If you're a biker and you've never heard of Johnny's Bar and Grill, you really should educate yourself. To that end, I can direct you to the most recent edition of the Roadshow Podcast, which I'm no co-producing with Beemerman.
Last week, before the Fourth of July biker converence on Hollister (yeah, it was smaller this year), I got a chance to sit and talk to Charisse Tyson, owner of Johnny's, to talk about her bar, the history of bikerdom in Hollister, and the state of the traditional Independence Day event here in town.
You can hear it at the Roadshow.
During the weekend, while selling my world famous biker cartoon t-shirts at Bolado Park in Hollister, I got a chance to meet a good number of people from a lot of places. One of the most represented clubs was Wind & Fire MC, a brotherhood of firefighters who ride Harleys and raise money for kids hospitals. They had chapters from Irving, Texas; Colorado; "The State of Jefferson"; Santa Cruz; and a variety of other places. I happen to know that they went to Johnny's.
While wrapping up Saturday night, I met WFMC member from Colorado who had actually heard the podcast and knows who I am. I must say, it was a little humbling. He shared a few stories about his club and I look forward to featuring them on the Roadshow Podcast sometime in the near future.
Sunday, July 05, 2009
Thursday, July 02, 2009
Experiments in Photoshop
Yesterday I took up some couch space with my oldest son for a viewing of Disney's Oliver, an animated remake of the Dickens classic with a cat playing the title role. It was my idea to watch it, but my son eventually enjoyed the film tremendously.
He was primarily interested in the characters (mostly animals), the story, the action, and even the music. I, on the other hand, got interested in the backgrouns as soon as the show started.
What caught my attention was that the backgrounds appear to be either extremely well represented drawings, drawings traced from photos, or drawings run through some slick Photoshop techniqe to make them work as animation backgrounds. There was a variety of expression and style without sacrificing harmony.
As a guy who occassionally animated, but whose background work is more or less unsatisfying, I began to wonder if I could create backgrounds for my animations in Photoshop, so I found a road shot and tried a few things out in Photoshop.
He was primarily interested in the characters (mostly animals), the story, the action, and even the music. I, on the other hand, got interested in the backgrouns as soon as the show started.
What caught my attention was that the backgrounds appear to be either extremely well represented drawings, drawings traced from photos, or drawings run through some slick Photoshop techniqe to make them work as animation backgrounds. There was a variety of expression and style without sacrificing harmony.
As a guy who occassionally animated, but whose background work is more or less unsatisfying, I began to wonder if I could create backgrounds for my animations in Photoshop, so I found a road shot and tried a few things out in Photoshop.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Redesigning and refocusing the Cartoon Thunder Web Site
I've never spent so much time meticulously working out a site design before. Well, that may not be true--my recent redesign of the Gypsy Tour Motorcycle Classic, Inc, site was a big step up for me in site design.
But in approaching a new design for Cartoon Thunder, I'm not just setting up a new look for the site, new ways of displaying my scribbles. I'm actually changing the way I do business at Cartoon Thunder by making space in the design of the site and the layout of the pages for regularly renewing material.
Yeah, talk is cheap. We'll see how it is when the rubber hits the road and it's actually done a few miles.
But some of the new stuff includes:
But in approaching a new design for Cartoon Thunder, I'm not just setting up a new look for the site, new ways of displaying my scribbles. I'm actually changing the way I do business at Cartoon Thunder by making space in the design of the site and the layout of the pages for regularly renewing material.
Yeah, talk is cheap. We'll see how it is when the rubber hits the road and it's actually done a few miles.
But some of the new stuff includes:
- A weekly comic strip, though I'm not sure if I should release new stuff if I hope to save up for syndication later on...
- A shop profile section, where I'll talk about a shop somewhere. There are a few benefits to this, including the possibility of reciprocal links and additional SEO-age.
- A link to the Roadshow Podcast, which I am now co-hosting with my good friend Beemerman.
- Fan following links to my Facebook and Twitter feeds.
- Product profiles of stuff I sell in my store.
- A riding tips section.
