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[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td]
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__._[HEADING=3][user]Legion[/user][/HEADING]
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__._[HEADING=3][user]Exius Xavarus[/user][/HEADING]
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__._[HEADING=3][user]Drummodino[/user][/HEADING]
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__._[HEADING=3][user]Caramel Frappe[/user][/HEADING]
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__._[HEADING=3][user]Aerosteam[/user][/HEADING]
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[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td]The Escapist Creative Society presents...
The triumphant return of the Creative Spotlight where I interview the five main artists of The Avatar Store! Five! Brace your butts!
The store is dedicated to making avatars for other users, no matter how easy, hard or stupid the requests might be! If you are in need of the service simply join the user group and post in chat detailing your request and one of us will get to you soon after.[/td][/table]
The triumphant return of the Creative Spotlight where I interview the five main artists of The Avatar Store! Five! Brace your butts!
The store is dedicated to making avatars for other users, no matter how easy, hard or stupid the requests might be! If you are in need of the service simply join the user group and post in chat detailing your request and one of us will get to you soon after.[/td][/table]
[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td][HEADING=3]Why did you choose to help out with smithing for The Avatar Store?[/HEADING]
Caramel Frappe: When I first joined The Escapist, it was also my first time on a website that included forums. Everyone had great Avatars and this inspired me to want something nice myself. However, I had no idea how to make myself Avatars so I had to ask the Avatar Store for one.
[user]TimeLord[/user] made me my first Avatar. I really liked it too, especially considering that it was animated and made JUST for me. However, my envy for people being able to create such masterpieces only grew. It wasn't until March Mayhem of 2011 that caused me to step into the territory of smithing Avatars.
The Avatar Store needed volunteers for the busiest March Mayhem up to date, and had the March Mayhem Avatar thread up with many requests. [user]RBMidknight[/user] was the one whom taught me how to make them, as well as what programs to use. At first, I could only place the logo onto still pictures... resizing was a task for me at the time. But, soon I started experimenting and practicing on how to Smith Avatars. Eventually, I worked with GIFs and used my skills from before to create my own unique GIFs (like the frappe ones).
Drummodino: Earlier this year Caramel Frappe asked me if I'd like to help out for March Mayhem. It was a little unexpected since I'd only made a couple of personal avatars to that point, but I'm glad that I agreed to help. It's been a lot of fun and my gif-making has improved a lot.
Legion: I had joined the group a while back when I first requested an avatar. I cannot recall exactly when but at some point I saw a request come up that I thought I could do, so I gave it a shot.
This kept happening to the point I seemed to be assimilated into the group.
Exius Xavarus: Because I could. I made my own avatars so I figured, why not?
Aerosteam: I joined a few hours after discovering I had Photoshop saved on my computer for some reason. I thought it would be fun to start using it. Then I became the owner of the group. How the fuck did that happen?[/td][/table]
Caramel Frappe: When I first joined The Escapist, it was also my first time on a website that included forums. Everyone had great Avatars and this inspired me to want something nice myself. However, I had no idea how to make myself Avatars so I had to ask the Avatar Store for one.
[user]TimeLord[/user] made me my first Avatar. I really liked it too, especially considering that it was animated and made JUST for me. However, my envy for people being able to create such masterpieces only grew. It wasn't until March Mayhem of 2011 that caused me to step into the territory of smithing Avatars.
The Avatar Store needed volunteers for the busiest March Mayhem up to date, and had the March Mayhem Avatar thread up with many requests. [user]RBMidknight[/user] was the one whom taught me how to make them, as well as what programs to use. At first, I could only place the logo onto still pictures... resizing was a task for me at the time. But, soon I started experimenting and practicing on how to Smith Avatars. Eventually, I worked with GIFs and used my skills from before to create my own unique GIFs (like the frappe ones).
Drummodino: Earlier this year Caramel Frappe asked me if I'd like to help out for March Mayhem. It was a little unexpected since I'd only made a couple of personal avatars to that point, but I'm glad that I agreed to help. It's been a lot of fun and my gif-making has improved a lot.
Legion: I had joined the group a while back when I first requested an avatar. I cannot recall exactly when but at some point I saw a request come up that I thought I could do, so I gave it a shot.
This kept happening to the point I seemed to be assimilated into the group.
Exius Xavarus: Because I could. I made my own avatars so I figured, why not?
Aerosteam: I joined a few hours after discovering I had Photoshop saved on my computer for some reason. I thought it would be fun to start using it. Then I became the owner of the group. How the fuck did that happen?[/td][/table]
[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td][HEADING=3]What program(s) do you use to make them?[/HEADING]
Exius Xavarus: GIMP 2. GIMP 2.8.2 to be exact, but it's all I've ever used.
Caramel Frappe: The programs I use are GIMP [http://www.gimp.org/] and Jasc Animation Shop 3. Although I usually stick with using Animation Shop 3 for most of my GIFs... the ones I create that are unique requires me to also use GIMP. See... AS 3 is great for resizing GIFs, choosing the speed of the frames, and keeping it's quality nice.
However, it alone cannot make it perfect without GIMP. I take out a frame and edit it in GIMP since it's amazing for altering images, changing it's given looks, and a crapload of photoshopping specialties. Combining these two programs is what has given me my most successful Avatars. GIMP is free by the way!
Drummodino: GIMP and Jasc Animation Shop 3. I'd love to get Photoshop but that's a bit too expensive for me.
Legion: I use Photoshop Elements 11 (Photoshop Lite basically). It came free with something else I bought. I noticed it had the ability to make gifs so began making my own avatars instead of requesting them. It wasn't until later that I started making them for other people.
Aerosteam: Photoshop. I have no idea why I have it, I don't remember buying it. I also have GIMP downloaded. Not sure why, it's pretty much Photoshop Shite.[/td][/table]
Exius Xavarus: GIMP 2. GIMP 2.8.2 to be exact, but it's all I've ever used.
