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Kabru of Utaya

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Halloween!!! I guess that is sort of related to the witch trials, but I don’t think about the trials I just think about Halloween celebrations!!

Reblog for a bigger sample size.

Say in the tags what you voted for and if you live in or outside of the US

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Halloween queens

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This Ivan Bilibin inspired piece was made for Lost in Cult and their issue on the Final Fantasy series! It features cover art by Yoshitaka Amano, interviews with game devs, and much more! Go check it out!

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ghost of the valley

sticker design based on my sis telling me my favorite flower (lily of the valleys) look like ghosts

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This is the most beautiful model I have ever seen

Selling this one to pay my bills! Price is negotiable, please contact japhers.commissions@gmail.com for an offer! Also by purchasing this creature of the night you agree to the Evil ToS that will come with the email

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This is so beautiful!! I have been trying to pay more attention to pieces that have both a landscape focus and a figurative focus and this piece does it so well!! I love the atmospheric perspective- all the pale blues even in the character’s flesh tones!! The pale mountains are so beautiful and I love all the little details! The one bird, the footprints in the sand, everything!! Also obviously the figure and the fabric are both beautiful too 💖

Wanderer

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...that your audience won't hate.

This is a method I started using when NFTs were on the rise - thieves would have to put actual work into getting rid of the mark - and one that I am now grateful for with the arrival of AI. Why? Because anyone who tries to train an AI on my work will end up with random, disruptive color blobs.

I can't say for sure it'll stop theft entirely, but it WILL make your images annoying for databases to incorporate, and add an extra layer of inconvenience for thieves. So as far as I'm concerned, that's a win/win.

I'll be showing the steps in CSP, but it should all be pretty easy to replicate in Photoshop.

Now: let's use the above image as our new signature file. I set mine to be 2500 x 1000 pixels when I'm just starting out.

Note that your text should not have a lot of anti-aliasing, so using a paint brush to start isn't going to work well with this method. Just use the standard G-Pen if you're doing this by hand, or, just use the text tool and whichever font you prefer.

Once that's done, take your magic wand tool, and select all the black. Here are the magic wand settings I'm using to make the selections:

All selected?

Good.

Now, find a brush with a scattering/tone scraping effect. I use one like this.

You can theoretically use any colors you want for this next part, but I'd recommend pastels as they tend to blend better.

Either way, let's add some color to the text.

Once that's finished,

You're going to want to go to Layer Property, and Border Effect

You'll be given an option of choosing color and thickness. Choose black, and go for at least a 5 in thickness. Adjust per your own preferences.

Now create a layer beneath your sig layer, and merge the sig down onto the blank layer.

This effectively 'locks in' the border effect, which is exactly what we want.

Hooray, you've finished your watermark!

Now let's place that bad boy into your finished piece.

You'll get the best mileage out of a mark if you can place it over a spot that isn't black of white, since you'll get better blending options that way. My preference is for Overlay.

From here, I'll adjust the opacity to around 20-25, depending on the image.

If you don't have a spot to use overlay, however, there's a couple other options. For white, there's Linear Burn, which imho doesn't look as good, but it still works in a pinch.

And for lots of black, you have Linear Light

Either way, you're in business!

EDIT since this has escaped my usual circles, and folks aren't as familiar with my personal usage:

An example of one of my own finished pieces, with watermark, so you can see what I mean about 'relatively unobtrusive'-- I try to at least use them as framing devices, or let them work with the image somehow (or, at the very least, not actively against it).

I know it's a bummer for some people to "ruin" their work with watermarks, which is part of the reason I developed this mark in particular. Its disruption is about as minimal as I can make it while still letting it serve its intended purpose.

There's other methods, too, of course! But this is the one I use, and the one I can speak on. Hope it helps some of you!

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a duck scared to dive

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LOOK AT THIS BEAUTIFUL ART!!! AAAAHHHHHH!!!

Thank you for all the love on my previous art post <3

Reminder that I have an art print store where most of my recent artworks are available. Every support is appreciated! ^_^

https://www.inprnt.com/gallery/tofublock/

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Happy Birthday to the actor Billy Boyd.

