how did you make the buttons

[morici]

i'm pretty sure that someone already posted this info, but i spent a good 45 minutes last night reading through old posts and i couldn't find it.

can you repost the link that explains how to make buttons?

thanks.

:pig

[Donna]

I don't recall there being a post on how to make buttons. Maybe someone else will remember if there was.

I use Adobe Photoshop. The way I go about it is kind of convoluted, so I don't know if I could actually write instructions for doing it. Basically, I start with some clip art, photos, or drawings and go from there. I experiment with colors and fonts until it looks good. I usually start out big and take it down to the small button size at the end; depends on what I have to start working with. Sorry if that is cryptic; I don't mean to be. If you use Photoshop and have specific questions about how to make it to do a particular thing, I can answer that. :)

[pfirsch]

I don't remember a post on how to make buttons. If there was one, please let me know, too.

I do know of a tutorial at AAA Buttons (http://www.aaa-buttons.com/html/buttontut.shtml) titled, aptly enough, "Button Tutorials." I think you may be able to get away without doing the download, but if you're not that confident in your computer skills, you may want to get the program. I think that you can do everything that he says using the Paint program that comes with Windows. I may also be talking out of my butt. :\

I would also like to make some buttons, but I am at a loss. I need to find a good way to incorporate brown sugar and peaches.

[shelbyro]

Thanks for more button info! I printed out the instructions from the jasc website. I got this other link for a FREE <img border=0 src="http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/tongue.gif" /> program you can download and use to make buttons, but I have not tried it yet: <a href="http://www.freeserifsoftware.com/" target="_new">www.freeserifsoftware.com</a>. Anyone know anything about it?

[bythehook]

good way to incorporate brown sugar and peaches.

Yum! Sounds like peach cobbler to me. :lol
Dot

[crochetme]

I don't really have a tutorial, but I do have a couple of tips:

A great free stock photo website is: <a href="http://www.sxc.hu/" target="_new">http://www.sxc.hu/</a>. You might be able to find some brown sugar and peaches... <img border=0 src="http://members.aol.com/dustkittys/thumbsup.gif" />

When you're ready to save your buttons, be sure to save them in the proper file format for the web. There are two: .jpg and .gif. Each compresses the files in order to maximize the image quality while keeping the file sizes as small as possible.

Any images containing photographs or colour gradients should be saved as .jpg. With this format, you'll be asked to choose the level of compression when you save/export it. The higher the compression, the more distortion there is in the final product.

However, since we're talking about buttons here (where any photographic content will be relatively small in scale, and where the most important part of the button will be text), it's a good idea to just save them as .gif. This is the file format that should be used for images containing mostly solid colours (think cartoons rather than photos -- and especially text). If you've ever run across a website where the title graphic has yucky wavy gook around the words, you know it's because the graphic-maker saved it as a .jpg with high compression (the wavy gook is an artifact of the image compression). It can be tricky to get a large, photographic image to look good with text on it, while still trying to keep the file size small, which is why for tiny graphics like buttons I say it's safer to just save them as .gif's.

Boy, that was long. Can you tell it's one of my web pet peeves?

Happy button making!

[morici]

well i must have been smoking crack then. thanks for the input, i'll see what i can come up with ...

[Donna]

well i must have been smoking crack then There was a post (I believe) where Jen (http://jen.f1-comics.com/) asked me how I do my works in progress bars and I said Photoshop. Alhough I can't find that post now, either. Maybe that's what you were thinking of.

[Donna]

I do know of a tutorial at AAA Buttons titled, aptly enough, "Button Tutorials." pfirsch, that's a great link! :Y That's pretty much the same thing I do using Photoshop. You always have the greatest links; how do you do it??

[MommaChelle]

I use paint shop pro to make my buttons. All you need to do is open a new image to what size you want your button to be, and add things to that - pictures, graphics, text- and save it as a .gif image. Then you're good to go :Y

[pfirsch]

You always have the greatest links; how do you do it??

I can't really say; I like looking for stuff. That particular tutorial was something I found while looking for buttons and backgrounds. I've also been surfing the Internet since the early 90s; so, I have a few tricks up my sleeve. ;)

[suttygirl2005]

Pfirsch you have the best links. What are some of your surfing secrets? I love looking for stuff but never find as good of stuff as you. :clap

[pfirsch]

<img border=0 src="http://img28.photobucket.com/albums/v84/crochetville/shrug.gif" /> Can't really say...

I use Google mostly. Sometimes, I just stumble across things, like that button tutorial.

[TShell]

yay i made a couple. Don't mind if they're ugly, i'm just learning to use paintshop. I'm going to do more using my work as backgrounds. YAY!
<img border=0 src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v395/trixiebix/BUTTON2.gif" />
<img border=0 src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v395/trixiebix/button.gif" />