Caramel Frappe: The programs I use are GIMP [http://www.gimp.org/] and Jasc Animation Shop 3. Although I usually stick with using Animation Shop 3 for most of my GIFs... the ones I create that are unique requires me to also use GIMP. See... AS 3 is great for resizing GIFs, choosing the speed of the frames, and keeping it's quality nice.
However, it alone cannot make it perfect without GIMP. I take out a frame and edit it in GIMP since it's amazing for altering images, changing it's given looks, and a crapload of photoshopping specialties. Combining these two programs is what has given me my most successful Avatars. GIMP is free by the way!
Drummodino: GIMP and Jasc Animation Shop 3. I'd love to get Photoshop but that's a bit too expensive for me.
Legion: I use Photoshop Elements 11 (Photoshop Lite basically). It came free with something else I bought. I noticed it had the ability to make gifs so began making my own avatars instead of requesting them. It wasn't until later that I started making them for other people.
Aerosteam: Photoshop. I have no idea why I have it, I don't remember buying it. I also have GIMP downloaded. Not sure why, it's pretty much Photoshop Shite.[/td][/table]
[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td][HEADING=3]Can you name a couple of your favourite avatars which were requested?[/HEADING]
Caramel Frappe: Almost every Avatar that i've worked on means a lot to me. From the simple resizing GIFs to the time consuming requests ... they're special because of what each GIF shows. A scene taken out of a fighting game can look really cool for a GIF. Then, there's the GIF's that are close ups of a person's face that I recognize from a series.
Avatars are a work of art. Each one was great to have my hands on because that person was going to wear something i've made... something I wanted to do long ago, but couldn't... yet, now I can and to see people's reactions is an award on it's own. This counts for GIFs and still pictures for Avatars overall. However, if you want me to choose specific GIFs anyhow ... it'd probably have to be these as my absolute favorite requests.
(These were ones back when the limit was like 75 x 75 and 100 x 100)
(These are the latest ones i've made for people. 85 x 85 to 115 x 115)
If I didn't bring your requested Avatar up by any chance... I apologize. There's so many that I only chose the ones i've got good memory of. As mentioned, I loved every request that was presented to me
!
Exius Xavarus: I once made an avatar for Legion, before they became an artist for the Avatar Store. It's one of my favorites because I was only just starting out making avatars for others, and he used it for a quite a long time. I was happy to see one of my earliest avatars be such a success.
I also did one for Nasrin, while she was the community manager. Loved it because adorable little ducks are adorable.
I also greatly enjoyed the March Mayhem avatar I did for suitepee7. He originally wanted the GiantDad's head to be replaced by the MM logo, but that was beyond my skill. So I turned it into a mask that goes over the Father's Mask and it turned to be pretty hilarious.
Notable mention goes to avatar I made for Neronium. One of my favorites because he's still using it, today.
Legion: I'd say the March Mayhem ones because they required a bit more creativity. Some people wanted the M to be moving in some form, while others just left it down to us to come up with something we thought would be cool.
Drummodino: Even though I didn't make it myself, I really like this one that Andy Shandy requested. Sums up March Mayhem quite nicely in my opinion (even if this year was a bit of a let down).
Also this one I made recently for Barbas, because it's hilarious:
Aerosteam: March Mayhem avatars are always great requests, especially if they let us go crazy with whatever the fuck. These were the ones I made this year.
[/td][/table]
Caramel Frappe: Almost every Avatar that i've worked on means a lot to me. From the simple resizing GIFs to the time consuming requests ... they're special because of what each GIF shows. A scene taken out of a fighting game can look really cool for a GIF. Then, there's the GIF's that are close ups of a person's face that I recognize from a series.
Avatars are a work of art. Each one was great to have my hands on because that person was going to wear something i've made... something I wanted to do long ago, but couldn't... yet, now I can and to see people's reactions is an award on it's own. This counts for GIFs and still pictures for Avatars overall. However, if you want me to choose specific GIFs anyhow ... it'd probably have to be these as my absolute favorite requests.
(These were ones back when the limit was like 75 x 75 and 100 x 100)
(These are the latest ones i've made for people. 85 x 85 to 115 x 115)
If I didn't bring your requested Avatar up by any chance... I apologize. There's so many that I only chose the ones i've got good memory of. As mentioned, I loved every request that was presented to me
!Exius Xavarus: I once made an avatar for Legion, before they became an artist for the Avatar Store. It's one of my favorites because I was only just starting out making avatars for others, and he used it for a quite a long time. I was happy to see one of my earliest avatars be such a success.
I also did one for Nasrin, while she was the community manager. Loved it because adorable little ducks are adorable.
I also greatly enjoyed the March Mayhem avatar I did for suitepee7. He originally wanted the GiantDad's head to be replaced by the MM logo, but that was beyond my skill. So I turned it into a mask that goes over the Father's Mask and it turned to be pretty hilarious.
Notable mention goes to avatar I made for Neronium. One of my favorites because he's still using it, today.
Legion: I'd say the March Mayhem ones because they required a bit more creativity. Some people wanted the M to be moving in some form, while others just left it down to us to come up with something we thought would be cool.
Drummodino: Even though I didn't make it myself, I really like this one that Andy Shandy requested. Sums up March Mayhem quite nicely in my opinion (even if this year was a bit of a let down).
Also this one I made recently for Barbas, because it's hilarious:
Aerosteam: March Mayhem avatars are always great requests, especially if they let us go crazy with whatever the fuck. These were the ones I made this year.
[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td][HEADING=3]What requests were particularly difficult to do but still pulled through?[/HEADING]
Legion: The hardest ones I normally find are those that are too large in terms of file size to fit on the site. Editing those while not losing the quality of the image can sometimes be quite tricky.
There were also a couple of Christmas and March Mayhem ones that were harder to do because of how people wanted the extra parts (Santa Hats, March Mayhem M's) to be incorporated.
If I think one requires more skill than I have, I normally give it a try while recommending they see if a more talented avatar maker can do it for them.