Born on August 28th, 1969 in Glasgow,as early as 16, Billy Boyd appeared in a local musical company’s production of Hans Anderson, Billy Boyd is an actor and musician perhaps singularly best known for his role as the hobbit Pippin in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy.

Both his parents died when he was in his early teens, a year apart. Along with his older sister, Boyd was raised by his grandmother. He worked as a bookbinder for seven years before finally pursuing an acting career.

Starting his acting career, as I often post here, Billy appeared in the popular Scottish Police show Taggart, as well as the Lord of the Rings, and their follow up films, The Hobbit, the talented Boyd also wrote and performed the song “The Last Goodbye” from the movies. Billy also made a cameo appearance in the first series of Still Game. He played the part of Davie in the excellent film “Sunshine on Leith”.

Outlander fans will know Billy from his role in the show as the local lawyer in Cross Creek.

Billy has a home in Glasgow and married his wife, Alison McKinnon at Oran Mor in Glasgow’s West End in 2010, they have a son, Jack.

Recently Billy has been in the movies,  Walking with Herb and  An Intrusion, as well as guest appearances in  NCIS: Hawai'i and  Doom Patrol. Billy will next appear in  Washington Black an epic nine-episode series for Hulu, a period drama about slavery.

Billy recently commented that he refuses to take scripts which mock Scottish accents, calling  out the “stereotypical” treatment of Scottish accents in the film industry, saying jokes about not understanding it are “overdone”.

Boyd has claimed that he will refuse any script which employs the trope where the accent is incomprehensible, something he says that always pops up in the roles he is sent. Boyd went on to say;

“I hate people saying they can’t understand what I’m saying … As a Scottish actor, every script I get that’s got a Scottish character in it, there’s always the gag that somebody can’t understand them. Always.

“Anything I do now, if that gag’s in it, I say I won’t do it. The gag is overdone and not realistic. It’s just like, stop being stereotypical, you know? Just because someone has a different accent.

“So for the writers who write that gag, I apologise when I lose my mind in the writing room. It’s just that I’ve read it so many times.”

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This is so cute!! I love how both y/n and kaminari seem low key messes lol I hope you keep writing!! I really enjoyed this 💖

Electric Impression | Denki Kaminari x Reader

Author's Note: feeling super nervous, this is my first time ever posting my writing. Thank you to anyone who reads it and I'd love to hear feedback in DMs or asks!!

Warnings: none

Word Count: 1.5k

Summary: Denki x Reader, where Denki, a sidekick who is struggling to further his career meets [Y/N], the daughter of a major publicist in the most unexpected way.

Noise rang in his ears and black spotted the edges of his vision as Kaminari took deep breaths and looked up into the clouds. “Hey! You’re Chargebolt right?? Can we get an interview?” “Any comments on the civilian you almost shocked?” “Get a few shots of him for a story!” The press swarmed him. 

Everything around him was spinning and Kaminari was fighting off a blackout, he couldn’t allow himself to short circuit in front of all these people, not again. Suddenly there was a smaller hand in his and a voice he couldn’t recognize said “Do you mind if I get you away from this crowd?”. Denki let out a low hum and felt himself get pulled away through the crowd before blacking out.

[Y/n] always thought of herself as a pretty kind person, but she was way out of her league here. After she dragged the blond man away from the crowd to a park, he slumped over on a bench mumbling something the woman could not understand. 

He wasn’t visibly injured, save for the few scratches on his cheeks and arms, but still [Y/n] considered taking him to a hospital. “Are you alright? Can you hear me?” when she sat beside him he perked up a bit, huffing softly and stared with dilated eyes before resting his full weight on top of her, it was adorable, really. 

He sort of reminded the woman of a puppy, a very large, heavy puppy, [Y/n] groaned “Agh… sir, I can call a friend for you or take you somewhere- just…please get off me?” the blond made a small grunt in reply. 

“Oi, what do you think you’re doing lady?!” the woman turned to face an ash blond scowling at her like death itself. After taking a breath [Y/n] responded to the man’s harsh question “I- uh saw him looking like he was going to pass out, and I thought to get him out of the crowd- sorry I didn’t see any other heroes around, I was about to take him to the hospital, honestly!” the man simply let out a scoff at the long-winded explanation. 

