Commissioning wallpaper and avatars?
By
Dark Ether,
Posted on: 2008-07-23 01:05 in Multi-Media Fan Creations
Umm a desktop wallpaper just has to fit your screen resolution whatever that may be... are you saying you don't have an image editing program to make one? Cause usually you just right click any jpeg to set it to your desktop... the animation avatar requires any of several programs... but I do believe photobucket allows you to make them now for free.
Thanks for the info, LJ! I guess what I was hoping to have done was something really nice and artistic, using various images I already have. I've seen some really lovely wallpapers here and there so I know they can be done!
Unfortunately, I just can't manage to do much with, say, Photoshop. I can't make heads or tails of it. Computery type things make my brain implode.
But I'll sure go check out Photobucket. Thanks!
Busting heads since 1938
Character references * My DeviantArt gallery * I am an altoholic
Well... what are you looking for as far as wallpaper?
Snippets from screenshots? Artwork?
(IMHO, Photoshop's fun to "play" with. Heck fi I know what I'm doing half the time. It's usually "What does this filter do?" and "Hmm, how's this go...")
I know I've seen people who do wallpapers on DA, but I can't remember specifically =/
It may or may not be tricky to have this done since you'd have to get permission from several artists. I've made a desktop out of my work before, but that was a snap because I still had my working Photoshop file with all the layers, so I could move around the subject and play with the background to make it a good image for a desktop wallpaper.
if you can't get photobucket to work for you, i have a program on my computer that makes making avatars like slideshows really easy
Shrike:
The way I've done wallpapers is to take an image, resize it so that it is the same HEIGHT as the screen, give or take a few pixels, then expand just the canvas to the Width of the screen.
Then use the color picker to set the canvas color to the background color of the artwork. This gives the illusion of extending the piece across the screen without distorting the art.
For Windows wallpapers, you want your subject on the right. Mac users will probably want it on the left.
You can also do things like add typography or logos along with the artwork, or toss rectangles behind it to 'matte' it. My DA page has an example of my Mistress Ohm wallpaper, complete with a screencap of Macromedia Fireworks, which I was using to MAKE that same wallpaper! 
"City of Heroes. April 27, 2004 - August 31, 2012. Obliterated not with a weapon of mass destruction, not by an all-powerful supervillain... but by a cold-hearted and cowardly corporate suck-up."
If you have Vista, the gadgets are on the right.
Oh the Vista widgets? yeah... but they can be made to disappear if you don't give them focus, or go transparent.
But that's a valid concern. You might want to position the artwork so that your desktop tools don't obscure it.
"City of Heroes. April 27, 2004 - August 31, 2012. Obliterated not with a weapon of mass destruction, not by an all-powerful supervillain... but by a cold-hearted and cowardly corporate suck-up."
I could be misunderstanding, but I think Shrike's problem with the wallpaper is more that she wants some sort of artsy-looking collage or combination of elements from several pictures rather than just taking a single picture and messing with it's proportions.
What version of Photoshop have you got, Shrike? The animated avatars are really fairly simple as long as you understand the basic principles.
Thanks for all the tips and advice, folks. I will certainly give it another try.
Slick has it hit on the head there, I'm really wanting an artsy misty girly soft-focus collagey thing complete with sappy writing. I think you all know the kind of thing I'm talking about. (No, I'm not 13, though I may have a few Lisa Frank notebooks in the house somewhere.) I admit I don't actually have Photoshop, just Photoshop Elements, as I thought if I could figure that out I would then try the 'real thing.' But seriously, operating an aircraft is much easier than figuring this stuff out!
Permissions hopefully won't be a problem as it's mainly one artist at this point, and since the wallpaper will be for use only here on my computer, I'm hoping he'll agree to allow it.. Since the slideshow type avatar thing is more complicated, I'll just stick with the old-fashioned stationary type (to the relief of all).
Anyway, I'll keep at it, thanks for all the ideas, guys! I'm sure that threatening the computer with a heavy blunt object will also help.
Busting heads since 1938
Character references * My DeviantArt gallery * I am an altoholic
Yeah, I've not really tried it, but I'd be interested in an avatar that would cycle some of my images, or parts of some images. If you can get it to work let me know and I'll maybe tackle it.
My Deviant Art page link-link
CoH/V Fan Videos
Okay, I feel like an idiot now, but what the heck. I had some time on my hands so I tossed together an animated avatar based on the screenshots in the Crey Threat Database and Virtueverse.
I was looking at Ms. Afterburner afterwards and had this deja vu moment where I realized that I'd practically reconstructed your old avatar down to the fonts and colors.
At least now I know why those choices seemed so logical. 
Heavens to Betsy, Slick, thank you! That's so nifty! Once I figure out how to save it I will be using it. But then someone who digs Vlad Taltos must be cool.
(And for the record I've never actually had an avatar with a font so you didn't duplicate anything.)
Busting heads since 1938
Character references * My DeviantArt gallery * I am an altoholic
I'm confused, you wanted an Avatar for the forums or wallpaper for your desk top?
SI Radio has many DJs and listeners whom hold City of Heroes close to their hearts. We will be supporting many efforts to keep CoH ALIVE!!
Both, actually, sorry for the confusion. Thanks to Slick I have a nifty avatar now, so I'll take the tips offered here and see what I can come up with on the wallpaper.
Busting heads since 1938
Character references * My DeviantArt gallery * I am an altoholic
So, I was just remembering the poses? That's some comfort then. Instead of a Rod Stewart, I just pulled a George Harrison. Ha ha!
It was funny, because I can't remember the last time you used the old avatar, and I didn't even really associate the name and the new avatar with the old one. It took a couple of viewings, followed by "I've seen this before...", followed by "Doh!".
I'm going to take a look at it in the morning. The colors look like they may have been turned into web-safe colors, or maybe a perceptual pallete that's getting dithered, on the last optimization pass I did.
Oh, and if you like Vlad, I'd recommend that you check out the Vlad Taltos by Shardglass original that my avatar is built from. It's an amazing picture. I was very happy that she gave me permission to use it. 
I'm simply having no luck finding someone to do what I am looking for, and so I am hoping someone here might be able to point me in the right direction. I'm too dense to be able to figure out how to make:
desktop wallpaper (I've tried, I can't manage it)
those little slideshow avatar thingies (I know they annoy some people but I'd like to have at least one even if I rarely use it)
Does anyone here make them, or know someone who will make them (for compensation of course), using images from some of my art commissions (with permission from the artists, of course)? I would appreciate any information. Thanks!
Busting heads since 1938
Character references * My DeviantArt gallery * I am an altoholic