Caramel Frappe: Hhmmm ... that's a good question. The most challenging Avatar that I took on was actually for [user]Daystar Clarion[/user] when he requested his Amaterasu Avatar to have the clouds in the background. The reason why it was so challenging was because I had to move it frame by frame, without cutting through the dog, all while keeping the quality nice and animate the clouds too as they moved.
However, my attempts failed because it did not suit the owner. Luckily, someone managed to please our Daystar thus his request was fulfilled after all. Apart from that, challenging Avatars for me would be those that are taken off youtube videos where the scene lasts over 40 seconds. Trying to fit a scene like that into a non-pub member's Avatar is extremely hard since you have to sacrifice frames to make room for the KB.
That, and Avatars which requires everything to be altered while the person itself is non-pub. No offense, but non-pub members make me work harder then the Pub Users do mainly because we can have 115 x 115 Avatars with over 400 KB!! Non pubs only get 85 x 85 with only 120 KB ... which, at times is very tricky to work with. Apart from that, not many Avatars are hard to work with. Just time consuming and it's worth doing ^_^.
Drummodino: This one I made for Historia was a bit of a challenge due to the size limitations:
I was trying to squeeze as many images as possible into it, plus the Hindenburg footage and the signature at the end. I'm quite happy with how it turned out in the end, even though it would have been nice to add more to it.
Exius Xavarus: The hardest one was the aforementioned avatar I did for Nasrin. It was the first avatar I'd actually created, from a video. I was still learning my way around GIMP 2 and that avatar took me several hours to complete. I manually screenshotted each and every frame, then cropped each and every single one of them, individually, making sure my cropping was perfectly in line, pixel by pixel. Was a total nightmare, at the time, but it came out quite well.
I've since learned how to do things much more quickly and easily, but that was definitely the hardest avatar for me to make.
Aerosteam: There was a non-avatar request, when someone (can't remember who) asked for a ghost or something he wanted to use in another website. The sources he provided were shit so I had to draw it myself and make it usable.
[/td][/table]
Legion: The hardest ones I normally find are those that are too large in terms of file size to fit on the site. Editing those while not losing the quality of the image can sometimes be quite tricky.
There were also a couple of Christmas and March Mayhem ones that were harder to do because of how people wanted the extra parts (Santa Hats, March Mayhem M's) to be incorporated.
If I think one requires more skill than I have, I normally give it a try while recommending they see if a more talented avatar maker can do it for them.
Caramel Frappe: Hhmmm ... that's a good question. The most challenging Avatar that I took on was actually for [user]Daystar Clarion[/user] when he requested his Amaterasu Avatar to have the clouds in the background. The reason why it was so challenging was because I had to move it frame by frame, without cutting through the dog, all while keeping the quality nice and animate the clouds too as they moved.
However, my attempts failed because it did not suit the owner. Luckily, someone managed to please our Daystar thus his request was fulfilled after all. Apart from that, challenging Avatars for me would be those that are taken off youtube videos where the scene lasts over 40 seconds. Trying to fit a scene like that into a non-pub member's Avatar is extremely hard since you have to sacrifice frames to make room for the KB.
That, and Avatars which requires everything to be altered while the person itself is non-pub. No offense, but non-pub members make me work harder then the Pub Users do mainly because we can have 115 x 115 Avatars with over 400 KB!! Non pubs only get 85 x 85 with only 120 KB ... which, at times is very tricky to work with. Apart from that, not many Avatars are hard to work with. Just time consuming and it's worth doing ^_^.
Drummodino: This one I made for Historia was a bit of a challenge due to the size limitations:
I was trying to squeeze as many images as possible into it, plus the Hindenburg footage and the signature at the end. I'm quite happy with how it turned out in the end, even though it would have been nice to add more to it.
Exius Xavarus: The hardest one was the aforementioned avatar I did for Nasrin. It was the first avatar I'd actually created, from a video. I was still learning my way around GIMP 2 and that avatar took me several hours to complete. I manually screenshotted each and every frame, then cropped each and every single one of them, individually, making sure my cropping was perfectly in line, pixel by pixel. Was a total nightmare, at the time, but it came out quite well.
I've since learned how to do things much more quickly and easily, but that was definitely the hardest avatar for me to make.
Aerosteam: There was a non-avatar request, when someone (can't remember who) asked for a ghost or something he wanted to use in another website. The sources he provided were shit so I had to draw it myself and make it usable.
[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td][HEADING=3]What was the easiest requested you fulfilled and how long did it take to make?[/HEADING]
Caramel Frappe: Usually the easiest requests I get in general are of resizing GIFs or still pictures ... but I would have to say that this was the easiest request that i've ever obtained despite being asked to alter a picture.
A user by the name of [user]Sheen Lantern[/user] requested that I make Charlie Sheen the Green Lantern. With the quality already matching a picture of Sheen's face, and the simple slap on of the mask... it just looked perfect especially since the eye holes were already vectors so Sheen's would line up nicely through. A great Avatar that it turned out to be.
Legion: The resize ones are generally just as easy as one another, unless the dimensions are awkward. They tend to take longer to upload online and post in the chat than they do to make. So no more than a couple of minutes for those ones.
Exius Xavarus: The easiest request I've done was simply resizing it to fit The Escapist's requirements, which takes about 30 seconds to actually do.
Drummodino: The easiest are simple resizes of a pre-existing image, like the one I did for RatRace123 recently:
They only take about a minute at the most usually.
Aerosteam: Resizing is pretty fuckin' easy.[/td][/table]
Caramel Frappe: Usually the easiest requests I get in general are of resizing GIFs or still pictures ... but I would have to say that this was the easiest request that i've ever obtained despite being asked to alter a picture.
A user by the name of [user]Sheen Lantern[/user] requested that I make Charlie Sheen the Green Lantern. With the quality already matching a picture of Sheen's face, and the simple slap on of the mask... it just looked perfect especially since the eye holes were already vectors so Sheen's would line up nicely through. A great Avatar that it turned out to be.
Legion: The resize ones are generally just as easy as one another, unless the dimensions are awkward. They tend to take longer to upload online and post in the chat than they do to make. So no more than a couple of minutes for those ones.
