Category: Print

Spectacular Scenery 2018 Calendar Available for Purchase!

Posted on Categories Photography, PrintTags , , ,

Still looking for that perfect wall calendar for next year? Look no further! My new Spectacular Scenery 2018 Calendar, featuring twelve of my best landscape photography prints, is available now for purchase from DeviantArt.

Each photograph in this calendar is also available as an individual print in various sizes. Photographs included in this calendar are:
Shelter Cove (2015)
View South from Mt. Konocti (2015)
Sunset at Highland Glen (2017)
Cottonwood Creek (2006)
Down By the Creek (2016)
Bonneville Salt Flats (2015)
Nebo Loop in July (2016)
Cabin in the Tetons (2006)
Field of Hay Bales (2016)
View From Scotts Bluff (2016)
Distant Mountains (2016)
Cleveland Reservoir Panorama (2015)

Visit DeviantArt now to get your copy!

Spectacular Scenery Calendar

DeviantArt and Fine Art America

Posted on Categories Digital art, Illustration, Miscellaneous, Photography, PrintTags , , , ,

A couple of months ago, I created a Deviant Art profile to begin showing off my artwork and photography, and hopefully to begin selling a little bit as well. Since then, I have added over 70 works of art and photographs to my profile, most of which can be purchased as either prints or art gifts. Check out the slideshow below to see some of these works:

Shortly after creating my DeviantArt profile, I also created an account with fineartamerica.com, where I have begun uploading only the photography and artwork which I consider to be the very best. I also have prints and other items available to purchase from my Fine Art America profile.

Coming Soon . . . Two Treasure Tomb Expansions

Posted on Categories Gaming, PrintTags , , , ,

Treasure Tomb Shop Backdrop

Four months ago, I released Treasure Tomb, a game of strategic tile-laying, dice-rolling, and card collecting. The game includes components for up to 4 players, allowing a small group to enjoy the wonders of the tomb.

Beginning October 1, 2015, you will be able to expand your games of Treasure Tomb to include up to 8 players! Add the new 5-6 Player Expansion to the basic game to play with 6 players, or expand even further with the new 7-8 Player Expansion!

Treasure Tomb 5-6 Player Expansion

The Treasure Tomb 5-6 Player Expansion includes the following components to expand your game:

  • 1 book of supplemental rules
  • 2 game board extension pieces
  • 48 tile cards
  • 54 treasure cards
  • 2 player pawns (meeples) in 2 colors (orange & purple)

Along with components for up to 6 players, this expansion also adds a new “Hieroglyphs” treasure card. The Hieroglyphs card allows a player to use a Hidden Passageway without attempting to roll a “1” on the die.

Treasure Tomb 7-8 Player Expansion

The Treasure Tomb 7-8 Player Expansion includes the following components to expand your game:

  • 1 book of supplemental rules
  • 3 game board extension pieces
  • 24 tile cards
  • 54 treasure cards
  • 2 player pawns (meeples) in 2 colors (black & white)
  • 1 mummy pawn (white)

Along with components for up to 8 players, this expansion adds a second mummy, a second Burial Chamber treasure card, and rules for two players to score a dual victory in the new Throne Room.

Order the Treasure Tomb 5-6 Player Expansion and 7-8 Player Expansion on The Game Crafter now, and watch for their official release on October 1!

“Treasure Tomb” – Evolution of a Game

Posted on Categories Gaming, PrintTags , , , ,

Treasure Tomb Shop Backdrop

Treasure Tomb

Over the past couple of months, I have been working on a board game, Treasure Tomb. Several design and rule changes later, Treasure Tomb is ready for final publishing and went on sale today at The Game Crafter.

Treasure Tomb is a game of strategic tile-laying, dice-rolling, and card collecting. Players lay tiles to construct pathways through the mummy’s tomb, drawing treasure cards each time they pass a treasure token. When a player lands on a sarcophagus token, the mummy enters the tomb, blocking treasure card icons. Treasure cards are either event cards or gold, and the first person to collect 50 gold wins the game.

Treasure Tomb actually started off many years ago as a much, much different game named Ziggurat. My first prototype was an 8.5″ x 8.5″ game board created in Microsoft Paint with Legos for game pieces. I was at the height of my Mesoamerican obsession phase, so the original idea was a Mesoamerican trivia game with the difficulty level of questions increasing as the players travel deeper into the pyramid. Each player had four stackable pieces, which moved in separate “lanes” from the other players. The goal of the game was to be the first player to get all four of your pieces stacked on top of each other on the finish space in the center of the pyramid.

Enter European board games and The Settlers of Catan.

