IV and III Blog

I’m passionate about the web and design. After attending...

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 23:06:32 -0230

I’m passionate about the web and design. After attending my first conference last year, I was hooked and couldn’t wait to do it again. I thought it would be even better if the conference could be held in my hometown so local designers and developers could take advantage of the experience to learn from industry leading speakers. Speakers include Jeffrey Zeldman, Aarron Walter, Ethan Marcotte, Jeremy Keith, and Josh Clark

http://www.gobeyondpixels.com/

www.fourandthee.com was recently featured as Line25’s...

Wed, 28 Dec 2011 13:15:19 -0330

www.fourandthee.com was recently featured as Line25’s Sites of the Year! Chris Spooner the creator of the blog describes his post as follows:

Every week of 2011 I’ve showcased the best website designs I’ve come across during my every day browsing of the web. This special end of year post features the best of the best, pulling together the awesomest designs from all 2011 Sites of the Week posts into one showcase of super cool designs. View the Post

Are You Creating Value?

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 21:18:43 -0330

As designers, we’re hired to develop and design a variety of things, and our focus is on content strategy, UI, UX, etc. Our clients are trusting us to deliver a great product in return for their investment. However, far too often, I’m hearing horror stories and seeing final products that should have never been released. I’ve come across some of these designers, and, in great confidence, they say, “the client doesn’t know the difference.” or “It works, doesn’t it?!”. If you haven’t already, please ask yourself, is this your standard?

You should care about the product you deliver, and I mean actually care. You should be proud of the work you do. You should value the money a client pays you, and stop feeling entitled to the money until you have delivered. If you can’t deliver a high quality product, then don’t do it. This will stop you from being defensive about the work you do, and you will feel good about the project when you go to put in on your portfolio page.

If you care about what you deliver, you’ll feel happier with your work. Most importantly though, you will be creating value for your clients, which is what they’ve hired you to do.

I recently released a new iOS app called Nightlight Lullabies....

Wed, 14 Dec 2011 00:42:00 -0330

I recently released a new iOS app called Nightlight Lullabies. It’s an interactive way to read lullabies for kids. Play loop-able music, and play with the characters by dragging them around the stage.

It was a personal project to learn how to wrap an HTML5, CSS3, Javascript web app into a native app using Phonegap. I used webkit animations, media queries to provide unique layouts and experiences for each device, and I wrote a custom JS script to create all the functionality. I designed all of the elements and optimized them for the iPhone Retina display.

I’m thrilled with the result and I will be promoting the app in the new year.

Check out the app micro site: http://nightlightlullabies.com/

Download the app: http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/nightlight-lullabies/id481703621

I love my Apple TV so I wanted to test myself to see if I could...

Mon, 17 Oct 2011 21:24:00 -0230

I love my Apple TV so I wanted to test myself to see if I could recreate an Apple TV with as little layers as possible. It took 4, and that includes the Logo and Noise. Of course the outer circles and reflection add to the count, all in all 8 layers. Not bad. Also, I’m making this a free resource. You can download the PSD here: http://cl.ly/B0X6

My submission to the 10k Apart Responsive Design Challenge. It...

Tue, 20 Sep 2011 14:59:00 -0230

My submission to the 10k Apart Responsive Design Challenge. It displays Rotten Tomatoes movie reviews for movies currently in theatres. You can view the full working app by clicking here.

Featured on Line25 Blog Sites of the Week!

Fri, 09 Sep 2011 17:33:00 -0230

Featured on Line25 Blog Sites of the Week!

"Find a job you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.” — Confucius"

Tue, 16 Aug 2011 11:41:27 -0230

““Find a job you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.” — Confucius”

After some hard work and careful thinking I have launched the...

Sun, 14 Aug 2011 21:18:37 -0230

After some hard work and careful thinking I have launched the rebranding of IV & III. I have created a new website, a brand with a full colour palette, and evolved the logo from a serif to a sans-serif font (Gotham).

The Strokes

Thu, 24 Mar 2011 09:40:06 -0230

The Strokes

What a great comeback album by the strokes. Mood setting, great...

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 00:04:42 -0230

What a great comeback album by the strokes. Mood setting, great guitars, and awesome cd cover.

New Radiohead video. Simple but still amazing.

Fri, 18 Feb 2011 12:43:00 -0330

New Radiohead video. Simple but still amazing.

Quick Designs Make You A Lazy Designer

Sat, 12 Feb 2011 14:37:00 -0330

I worked for a place that always seemed to be doing things last minute. This meant that I would have to create posters, webpages, videos, etc. last minute with little time to complete them. This meant a lot of late nights and very rushed jobs. Sure, design is all about communicating a basic message but for the designer you start to learn some very bad habits. I have since left this job because it was getting out of control. After leaving the position I had more time to complete my projects but the bad habits stayed and it was hard to move forward because the concept of good design was lost as a designer in practice. You will find yourself always trying to cut corners and that will turn you into a bad and unhappy designer. You can have all of the theory under your belt like I had but you will lack the ability to make great design because you don’t practice it.

Fast forward a few short months.

Now when I complete a project for a client I feel proud and I want to show it off because I know I have done the project justice. I can look at the details without having to look away. So what can you do if you find yourself in a similar situation? Well, do personal projects for yourself. Go as far as creating your own textures, take your time, think about the process, avoid the tempting freebies online, think about the message, and just be happy with the final result at the end of the day.