I'm also going about the technology of the site differently by using div tags instead of table layouts. If you know what this means, you know it's a good idea. If you have no idea and don't care, just watch. It means a smoother looking site and better functionality, causing it to look more like a newspaper and less like a grid with stuff meticulously sized to fit.
Hopefully I'll have something to show for my talk soon.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Web site goes live, cards go dead, thumbnail drawings
I gotta get my scanner hooked up to my laptop. Or something...
I picked up a small sketch pad--it's so small I can get out of the house with it without my wife being hip to the fact that every outing can now include a sketch, like a wedding we went to recently, a visit to a local church, a birthday party for one of my 4 year old's contemporaries. The smaller size forces me to draw small and think in shorthand. It's pretty effective in focusing my design skills.
The biker nativity scene I blogged about a few times is dead in the water. I hoped to have it done by Monday so I could submit some cards to J&P Cycle for release in their catalog, but my concept wasn't clear or planned out from the start, so the more I worked it, the more it sucked. Maybe next year...
GOOD STUFF: My redesign of the Gypsy Tour Motorcycle Classic, Inc. website was accepted and is now live. I've been given the go ahead to sell advertising on it and have a cool section that allows site visitors to find their way to Bolado Park (just south of Hollister) from a variety of starting points by a variety of paths. I think this feature is pretty cool, even Google does all the hard stuff.
While there are a few visual shifts in content, it feels more solid than the original and better than my first draft. A friend who knows this stuff pretty well encouraged me to ditch my table layout habit and get on the div bandwagon, which demands that I learn some new skills, but promotes cleaner and more efficient design. Very cool.
I picked up a small sketch pad--it's so small I can get out of the house with it without my wife being hip to the fact that every outing can now include a sketch, like a wedding we went to recently, a visit to a local church, a birthday party for one of my 4 year old's contemporaries. The smaller size forces me to draw small and think in shorthand. It's pretty effective in focusing my design skills.
The biker nativity scene I blogged about a few times is dead in the water. I hoped to have it done by Monday so I could submit some cards to J&P Cycle for release in their catalog, but my concept wasn't clear or planned out from the start, so the more I worked it, the more it sucked. Maybe next year...
GOOD STUFF: My redesign of the Gypsy Tour Motorcycle Classic, Inc. website was accepted and is now live. I've been given the go ahead to sell advertising on it and have a cool section that allows site visitors to find their way to Bolado Park (just south of Hollister) from a variety of starting points by a variety of paths. I think this feature is pretty cool, even Google does all the hard stuff.
While there are a few visual shifts in content, it feels more solid than the original and better than my first draft. A friend who knows this stuff pretty well encouraged me to ditch my table layout habit and get on the div bandwagon, which demands that I learn some new skills, but promotes cleaner and more efficient design. Very cool.
Wednesday, June 03, 2009
Gypsy Tour Motorcycle Classic Web Site
I've been busy working on a new site design for the Gypsy Tour Motorcycle Classic during some spare (or found) hours in the last few days. So far it's not approved (or even asked for), but I'm confident they'll like the results.
If I get to do the site for next year it'll be a lot more spiffy, but for now this goes pretty good. My primary goals are to get the site up in search rankings, make it more navigable, and put more usable information. My friend Jimmy suggested the possibility of selling advertising spots on some of the pages, so I've built that possibility.
Another cool feature is the use of embedded Google maps in popup windows that allow users to pick from a variety of routes from each direction. I will likely use an image map to link these up as it makes the behaviors easier to handle in Dreamweaver. It'll be slicker that way, too.
None of it is at this point approved, but I think it'll go over well. I hope to stop by on the way to work in the morning and get them to give it a look.
If I get to do the site for next year it'll be a lot more spiffy, but for now this goes pretty good. My primary goals are to get the site up in search rankings, make it more navigable, and put more usable information. My friend Jimmy suggested the possibility of selling advertising spots on some of the pages, so I've built that possibility.
Another cool feature is the use of embedded Google maps in popup windows that allow users to pick from a variety of routes from each direction. I will likely use an image map to link these up as it makes the behaviors easier to handle in Dreamweaver. It'll be slicker that way, too.
