Any EZ Graphic Design Software for CD Covers?

[Slackerprince]

I'm wondering if there are any easy to use graphic design softwares for doing illustrations or cover art for CD's.
I've never used Photoshop or anything else, so, we're talkng E-Z.
Also, free is good, and with tutorials or something.
Thanks for any suggestions.

S

[Release]

I hate to say it but please just pay someone else to do it. A CD cover says a lot about your band and I can't even begin to tell you how many bands I've never even given a listen to because the cover was so unprofessional.

But then again, I'm a designer so I'm obviously biased and notice these things more than some people do. It just kills me that people spend so much time and effort on learning their instrument and on the recording itself only to have an amateur presentation pull the whole thing down.

[enocaster]

I hate to say it but please just pay someone else to do it. A CD cover says a lot about your band and I can't even begin to tell you how many bands I've never even given a listen to because the cover was so unprofessional.

But then again, I'm a designer so I'm obviously biased and notice these things more than some people do. It just kills me that people spend so much time and effort on learning their instrument and on the recording itself only to have an amateur presentation pull the whole thing down.

+1 to this from another pro designer.

If you still want to do it yourself, there's always Microsoft Word. Import a picture, put some text on top and you'll have "something".

Rookie mistakes to avoid:
Using gimmick fonts (Sand, Comic Sans, etc)
Using too many fonts - pick one or 2 and stick with them.
Too many colors - pick a palette of 2 or 3 colors
Type effects and photo filters - so tempting for noobs, but please don't texturize, bevel, emboss, and gradient fill your logo. A subtle drop-shadow can be nice…
Spell check!

[Slackerprince]

Thanks.
This would just be for a hobby-band project and not intended for any serious commercial consumption.
Not looking to get fancy, just get something.

S

[jackevorkian]

Just take the time to learn Photoshop and Illustrator. As long as you have a solid vision of what you want the artwork to look like, you can find your way through Adobe pretty easily...especially with a "how to book" as a reference.

The real skill is in the conceptual design.

[Slackerprince]

Just take the time to learn Photoshop and Illustrator. As long as you have a solid vision of what you want the artwork to look like, you can find your way through Adobe pretty easily...especially with a "how to book" as a reference.

The real skill is in the conceptual design.

Are Photoshop and Adobe available to learn for free?
Sorry to be so lazy.
I'll look for a "For Dummies" book.
Thanks for the suggestions!

S

[Slackerprince]

I found these, but not sure where to start:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_4_9?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=photoshop+for+dummies&sprefix=photoshop

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_4_9?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=photoshop+for+dummies&sprefix=photoshop#/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_7_11?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=illustrator+for+dummies&sprefix=illustrator&rh=n%3A283155%2Ck%3Aillustrator+for+dummies

S

[Release]

Maybe try Gimp? I've never used it but its free and looks like it does a lot of the stuff Photoshop can.

[Trego]

I'd find a friend with some skill and let them do it, because illustrator and photoshop take a LONG time to learn.

One tip, is rather than reinvent the wheel, find some designs of CD's you already like, and use those as a starting point.

If you really want to try and do it yourself, GIMP is a good photoshop clone, and Paint.NET which is a overhauled version of MS-Paint.

One really important thing, is stay away from cheesy fonts.

We should create a blacklist...

[Trego]

FONT BLACKLIST

- Comic Sans
- Papyrus
- Wingdings

...and almost every script font

[enocaster]

UPDATED FONT BLACKLIST

- Comic Sans
- Papyrus
- Wingdings
- Sand
- Impact

[Slackerprince]

Just found this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h8xcuT48QzA&feature=related

I think I'll start there, then start shopping for a pro. :)
Thanks for all the helpful suggestions.

S

[Release]

...and please.... please..... never, ever use the emboss filter in photoshop. In fact, any filter in the "stylize" menu is off limits. And come to think of it, you can ignore about 85% of ALL the filters in Photoshop. Some are useful, but you can immediately see how long someone's been using Photoshop by the filters. Emboss, Find Edges..... that instantly says "I just got Photoshop and it's really cool!!!".