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Friday, June 17, 2011

Creating Effective Posters

At The Center for Spiritual Living, Santa Rosa we have an extensive display of posters announcing upcoming events that may be of interest to our community. We have been on a long journey of learning how to use posters effectively and with some advice from designers and people in-the-know when it comes to advertising. Over time we have made some successful adjustments that have taught us how to create an effective event poster for our nonprofit organization. Now we notice people spend more time viewing our display of posters, whereas before we honed our skills, they tended to move past the display quickly.

Less Is More
Through trial and error we have discovered that the first and most important piece of advice has been 'less is more,' a concept that when practiced in poster making seems to increase interest and comprehension. At first we wrestled with our desire to get as much information in front of the reader as possible, until we learned that in general people are overwhelmed by information, they have information fatigue. It seems that if they do not see and 'get' what they are interested in by the first glance of the poster, they are likely to move on. We try to let the poster answer the viewer's question "What will I take away from this event?"

Let The Picture Tell The Story
We learned to 'let the picture tell the story,' so that a poster - even from a distance - announces through its photo/graphic "John Doe Is Coming," or "If You Like Famous Person You'll Like This Class." In other words, let the visual be your primary creative concern: what do I want the people to 'get' right away when they look at this poster?

Be Selective
Next, we had to be selective and have two or three large print sentences or bullets that clearly state what the interested person will get out of attending the event or class. So dominating each poster is 1) Title of event 2) Graphic elements that tell the story and 3) Short key information that is easy to read. Long descriptions of the content or extensive biographies of the presenter are best presented elsewhere, for example on a website.

More Information Available
On the lower portion of the poster - say the lower quarter - information about date, cost and where more information can be found, is printed in considerably smaller text. This is because these details do not need to compete for attention. If the graphic element, title and key elements have done the job by attracting interested people, these are the people are most likely to step closer to look for the additional details, and you want to be sure they know where to go to get it.


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6354926
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Tuesday, June 14, 2011

What's On My iPhone: iPhotoMosaic

iPhotoMosaic is a free app that allows you to create a mosaic look from one of your own photographs.  The app can use your iPhone photos or you can draw upon the free i Photo Mosaic Album.   After the app loads you have the option to take a new photo for your main photo or load one from your existing photographs. 

The cute cocktail shaker image guides you to take the next step to select what you would like to use as the tiles to create your mosaic look.  Once you've done that, you get to shake it all up.  Beware the annoying cocktail icy shaker sounds - well, kind fun at first.
After a thourough shaking the result is a mosaic look, as you can see from the example below.  Not exactly a mosaic, more of an overlay of photographs to give the look.
Here is an example of a completed photo mosaic by iPhotoMosaic using my own photographs.  I've zoomed in to let you see how the actual photos have been colored to adapted to the main photo elements. 

Even so - it's a great effect and an app I enjoy.
The App is provided by Seoul Tourism Organization


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Thursday, June 9, 2011

WHat's On My iPhone: Cleartune Chromatic Tuner

The other day when my harp's neck snapped (that's another story entirely) and I had to quickly dig out a small practice harp I had tucked away in its warm fuzzy carry bag, I realized I was going to have to tune this puppy every day for a while because it had been out of service for a while.

I left my tuner at work where the snapped harp had discombobulated me entirely.  At home, I wondered if I was up to tuning by ear - when a friend mentioned that he had a very easy to use and accurate chromatic tuner on his iPhone called Cleartune.

I downloaded it and wow!  It lets me quickly and accurately tune up anything using the iPhone's mic.  And the app site says it's availble on Android too.

The app features a wheel which quickly finds the note you're plucking and shows you just how close or far you are from being perfectly in tune.

After tuning my practice harp I started poking around t the other features, some of which I probably will never use, but wow again.  It supports custom temperaments, transposition and you can adjust the calibration.

I can't imagine an instrument that could not use Clearune.  I love it.  Best few dollars I spent recently, well, except for that Tall Latte.

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/cleartune-chromatic-tuner/id286799607?mt=8

http://www.bitcount.com/cleartune/
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Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Stress Out Of Balance. An Interfaith Law Enforcement Chaplain Speaks

Warren Hays is the Executive Director of the Law Enforcement Chaplaincy Service in Sonoma County.  I asked him recently to tell me what he had learned about stress as a result of being a chaplain and through his life ministery in general.  Here in his words is a powerful reframe of the way stress is thought about and practical advice for how to reduce stress in life in general. 


 
STRESS OUT OF BALANCE

When you hear the word, “stress,” what is the first thing that comes to mind? For many it triggers a negative response. Stress is something bad, to be avoided, unpleasant, an unfortunate dynamic of life. Stress is something that causes pain, discomfort and avoidance. I would like to propose a little different slant on stress if I may. Stress, as defined by Webster includes these meanings: “A force or system of forces producing a strain, or a specific response by the body to a stimulus, as fear or pain.” Or this; “Inordinate fear or pain may interfere with the normal physiological, emotional strain or tension.” Remember, fear and pain as well as stress do not harm us. Actually the opposite is true as they keep us alive and well. It is the dynamic of checks and balances that constitutes what it means to be a healthy human being.

Stress got me out of bed this morning. Stress draws me to my wife for conversation, affection and connection. Stress causes me to water my plants and my vegetable garden. Stress will help me accomplish all I have to do today and to do a good job. Our physical bodies, minds and spirits or souls if you will, continually exert a proper degree of stress on specific parts of our being that need stimulation and nurturing. Let me explain! If one has not eaten for several hours the body will exert a mildly stressful feeling which we may call hunger pangs. Sexual urges are produced by desire as the natural functions of the body send signals of stress to the mind that a need is there. One might apply this dynamic of stress to all functions of human life which include desire and need, especially those essential for good health. Ever feel stress when taking a long trip and as you are in dire need of finding a rest room? While it feels like a negative experience it is actually the body expressing the need for relief and quick relief at that! It’s a good thing, right? The relief is almost worth the pain!

When seeing stress as a positive dynamic of life that actually is very necessary for our survival, stress actually becomes our friend and we may appreciate and understand it in new ways. When stress moves outside the needed checks and balances of our normal healthy zone, we become over-stressed and it can become our enemy just like fear or pain. Circumstances can cause this as well as disease, depression and other maladies of our existence. Too much of anything including good things can hurt us if not held within the proper tension of body, mind and spirit. Practices such as meditation, prayer, contemplation can assist us in dealing with stress out of balance. Always remember, it is not the circumstance that causes unhealthy stress, it is our response to it.

For me, the greatest stress regulator is gratitude. It is also a good remedy for worry which causes negative stress. I have learned how to be thankful even in the most difficult situations. I actually find a quiet place and speak verbally all I am grateful for, even for the difficulties in life as they help me grow and be all that I can be. I see gratitude as a dynamic that keeps the proper tension between unhealthy stress and normal stress that is so conducive to healthy living.

http://www.sonomalawchaplains.org/home/

The Law Enforcement Chaplaincy Service in Sonoma County is incorporated in California as a non-constituent, non-profit organization. We are also a non-profit 501c3 organization with the IRS, Federal ID number 68-0424491.

Our mission is to respond to requests from law enforcement and provide immediate emotional support and follow up care to them and to the members of our community who have suffered tragedy and loss. We are an interfaith community of compassionate volunteers without religious, political, or legal agendas.
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Wednesday, June 1, 2011

From The Center With Lila Atchison

Greetings,

Here is the latest episode of From The Center, featuring young adult, Lila Atchison:

http://edblogword.blogspot.com/p/from-centernet.html

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