The ash blond reached forward and hoisted up who you assumed is his friend “Tsk, why am I always taking care of these damn extras…”. The [h/c] woman stared after the two tall men bewilderedly “Bye then…?”.

Denki slowly blinked and when he opened his eyes the fog over his mind lifted “Dunceface. Go to Hawk’s office, they want to meet with you.” Bakugou sat across from him. Sighing, the tired blond hauled himself up and headed to the office, when he got there things went downhill. 

It turns out that yet another video of Denki’s hero work slip ups and him after the overuse of his quirk had surfaced; Stun Gun Hero: Chargebolt’s publicity is mostly negative at the moment. 

“We’ve already booked a meeting with a great PR agency, hopefully we can get on top of this whole thing.” Hawks told him, lounging in his desk chair. Denki just nodded, he was getting really sick of always looking dumb and incompetent no matter what he does, it felt like he was still in his first year of UA. Walking out of Hawk’s office, Kaminari read the agency’s card “[L/n]’s… we’ll see what happens…” sighing the blond man went into his cubicle to finish paperwork, at this point he’d try anything to get the press off his back. 

While doing his paperwork, Kaminari found himself thinking about today’s incident… now that he’s thought about it… how did he get out of that crowd? He doesn’t remember Bakugou being anywhere near him at the time, although Denki can vaguely recall a soft voice…

The [h/c] woman continued heading to her father’s office after her strange encounter with the two blonds, stopping outside the high-rise building that said “[L/n]’s Publicity” in bold letters on the front. As soon as she stepped out of the elevator [Y/n] saw her father pacing around, mumbling things only he could understand. 

“Dad, are you okay? What’s wrong?” as she approached him, her father whipped around. “We just booked a new hero.” [Y/n] paused in confusion “Isn’t booking clients a good thing…?” She approached her father as he walked into his office, collapsing into the desk chair. “We’re all booked up, we don’t have anyone to take on Chargebolt’s case…but turning this offer down will ruin publicity…” [Y/n] knew her dad what her dad was hinting at and that he would hold it over her head forever if she didn’t help him “... I can handle it dad, they reduced my hours at the dessert cafe.” Instantly, the man perked up “Great! He’ll be here tomorrow at nine, don’t be late” her father told her before leaving with a chaste kiss to her head. “Scammer!” the [H/c] woman huffed after the man.

The next day at nine am, [Y/n] was sitting at her office which she rarely used; it was just somewhere she used to help her dad out with his company. Truthfully, the girl would rather be sleeping in on her day off, but she couldn’t leave her father hanging. [Y/n] had no idea who this Chargebolt was, nor what his problem was, but she hoped it would be a quick fix so she could enjoy her time off.

“Come in!” [Y/n] called to the person knocking at her door and soon after, the same tall lean blond hero she’d saved from the crowd stepped into the office. The [H/c] female’s eyes widened as they met the blond’s “..Hi” she choked out awkwardly. If Chargebolt recognized her, she couldn’t tell because he grinned in response “I’m Kaminari Denki, nice meeting ya!”. 

[Y/n] raised an eyebrow at his strange behavior “you don’t-nevermind, it’s ah- nothing.” clearing her throat she began again, the blond giving her a weird look “So if you could start by explaining your situation to me, I’m still waiting on your files”. Kaminari noticeably deflated before hiding his expression “Most people just… well to them, I come off as some dumb kid,” he starts, looking down. “ and what makes it even worse is that when I use my quirk too much I black out and end up looking pretty stupid…” that must of been what happened the day [Y/n] helped him away from the crowd. Seeing how embarrassed the man seemed, [Y/n] decided she wouldn’t mention how she first met him. Kaminari continued on to say that many of his slip-ups have been caught on camera and that he’s pretty much become a joke to the press. “Thanks for updating me on your situation Mr. Kaminari” [Y/n] responds “while there is no way to avoid the press and people’s gossip, we can increase your popularity”. Denki just nods with a light sigh; if this was what she thought was best, he’d go with it… after all, she was the professional.

