly be lost with nary a clue on how to do half the things I know how to do in this wonderful program.
Stay tuned for more reviews for Justin’s courses. With the release of Adobe CS 4, Justin has new courses coming out and I’m planning to share all of the details on the free and paid courses he’s developed for this new, innovative Flash software. Until then, check out the rest of his courses on his website, which include learning how to Illustrate, Design Websites, Make Flash Games and Learn Actionscript.
Technorati Tags: Cartoon Smart, Justin, Interface Design Mega Course, Tutorial, Adobe, Flash, CS 4, Website Design, Flash Tutorial
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Written by Dominick - Visit Website
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Dominick Evans is in his late 20's. He spends his days working as a full time writer/editor and a part time musician/composer. His passions in life include music, directing films, watching movies, reading books, watching sports, wheelchair football, politics and spending time with his family (fiancée Ashtyn, son Robert, and shih-tzu Oliver). Other interests include being an advocate for the disability and GLBT communities.
