Is there a guide on how to create your own covers? I couldn't find one...

[cojack16]

Sorry if the answer is obvious. I loved how some of you posters created your own (especially the guy who made those really really simple genesis/nes game covers) and was wondering how I can find a guide to help me learn how to do them myself. I'd love to try my hand at it. Thanks guys....

[amarthar]

There are none on the site, but there are plenty tutorials on using photoshop, restoring scans etc. on the internet. You just need to google.

[cojack16]

I'm really newbish on that subject ( I don't even have photoshop on my computer and have never used it). Plus I wouldn't be able to understand any video tutorials unless there are captioning on them. Could someone link me to a good beginner guide maybe that would help me get in touch with my artistic side?

[cojack16]

Where did you guys go when you started making your own custom covers? Don't tell me you all started, already knowing a ton about photoshop, and that it was child's play!

[quickfingers818]

Being new to these forums myself, I have always wanted to be able to learn how to make my own covers but can't seem to find any good guide on the internet on how to do so. I wish someone here would do some kind of tutorial, cause I have absolutely no experience whatsoever with any kind of photoshop editing. All i really wanna learn are how to make even the most basic covers.

[larryinc64]

I was talking with some other admins a while ago about making some videos, I'm good with editing and all that stuff.
I'm busy 'till new years with projects, so It wont be soon, but maybe cover artists can get together and share some tips so I can put together a full TCP series or something.
Maybe I'll toss together a basic guide sometime soon for getting started.

[AxelSteelBMX]

I'd totally be on-board to collab on something like this in the future. I just also have stuff I need to get done first.

[Seraph Man]

All i really wanna learn are how to make even the most basic covers.

The most basic of covers would be to make an image the appropriate size and paste images on.

http://www.thecoverproject.net/forums/index.php?topic=39.0

This will take you to the case dimensions thread, where you can see how big each part of the image should be. If you're using Photoshop, make sure you have ruler and guidelines enabled. Then you can click and drag from the ruler to whereever you want on the image. This is the idea way to set up visually borders, so you know what parts of the image are the front, center, and back.

Add images where appropriate. Remember, bigger images are better here. It's easier to shrink and image down and keep things looking good than to blow an image up.

For practice, I suggest making your own spines first. It's a small area to cover, and as long as you have a template you like, you can always cut and paste your spine onto someone else's covers, thereby having uniform spines for display while having a wide variety of covers to enjoy as well. It's what I did, and while I'm not much of a cover artist, if at all, I can say with confidence that spines are an easy first step.

[Hoggs17]

I had no experience with photoshop at all so i feel your pain.  I made a bunch of NES covers my own personal style so here's what I did (in reduced, quick steps)

1) download the templates provided in this forum
2) download existing covers already posted, and cut away/erase the logo for the spine and the front of the game (can do the same for the developer logo - magic eraser is a blessing!)
3) scour the internet for good custom artwork (deviantart, etc...) for each game.
4) grab a screen capture off of an emulated game, clean up that image in photoshop/imageviewer
5) insert your respective images (logo, artwork, character sprite, developer logo) onto the template

it helps to practice "level control" when assembling your photoshop design.  that way, each individual image/logo/etc is on it's on layer and can be moved freely.  also, it's nice so that when you go from castlevania 1 -> 2 -> 3 you can just "save as" your previous game cover and the developer name/background color are already done for you.

At first, it took me a while to complete a design; but at the end I got pretty good/fast (because I only use a few photoshop buttons/options) at it.  Of course, i wasn't going for the retail look and was making my own.  hope that helps somewhat.

[wiggy]

I wish people would learn to use illustrator for template building versus Photoshop.  Such a more efficient and cleaner way to do so (not to mention so much more editable)

[sheep2001]

I would like to use illustrator,  but I just don't find it intuitive.  I have tried following online guides for doing things like tracing logos, etc.  but I just don't get it.  I never feel the same pain with photoshop (apart from when trying to draw a simple curve, grrrrrr)

[wingzrow]

My main issue is the final cover I try and make always seems way less detailed than the original scan. Even with a shapening filter, scaling down leaves me really unsatisfied.

[wiggy]

I would like to use illustrator,  but I just don't find it intuitive.  I have tried following online guides for doing things like tracing logos, etc.  but I just don't get it.  I never feel the same pain with photoshop (apart from when trying to draw a simple curve, grrrrrr)

Unfortunately you're right, isn't at all.

Maybe I should do a quick how-to. With some of the basics out of the way, people could easily explore some of the other, more complex tools. Knowing how to draw and manipulate the vector lines is about 90% of what one would need to use it fairly effectively.

[larryinc64]

I do all my vector work in Flash CS3, I used Illustrator once or twice, and did not like it.
Flash is just as easy as Photoshop, butt he annoying thing is some things are moved around. Ctrl T is not transform, Ctrl Alt Z, is not undo past 1, Rotate 90 is in a different spot, and there is no 180. etc.

[segamer]

I would like to use illustrator,  but I just don't find it intuitive.  I have tried following online guides for doing things like tracing logos, etc.  but I just don't get it.  I never feel the same pain with photoshop (apart from when trying to draw a simple curve, grrrrrr)

Unfortunately you're right, isn't at all.

Maybe I should do a quick how-to. With some of the basics out of the way, people could easily explore some of the other, more complex tools. Knowing how to draw and manipulate the vector lines is about 90% of what one would need to use it fairly effectively.

I often craft logos in illustrator for covers I work on but ultimately I finish my work in Photoshop. What is submitted to the cover project is a jpeg at 300 dpi, so however you look at it, everything gets rasterized in the end.