#//sorry they're not really fancy I don't use photoshop

[doppokannonzakaas]

Blue Lock Headers, inspired by Ana’s ( @gojosattoru ) work

Please like/reblog if using, credit not required but appreciated

[adelarsims]

Hi, you are more than welcome to ignore especially if you have answered before and I missed it/it's elsewhere on your blog but can I please just ask how you get your CAS photos to look so incredibly clean? Especially around the edges, they're so smooth it's incredible. Thank you in advance, I really appreciate it! You inspire me so much tbh, everything you post is so beautiful. (Also also also the eyebags you released recently are my new gold standard and I use them for everything now tysm for sharing them) 🖤

thank you!

ok so here are a few tips, you don’t need to follow all of them, but if you like exactly my cas style, maybe some of them will help

1. edge smoothing. sorry for being obvious, but use either in-game anti-aliasing, or a smaa shader if you’re a reshade/gshade user, or you’ll get a pixelated staircase for the edges that will be hard to fix. if your PC doesn’t handle high graphics well and you play without edge smoothing, you can toggle it on temporarily just for taking a few good cas pictures and then turn it back off.

2. use MXAO. if you use reshades, use mxao shader for pictures, it's really a life changer. though i don't use it during the regular gameplay and only turn it on when i take pictures, because moving a lot with it is a visual overload for me.

3. but don’t overdo it with MXAO. seriously, don’t go all out with mxao. for a cleaner look shadows need to be delicate, just to overline shapes and give your sim more dimension. every time i tweaked my reshade presets, i made mxao even more thin and gentle and realized that it only got better.

4. background makes a huge difference. solid colors. in my personal opinion, grey gives the "cleanest" look (i said while still using my old dirty yellowish that i'm too lazy to find a replacement for). also, if i want to use black or white background, i make it a little darker than white and a little lighter than black, they look pretty much the same but will attack your eyes less (especially the white one).

5. CAS lighting makes a huge difference. maxis light isn't that bad, but cc lighting definitely give you more clean, crisp image. my personal favorite neutral one that i use by default is v2 by helgatisha. sometimes i use lightings with side highlights for more “rendered” look, but they aren’t always comfortable for everyday use and i only use them for specific pictures and then get back to my default neutral one.

6. shadow overlays. i mean cc that imitates shadows on sim's face, it gives sim's face so much dimension. there are spotlight v1 and v2 by simandy and lighting overlay v1 and v2 by joshseoh. i'd say josh's overlays are for fancy portrait pictures (they imitate a very strong light source from different angles, cool for sim photographers), and simandy's are more neutral. personally, i only use v2 by simandy, it's my holy grail and i don't take sim's pictures without it.

7. SRWE. it's a program that emulates having a bigger display resolution than your monitor can afford, meaning much better screenshot quality and cleanliness for small details. srwe can be a bit of a hassle to use for a lot of pics and most of the time i’m too lazy to use it and just take my regular small pixelated screenshots, but sometimes i want just one, but extra clean picture.

8. Topaz Clean 3 (photoshop). i don't usually edit my pictures and just drop them like whatever, mostly because i can't, but i make them sharper and cleaner with a gentle touch of topaz on very low strength.

[mecachrome]

hello, I love ur mcl gifsets!!! they're always so bright and colorful you'd never be able to tell how potato quality the actual source video is 😭😭 do u have any tips for a newbie gifmaker?

ah thank you anon that is so kind of you!!! i'm not sure how helpful this reply will be but i can do my best to quickly summarize my process :)

source quality definitely makes a huge difference because sometimes there's not much you can do and i accept that i'm about to make a fugly gif... but when i'm screenrecording f1tv i just set the quality to the highest possible and pray for the best 😭

idk what software you use for gifs but i use vapoursynth and it makes my life a lot easier! i actually do bm3d instead of knlm for denoise because i used to always get errors with the latter and gave up but i think most people use that 😭 either way you can just play around with the numbers until you get what you like and then i usually have finesharp set to 0.5-0.7 :) plus sometimes if i feel like the sharpening isn't right i'll duplicate in ps and sharpen again just a little bit (smart sharpen at like 50-100% 0.3px and then lower the opacity as well)

after that it's just a matter of coloring so i'll put thoughts under the cut to not make this the longest post ever LOL

i think everyone has their own unique coloring process but i mainly use brightness+contrast and curves at the start to set my base because usually i find that the source isn't bright enough, of course this is all very intuitive but if i feel like the ~middle values~ of the gif need to be lightened then i'll fix that with curves and it'll help even out the colors a bit. i'm sure other people can give you better technical tips but my logic is basically that Fewer Colors -> Better Quality since it gives photoshop less to accommodate, so a big thing for me is introducing enough contrast by making the blacks/dark values dark enough so that you don't get a lot of greyish looking values when you export your gif T__T

afterward i usually just do a lot of selective color, some color balance, and some vibrance/saturation! i don't really touch exposure usually because i like the lighter values to be more ~balanced~, so i don't think you need to go wild with your colors but with selective color i usually up the blacks by like 5-15, and then just as a personal preference i like when my whites have less of a yellow tint and my reds are brighter so i'll remove some cyan from there as well. but this changes every time i color so it's really whatever feels right to you!

