How to Create an Animated Twitter Avatar

Want to catch people's eye as they are scrolling down their tweets, or looking at other people's Followers? Then give an animated avatar a try!

The trick is, however, to find the line between eye-catching and annoyingly distracting. I've seen web cam video used as well as screen recordings. Slide show videos would work as well.
My first attempt was annoyingly distracting, and a Follower asked me to tone it down a bit - which I did. Some people will simply stop following, but that doesn't bother me. I love looking at other people's animations - it's like looking through a virtual window to their soul!

1. If you are going to use a video clip, pull it into a video editing program to grab about 4 seconds worth (Twitter avatars must be under 700 kb). Or create one from scratch, like a slide show video, web cam recording or slide show video. REMEMBER that it will LOOP over and over, so watch to make sure there isn't a jarring jump between the end and the beginning of the video. Windows Movie Maker, the Commercial Creation Center (http://www.CommercialCreationCenter.com) or Camtasia are great creation and editing tools - you just decide which one is easy enough for you to learn quickly. Save the video as a .wmv if you are NOT creating it in Camtasia. You'll see the directions below for how to "produce" it in Camtasia.

2. The most important thing Camtasia will do is produce the video as an animated GIF. If you have Camtasia (there's a free version available), you can do the creating, editing and outputting in there as well. Choose 150 x 112 pixels as the final size, which is the standard thumbnail size. If you don't want to use Camtasia, there is a site that will convert the video to GIF for you (http://www.gifninja.com), but the final file sizes are larger, so you will have to cut your video down even further, possibly to 2 seconds or so.

3. Upload your saved, animated GIF to your Twitter Account Photo. We've seen Firefox give error messages that Twitter is overloaded, but just keep going or switch to another browser. It will take eventually.
Get feedback from your followers about whether or not it is too busy, and refine your photo until you and your favorite followers are happy. But remember, you can't please everyone, so don't bother trying. If you're happy with it, then let yourself enjoy it, and change it around from time to time to break up the monotony.
Penny Haynes has served as Podcasting Consultant for Lifetime Television for Women and hosted the Online International Podcasting Expo. She is the designer of the Commercial Creation Center, which allows ANYONE to create, upload and post audio, video and images to Social Media & Social Networking sites.

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Create Your Own Animated Videos With Machinima Software

Whether you've just started creating your own animated shorts or ready to go pro, creating machinima is very easy to do if you have the right tools at your disposal. From text-to-speech programs with avatars, recording skits with your favorite video game characters, to making everything yourself, there's a way to create your own show no matter which technique you use. As long as you know how to edit videos for YouTube, you can create an animated video with the right tools in your hands.

For those who can write a short script, but don't play video games or know how to draw, Xtranomal.com is a good place to start. Their text-to-speech program lets you create machinima videos using pre-made avatars, settings, and sounds. You can even change the camera angle to get specific shots if needed. As for the speech, the web-based program uses the same speech voices found on your PC. This means that your actors will sound like robots more than actual people. The web-based program is free, but the site also offers a desktop program that you can purchase downloadable content for extra avatars and other items that you'd like to use.

If you wish to film some stunts or skits in a video game, you'll have to do so by recording the action and using a video editor. All you have to do is either hook up a camcorder (or PC) to your TV's video output or by using a video capture card if you're using a computer game as the setting. As long as you know what to do and which camera angles to get, you can make a machinima video within an hour. For cameras, you'll need friends spread throughout the game world to look in certain directions. The video editing software will cost around $40 and you can find help making these types of videos online on various blogs.

If you know how to make animated videos from the ground up, you can create machinima by using Adobe Photoshop and Premiere. Both programs can be used to create and edit videos through Flash and can be formatted to be played online or even on DVD. Some artists have even done videos using avatars just as detailed as their video game counterparts using just these two programs. You can get them both for $100 bundled or buy the pro version separately, depending on how far you want to go with your videos.

You can find all sorts of programs and editors to make your own machinima videos online. You can also find advice on various blogs and podcasts as well. They provide tips and techniques to those who wish to make animated shorts for the first time or to help take their videos one step further. Regardless of how you decide to create it, making these types of videos can be fun for you and your fans to create and watch.

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Is it worth to make an animated video on your own?

Many of us use computers every day. Sometimes we are so advanced in terms of computer skills that we can do amazing things on our devices. We edit photos, mix music or even try to create our own animated clips. Still, some of us do not see the point of an individual making a video, if this person does not know a lot about making animations. So is it worth to make an animated video on your own?