Exius Xavarus: The easiest request I've done was simply resizing it to fit The Escapist's requirements, which takes about 30 seconds to actually do.
Drummodino: The easiest are simple resizes of a pre-existing image, like the one I did for RatRace123 recently:
They only take about a minute at the most usually.
Aerosteam: Resizing is pretty fuckin' easy.[/td][/table]
[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td][HEADING=3]How did you learn to edit/make avatars?[/HEADING]
Drummodino: Caramel Frappe's wonderful guide! I wanted a new avatar at the end of last year to replace my Christmas themed one (that JoJo had kindly edited for me). This time I wanted a gif and to make it myself however, and Frappe was a huge help. I've improved my skills as I've made more for other people and experimented with GIMP and Animation Shop.
Caramel Frappe: Although [user]RBMidknight[/user] taught me the basics on how it's done and what programs to use ... it was mostly me trying out every tool available on GIMP to see how everything plays out. The most important tools for altering GIFs/Still Pictures is in fact the "Free Select Tool". Basically, you outline the object's shape. With this, you can practically do anything with it from removing it, coloring it, adding a texture to it, basically making sure that only that highlighted part is affected by what you're doing and not caught anywhere else on the image itself. VERY useful indeed.
Truth be told however, if it wasn't for my High School class on graphic designing ... i'd probably not only have a harder time figuring this stuff out- but also have no idea how to even alter/edit anything. Luckily, the class was required and I learned the basics there so remembering how things worked ... only took time for me to learn on how GIMP handles those concepts. The rest, was history.
Legion: Trial and error for the most part. It is probably worth mentioning that my abilities are pretty basic. The ones with any complexity normally involve me learning while making it and slowly piecing together how to do it.
Exius Xavarus: By doing. I'm entirely self-taught.
Aerosteam: I accepted my first request before knowing how to do anything on Photoshop (my first request is still one of the hardest ones) and I almost shit myself because I thought I wasn't going to get it done, but I still managed. As more and more requests started appearing I got faster and eventually whatever needs to be done on an avatar is very seamless now.[/td][/table]
Drummodino: Caramel Frappe's wonderful guide! I wanted a new avatar at the end of last year to replace my Christmas themed one (that JoJo had kindly edited for me). This time I wanted a gif and to make it myself however, and Frappe was a huge help. I've improved my skills as I've made more for other people and experimented with GIMP and Animation Shop.
Caramel Frappe: Although [user]RBMidknight[/user] taught me the basics on how it's done and what programs to use ... it was mostly me trying out every tool available on GIMP to see how everything plays out. The most important tools for altering GIFs/Still Pictures is in fact the "Free Select Tool". Basically, you outline the object's shape. With this, you can practically do anything with it from removing it, coloring it, adding a texture to it, basically making sure that only that highlighted part is affected by what you're doing and not caught anywhere else on the image itself. VERY useful indeed.
Truth be told however, if it wasn't for my High School class on graphic designing ... i'd probably not only have a harder time figuring this stuff out- but also have no idea how to even alter/edit anything. Luckily, the class was required and I learned the basics there so remembering how things worked ... only took time for me to learn on how GIMP handles those concepts. The rest, was history.
Legion: Trial and error for the most part. It is probably worth mentioning that my abilities are pretty basic. The ones with any complexity normally involve me learning while making it and slowly piecing together how to do it.
Exius Xavarus: By doing. I'm entirely self-taught.
Aerosteam: I accepted my first request before knowing how to do anything on Photoshop (my first request is still one of the hardest ones) and I almost shit myself because I thought I wasn't going to get it done, but I still managed. As more and more requests started appearing I got faster and eventually whatever needs to be done on an avatar is very seamless now.[/td][/table]
[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td][HEADING=3]Any users around here who you think have a particularly great avatar?[/HEADING]
Legion: Excluding those that are simply from works of fiction that I like, I enjoy the unique ones that people have. Your grey thingemy, Frappe having Frappe's, sky14ema with her spidermod and so on.
I also have have respect for those who have kept the same one for years. Katherine Kerensky, JulianKing93 and Vrex360 for example have had their avatars for as long as I can remember.
Exius Xavarus: There's a dude with a Dark Souls avatar of a guy that appears to be dancing with his hands over his head, next to Elizabeth. I can't remember his name. That avatar made me laugh a lot harder than I thought it would and I loved it.
Drummodino: Hmm... there are a number of extremely good ones on this site. My favourites would probably be Legion's and Eclipse Dragon's. Legion's is overwhelmingly cute and I love Madoka Magica and Eclipse's is beautifully drawn and animated. Vault101's are extremely impressive as well.
Caramel Frappe: ... I know you're interviewing me Aerosteam, but we ALL know who's got an amazing Avatar for you to ask such a question lol. I'm talking to the user as we speak >_>. (aka you have an amazing Avatar bro.)
Apart from yah, I think honestly that [user]Marter[/user] has spectacular Avatars. It's not eye drawing because it's some crazy GIF or what not ... but, it's the celebrity that he chooses. I don't know about you... but when he changes his Avatar- I notice. The quality is very top notch for a Still Picture and to top it off ... it's always in black & white which seems more appealing than it would in color. If you can make me really appreciate a black/white Still Picture as an Avatar, you've done something great.
A few other worthy nominees to mention are [user]Vault101[/user] (seriously I LOVE her Avatars... I PM her whenever she updates it), [user]Legion[/user], [user]Eclipse Dragon[/user], [user]Drummodino[/user], [user]PsychicTaco115[/user], [user]Z of the Na'vi[/user], [user]staika[/user], [user]TopazFusion[/user], [user]Neronium[/user], [user]Daystar Clarion[/user], [user]Soviet Heavy[/user], [user]lacktheknack[/user], [user]Padwolf[/user] ... argh so many that I want to give a shout out to!
If I didn't mention you, I apologize greatly. I do love your Avatar trust me! I just named the people who have worked on their Avatars and/or that drew my attention every time I glanced through the forums. Great Avatars entirely!
