this weekend, I took the jump. I have been putting off, and
putting off learning some computer programs that i knew would be useful in my various online adventures - businesses, blogs and all that comes along with those things. friends, and online photo editors such as
pixlr are helpful, but they can only bring you so far when you don't understand what a mask or a layer is.
on the other side of the world (and by world, i mean my brain), i had become aware of
ladies learning code through the lovely breanna hughes - she is one of the organizing members of this incredible organization whose goal is to build oppourtunities, knowledge base and the representation of women in the IT fields... or just teach some ladies some important computer stuff in a very cool environment. as they say, "we're a women-run not-for-profit group working to empower everyone to feel comfortable learning beginner-friendly technical skills in a social, collaborative way." perfect. love the idea. these ladies have also partnered with various organizations and people to obtain sponsorship and support for the individual workshops - thus keeping the cost of the workshops to an extremely reasonable cost.
i'd been scanning the workshops as they popped up on my twitter feed, and on their website (and the emails they send out), and had seen tons for coding, and other things i didn't see myself being able to jump right into. then i saw that a couple of friends had done the photoshop workshop - and was bummed that i had missed it. how had that one slipped by me?? so, when they announced a re-run of the photoshop workshop coming up, i literally stalked my computer to ensure i would be able to register. i was in. whether they liked it or not. $45 - lunch included? yes. please.
so, this saturday, i woke up bright and early - that is, bright and early compared to my normal weekend sleep in, following a rousing friday evening dance party - and walked over to
george brown, who so KINDLY donated their
game design space for the workshop. i gave my name to the volunteer helping with registration, settled into a classroom by dumping my stuff at a chair, and then grabbed a quick breakfast (also included - i know, right?) before we got down to it.
the introductions began - our instructor
chris introduced himself, and the mentors did so as well (llc manage to keep a close to 4-1 ratio of mentors to students in their workshops - amazing!), and then it was our turn. you can imagine my horror when, after a few introductions, it occurred to me that i was
1) one of the few people who was NOT in the design/ad industry, or did not work with creativity in my 9-5 job, and
2) who had never even opened photoshop once in my life. great. for the first time, i wondered what i had signed myself up for... and then thanked whatever great God above me granted a patient mentor in
nick.
my early day colour and font selections - with kuler, google webfonts, and the ladies learning code template
with a phenomenal group of mentors, we set out. throughout the day we learned the very basics, and reviewed colour selections, font types and inserting fonts into basic layouts. we worked on masking and stamping, creating layers, and how to create constructive editing, instead of destructive editing (hey guys - i actually learned what a layer was, and how it would be a GOOD thing when i was editing, and not simply something i accidently made on my picture editing tool!). in starting with our colour and font selections (uh hello - why has no one introduced me to
google web fonts or
kuler before? i'm holding you all accountable for my overuse of helvetica and verdena), chris explained everything, and we worked - as a group - through everything on a large screen, along with each of us on our
own computer. our mentors checked in nearly every minute to ensure we were on track, and shared some of their own hints, tips, and lessons. after a catered lunch of sandwiches, veggies, and drinks, we got right back to work - doing some photo editing (ryan gosling WAS involved, in case you were wondering) with stamping, masking and some other tools, and then moved right along to facebook cover photos, and the tools we could use to create photo collages, text in design, and combining free transform, gradients and blending, drop shadows and strokes, group layering, masking and tons of other fancy photoshop terms (look at me! i'm so professional!).
luckily lauren captured ryan gosling's appearance in our classroom
throughout the day, the tools we learned were used for some basic projects - we created a twitter background, a facebook header, some collaging, photo editing, and some simply text layout. but the beauty was that within each of these projects, we learned a ton of features of the program itself that could be used for, in order to create a TON of different things once we went home. i also happened to be sitting with some rad chicks - the lovely lady beside me, whose name was also
jamie, and i got through things quickly, and were able to provide one another support. we managed to also get on the last nerve of nick. it was so amazing to be in such a great environment - women looking to learn, and help those around them learn too. of course, in line with my nature, i immediately thought, 'i need to sign up for EVERY workshop LLC runs!' and then i thought realistically. reign it in jamie. reign it in.
honestly, i would have been lost if it weren't for the help of the mentors and our lovely instructor - specifically
ty,
nick,
chris (though don't tell nick - we spent the day harassing him. he did love us enough to
tweet about us though). i was nervous. i was scared to look like the stupid one. i was scared i wouldn't catch on. i was scared i wouldn't learn a thing. then, it all started clicking. and once my familiarity with the functions increased, i found myself moving outside the templates, and working within my own creative process.
ok... so we may have goofed around a BIT with the red eye reduction tool. can you blame us? two jamie's sitting side by side? scary thought.
when we finished up, we had almost an hour and a half of free time, in which chris and the mentors hung around to help out. we could finish up our 'mood boards' (which showcased everything we did in the day), work on other stuff, or just hang out.
ty helped me with my
twitter background, and troubleshooting some issues i was having with sizing, etc., and i finished up my projects for the day. and ladies and gents - i left feeling so accomplished. like i said
here, i was a bit grumpy, and was grumbling that morning about not wanted to get out of bed and go. when i left george brown that day, i was elated - i had learned so much within the days instruction, i couldn't wait to share it. i was so completely and utterly impressed with the day, i wanted to stick around, and absord all i could from the mentors.
the following are the product of almost 7 hours of work. and trust me - i used to see logos, and design work, as well as as collaging and things on the internet, and thought, 'pfff - if i had photoshop, i'd design EVERYTHING'. guess what ladies and gents - it's not as quick and easy as you think. time. consuming. nevertheless, i'm proud of my spoils.
my two facebook cover photos, designed by me w/various photos from pinterest; moodboard with all of my day's creations; my most basic twitter background (page curl created with the pen tool)
this is good stuff guys. good. stuff. i'll be on the lookout for
more workshops by the ladies at ladies learning code - next up? the wordpress one coming in may.... after this experience, i'm amped.