sorry for this very long reply but i also almost always export with selective diffusion because it works best for me, although i know some people have very fancy gifmaking processes and can make beautiful noise gifs but i've never quite figured that out T__T my process is pretty simple but i just do what works for me! and i try not to Overcolor when i can... here's an example where i do my best to maintain the skin tone as much as possible with just a bit of brightness and vibrance introduced:

alsooo for mclaren gifs specifically i find that i often need to adjust the yellows in selective color and bring back some magenta because curves/brightness will turn the mclaren orange into a really bright yellow color so i need to rebalance it. but otherwise that's about it!!! i have nooo clue whether this will help at all but best of luck with your giffing adventures and if you have any other questions feel free to lmk :D <3

[pof203]

A Summoner Birthday

Previous post: https://pof203.tumblr.com/post/729384934269239296/a-summoner-birthday

You arrive at the school where Avarga and Durga were already greeting people as they were coming in.

Thank you for coming. Enjoy yourselves.

Have fun. And don't forget to take your commemorative photo.

Evening, you two.

Avarga: Ah, Lupin. I see you, Wakan Tanka, and the rest of your party is here.

So happy to be here, My Mr. Avarga, My Durga.

Same here... Say, where did...

I'm here! The High School Pro Wrestler, Taurus Mask, makes his triumphant appearance to escort his soul brother, champion of the field, and our other loved ones to this party!

You all don't know what to say.

Avarga: Really? That's a shame. I guess Daisuke couldn't make it. Very well, go right in.

Durga: Have a pleasant evening.

You all go inside.

Sorry about that. I couldn't resist. Don't worry, I'll tell everyone that Taurus Mask changed his mind and went home. Especially after I showed up in the same outfit.

It's fine. Just don't make a habit out of it. We love Taurus Mask, but we also love Daisuke.

Daisuke: I know. Thanks for that.

You guys really out done yourselves. Durga knew just what she was doing when she was planning this.

Wakan Tanka: She said she got the idea from reading that teenage vampire romance novel.

Daisuke: She said it was either that or that musical we saw. You know, the one with the singing greasers.

Lupin: I've seen that one and I loved it. But this is good, too.

Boogeyman: I wonder if Mr. Motoori and the others made it.

Lupin: I got a text from Shiro saying they're already here. Ryota suggested that we eat first and then hit the dance floor.

Daisuke: That's a good idea. Dancing after eating to burn off those extra calories.

Lupin: C'mon, let's go meet up with them.

You made it! We thought you all decided to go with Claude instead.

Lupin: No, we came.

I hope I don't stick out too much. These were the only fancy clothes I have.

Oniwaka: I know how you feel, buddy.

You both look fine. I mean, look at me. I'm a partygoer and I'm wearing my catering outfit. Then again, I'm also the caterer of this dance.

Thankfully, I have my police thing. After, who doesn't fall for a guy in uniform. Even an old geazer like me.

Still having pervy thoughts. But I guess that's part of his charm. And why I love him so much.

Boogeyman: Mr. Motoori, is something wrong?

I'm fine. I'm just said I couldn't bring the D-Evils with me after all. Because they are like children, they would be a problem here.

It's the same with Kenta. Barguest says he's too young for something like this. But I promised I'd bring him back a commemorative photo where I've photoshopped him in.

Choji: That's so sweet of you. Hey, I'll even through in some leftovers from tonight catering.

Moritaka: (happy) You would do that? Thanks, Choji.

And don't worry, Shrio, I'm here. If you miss the D-Evils, I'll be here to make sure you feel that everything's okay.

Shiro: (feeling better) Thank you, Kengo. I know you and I don't get along at time, I knew there was a reason for Lupin bringing us together.

The class representative embraces his brawny boyfriend for his kindness.

Lupin: (happy) C'mon, let's enjoy the feast and then get to dancing.

Wakan Tanka: (also happy) Seconded. This looks like quite the spread. You really out done yourself, My Choji.

Choji: Thanks. And don't be shy to ask for more, I made extra.