Aerosteam: Caramel Frappe's avatar is pretty fuckin' sexy. Redlin5, never change your avatar - it's timeless. I love it when people occasionally change their avatar but still have a theme to all of them. PsychicTaco115, keep that taco fresh. Vault 101, keep good care of your dog thing. And Eclipse Dragon, that dragon is pretty cool.[/td][/table]
Legion: Excluding those that are simply from works of fiction that I like, I enjoy the unique ones that people have. Your grey thingemy, Frappe having Frappe's, sky14ema with her spidermod and so on.
I also have have respect for those who have kept the same one for years. Katherine Kerensky, JulianKing93 and Vrex360 for example have had their avatars for as long as I can remember.
Exius Xavarus: There's a dude with a Dark Souls avatar of a guy that appears to be dancing with his hands over his head, next to Elizabeth. I can't remember his name. That avatar made me laugh a lot harder than I thought it would and I loved it.
Drummodino: Hmm... there are a number of extremely good ones on this site. My favourites would probably be Legion's and Eclipse Dragon's. Legion's is overwhelmingly cute and I love Madoka Magica and Eclipse's is beautifully drawn and animated. Vault101's are extremely impressive as well.
Caramel Frappe: ... I know you're interviewing me Aerosteam, but we ALL know who's got an amazing Avatar for you to ask such a question lol. I'm talking to the user as we speak >_>. (aka you have an amazing Avatar bro.)
Apart from yah, I think honestly that [user]Marter[/user] has spectacular Avatars. It's not eye drawing because it's some crazy GIF or what not ... but, it's the celebrity that he chooses. I don't know about you... but when he changes his Avatar- I notice. The quality is very top notch for a Still Picture and to top it off ... it's always in black & white which seems more appealing than it would in color. If you can make me really appreciate a black/white Still Picture as an Avatar, you've done something great.
A few other worthy nominees to mention are [user]Vault101[/user] (seriously I LOVE her Avatars... I PM her whenever she updates it), [user]Legion[/user], [user]Eclipse Dragon[/user], [user]Drummodino[/user], [user]PsychicTaco115[/user], [user]Z of the Na'vi[/user], [user]staika[/user], [user]TopazFusion[/user], [user]Neronium[/user], [user]Daystar Clarion[/user], [user]Soviet Heavy[/user], [user]lacktheknack[/user], [user]Padwolf[/user] ... argh so many that I want to give a shout out to!
If I didn't mention you, I apologize greatly. I do love your Avatar trust me! I just named the people who have worked on their Avatars and/or that drew my attention every time I glanced through the forums. Great Avatars entirely!
Aerosteam: Caramel Frappe's avatar is pretty fuckin' sexy. Redlin5, never change your avatar - it's timeless. I love it when people occasionally change their avatar but still have a theme to all of them. PsychicTaco115, keep that taco fresh. Vault 101, keep good care of your dog thing. And Eclipse Dragon, that dragon is pretty cool.[/td][/table]
[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td][HEADING=3]Why are you using the avatar you have now?[/HEADING]
Caramel Frappe: You made me this Avatar! Lol. But in all seriousness, I realized that i've been making myself Avatars for so long... that, I couldn't recall the last time I used an Avatar made by someone else. So with that, I made the Official Avatar Contest to see whom would submit the best Avatar for me to use.
Only Aerosteam (you) submitted an Avatar of combining all of my old ones into a montage with a frappe dancing. Truthfully, it's genius and I love it. As a condition of Aerosteam being the winner, I must wear it for a whole year... and I am gladly keeping my word as we speak.
Drummodino: My current avatar is Kyouko Sakura from the recent movie, Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Rebellion. I absolutely adore that movie and the character, so when I was thinking of changing my avatar that was the first thing that came to mind. The sequence it's from is gorgeous so I'm very happy with it.
Legion: I have probably made it pretty clear by now that I am a huge fan of Puella Magi Madoka Magica. With the third film out I wanted to move onto scene from that.
It isn't quite as cute as my last one, but the scene I really wanted might be considered a spoiler by some so I thought I ought to leave it until it's been out for a while (the official artwork and such shows it anyway so perhaps in a few months).
Exius Xavarus: Because I'm a Zelda nut and I love it.
Aerosteam: BattleBlock Theatre is my favourite game I've never played. Also my robot character I've made (the grey thingemy) who has appeared on several of my previous avatars fitted well in a modified gif from the game because of it's abundance of circular heads. ... Fuck(?)[/td][/table]
Caramel Frappe: You made me this Avatar! Lol. But in all seriousness, I realized that i've been making myself Avatars for so long... that, I couldn't recall the last time I used an Avatar made by someone else. So with that, I made the Official Avatar Contest to see whom would submit the best Avatar for me to use.
Only Aerosteam (you) submitted an Avatar of combining all of my old ones into a montage with a frappe dancing. Truthfully, it's genius and I love it. As a condition of Aerosteam being the winner, I must wear it for a whole year... and I am gladly keeping my word as we speak.
Drummodino: My current avatar is Kyouko Sakura from the recent movie, Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Rebellion. I absolutely adore that movie and the character, so when I was thinking of changing my avatar that was the first thing that came to mind. The sequence it's from is gorgeous so I'm very happy with it.
Legion: I have probably made it pretty clear by now that I am a huge fan of Puella Magi Madoka Magica. With the third film out I wanted to move onto scene from that.
It isn't quite as cute as my last one, but the scene I really wanted might be considered a spoiler by some so I thought I ought to leave it until it's been out for a while (the official artwork and such shows it anyway so perhaps in a few months).
Exius Xavarus: Because I'm a Zelda nut and I love it.
Aerosteam: BattleBlock Theatre is my favourite game I've never played. Also my robot character I've made (the grey thingemy) who has appeared on several of my previous avatars fitted well in a modified gif from the game because of it's abundance of circular heads. ... Fuck(?)[/td][/table]
[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td][HEADING=3]Do you use your image editing software for anything else?[/HEADING]
Caramel Frappe: Even though I closed it down... I used to use my editing skills for screen shots on Katawa Shoujo. I was doing a Let's Play on here where i'd do commentary on each scene while editing them to make the humor stand out ... however, because each Chapter contained over 200-400 screen shots, it was a LOT of work. I eventually just stopped because life was also catching up with me.
