> [ How to make a Profile - The Kaleta Way ] <
Right, so i decided to finally put a tutorial up. So you want to make your own profile? Then listen up closely cause im only doing this once. To create a profile, you must have the essential tools. The tools i usually use will be listed below. So this does not mean, if you don't have these, you cannot make a profile of your own.
Tools:
> Pencil
> Paper
> Adobe Photoshop
> A fairly good amout of knowledge on CSS and how to use photoshop
> Picture host (photobucket)
> Stocks of pictures
> Brushes, patterns and textures
> Imagination and Inspiration (very important)
Get Started:
First of all, you need to have a hell off a lot of both, imagination and inspiration or you'll end up messing up your work D; Get an idea of what you want to make, when you have an idea, sketch it down! Draw a box on paper, and think of it as your computer window. How do you want things to be like? What kind of things will be included? How and where are the pictures and sections going to be placed? and so on. Make sure you list everything down! Draw arrows on your box! But my God, your sketch doesn't have to be detailed and neat, because your not going to use the sketch as a profile! your going to make it!
You need to know what kind of theme you want to have, the feel of the profile you wish to portray to others, when you have a general idea, work with it. Try to see what colours will go with your theme, there is nothing worse than unbalanced proportions on ... well anything. Unless of course your theme is all about not being balanced, if so, go wild! The pictures you use on the profile are also important, make sure they fit in well with your theme. The sections of the profiles are also important, if you are like me, and want people to know what kind of things you are up too and like to write a lot about yourself, the about section is necessary. Heck, you need the about section. For me, the about, and comments sections are the most important sections on a profile. But that's my opinion. You don't have to go with that.
Photoshop:
Alright, now your sketch is finished and you've decided on colours, pictures, sections, theme and the overall result you wish to get. Time to open up photoshop, now this is where it gets tricky, if you don't know heck about photoshop, then please read it up! experimenting with the tools is a great way to learn, at least that's how i learned. After you make all your graphics, save all your images and load them up. I use photobucket.com but you can use any other sites.
Coding:
Now go to your theme and start cranking those codes in! Try to make sure the codes you put in are right ones, sometimes the codes can work on one browser while it looks horrible on others. Making sure that your profile works in most browsers if not all is your main goal. Try to make your ideas interesting, and don't rip off others style! And for crying out loud, whatever you do, be proud of what you accomplish.
Tips:
I have a few tips you can use in photoshop if you just got the program and want to know which controls do what. Some tools in the tool bar have a little black arrow thing on the top right hand corner, this means that if you press and hold your mouse on that button it will have other tools. For example, the lasso tool, if you press and hold your mouse on that it will have other tool options such as the Polygonal Lasso, and the magnetic lasso. Try looking at all the tools first before doing anything. Open up a picture in photoshop and go mad with the tools, if you dont want anything to happen to the picture, make sure you don't save it when you expriment. If you want to know more about the tools in photoshop and what they do, try this link here
Results:
Putting in your heart and soul is they key ingredient to making a something beautiful and magnificent. I hope my guide helped you and i hope to see your finished work sometime, so link me to your work okay?
This tutorial can also be found in my profile under the sub heading "This Profile" In there i also have a little step by step guide on how i made my Profile, so check it out! If you have any questions about this tutorial please post it in here or leave me a comment in my profile.