You, your boyfriends, and your friends enjoy the prom feast before you go out to the dance floor.

To be continued...

[th3-z0diac]

How I Make Aesthetics.

Long post ahead, sorry :(

In the past, I've been asked multiple times how I create my aesthetics and where do I get the best pictures for them, so I figured I'd make this master post of what exactly I do. Btw this is coming from a person who has studied graphic design for 4 years and had about 4 years of experience in making zodiac collages here on tumblr. Do what you want with that information.

A few disclaimers

There are different types of aesthetics and in this post, I'm going to be specifically talking about a certain type that I like to make. Here, examples:

My most used format is 6 pictures in 3 rows, but I've also tried 4 pictures, like here for example:

There are other types such as minimalistic photos, dark academia, grunge, and SO many more. Please keep in mind that I'm not hating on these types and when I mention a rule such as don't use photos that are too minimalistic, I am not saying that minimalistic aesthetics are wrong or ugly or anything of that sort!

Just because I don't choose a certain photo doesn't mean I don't like it, it just means that the photo is not exactly what I'm looking for. By me showing you the examples below, I'm just trying to paint a picture. No hate here, okay?

I don't own any of the pictures I use (I've only used like one or two of my own photos in the past) but then again this is just for entertainment, I don't make money doing this or anything. If I ever get a message from an owner of any of these photos and they want me to delete it, I will delete it.

Where to get the photos

Pinterest! Period. AHAHAHA

No but seriously, pinterest and tumblr are my two favorite sources and you will find pretty much exactly what you need there. pinterest specifically.

On tumblr, I usually search for hipster, grunge, indie, and nature, but it also helps to just find specific blogs that focus on photography, follow them and then just download anything from your dashboard that you fancy.

I'll share what I search for on pinterest below👇. My secret tip would be to not always go for the first photo you find but rather to open a picture that sorta has what you like in it and then scroll down, because pinterest is going to recommend you similar, sometimes better fitting photos. On tumblr, I sometimes go to the blog of the person whose one photo I like, and there I tend to find many more of the same kind (since these bloggers usually post a specific kind of aesthetic).

How to choose photos

My number one tip would be to seek texture. Avoid photos that have little going on in them and anything too empty or minimalistic (unless that's what you're aiming for, obviously). Also, don't choose pictures that are very light or very dark, as they tend to stand out in aesthetics and that's not really what you want. At least in the type of aesthetics that I make, I want the final product to be almost a new picture in itself if that makes sense. To show you an example, look at this photo of two sleeping cats:

This photo seems like a good fit; it is well balanced in colours (there are shades of white, beige/ginger as well as some greens) and c'mon, it's two cats, what more do you need!!! However, let's look at it in a complete aesthetic:

While this aesthetic has a nice color scheme to it (well, it doesn't, I threw it together super quickly, but you get the gist), the photo of the two cats just stands out because the khaki background creates this kind of block of color that your eye will automatically go to and it sort of breaks the collage apart. So, by texture, I mean that a picture is filled, for example with trees, flowers, architecture, little people in the background, etc., etc. Furthermore, I prefer when there are more things photographed (for instance, look at the first picture of the aesthetic above; it has a mirror (and a tiny person in it), architecture and leaves all in one picture)

Next, personality. Go to Google Images and search 'Nature Photography' or 'Sunset Photos'. You might get something like this:

Or this:

Look at this absolute angel of a boy💚💚💚💚💚💚Isn't he the cutest freaking thing you've ever seen?????? I just want to give him all the treats and all the pets and — ...ehm, sorry, that's not why we're here.

So I don't quite know how to explain this point, but I guess usually professional photos like this are just so well done that they work perfectly well on their own and you usually don't put them in a set (only with other photos from the same photoshoot maybe). They're obviously well-balanced color-wise and high in quality, but they're just very individual and don't really need any addition in the form of other photos. This point also applies to the previous one (textures, in case you forgot); for example, a bunch of blueberries creates a nice texture, however it might be difficult to pair them with other photos. They have enough personality on their own (and this is not meant in a bad way to the photos I do use).

Related to this, you're looking for a story. Usually, if a photo gives off a certain vibe, tells a story, or just leaves any kind of strong impression, it might be a good indication that this is a good photo to use (given all the other rules as well, of course).

The main themes I search for are:

cities, villages, or abandoned places

related to that — architecture or only parts (details) of it

nature, specifically forests with either road or a body of water nearby, beaches, deserts and so on. plus points for tiny people in the distance

animals, usually with the addition of maybe the texture of a sweater sleeve or some blankets, something of that sort

people, my favorite kind is people turned away from the camera with an interesting background, because by them not having a face, they become a bit more relatable in a sense?

people in a river or some kind of water

museums, sculptures

etc.