Everyone who was following the LP forgave me and that was that. However, I tend to use my editing skills for still pictures at times when making a joke during a game like Serial Killer or perhaps editing to keep my skills sharp. Either way, I am still happy to do whatever requests comes my way.
Legion: Not very often. I have used it to alter my wallpapers. Sometimes they are a little too big or the proportions are not right so I use it as a more precise way of getting it to fit.
Drummodino: Not really. Sometimes I'll make unrelated gifs just for fun or on request, but I don't do much else.
Exius Xavarus: No.
Aerosteam: Several things, mainly for making images involved with Super Smash Escapists. Also to make random shit like this.
[/td][/table]
Caramel Frappe: Even though I closed it down... I used to use my editing skills for screen shots on Katawa Shoujo. I was doing a Let's Play on here where i'd do commentary on each scene while editing them to make the humor stand out ... however, because each Chapter contained over 200-400 screen shots, it was a LOT of work. I eventually just stopped because life was also catching up with me.
Everyone who was following the LP forgave me and that was that. However, I tend to use my editing skills for still pictures at times when making a joke during a game like Serial Killer or perhaps editing to keep my skills sharp. Either way, I am still happy to do whatever requests comes my way.
Legion: Not very often. I have used it to alter my wallpapers. Sometimes they are a little too big or the proportions are not right so I use it as a more precise way of getting it to fit.
Drummodino: Not really. Sometimes I'll make unrelated gifs just for fun or on request, but I don't do much else.
Exius Xavarus: No.
Aerosteam: Several things, mainly for making images involved with Super Smash Escapists. Also to make random shit like this.
[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td][HEADING=3]Legion: If you were asked to create an avatar for any staff member or contributor, who would you pick and what would you make? (let's assume you were given free reign)[/HEADING]
Caramel Frappe: Funny ... i've done that twice actually for the same staff member lol. I made two Avatars for [user]Nasrin[/user] when she used to run the show around here. Here are the two Avatars that i've made for her.
Although that's not entirely answering the question I would presume. To answer it accurately- i'd want to make an Avatar for [user]DigitalSushi[/user] because he's been a big part of my inspiration here. A great guy overall, and he deserves a hardcore Avatar featuring a scene from Redline. It's a pretty wicked anime with extreme racing involved.
Also edit a rainbow in there or something, because Sushi is like that, just as I have frappe's in my Avatars.
Drummodino: Hmm... For the No Right Answer guys I think an Ace Attorney avatar would be pretty good. Editing their faces onto the characters as they yell at each other would be amusing!
Exius Xavarus: Once upon a time, I heard it was the "in thing" to blame Kross for everything. I'd make an avatar of him performing the "Well, what is it?" gesture from Dark Souls, followed by a Blue Screen of Death. Text appears saying "I blame Kross for this!" Even Kross blames Kross!
Aerosteam:
[/td][/table]
Caramel Frappe: Funny ... i've done that twice actually for the same staff member lol. I made two Avatars for [user]Nasrin[/user] when she used to run the show around here. Here are the two Avatars that i've made for her.
Although that's not entirely answering the question I would presume. To answer it accurately- i'd want to make an Avatar for [user]DigitalSushi[/user] because he's been a big part of my inspiration here. A great guy overall, and he deserves a hardcore Avatar featuring a scene from Redline. It's a pretty wicked anime with extreme racing involved.
Also edit a rainbow in there or something, because Sushi is like that, just as I have frappe's in my Avatars.
Drummodino: Hmm... For the No Right Answer guys I think an Ace Attorney avatar would be pretty good. Editing their faces onto the characters as they yell at each other would be amusing!
Exius Xavarus: Once upon a time, I heard it was the "in thing" to blame Kross for everything. I'd make an avatar of him performing the "Well, what is it?" gesture from Dark Souls, followed by a Blue Screen of Death. Text appears saying "I blame Kross for this!" Even Kross blames Kross!
Aerosteam:
[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td][HEADING=3]Caramel Frappe: Do you see yourself taking your skills in smithing Avatars for future purposes? Such as a career or hobby of some sort?[/HEADING]
Drummodino: It would be highly unlikely I'd make some sort of career out of this, it's more a fun little thing I enjoy doing. I've got no talent for drawing, so I'm limited in what I can actually make.
Exius Xavarus: Nope. I just do it because I can and I have time to spare.
Legion: Oh God no, I don't have enough skill or patience for that. I am happy to make them if I have the ability, but I don't see it ever going further than that.
Aerosteam: Doing this will probably help make drafts of images for video games I'll be making when I've got a job in the industry. (Don't even try to fucking talk me out of it, I've made my decision!)[/td][/table]
Drummodino: It would be highly unlikely I'd make some sort of career out of this, it's more a fun little thing I enjoy doing. I've got no talent for drawing, so I'm limited in what I can actually make.
Exius Xavarus: Nope. I just do it because I can and I have time to spare.
Legion: Oh God no, I don't have enough skill or patience for that. I am happy to make them if I have the ability, but I don't see it ever going further than that.
Aerosteam: Doing this will probably help make drafts of images for video games I'll be making when I've got a job in the industry. (Don't even try to fucking talk me out of it, I've made my decision!)[/td][/table]
[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td][HEADING=3]Drummodino: How the heck are you guys so good? The things you create blow me away sometimes, like your current avatar Aero. Very impressive I must say.[/HEADING]
Exius Xavarus: Nanomachines, son! In all seriousness, I just make things. I never really considered myself all that good, I just do what I can with what I've got.
Legion: I will assume that one is aimed at Aero and Frappe rather than myself. All my own avatars do is show off my superb taste in anime.
As for the ones I have made for other people, I've not managed anything on the level that they have.
