Well, I missed the Monday post/email here - and I’m now on Wednesday. Day late and a dollar short again. Thought I would post up some cool Photoshop tutorial downloads and other fun Photoshop stuff.

I just upgraded to Photoshop CS4 and had to go about replacing some of my “cool tools” that help me create graphics. Since many of you would like to know more about making some cash with graphics, thought I would run down some of the important things on that end today. I did get ECoverFX.com turned into a wordpress platform, then haven’t been able to get back to it. Never a dull moment.

Now, there are MANY different graphic programs out there, but Adobe Photoshop is still top rank in my opinion. Nothing compares with the results you can get from Photoshop. There are so many tools to use, so many cool free helpful downloads and more. If you’re going to create great graphics for cash, you’re going to need Photoshop. There is no way around that.

Well, so a full version of Photoshop CS4 extended is close to 1 grand now. Here is a tip. Get a copy that is NEW, still in the shrink wrap - that can be registered from eBay. OR - you can get an educational discount if you have access to someone who is a teacher - or that is in the educational field. They can get you an educational discount.

We can’t just flop out 1k for software (even if it is a write-off) so we look for great deals. You can also check Amazon. Be a bit more careful on eBay, because there are people out there scamming Photoshop buyers. If they have low feedback, are a new user with a nice cheap price - be very careful! Look for powersellers, and other sellers that have been around for a longer time.

That said - let’s direct you to some awesome Photoshop resources and Photoshop tutorial downloads.

On of my favorite resources happens to be Al Ward’s ActionFX.

I’ve known about that site for quite some time. I’ve been a yearly member, and will occasionally purchase a days entry to go pick up Al’s new stuff. 24 hour access for like 7 bucks, which you can’t beat with a stick. Check it out at: www.actionfx.com

Al’s type actions are awesome. He also has a lot of patterns, shapes and layer styles that you can use for digital scrapbooking projects and more. His Framing actions can make a photo look really cool in no time. The photo actions are nice too. You can get a number of photo actions that make your photos look more like works of art just by running the photo script. He also has some good tutorials in the member area.

Then there is Deviant Art. I haven’t spent a WHOLE lot of time there, but have found some great brushes, shapes, patterns, layer styles and actions. There are wonderful sources of inspiration on there - with lots of stuff shared for free between the members. You can take a look through Deviant Art Here - http://www.deviantart.com/

If you have never used layer styles, shapes, patterns, brushes and more - feel free to ask questions about that here on the blog. Or just do a google search for “how to install photoshop brushes” for example - and you’ll pull up some good info.

Now of course when you use Photoshop - there is always something that you are wanting to figure out how to do. Did you know that there are TONS of Photoshop videos out there all over the place, tutorials etc - where you can learn what you need to for free. Check this out once.

Photoshop Tutorials on YouTube!
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=&search_query=photoshop+tutorial&aq=f

Now if you haven’t seen “Donnie’s” Photoshop vids, you are missing out. They are quite hilarious if you ask me! Wish I was that good at being funny and creating Photoshop vids at the same time.

Check out Donnie HERE! Dude is FUNNY. (Some adult humor)

There is also a nice site at http://www.tutorialwiz.com/ where you can find some interesting photoshop tutorials. Same with http://www.eyesondesign.net/pshop/tuts.htm

http://www.photoshoproadmap.com/Photoshop-tutorials has some new stuff as well. If you search around, you’ll find all kinds of photoshop tutorial downloads and more!

Hope that helps on the graphic end until I can finish up ECoverFX with all the good graphic info!

Thanks!
Michelle

First off, I have to apologize for for being MIA here for the past few weeks!

The boys and I have been sick off and on, even up to this past weekend. The oldest just had the flu bug again yesterday, I didn’t think he was ever going to be able to keep food and drink down. I haven’t been able to stay awake so many nights, and the nights I have been up - I’ve been cramming in work that needed done for clients. Then Jeremy Gatica and I started working on a project that has kept us both pretty busy.

Also, over the weekend - we lost a really nice guy in the Internet Marketing Circle. His name was Barry Richardson. He passed away on March 6th, in the morning. There is a thread here in the Warrior Forum that will fill you in on all the details. Very sad. He’s been on the net for a long time, and will be missed. If you knew Barry and would like to donate to help his wife cover the necessary expenses, just go to:

Tribute To Barry Richardson

His wife’s name is Martha, and she’s doing what she can to keep going. Lots of unpleasant details to deal with at home. She’ll be doing the best she can to keep Barry’s Internet Business alive, so if you were a customer of his - they are working on all the issues. Please give them time to get everything under control. Martha didn’t know what all Barry did online, so there is a lot to learn.

I did want to mention Russell Brunson’s HUGE Birthday Party Giveaway too. I don’t remember seeing one quite this large in a very long time. I’ll let you know what all we’ve been up to here in a second, but for now - check out Russell’s Birthday Bash!

There are a number of new (and older) products in there - so have fun digging around a bit to see what all you can find! You can get my gift right here - no need to sign back up. I’m currently working on another one that ties into what Jeremy and I are working on, so I’ll link that here when it’s finished. Rick Hunter has an awesome little tool he’ll be adding, when his page is done - I’ll link that too. Think VIDEO!

Now, this was originally intended for the “What Are The Steps In Creating An Online Business” mini series - so let me tell you what all I have been up to lately.

Have I been following my plan?

Well, not as great as I thought I could, that’s for sure. Things change so fast, opportunities come up, and I keep getting pulled into creating things. Go figure. I need to create some BLOG POSTS is what I really SHOULD be creating, but when Jeremy had a great idea - I couldn’t help myself!

Mostly because it ties in to what we both already do NOW. Which is creating blogs and Minisites. Combine them both together, and you get Minisite Mayhem! Or MiniPRESS Mayhem if you prefer.

What we’ve been doing is working on the product, making sure it works great, building Wordpress blogs to use for traffic, building a new base of Wordpress targeted subscribers through Russell’s Birthday Giveaway, and more. This is kind of what they call “getting the buzz out” about your product.

Right now we’ve got a few sites up that we can link our giveaway products to. This helps with some back-linking. The sites are getting traffic and new subscribers. People begin to see and hear “minisite mayhem” and “minipress mayhem” - so it won’t be totally unheard of when we finally finish it. There will be some recognition of the name at least.

Even though the product is not done yet - we’ve pulled together some “front end stuff” that will help us get the word out, and hopefully collect some beginning streams of traffic. This will be very helpful for when we ARE done - these small traffic streams will already be in place. Then we’ll be able to build on the small streams, add new streams, etc.

Well, sadly - I’m feeling a bit ill again myself. Sorry for the lack of posts and emails, but we’ve just had a ton of fun over here on the home front. Wouldn’t be surprised if I picked up what Branden had yesterday. Once everyone feels back up to par, I’ll have to write down much of what Jeremy and I are doing to get a product completed and up for sale. For now, I’m ready to go lay down.

Thanks!
Michelle