Usually, I tend to avoid:

photos with text in it (though as an exception I would mention neon signs or letters/words that are for example above shops, on books, etc.)

heavily filtered pictures

photos with very specific (often bold) colors in them, unless you find multiple photos with that same shade. this again distracts the eye too much

GIFs, animated pictures, illustrations/drawings. also, don't use collages (cause you are creating a collage, duh)

black & white pictures

blurred pictures (or those that are purposely grainy — that goes back to the filters above)

anything obviously photoshopped

When trying to figure out where to put each photo

Squint your eyes. The photos should create a nice harmony, there shouldn't be a corner where it gets too light or dark or where some textures blend together, for example, if using multiple flower patterns, try to place them in different corners.

When to know your aesthetic is done

Actually even before you start, you should be in the mood. I have to admit, there have been times where I've felt pressured into making aesthetics, and now, looking back at them, I'm really ashamed of them. That is why I don't always post aesthetics as soon as I get them requested because I genuinely want them to look good.

Sometimes, it helps to not post the aesthetic straight away but to come back to it later with a fresh look. I'd say go with your gut. You should have a good, satisfying feeling about the aesthetic.

Last note

Rules are meant to be broken. Look at the aesthetic below. I used a minimalistic illustration (two birds with one stone I guess) (and admittedly, that one picture does stand out) and yet the aesthetic still came out pretty nice. So, just play around with your ideas and see what you like the most! I'm just a random person on the internet, you literally don't have to listen to any of the tips I gave you here today.

I know this might seem like a lot (honestly, if you've read this entire thing, you're crazy), but it gets easier and easier with practice, soon you won't even think about it.

Hopefully these tips will help you and please let me know if you decide to make any aesthetics. I would love to see them!! <3

[womenfrommars]

I feel like you're the only one on radblr who isn't buying into fat activism bs and I wanted to thank you for it. I'm obese myself, on a weight loss journey, and I truly despise fat activists. These people are as insane and dangerous as trans activists. They make being morbidly obese into a fucking identity, and it's just ridiculous. You're not like people oppressed for their race or their homosexuality, you're fat and you can lose weight, that's a huge difference. Being fat is detrimental to your health, that's a cold hard fact. Nothing about obesity is positive, absolutely nothing. Fatphobia is terrible, obviously, no one should mistreat and abuse us, but please fellow feminist I beg you, as a fat woman, to stop supporting fat activism and HAES.

Thank you anon, and good luck with your weight loss journey!

I think when it comes to fat activism is rapidly evolved on social media since 2015 or so. It started with saying being overweight should be included in the beauty ideal, to which people responded it is sick to pretend something unhealthy is beautiful (same with being underweight). To that they responded that actually, obesity is perfectly normal and healthy. I do think at the root is the beauty issue which explains why fat activism is mostly a movement for women despite men being heavier on average. Even HAES started as ''You can pursue health at any size'', not ''Any size is healthy''.

These people are spreading dangerous misinformation about health and frequently appeal to already debunked concepts like the obesity paradox. When you talk about the obesity epidemic they come up with strawmans like food deserts and extreme poverty which simply don't apply to most fat people. And they're in complete denial when it comes to the link between Covid and weight, despite these people making fun of right-wingers for not trusting ''the science''. You can't ridicule anti-vaxxers and then turn around and say that science proves obesity is healthy. Obesity is a state of chronic inflammation, no wonder why it affects your immune system.

When fat activists talk about discrimination it is rarely about medical issues or the job market. It's mostly about seats in airplanes, clothing at ZARA and judgemental looks at Burger King. These are non-issues for the most part, I'm sorry. These people also fancy themselves feminists but you don't ''own'' the patriarchy by neglecting your health even if that leads to you technically not fitting the beauty standard. There are other ways to reject beauty standards that don't require you sacrifice your health. It's ironic because a lot of fat activist women are really into fashion and makeup. Even Tess Holiday was caught photoshopping her cellulite lmao. #FYourBeautyStandards*

*but only the ones I can't adhere to

[blueheartedmayor]

I have big big troubles finding new rp partners which causes me to be nearly inactive because I don't have anyone to roleplay with. Searching through tumblr is impossible for active blogs. And if I find someone, they're mutuals only, and I don't know how to interact with those. And many I find also don't want new partners. It always feels like its my fault for not finding new partners

OOC: Sorry about the sorta late reply. I’ve been making icons since yesterday.