Caramel Frappe: Thanks Drummodino! The key is ... god dang patience. People say it's all about skills or understanding your tools which is important, but it won't matter if you're not patient. Some of my greatest Avatars take ... hours. Like, the amount of time you'd spend drawing a great sketch half the day.
The first step in a great Avatar's creation is to know what you want to make. Sort of like a blueprint except it's in your mind instead of on a blue paper. Then, you gather the sources (GIFs, Youtube Clips, Images, ect) which will all be used for one single GIF/Avatar.
With that, you put the pieces together slowly, and I mean slowly. One wrong move, and it can throw the entire GIF off. For example, if I don't line up the frame with another frame when editing ... it could look like it's jumpy when watching it play out. Or perhaps it skits which totally kills the GIF itself. If worst comes to worst, you rushing through it can even disturb the quality and jam the Avatar up with unnecessary KB memory.
It's all about taking your time buddy. With that element at hand, you can do almost anything. But you also need to feel passionate while doing it, and give it your all. Otherwise you're going to have a bad time lol. Oh and practice obviously. Have you seen my first attempts? They look pretty bad in quality and not very stable. When you look at em now however... it's pretty awesome which required patience, passion, and experience.
Aerosteam: Aw shucks... I do my best. Caramel Frappe probably covered the majority of it but the most important thing for me is dedication. There's really nothing better than that sweet, sweet "thanks" you get from people which makes me love this sort of stuff and I transfer that dedication on my other works.
Also I love it when I see someone using an avatar I made for them and I'm able to say: "Yo I made dat shit."[/td][/table]
Exius Xavarus: Nanomachines, son! In all seriousness, I just make things. I never really considered myself all that good, I just do what I can with what I've got.
Legion: I will assume that one is aimed at Aero and Frappe rather than myself. All my own avatars do is show off my superb taste in anime.
As for the ones I have made for other people, I've not managed anything on the level that they have.
Caramel Frappe: Thanks Drummodino! The key is ... god dang patience. People say it's all about skills or understanding your tools which is important, but it won't matter if you're not patient. Some of my greatest Avatars take ... hours. Like, the amount of time you'd spend drawing a great sketch half the day.
The first step in a great Avatar's creation is to know what you want to make. Sort of like a blueprint except it's in your mind instead of on a blue paper. Then, you gather the sources (GIFs, Youtube Clips, Images, ect) which will all be used for one single GIF/Avatar.
With that, you put the pieces together slowly, and I mean slowly. One wrong move, and it can throw the entire GIF off. For example, if I don't line up the frame with another frame when editing ... it could look like it's jumpy when watching it play out. Or perhaps it skits which totally kills the GIF itself. If worst comes to worst, you rushing through it can even disturb the quality and jam the Avatar up with unnecessary KB memory.
It's all about taking your time buddy. With that element at hand, you can do almost anything. But you also need to feel passionate while doing it, and give it your all. Otherwise you're going to have a bad time lol. Oh and practice obviously. Have you seen my first attempts? They look pretty bad in quality and not very stable. When you look at em now however... it's pretty awesome which required patience, passion, and experience.
Aerosteam: Aw shucks... I do my best. Caramel Frappe probably covered the majority of it but the most important thing for me is dedication. There's really nothing better than that sweet, sweet "thanks" you get from people which makes me love this sort of stuff and I transfer that dedication on my other works.
Also I love it when I see someone using an avatar I made for them and I'm able to say: "Yo I made dat shit."[/td][/table]
[HEADING=2]Legion[/HEADING]I don't save avatars that I have made for other people on my computer. Once people have declared they are satisfied with what's been made I delete them. I am a little OCD like that...
My previous avatar (which I wouldn't be surprised if I went back to at some point).
---
This is probably my favourite one I have made for somebody else. Mostly because I just like the idea behind it.
---
Whereas this is probably the funniest concept.
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This is probably my favourite one I have made for somebody else. Mostly because I just like the idea behind it.
---
Whereas this is probably the funniest concept.
[HEADING=2]Drummodino[/HEADING]...
Myself - Kasane Teto
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Unused - Harime Nui March Mayhem
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Living_Brain - March Mayhem
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Ed130 The Vanguard - March Mayhem
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Anti-American Eagle - March Mayhem
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Unused - Harime Nui March Mayhem
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Living_Brain - March Mayhem
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Ed130 The Vanguard - March Mayhem
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Anti-American Eagle - March Mayhem
[HEADING=2]Exius Xavarus [small](There were problems sending stuff through PMs so we had to use emails.)[/small][/HEADING]They're just some of my favorites that I've done.
And to clarify, LBLink was drawn by Eclipse Dragon, not me. I simply created the avatar, itself, out of her drawing.
And to clarify, LBLink was drawn by Eclipse Dragon, not me. I simply created the avatar, itself, out of her drawing.
[HEADING=2]Caramel Frappe[/HEADING]Here are my Absolute Best Avatars!
Do note, that they're all made by me because they were meant for me lol.
Do note, that they're all made by me because they were meant for me lol.
Hanako Snuggles Rainbow Dash
This is perhaps, my all time best. Not only did it require everything that I needed to know in order to make it... but also, create the animation of a still picture out of nothingness. Paid off in the end for sure.
The amount of feedback, likes, and comments on it were crazy! People loved it, and I loved it all the more. A piece that will always be with me because it's pure gold. A very, cute GIF that makes you go HHNNNHGG- gold.
---
Misha Laughs having a Frappe
This one is unique to me. All I did was edit a frappe into a hand of hers, then edited both into the GIF to make it look the part. However, it suited me perfectly ... it was my favorite for the longest time. The first Avatar that satisfied me long enough to keep it for a year and a half. That's a RECORD since I tend to frequently change Avatars.
Even now, I miss wearing this. But luckily it's part of my montage Avatar which is amazing still. Thanks Aerosteam!!
---
Chrysalis Enjoys the Frappe
I made this right after MLP: FiM's Season 2 finished up. Had the final villain enjoying a frappe, in which drew many eyes towards my Avatar. Got a lot of compliments, praise, and most of all... probably quoted a lot in forums due to people recognizing me all the easier. Not always the best thing though since most quotes were hostile haha.