None of it is at this point approved, but I think it'll go over well. I hope to stop by on the way to work in the morning and get them to give it a look.
Tuesday, June 02, 2009
More about the Gypsy Tour Motorcycle Classic!
I'm pretty excited...
On the way to work today I stopped off to meet one of the main people involved in the Gypsy Tour Motorcycle Classic, the event held at Bolado Park this year during the July 4 weekend.
As you may know, the last few years have been a bit bumpy with the traditional Independence Rally in Hollister due to finances, management, and general disagreement over the rally by local leaders and law enforcement. I won't get too detailed about it here, but suffice it to say that the rally got pretty well sandbagged and sunk.
It's very possible that the GTMC marks a new beginning for the event that celebrates the 1947 "riot" that resulted in the idea of the American Biker as a hard riding typed fashioned after the western outlaw, a scofflaw who lived in the wind and rode steel and leather down the highway.
With the July 4 event in private hands and out of the city proper, it's likely to bring it back to the kind of event bikers dug before big business smelled money and got involved. I think this also means the possibility of a lot more fun.
But I digress... my conversation was about the possibility of selling my Cartoon Thunder biker gear. It took only a few minutes to get the support I need to get a spot at the event, as well as look for ways to support the event with my own efforts and expertise in graphics and web design.
Stay tooned in the next few weeks for more on this developing story.
On the way to work today I stopped off to meet one of the main people involved in the Gypsy Tour Motorcycle Classic, the event held at Bolado Park this year during the July 4 weekend.
As you may know, the last few years have been a bit bumpy with the traditional Independence Rally in Hollister due to finances, management, and general disagreement over the rally by local leaders and law enforcement. I won't get too detailed about it here, but suffice it to say that the rally got pretty well sandbagged and sunk.
It's very possible that the GTMC marks a new beginning for the event that celebrates the 1947 "riot" that resulted in the idea of the American Biker as a hard riding typed fashioned after the western outlaw, a scofflaw who lived in the wind and rode steel and leather down the highway.
With the July 4 event in private hands and out of the city proper, it's likely to bring it back to the kind of event bikers dug before big business smelled money and got involved. I think this also means the possibility of a lot more fun.
But I digress... my conversation was about the possibility of selling my Cartoon Thunder biker gear. It took only a few minutes to get the support I need to get a spot at the event, as well as look for ways to support the event with my own efforts and expertise in graphics and web design.
Stay tooned in the next few weeks for more on this developing story.
Monday, June 01, 2009
The Roadshow Podcast
My good friend the Beemerman recently invited me to co-host the Roadshow Podcast. The Roadshow comes out two times a month, and yesterday we worked on the most recent release, featuring mechanic Manny Macias. Manny is now an instructor at MMI in Pheonix, Arizona, but worked as a chassis technician with a race crew for several years. His interview is engaging and interesting for riders and non-riders of all kinds.
I also had a chance to pitch this year's Hollister event, which could signal a new way of doing the Hollister Independence Day weekend for bikers. Gypsy Tour Motorcycles, Inc. is putting the event on at Bolado Park, also known as the San Benito Fairgrounds. Since the event is on private property, it may be able to develop into something new. If it really takes off I suspect that the main events will be at Bolado while other campgrounds and event centers may develop as well. Naturally folks will be hanging out at a few downtown places like Johnny's and Mars Hill, a new coffee joint on the main drag.
I also had a chance to pitch this year's Hollister event, which could signal a new way of doing the Hollister Independence Day weekend for bikers. Gypsy Tour Motorcycles, Inc. is putting the event on at Bolado Park, also known as the San Benito Fairgrounds. Since the event is on private property, it may be able to develop into something new. If it really takes off I suspect that the main events will be at Bolado while other campgrounds and event centers may develop as well. Naturally folks will be hanging out at a few downtown places like Johnny's and Mars Hill, a new coffee joint on the main drag.
Putting the name Gypsy Travelers on the event really calls back to the roots of the Hollister event to before the 1947 "Riot" that made headlines with the staged image of a drunk on a bike surrounded by empty bottles. The implications of this is an interesting move considering the controversy surrouning the de-sanctioning of the event.
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