I agree. Searching any of the tags is absolutely pointless. I can only speak for this fandom but... Boy are things quieter than they used to be. It’s gotten to the point where some people (myself included) actually stop sharing their own promos because there’s barely anyone to find from that (If anything, I think my last reblog of my promo got more attention from non-roleplaying blogs). On top of that, activity on blogs that are around vary immensely. Because there are fewer options than there were when I started, it’s easy to feel like you’re doing something wrong. I assure you, it’s not the case at all.

You are right about a lot of blogs being more closed off than they used to be, and I do get the reasoning for that. But like you said, it makes it hard for people trying to find their place. I can’t give you guaranteed advice that will bring about success, but I can try and share some ideas.

I know I’ve mentioned before about checking rules pages. Some people might have it that they’re mutuals only by default, but their asks are open for anyone. If that’s the case, I definitely recommend giving it a try. While it can work as an ice-breaker, it’s also a good way to show the blog you exist, especially if, like me, you run side-blogs.

With that in mind, check your own blog and make sure things are accessible and readable. If someone I don’t recognise follows a blog of mine, I’ll usually click through and check theirs out. Now, before you start stressing, I absolutely don’t mean to go build a custom theme with unique photoshopped whatevers. You’re talking to the mun who literally uses the same theme on three different sideblogs but in different colours. Going by personal experience of checking blogs on app and on a laptop, you should instead focus on the following:

Content: Is your information accessible? Do you have a page or post giving information about your muse, and if so, can they be found easily? Common sense things, really, but I’ve seen blogs over the years that either omit this entirely, or make it very difficult to find.

Sample of writing: Not in terms of how active you are. A few months ago, I was checking out a blog on my phone. I had to scroll for nearly ten minutes on a blog before I could find an actual writing sample from a thread. It’s perfectly okay to have memes and related images on your blog (again, I do it regularly), but be sure they’re not hiding your writing. Use the queue to play it safe. 

Silly things, I know, but if you make the first move to follow a mutuals only blog, you wanna give yourself the best chance so they will follow back. I wanna compare it to an artist in a convention’s artist alley setting up their stall. You have to have everything looking just right to draw people in, right?

On the topic of writing, I noticed you mention how you’re not active because of this problem. Perhaps you could channel your creative frustration into short drabbles or monologues? It would be a good way to vent and to make sure you don’t get too rusty.

Another option is to consider crossovers with other fandoms. For example, I have a side-step verse where Damien is Mayor of Ha.llowe’en Town from the Nig.htmare Before Chris.tmas due to a mix-up. It’s also a fun challenge to see how your character might adapt to a different world, whether due to being thrown there, or having lived there instead of their normal world.

Admittedly, the fandom as a whole needs a little kick and some positive encouragement to open up a little more. Myself and some others had hoped Heist would bring some new people in, but it didn’t really work in the way we had expected. It’s a problem I’m not entirely sure how to fix, and I’m sure it’s not even something I myself can ‘fix’ since I’m not any sort of important voice. But I will say this. If you currently do have partners, appreciate and cherish them. They are the ones that will stick by you no matter what. 

I am sorry you’ve been hit with that awful feeling, despite trying your hardest. That’s the part you should make sure to remind yourself of: you are trying. It would be a different case if you were waiting for everyone to find you while you make no effort. Things might seem bleak, but time can do some good things. When I started, there were some blogs I was terrified of interacting with. Like you, I had no idea how I was supposed to approach and interact (especially with me harbouring a fear of being blocked if I made a wrong move). It took time, but the right little connections happened, circles meshed together so I appeared on their dash, and I was eventually noticed by them. That’s why I suggested to make sure you have the necessary information accessible. Any decent person won’t mind whether you have a fancy theme, use icons of any sort, or format your writing. At the end of the day, we’re writing together, and that ought to be what matters when looking at your blog.

...

I realise this is probably me blathering on about nothing, but I hope something in this helped. Like I said, I’m not really a big voice or a popular blog, so I don’t really have solid advice. Keep your chin up and take it one day at a time. I believe in you!!

PS. Just as I was proof-reading this, I remembered that some of the people I got to know over time were through Di.scord groups. While a server can be a great way to break the ice.... I’m not sure I’d recommend setting one up in the hopes of inviting people in. The one that springs to mind first descended into drama that I’m still not sure of and was ultimately deleted when I was asleep. Now I think about it, most of those people either hopped fandoms or went on hiatus... I hope they’re doing okay.

PPS. Another idea. Would checking out people your partners write with be an idea? I always imagine a rp blog to be like a circle, and by interacting with others, you can link to their circle and see their connections. That way, the third person might have experience of you from seeing you on their dash!