One may say that it depends on your skills. Of course, it is easier to use a computer program  once you practiced it. It is even better if you studied graphic design.  Yet, there are many people who possess certain knowledge about creating videos but do not have ideas . So once you have a clue of how you want your clip to look like, you can try to create it on your own. To do it you need to look for information about computer programs which will help you with the graphics. Once you install them on your PC you need to learn about all their features. The best way to do it is to experiment with the program. Once you are ready you can try to create your own video. Still you have to remember that it will take more time and patience, but if you succeed the effect will be satisfying.

If on the other hand you will not manage to create a video that meets your expectations, you can ask for help of others. If you want a video that is not fully professional, a friend or a person who studies graphics will certainly manage to make a  clip. When you need to have a short movie which will be used for promoting your brand, you definitely need a well-crafted video.  Once you want to explain services with video you need them to look professionally and be created in the way that catches attention. For this reason it is good to ask for help of advertisement agencies which specializes in creating commercials as short clips.

You should not have concerns of creating an animated video on your own once you do it for fun or to practice the use of graphic programs. However if you want to prepare  it for a more serious reason you will probably need a help of professionals. Especially when you need to create a commercial for your company. Still, you can co-operate with the advertisement agency who will turn your ideas into a high-quality and catchy clip.  

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Rely over the veterans when getting your logo design by a logo design firm

This can be a long topic for discussion that " Logos bring recognition to the businesses or businesses make logos popular". There is no proper and accurate answer to this question. Logo design and businesses seems to be complementary to each other. Even best  logo creation can't make a unprofessional business popular and good businesses can't make bad logo design popular. If logos can't make your business popular then what is the significance in searching any logo design firm?

Identity of business make it exist and get popular in a long run as today's economic environment is against monopoly. Monopoly means uniqueness, No matter what your business is and how you do it you will definitely find a similar business or service provider near to your office premises. In such a situation logo creation not only provide businesses a unique identity but also helps to fight competition at the same time. Most of veteran business professionals now show their consent over the fact that logos establish a long lasting image of the organization and communicate the true means of organization to its customers. 

Logo design can bring increased amount of sales volume through its visual communication. When logo design is applied to various print media and stationary like notepad, packaging, paper, banners and other promotional materials it brings positive results. This is known as branding all together, while term branding literally means finding and developing logos, trade marks and other unique business identities. However practically term branding means to improve or change the organization perception in customers mind. Well established logo design can also add feeling of royalty in over all customer experience resulting in high profit ratios as organization charge accordingly. 

Logo design or logo creation is a creative process involving huge amount of experience, philosophy and creativity. Most of logo design firms hire professionals from pioneer art and craft colleges in order to achieve highly attractive and communicative logo design. As a matter of scientific fact images can penetrate mind sets of viewers more easily then the text or other forms of communication. Logo design firms thoroughly investigate businesses before developing any logo design for the particular firm.  

Logo design firms charge according to type of logo i.e. different types of logo design format is required in order to ensure the compatibility of logo design with print or display media. Two dimensional logos are suitable for print media however in case of display media organization may go for three dimensional logo design. Same goes with static and dynamic logo design, In dynamic logo design logo acts like a living creature and keep on changing its physical positions. Trend of dynamic logos is gaining popularity after the success of Vodafone's dynamic logo more popularly known as "jojo". 

It shouldn't be a herculean task to find affordable logo design service providers as affordable logo design service providers are large in numbers but merely finding any affordable logo design firm can't solve the purpose as affordable logo design isn't a guarantee of good logo design neither is expensive logo design. Success of any logo relies on number of factors including simplicity of logo design and message projection abilities of any affordable logo design. Message projection capabilities means that whether logo design is capable of communicating organization's vision and mission to its customers.

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Choose Business Logo Designer for Serious Business

Do you want to design an attractive and professional logo for your business? If so, this article will give you the best information on the methods of creating a very good professional logo. The best method to get the most attractive design for your logo is to hire an expert logo designer. There are many advantages in hiring a logo designer for your business. This article will provide all the information required the best business logo designer.