---
Nui Working while having a Frappe
... Oh ... man. The amount of time placed in animating that invisible arm. Whew~ it was tough. But worth it after I finished. Really liked this one because it showed that there are no limits on what you can create.
I wore this for some time. Maybe a few months before changing my Avatar- but I must say... it's still an amazing piece of my collection. Not to mention, it inspires me out of any other Avatar to continue making more. It's my motivator.
---
Hybrid Girl Enjoys the Frappe
Before we got 115 x 115 Avatars, I made this Avatar with what I could work with. That is, not much KB ... yet, it was pulled off (surprisingly). Really loved the movie this girl came off, thus I had to somewhat alter her face to make it look like she was drinking from the frappe.
Also it was appreciated by people who have remembered or almost forgotten about the movie itself. A nice Avatar to always keep at my side since.
---
Satsuki Must have the Frappe!
Although I am not that big of a MLP fan anymore... it's still clear that I liked the show. When making this Avatar, I wanted to show life! I wanted to be creative just like what I did with the Nui Avatar. Then it hit me...
So I was going to have Satsuki drink tea .. only for this well known pony known as Fluffle Puff slap it out of her hand and offer a frappe. At the end, it was random but totally hilarious to me. I got some comments and many wondering what made me come up with this idea. Honestly? No clue, but I love Satsuki as a character so yeah, wanted more going for her Avatar.
---
Madara Owning March Mayhem
This Avatar made history with The Escapist. It wasn't praised nor given love like the other Avatars... but it's existence caused a change on the website.
During March Mayhem, I came up with this idea of slapping March Madness logos onto the ninja's faces as Madara wiped them out. However, each scene was very important to keep so the GIF looked solid. However, it's KB memory went over 800!! So with that, I decided to request if the pub members can have at least 400 KB memory. I deleted enough frames and made some changes so the GIF was good, but could not go any lower than 400 KB or else it'd look off.
With the help of the Avatar Store, and people backing me up... we were able to make the limit to 400 KB. SO this Avatar is a reminder of the achievement me and my fellow Avatar Smiths did. I remember getting a lot of feedback thanking us for allowing their Avatars to have 400 KB Avatars. What a day it was....
This is perhaps, my all time best. Not only did it require everything that I needed to know in order to make it... but also, create the animation of a still picture out of nothingness. Paid off in the end for sure.
The amount of feedback, likes, and comments on it were crazy! People loved it, and I loved it all the more. A piece that will always be with me because it's pure gold. A very, cute GIF that makes you go HHNNNHGG- gold.
---
Misha Laughs having a Frappe
This one is unique to me. All I did was edit a frappe into a hand of hers, then edited both into the GIF to make it look the part. However, it suited me perfectly ... it was my favorite for the longest time. The first Avatar that satisfied me long enough to keep it for a year and a half. That's a RECORD since I tend to frequently change Avatars.
Even now, I miss wearing this. But luckily it's part of my montage Avatar which is amazing still. Thanks Aerosteam!!
---
Chrysalis Enjoys the Frappe
I made this right after MLP: FiM's Season 2 finished up. Had the final villain enjoying a frappe, in which drew many eyes towards my Avatar. Got a lot of compliments, praise, and most of all... probably quoted a lot in forums due to people recognizing me all the easier. Not always the best thing though since most quotes were hostile haha.
---
Nui Working while having a Frappe
... Oh ... man. The amount of time placed in animating that invisible arm. Whew~ it was tough. But worth it after I finished. Really liked this one because it showed that there are no limits on what you can create.
I wore this for some time. Maybe a few months before changing my Avatar- but I must say... it's still an amazing piece of my collection. Not to mention, it inspires me out of any other Avatar to continue making more. It's my motivator.
---
Hybrid Girl Enjoys the Frappe
Before we got 115 x 115 Avatars, I made this Avatar with what I could work with. That is, not much KB ... yet, it was pulled off (surprisingly). Really loved the movie this girl came off, thus I had to somewhat alter her face to make it look like she was drinking from the frappe.
Also it was appreciated by people who have remembered or almost forgotten about the movie itself. A nice Avatar to always keep at my side since.
---
Satsuki Must have the Frappe!
Although I am not that big of a MLP fan anymore... it's still clear that I liked the show. When making this Avatar, I wanted to show life! I wanted to be creative just like what I did with the Nui Avatar. Then it hit me...
So I was going to have Satsuki drink tea .. only for this well known pony known as Fluffle Puff slap it out of her hand and offer a frappe. At the end, it was random but totally hilarious to me. I got some comments and many wondering what made me come up with this idea. Honestly? No clue, but I love Satsuki as a character so yeah, wanted more going for her Avatar.
---
Madara Owning March Mayhem
This Avatar made history with The Escapist. It wasn't praised nor given love like the other Avatars... but it's existence caused a change on the website.
During March Mayhem, I came up with this idea of slapping March Madness logos onto the ninja's faces as Madara wiped them out. However, each scene was very important to keep so the GIF looked solid. However, it's KB memory went over 800!! So with that, I decided to request if the pub members can have at least 400 KB memory. I deleted enough frames and made some changes so the GIF was good, but could not go any lower than 400 KB or else it'd look off.
With the help of the Avatar Store, and people backing me up... we were able to make the limit to 400 KB. SO this Avatar is a reminder of the achievement me and my fellow Avatar Smiths did. I remember getting a lot of feedback thanking us for allowing their Avatars to have 400 KB Avatars. What a day it was....
[HEADING=2]Aerosteam[/HEADING]Here is every avatar I have made for someone else.
.
.
[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td]Have a question to ask any of the artists about any topic, or anything to do with the Creative Spotlight in general? Ask away! Are you creative or know an Escapist who is? Nominate away![/td][/table]
[table border="1" cellpadding="1"][td]Super secret but not really project! If you want to help out with something I have planned for the community here which is going to be really fucking cool, PM me saying you want to! I'd like anyone to help! But you must have a kinda okay microphone![/td][/table]
