About a month ago, somebody called while my wife and I were sleeping. It was 2 o’clock in the morning. He said he was from Orange County, California. And he said he had an urgent job to be done. I asked him what kind of job he was talking about. He just said that I had to go there.

Next day, he invited me to a small baseball field. Some kids were playing baseball. I tried to initiate a conversation. Once I said, “So what would you like us to do?” But the guy wasn’t listening. Those kids were his. He was cheering them, coaching them and encouraging them. Parent… Then he goes, “if you were their dad, would you want them to play at a field where grass is completely stepped on and dead?” So I answered, “That wouldn’t bother me.” Then I saw his eyes in rage. He said “I want my kids to grow up with green. I want you to do something with this flat grass.” And I said “Umm… We aren’t really gardeners. We are just a group of Mac lovers.” Then he kept talking and giving me a lecture. Well, I had to do something to get away from this situation. So I launched Adobe Photoshop CS2 on my MacBook. In a matter of several minutes, kids were standing on greener grass.

The following tutorial shows steps to create a custom brush and fill empty space with grass, using Adobe Photoshop CS2. The photo used in this tutorial comes from Webshots. Continue reading →

It was almost a year ago from today. I was tired of city life. I had to get away from it. I needed space from everything, from my wife, her dog, my colleagues and even from my Macs. I drove hours without a map. Then I arrived at a quiet beach in California. There were not many people. So I started spending my private time there.

The second day, I lay under the sun. Oh, gosh… I felt relieved of all responsibilities. It was about 3 o’clock in the afternoon. I heard a boy cry right next to me. I wanted to ignore what was going on and enjoy my private time. But there was no sign of boy’s stopping crying any time soon. It seems that he lost his beach ball. Boy’s mother had a MacBook. I asked her if she had Adobe Illustrator CS2. And she nodded while trying to calm her son down. I had to borrow her MacBook to end this horrible afternoon event. In a matter of 5 minutes or so, I created this beach ball. Thanks god, the boy stopped crying. And I could continue to spend my private time.

The following tutorial shows simple steps to design a colorful beach ball with Adobe Illustrator CS2. Continue reading →

Last Memorial Day, my wife said she wanted to eat an apple. So I went to buy some in the middle of an evening. What can I say? It was her birthday. But stores were all closed. I didn’t want to go home empty-handed. No, I wasn’t afraid she would throw me out of the house. It was her special day. So I went to my study while she was watching TV. Then I launched Adobe Illustrator CS2. And in a matter of 5 minutes or so, I designed a red apple, hoping I could fool her somehow.

The following tutorial shows simple steps to design a 3D apple with Adobe Illustrator CS2. Continue reading →