In order to design an eye pleasing business logo for serious business, you need to have the assistance of a professional business logo designer. There are thousands of companies offering logo-designing services. Apart from that, you can even hire a freelancer to work on the designs for your business. The last option would be to hire an expert logo designer for the job. Even though these are the best options available, you can also design the logo using online business logo templates. However, it is not a wise option to design it yourself especially if you do not want to compromise on the quality of the logo. 
Therefore, the best method to design the business logo will be to hire an expert designer. While hiring a designer, ensure the designer has experience in designing similar tasks. Check his portfolio and previous designs. By checking the designs, you can identify, if the designer is professional or not. It is not a wise idea to hire a designer without experience to create the business logo. 
The benefit of hiring a logo designer is that you can see the progress of the work any time.  However, hiring a logo designing company will also be helpful and less expensive than hiring an employee. If you want to get the work done at affordable cost, hire a design company otherwise hire a designer at your place and ensure the logo is designed to your needs.Do you want to design an attractive and professional logo for your business? If so, this article will give you the best information on the methods of creating a very good professional logo. The best method to get the most attractive design for your logo is to hire an expert logo designer. There are many advantages in hiring a logo designer for your business. This article will provide all the information required the best business logo designer. 
In order to design an eye pleasing business logo for serious business, you need to have the assistance of a professional business logo designer. There are thousands of companies offering logo-designing services. Apart from that, you can even hire a freelancer to work on the designs for your business. The last option would be to hire an expert logo designer for the job. Even though these are the best options available, you can also design the logo using online business logo templates. However, it is not a wise option to design it yourself especially if you do not want to compromise on the quality of the logo. 
Therefore, the best method to design the business logo will be to hire an expert designer. While hiring a designer, ensure the designer has experience in designing similar tasks. Check his portfolio and previous designs. By checking the designs, you can identify, if the designer is professional or not. It is not a wise idea to hire a designer without experience to create the business logo. 
The benefit of hiring a logo designer is that you can see the progress of the work any time.  However, hiring a logo designing company will also be helpful and less expensive than hiring an employee. If you want to get the work done at affordable cost, hire a design company otherwise hire a designer at your place and ensure the logo is designed to your needs.

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Defining The Principles Of Logo Design

Generally, all the principles of design apply to any piece you may create. How you apply those principles determines how effective your design is in conveying the desired message and how attractive it appears. There is seldom only one correct way to apply each principle.


Balance

Visual balance comes from arranging elements on the page so that no one section is heavier than the other. Or, a designer may intentionally throw elements out of balance to create tension or a certain mood.

Proximity / Unity

Observe a group of people in a room. You can often learn a lot about who is listening intently to another person, which are strangers, or who is ignoring who by how close together they sit or stand. In design, proximity or closeness creates a bond between people and between elements on a page. How close together or far apart elements are placed suggests a relationship (or lack of) between otherwise disparate parts. Unity is also achieved by using a third element to connect distant parts.

Alignment

Can you imagine how difficult it would be to find your car in a crowded parking lot if everyone ignored the parking lot stripes and parked in every which direction and angle? Imagine trying to get out of there! Alignment brings order to chaos, in a parking lot and on a piece of paper. How you align type and graphics on a page and in relation to each other can make your layout easier or more difficult to read, foster familiarity, or bring excitement to a stale design.

Repetition / Consistency

Repeating design elements and consistent use of type and graphics styles within a document shows a reader where to go and helps them navigate your designs and layouts safely.

Contrast

On the basketball court, one pro team looks much like another. But send a few of those players for a stroll down most any major city street and something becomes apparent - those players are much taller than your average guy on the street. That's contrast. In design, big and small, black and white, squares and circles, all create contrast in design.

White Space

Designs that try to cram too much text and graphics onto the page are uncomfortable and may be impossible to read. White space gives your design breathing room.

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Logo Design Can Be The Difference Between Success & Failure

Looks matter more than ever. We've all heard critics and consumers wax poetic about iMacs, iPods, and even Target toilet brushes. Interior design has become a national pastime, and shows such as Trading Spaces, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, and Queer Eye for the Straight Guy enjoy a popularity that Bob Vila could only imagine.


In her recent book, The Substance of Style, author Virginia Postrel argues that we increasingly make purchasing decisions based on how products make us feel. "In a crowded marketplace," she writes, "aesthetics is often the only way to make a product stand out." In other words, for more and more companies--even manufacturing companies with relatively prosaic products like Kortec's--design is becoming extremely important. It can sometimes be the difference between success and failure.

These days, even an investment research firm like Morningstar is keenly aware of making a good appearance. In the early '90s, founder Joe Mansueto hired the late Paul Rand (a renowned graphic designer who created logos for IBM, ABC, and UPS) to design the Morningstar logo--narrow red lettering with a rising sun as the O-- for $50,000. "Keep in mind this was back when our revenue was only a couple of million dollars. It was a lot to spend," says Mansueto, but he reasoned that it was for a high-quality product that he wouldn't mind keeping for a long time to come.

The arguments for good design are especially compelling for consumer products, particularly those made by smaller companies that don't have big advertising budgets. Big brands like Coca-Cola and Budweiser spend lots and lots of advertising dollars to create an aura around their products. For smaller companies without that luxury, their entire chance to convey a message about themselves to the customer is often in the look of the packaging.

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