Seventhfury Studios

Thursday, May 08, 2008

Updated Layout and New Features

After some serious thought, I've updated the layout of this blog a little and added in some new features as well. Since I joined the art community over at RedBubble about a month ago, I've really grown to love the layout and community of the site. I've made some friends and gotten some great reviews on my work, and that's good because positive feedback and expression really does help an artist maintain and continue to work on new things. Without that positive feedback, it's hard to find motivation sometimes and really work to get new art out there. That said, thanks a ton to RedBubble for your great community site.

With the addition of RedBubble in my life, I've found a great tool to display my art and allow people to easily purchase works so I added that to the sidebar of this blog. Not too sure how that will affect traffic, but hopefully people will see my work and enjoy it.

You'll also notice affiliate links for sites such as FlashDen, StickerJunkie, and to the book How to be a Rockstar Freelancer. These are sites and products that have influenced my work and they really are great tools for anyone working in the design industry. There will be more to come as I'm finding that I enjoy promoting these tools that help me, hopefully I can pass on this information I've found and eventually help other designers out.

I've been working on a bunch of new projects recently that have kept me very, very busy. A few websites will be launching soon, so I'm excited about that. I also have a few personal projects that I need to keep secretive at this point but will hopefully become fruitful upon their exposure to the outside world. Keep checking back, I'll be posting more and more in the months to come.

Monday, May 05, 2008

Iron Man becomes a reality

All around the world people are flocking to the theaters for the release of the blockbuster movie "Iron Man", but what if Iron Man was real? As technology advances in the world, so do projects based on super human exoskeletons and robotics based artificial intelligence. What if an Iron Man suit could really exist?

As it turns out, Popular Science released a video today that shows how an Iron Man type exo-suit is quickly becoming a reality. Although not nearly as polished as the popular comic book character, this XOS Exoskeleton developed by Ratheon shows how far engineers have come in this particular category of technology.

Another great article posted on PopSci.com tells more about the process and capabilities of the XOS Exoskeleton.

A few more videos found on Engadget explore even more into the possibilities of this exoskeleton. This video gives the most information and footage that I've found and it's really, really cool. The man in the exoskeleton is able to lift 200 lbs. without thinking, he can run, go up and down stairs, let go of the exoskeleton to perform a task and grab back on instantly, and much more. With these kinds of technologic advancements, how soon will it be before we have armies of robots fighting wars for us? That's a scary thought.

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Scarlet the Destroyer

The work says it all..

View it on DeviantART

View it on RedBubble

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Blackberry in the House

Just got a new business phone the other day.. a shiny new BlackBerry Pearl 8130 and boy am I happy. I won't even post a photo of the last phone I was using, most of you wouldn't even believe it. For shame.

Needless to say, upgrading from my last phone to a PDA with such a huge list of capabilities is a bit daunting, but so far so good. Luckily for me there are quite a bit of sites out there that offer tips and tricks as well as general set up information when it comes to working with a BlackBerry. The main thing I needed was email access wherever I went, and I definitely got more than I bargained for.

After perusing sites for a few days I finally figured out how to get my email working. For some reason, the menu system just isn't that obvious so I was having some trouble. I think Sprint had some good info on it's page titled "How do I set up email for my BlackBerry 8130 or 8830 device?", but for some reason it still wasn't clicking for me. I was trying to set up an account with an SMTP server system, so why don't they just come out and tell you how to do that? I basically had to create an account Username on the phone and THEN go in and enter my email information for my SMTP email. All I had to enter was my email address and password and viola! Instant access.. as far as I can tell.

So what other goodies did I stumble upon during my BlackBerry crusades? My personal favorite is a blog on Wordpress called My BlackBerry Pearl 8130 in which a man named Kelly Carter, who is an Adjunct Instructor at Mercer University in Macon, GA, writes about the trials and discoveries he endures with his new BlackBerry. Pretty interesting stuff, and a good resource for some really cool tips and tricks. It was here that I found another site that will soon become more visited by yours truly, RogersMJ.com.

RogersMJ posted a theme for the BlackBerry that I find absolutely awesome: bPhone, a simulation of the beautiful iPhone that runs on your BlackBerry. You may be asking yourself why I didn't just get an iPhone if I wanted one so bad. There are a few answers, mostly relating to cost and the necessary service provider switch. To be honest, I've been with Sprint for the past 7 years without an issue while many around me complain about the service provided to them by TMobile, Verizon Wireless and AT&T. Plus, Sprint is rockin' their design side at this moment. Or, I could just have a comfort zone that I don't want to leave.. but that doesn't sound like me.

Monday, April 28, 2008

Midnight Stumbler Featured on Redbubble

Well, that was quick.. I'm a bit flustered. :D Thanks for featuring my artwork, RedBubble!

You can view this piece on my DeviantART account or my RedBubble account.

New Art - Midnight Stumbler

My first Zombie-related illustration (hard to believe I know), but definitely not my last. You can view it on my DeviantART account or my RedBubble account.

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Seventh.Ink is on Facebook

We put together a nifty page on Facebook, so check it out and become our friend!

We'll be posting our new photo shoots there as well as updates on sales and new shirts so check on back!