Photoshop help

I've decided to change my part-time gig to laptop repair-only. Rather than changing my website to reflect this decision, I've decided I'm going to create a completely new one. This one will be for the laptop repair gig.

The thing is, I'd like to make some kind of a graphic for the site depicting various laptops, and in various stages of dis-assembly. Not so much a logo, but more like a banner, 780 x 166 to be exact, and it will appear on a black background.

I have Photoshop, and can do a little here and there, but I lack any sort of creativity or artistic vision. I'd like something flashy and modern looking, with maybe some cool fade affects or something, and using stock type photos, not clip-art.

Anyway, if anyone thinks they might be able to help me out, heres what I'll do. For your help with this, I'll credit you (prominantly) on my site for the art design. I'll even include a link to your email address or website, if you have one. Hell, if it's cool enough, I'll even place your banner (if you have one) on the site.

Thanks in advance to anyone who might feel like helping me out with this!


-evil

 

Just some FYI. I saw the latest issue of Maximum PC (I think) tonight and it has an article on building laptops, something you might be interested in.

Steve

 

I'll try my best to help , I'll have a blast when I get home ( In a few hours ).

I'll PM you or paste the banner here. If its a still image it will probably be in .png and if it is animated , it will probably be .gif or .swf. ( Please tell me if .swf is aplicable ).

 

Just so you know, a flash banner can be amazingly annoying for people who don't have flash, for whatever reason. Particularly if all it does is sparkle a bit.

It'd be handy if you could post up what it's going above? I think that modern and flashy wouldn't be fixed inside a box. You want it to be more intergrated with the page. Have a look at my blog: www.goldfishsbowl.co.uk

I've become a little bit of an expert in making header banners which load super fast . I don't have a header, per se - it's just a kinda space at the top where my logo just happens to be. Interestingly the majority of the stuff in that banner is one image repeated. The gradient is created using a technique that I learnt a while ago, using a 1px wide image which is repeated. The image for "goldfish s bowl" is actually mainly transparent, and I lined up the image so the matte (the space around the shadow) would line up with the gradient. The fish is also done in a similar way, but is in fact a background image on another element.

The great adjantage of this is that it is well laid out and will stay like that no matter what size your browser window is. To a certain extent anyway, before the text image starts going over the fish.

We need some background reference material, so we know your gig a bit better. Good header/logo design reflects the company it's representing. Without that - it's totally guesswork, or "hey that generic metal effect looks cool". Plus your clients will never remember the image if it's generic - which defies the point of the thing - even if it is a kickass logo.

I'll do some doodles if you want, but only if I get some extra info

 

Thanks guys. When I get home tonight, I'll give you some more details in terms of what I'm going for.


Thanks,

-evil

 

Thanks again for the responses. I'm not really much of an artist. I know what looks cool, but don't really understand the techniques or terminology used to achieve certain looks. I like modern, minimalist looks. I don't like alot of colors- obviously black, white, silver, grey, maybe a sharp red. I want something cold feeling, that says "this guy is a professional, and doesn't mess around". I'm not the local funny, quirky "computer guy". I fix laptops and thats it. If a laptop gives me any trouble, I beat it into submission. That kind of thing. Basically like if the Russian guy from Rocky 4 had a website for a laptop repair service.

I wasn't even really considering anything with any sort of animation, but now you've got me thinking. Like maybe from left to right, various models of laptops kind of fading in and out or slowly rotating or something. What would be the ultimate, and I have no idea how to acheive this would be from left to right, a closed laptop opens up, then begins to slowly dissasamble, to the point of looking like an "exploded view" like you'd see in a parts manual or something like that.

What I had in mind wasn't necessarily a logo, since as of right now I still am not 100% sure about a name. I'm using a pre-made template for this site, which of course I am going to heavily modfiy. The template came with one of those stupid stock photos of a bunch of business men standing around in an office. Like what you'd typically see on a web-hosting companies website. I hate those. I like most of the other elements of the template, but of course have to replace that pic since it has nothing to do with laptops.

I can email you a copy of the existing pic I'm trying to replace, or probably better yet, a screenshot of the virgin template.


Thanks again.