Processing is a programming language for people who want to create images, animations, and interactions. It’s free (and open source) and you can find out more about it at processing.org

I spent a month last year experimenting with Processing, and had a lot of fun doing so, and I ended the month with a piece I called the Make A Sketch which I debuted at the first Bay View Gallery Night.

So if you’re interested in creating interactive pieces using Processing, I’ll be one of three instructors leading a workshop about it on February 23rd, 2011. There’s more info here.

I love this article… Need Extra Money for the Holidays? Just Become a Photographer!

Why do I love it? Because it’s hilarious…

Most of us in the creative and/or technology industry have had to deal with this.

Designers, web developers, photographers, you name it.

Since the price of computers, software, cameras, and other previously expensive or specialized equipment has come down to the level that the average person can afford them, everyone thinks they are a designer, or web developer, or photographer.

And don’t get me wrong, I’m all for people learning new skills and trying their hand at making money with those skills, but if it were that easy, we’d all be doing it, and we’d all be rich… or broke… or something.

And I’m not about to tell people they are ruining an industry. If you love doing something, then you should do it. If you can provide amazing work cheaper than someone else, go for it. It’ll be up to you to decide if you’re ruining an industry. But keep in mind, after years of honing your craft, someone else will come along and offer to do what you do even cheaper. That’s just how it works.

Whew, I didn’t mean to get all heavy there… What I meant was, Happy Holidays! And if you need extra cash this holiday season, you might have better luck looking for loose change in the couch cushions than you will if you have no photography skills and try selling portraits of people after the fact.

Happy New Year! :)

Here’s a great blog post for creatives about the “you’ll get great exposure” line. We’ve all been handed this line. Someone wants you to work for cheap, or for free, and explains that the exposure you get from the project will make up for the lack of money.

This is the important bit:

You cannot eat exposure, nor pay your rent with it, nor buy health insurance with it, nor put it in an exposure bank for a rainy day. You need money for all of that. That is the trade – you trade your time and work for the client’s money. You both need something from the other. Exposure can be a byproduct of this transaction, but it should NEVER be the basis for it.

As always, you can choose who you work for, and how much you charge them (or don’t charge them) but getting paid in “exposure” will only get you so far. If you want to do work for exposure, it should be on your own terms.

(And that illustration above? It was done by Scott Benson, the (awesome) artist who wrote the post, and deserves all the exposure he’ll get from this post. :)

Hat tip to Paul for this one.

I’m a bit of a fan of creativity challenges (and yes, I’ve done a few myself) so when I heard that The Pfister Hotel’s current Artist in Residence Shelby Keefe was planning to do 30 painting in 30 days, I was excited to see the outcome. Oh, I should mention, I’m also a big fan of Shelby’s work.

The theme of her 30 paintings is “People in Urban Landscapes” and if you know her work, you should know that’s a perfect theme for her to tackle. Check out the Pfister Blog for more info about the project.

Want to see these painting and other work by Shelby? You’re in luck! Fall Gallery Night is October 21, 2011. Stop by and check it out!

If you’re not familiar with Kickstarter, it’s a pretty amazing thing. It’s basically a web site that allows creatives to pitch their ideas, and for people to support those ideas with monetary pledges.

This is just a little bit revolutionary. Years ago if you wanted to record an album, or produce a film, you had to raise enough money up front to rent studio time and equipment, and pay for any expenses like a crew or consumables out of your own pocket. Now you can pitch your idea, and if enough people believe in it, they become stakeholders in making it happen. As the artist, you get the money only if you have enough backers to reach the goal. What is the goal? It’s the dollar amount that you set. And that’s the tricky part… determining what to ask for. Ask for too much, and if you don’t get enough backers to reach the goal, you get nothing. Ask for too little, and if you didn’t properly estimate the cost of your project, you may end up funding a good chunk of it yourself. (There are fees taken out of the total by Kickstarter, transaction agents, etc.)

There are also rewards. If you back the Sensu Brush at the $25 level, you actually get one of them, with the knowledge that the final product will probably cost $5 to $10 more. This is a great way to get people to back your project. Determining rewards at the various levels is another way to convince people to back your project, and the folks behind the Sensu Brush have done a good job. They were hoping to get $7,500 and are currently at $37,412. So well over 1,000 people thought this would make an awesome product and were willing to put down some money to make it happen.

But as we in the marketing world know, having a great idea is only part of the battle. You also need to tell people about your great idea, and then execute your great idea. That “tell people” part is called marketing. I’ve seen a lot of projects on Kickstarter, and one of the things I like to see is a good video that clearly explains things. Add to that a good title, descriptive text, images/photos, and any relevant links, and you’ve come much closer to getting my money.

Maybe it’s not surprising that designers on Kickstarter are doing pretty good. They tend to get the marketing part of it. Take a look at the design category and see if you find something you’d be willing to back…