“Mr. Kaminari?” [Y/n] called, shaking the man out of his thoughts “oh umm… yes!” his eyes dart over to the woman. “Since you’re at Hawk’s agency, I think it’d be best to get you in on his children’s charity event coming up.” Denki tensed up “children…?” the [h/c] woman continued “Hawks is having an event to bridge his connections with children and I think you helping out would get you better publicity!”. While he appreciated the woman’s enthusiasm, Kaminari and kids didn’t really mix “I think adifferent event would be-” the woman cut him off typing on the desktop “I’ve already put you down as a volunteer you’ll be okay, trust me” [Y/N] looks up from the screen to look at Kaminari, her [e/c] eyes shining with hope and he can’t place his finger on it, but he thinks he’s seen those eyes somewhere before. Seeing the nervous look on the blond’s face, [Y/N] continues “I could go with you…? To ahh… make sure it goes okay-which it will!”. Seeing the woman beginning to spiral, Denki answers with a slightly flushed face, hoping she won’t notice, “Yeah…that’d be great”. The two young adults shake hands and part ways as the meeting ends.

Unsurprisingly to Denki, when he showed up to Hawks’ charity event the press flocked to him as he helped [Y/N] out of his small silver Kia. The two were dressed nicely, Denki in loose beige slacks and a white button-up with the sleeves rolled, and [Y/N] in a beige ruched bodycon with a pair of flats. When Denki had picked her up, [Y/N] realized that they’d accidentally matched each other’s outfits, Oh well… she thought, Great minds! Kaminari was no stranger to being hounded by the press, but this time it was different; they weren’t talking about his latest screw-up or trying to put him down. Shouts of “It’s that sidekick Chargebolt… but who’s the girl??”reporters looking into their cameras speculating “Has infamous sidekick Chargebolt got a girlfriend?” [Y/N] stepped back as a mic was pushed into her face “Who are you?!?” “Are you and Chargebolt making it official??” Denki sputtered “What?? Official-I-” he’s cut off by a cellphone being shoved in front of him. “According to this, you and her have been friendly for some time now… since your accident a few weeks ago” looking closely at the phone, the blond’s eyes lit up in a mixture of shock and recognition. The photos were of Kaminari himself being dragged away from his most recent incident by none other than [Y/N] herself. The pair stood shell-shocked, not expecting this, both of them thinking What the fuck?!?

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More twitch screens that made me wish I could be in those rooms hahaha 

Insta: @debbiebalboa

Twitter: @DebbieBalboa

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NOVEMBER 8 mark it on your calendar

The midterms are just as, if not MORE, important than presidential elections. Senators and house members can block or aid the sitting president in their agenda. They also draft and pass state laws… and trust me, those. Impact you. Greatly.

I know it feels like your vote doesn’t matter. I know it feels like everything is hopeless. I know it feels like it’s shit no matter what. I know there is no perfect candidate, but that is exactly how people with malicious intent want you to feel. Your apathy, your dejection, they make it easy for bad people to get away with terrible things. Their party will vote for them no matter what, so they count on you NOT voting to secure victory.

I beg you. Mark this date on your calendar. Research the locations closest to you, research their hours, and plan to go there and cast a vote that day. When voting in our system, the best way to make a choice is to think about who isn’t going to take the rights you hold dear away. Unfortunately we have to fight not to regress on major issues, then work within our community for progress.

Motivate your friends. Your family. If you can, offer to go with them. Voting is boring as hell, but it’s so damn important. Victory can be secured by hundreds of votes in some areas. That is nothing.

Every time you vote, every time you help someone else become motivated to vote, you have scored a victory.

I’m seriously concerned about the direction the US is moving in right now. It’s horrifying and bizarre and feels absolutely surreal. If you don’t vote, there is no hope of it getting any better.

Here is how you register to vote: https://www.usa.gov/register-to-vote

Can’t make it on Election Day? Learn how to cast an absentee ballot.

Find your polling place here: https://www.vote.org/polling-place-locator/

Want info on who you’re considering voting for? Find their voting records (for/against banning abortion, for example) and more info here https://justfacts.votesmart.org

Transportation issues? Look up “polling day 2022 transportation assistance” in your area. Some groups offer free or heavily discounted rides to get you to your polling place.

Afraid of long lines? Bring a collapsible folding chair, lunch box with snacks and drinks, and something to do like read, watch videos on your phone, or puzzles in a book.

We can’t afford to be complacent anymore. Please vote.