Designing Newspaper Ads Doesn’t Have to Be Dull
by Kevin Slimp, April 2006
I’m in a familiar predicament. There are at least a dozen new software applications on my desk, all waiting to be reviewed. There’s backup software, drive rescue software, photo editing software and word processing software, not to mention a pile of books. I decided to go with the most unique looking box. Comic Life, by Freeverse Software, fit the bill.
At first, you might think this is an application a newspaper would never use. Not so, my friends. I installed and opened the application. Within fifteen minutes, I had created my first comic. The comic I provided with this column was my second effort. It took about ten minutes to create. Let me tell you how it works.
After installing the software, I immediately opened Comic Life. The workplace was very user friendly. Basically, the left half of the screen is the template for your comic. I counted 16 templates to choose from or you can create your own. The right half includes a library of photos and all the tools. Comic Life gets its photos from your iPhoto library. Yes, this application is only available on the Mac platform. I added the photos I wanted to use to my iPhoto library, then headed back to Comic Life.
Laying out a page is as simple as dragging photos from the library into frames on the template. Once in the frames, pictures can be manipulated by dragging a handle, much as you resize photos in pagination applications. Each “cell” of your comic contains an image.
Comic balloons, bubbles and boxes are added to cells by choosing styles from the bottom area of the workspace. Text is created within each balloon or box. You can even move a balloon’s tail by moving it with your mouse.
My favorite aspect of Comic Life is the ability to use filters to create a “look” for your comic. I selected “Color Pencils” to give my creation the look of an old-fashion comic book. When completed, files can be saved in tif, jpeg and other formats.
Why would a newspaper be interested in Comic Life? First, it’s an easy way to be creative with advertising. Let’s face it. We only have so much time to spend on each ad. Why not dazzle your client with an ad that looks hand drawn, but takes only ten minutes to create? And second (are you sitting down?), The price. Comic Life retails for $30 US / $35 CAN / $50 AUS.
I can’t remember a product that offered so much potential at such an affordable price.
Comic Life is available from most Apple software vendors or you can order it from www.freeverse.com. For more information, visit www.freeverse.com.
Book Covers Creative Suite Gamut
I’ve written reviews of books on just about every aspect of Adobe’s Creative Suite. Recently I had a chance to review Using Adobe Creative Suite 2: The Only CS 2 Book You Need, by Michael Smick. In 986 pages, the author provides detailed information concerning Photoshop, ImageReady, Illustrator, InDesign and GoLive.
It might not be the only book you’ll ever need, but it sure covers a lot of ground. I appreciate the way the author offers simple explanations about what tools do, then supplies step by step instructions so users can begin using them right away. From Que Publishing (www.quepublishing.com). $50 US / $70 CAN / $80 AUS. ISBN 0-7897-3367-6.