In the early 2000s, I was introduced to The Settlers of Catan, which opened up a whole new world of board gaming. My borderline obsession with Catan soon led me to discover other European-style games like Ticket to Ride, Zooloretto, and Carcassonne. When I discovered The Game Crafter a few months ago while trying to make custom Catan tiles, the idea of Ziggurat resurfaced.

While I plan to go back and revisit at least some of the original game mechanics from Ziggurat some day, I decided to give the game a complete makeover. I wanted to create a tile-laying game similar to Catan, but with a build-as-you-go mechanic like Carcassonne. By the time I was finished, the end product had evolved into a cross between the original idea and the new idea, with some of the newer mechanics discarded. Those discarded mechanics soon evolved into an unrelated micro-game, my recently-released Wolf in the Fold.

Check out Treasure Tomb at The Game Crafter and get your copy today!

New “Wolf in the Fold” Microgame

Posted on Categories Gaming, PrintTags , , , , ,

Wolf In The Fold Shop Header Image

Wolf in the Fold

In March, I began working on a couple of concepts for games which I have had floating around in my head, and I am pleased to announce the first finished game went on sale today! Created from unused concepts from my upcoming Treasure Tomb board game, Wolf in the Fold is more of a microgame than a full game. The rules are simple and the playing time is short. Most test games have clocked in at around 15 minutes, although games could be longer if other players take a long time to consider their tile placements.

The game was originally inspired by the tile-laying game Carcassonne, in that I wanted to create a tile-laying game where the players build something. While working through my ideas, I ending up with Wolf in the Fold, a game of tile placement and player cooperation. Players build fences and hire shepherds to protect sheep from the wolves. Points are gained when sheep are fully-enclosed within fence tiles. Also included are rules for competitive play, where players compete to see who can enclose more sheep inside fences.

Although designated as for ages 8 and up, the rules are simple enough for younger players to understand. Care should be taken around younger children who may choke on the game tiles.

Download the Game Rules
Like Wolf in the Fold on Facebook

Image Resolution

Posted on Categories Miscellaneous, PrintTags , , , ,

I recently read an article on iStockphoto about image resolution. Many people get confused when it comes to amount of pixels versus pixels per inches (ppi, also known as dots per inch or dpi). As a graphic design professional, I have known many professional designers who didn’t understand the difference. iStockphoto’s article gives a very good overview of the difference and explains how to calculate the total inches (or centimeters) of an image based on the ppi and total pixels.

Photoshop users have it easy. The Image Size dialog box automatically calculates the inches for you based on the resolution you need. The most important thing to remember when changing an image’s resolution from 72 ppi to a printable resolution is to uncheck the Resample Image checkbox at the bottom of the dialog box. If the box is checked, you will pixelate your image and it will be unusable.

The most important thing to remember about image size is the resolution is not important – the total pixels are. The resolution can be changed, but the total pixels need to stay the same to avoid pixelation. A 3000×4000 pixel 72 ppi image can be changed to 300 ppi, but the 3000×4000 pixels must NOT be changed. There are techniques to get around this in a pinch, but changing the amount of pixels should be avoided unless absolutely necessary.

To figure out the measurement of the picture in inches, you will need to divide the number of pixels by the resolution. A 3000×4000 pixel image at 72 ppi will be roughly 41.6″x55.5″. When the image is changed to 300 ppi, it will be 10″x13.3″.

And remember…not all images need to be printed at 300 ppi. It really depends on the project and the printer.

Poem Book on Sale Now!!!

Posted on Categories Motion Graphics, Print, Publications, WritingTags , , , , , ,

The paperback version of my book of poetry, Windows to the Soul, was listed on Amazon.com today. I’m not sure when it will actually be available for purchase on Amazon, but it is available right now through CreateSpace, Amazon’s self-publishing service.

The Kindle version has been on sale for a couple of weeks, but I just approved the proof for the print version a couple of days ago. I’m now working on a promotional video to put on YouTube announcing the publication of the print version. Until then, check out a sample of my poetry from Windows to the Soul on Goodreads.com.

Self-Publishing My Book of Poems

Posted on Categories Print, Publications, WritingTags , ,

A week or so ago, I noticed a link at the bottom of Amazon.com that said “Self-publish with Us.” Intrigued, I clicked the link and discovered that Amazon has a service where a person can create Kindle books and print books using a couple of different services and self-publish them. I have been writing poetry for about fifteen years, and have been collecting the poems into a book which I have been planning to publish at some point. So I thought, Why not publish it this way? It seems quick, simple, and easy.

As a result, I have spent the last week sifting through my poetry, selecting the best poems to publish in an anthology, which I have titled Windows to the Soul. I am pleased to announce the selection and formatting process is finished! I just need to finish designing the cover, and within a couple of weeks I will have a book of poetry for sale. I will probably publish it as a Kindle book first, then as a physical book second, but I haven’t decided yet. Keep checking back for more updates!