Archive for November, 2011

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Photoshop compositing and the never ending road

Sunday, November 6th, 2011

Mastery doesn’t mean you’re done learning

Are you a “Photoshop Expert” or “Guru” ? *shudder* When was the last time you edumacated yourself? (yes. the spelling is deliberate)

The image on the left is of a composite I’ve been working on for class. I will play with more features when making  “random art”. I’m a big fan of the Photoshop Disasters site. It kills me that some of those images manage to get the the approvals process all the way to final print without anyone going… “Wait!  What the hell is that!“. I don’t have the same time pressures that they do and am grateful for it (one of the many reasons why I’m a software trainer and not a production artist). However, some of the mistakes that you’ll see are just nuts. Basic anatomy people. Normal human elbows don’t attach at the chest – It’s not that hard!

So… back to the purple fantasy picture… I don’t have any specific class that is if going to use those images – I just need to keep my hand in and work on all the techniques that I want my students to know.

There are specific tutorials I will sometimes use, and I need to work through those regularly too. Nothing, however, beats the value of grabbing some images on whim (bless you fotolia) and trying to make something out of thin air. I urge you to dig thru the stock photography database at your favorite site (I cannot give the Fotolia people enough love) and look for an image that captures your imagination. In this case it was the dancer and the purple background that did it.

Ok, Kirsten, we get it. So why the rant?

Someone recently expressed surprise that I have a Lynda.com membership. They said something to the effect of “but I thought you taught this stuff?” Yes, I do and have for over a decade. I also go to the NAPP website,  Deke.com, have an RSS feed of tips and tutorials a mile long, and have a bookcase of software manual that takes up most of one large wall.

It’s simple – you’re never done

I’m well known for having three-too-many resources for people at the end of class. I have books and videos I recommend along with the names of people who are always worth listening too. There’s a reason I have that information – I’m a student too. Any technical trainer (heck, any teacher at all) will tell you that the best way to master a subject is to teach it to someone else. It’s true. It’s also true that you don’t really know a subject if you can’t explain it to someone. My favorite quote is on my desktop so I see it every day,  “If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough -  Einstein”.

Please don’t get caught up in the “I know that already” trap. I was fortunate enough to go to Photoshop World when it was last in Boston. Most of the classes I took covered things that I teach in class regularly – and yet I got a TON out of going. I got to see other trainers work, which is extremely valuable, and picked up lots of new ways of getting a topics across to an audience.

It’s scary to know that there is no end to what you can learn. Sometimes it seems like there’s too much to take in.  I won’t lie – I sometimes curse Adobe’s release schedule, but focus on the positive. Every new features gives you a new toy to play with. There are so many fun, amazing things you can learn – become a master of – that you can pick and choose what suits you best. 

Strive!

Mastery is a fantastic goal. It’s just not the last goal. The farther you go the easier that is to forget – we’re never done learning.

 

 

 

Tags: software training, Tips And Tricks, Training Tips
Posted in Adobe, Software, Tips for Trainers, Training | 10 Comments »

What is rule one?

Thursday, November 3rd, 2011

With apologies to Terry Pratchett, I am re-writing rule one. While it is always wise to follow his version … “Do not act incautiously when confronting little bald wrinkly smiling men”, – mine will have to be “remember: software is not intuitive”. 

Before you start screaming, I know that there are many cases where software is not challenging to figure out and some people find learning software to be very easy. What I am referring to is the habit that adult learners have when trying to do a task in some piece of software. Generally I get some variation on “I know it’s easy, but I’m not finding it” when people come to me for help.

Why assume that it’s easy?

I teach software for a living and am far more likely than the average user to spend time digging around in software to find what I need. **warning, long and rambling story** This morning I was cursing a long blue streak at Apple for the (to me very counter-intuitive) way they set up default email preferences. I use Outlook 2011 for work and gmail for everything else.

With the new division of Axiom that I’m building I wanted to be be sure to have some kind of online task-tracking and contact-tracking system for my business partner and I to use. After some digging and playing with some trials I chose CapsuleCRM. When I click on a contact email in Capsule I want it to open Outlook. Capsule has a setting to let me open Gmail if I wish, but not Outlook. The default behavior of my computer is to open Mac Mail.

So – how do I get the computer to open Outlook when clicking an email address link? I never had to look for this setting before and was verklempt when I discovered that I had to go into Mac Mail, start a new account and then go to preferences to change the default email settings for the computer to be Outlook.

WHAT?!?  Who thought putting the default email settings inside Mail was a good idea. GAHHHH! I have to create an account so that I can NOT use Mac Mail?

And Kirsten, your point is?

OK, So that was a long way to go for today’s advice – Do not assume that software is intuitive.
Is is very easy to make software rules that are easy to understand for the other people writing the software. It’s not easy to make rules that are easy to understand for someone who is not already versed in the rules and regs of the development team. When you are looking at a new piece of software (or an update to one that you already use), please remember that is is the job of the software to help you – not the other way around.

But everyone says it’s easy

Everyone? no, not everyone (I don’t) – BUT when you encounter those people (your kids, grandkids, easily frustrated coworker…) keep in mind that they fall into one of two catagories:

1. They did find it hard to learn and have forgotten how frustrated they were
2. They have previous experience that makes the software familiar, and therefore easier to learn

How many people do you know that find it totally rational to click the Windows “Start” button to get to Exit? (Don’t get me started on the Windows 7 “Orb” – Gack!). How many Mac users think it makes total sense for a picture of an apple to be a menu? Why is Ctrl (or Command on the mac) and Z the shortcut for “Undo” almost everywhere? – “Because”, that’s why.

It’s almost zen really – “It is what is”. Zen – Yes,  Easy – No

So… what was rule one?

All together now… “Software is NOT intuitive“.

Thank you. Class dismissed.

Tags: Learning, software training, stuff for students, Training Tips
Posted in Humor, Software, Training | No Comments »