Favorite Quote: See my signature
Favorite Movie: Snakes on a plane
Favorite Book: Horton Hears a Who
Favorite Bands: Rubber
Favorite Songs: Good ones
Favorite Photoshop Tool: the brush tool
How did you get your PSC nickname?
I collect Mountain Dew items and drink it non-stop.
What is your real name and age?
Dave... 32 (8/7/74)
Where are you from and what do you like best about being there?
Pembroke, MA... its nice. That's all.
What do you do to keep the bills paid?
Graphic Design for an engineering company and some freelance work.
What do you do in your spare time?
Spare time? HA!
When I find time, ski, watch movies, biking, playing poker....
How did you find PSC, and what do you like most about the site?
I don't remember how I came across it. I think my brother told me about it.
I mostly like the people. I've met a few of them, and they're all good people. We give each other crap on the site, but when it comes down to it, we're all just looking to have some fun.
If you could change one thing at PSC, what would it be and why?
Nothing really to change PSC, but I'd like to see some of the humorous posts brought back again. There are some great posts winning contests, but when I first got here, it was a lot of good chopping with a humorous theme.
Is there any other information about you would like to pass on?
no. Just leave it alone ok? Man... what an ass.
How many hours per week do you spend on PSC?
used to be non-stop, but now its maybe 10 hours a week.
What other sites, not Photoshop related, do you like to surf?
homestarrunner.com, Boston.com, MyFamily.com, MySpace.com, IllWill.com...
What tools do you use to chop?
PC (I miss my mac from college), PSCS2, Illustrator 10, Fireworks 4....Windows 2000
What gets your creative juices flowing, how do you create a masterpiece?
I like to try to find something that would make people laugh, but also has a nice look to the image.
What inspires you?
Art and everyday things like buildings, trees, cars.... if you stop and look at things, there are a lot of beautiful designs out there.
Do you have a system? Does a chop have to be done a certain way following steps or are you a messy chopper and just go with the flow?
I go with the flow. Generally my best chops for PSC take about 5 minutes to think up, and about 20-30 minutes to complete. After that, I start adding too many things and it starts turning into a mess.
What style of chop do you prefer to create?
Funny is my first choice. I enjoy creating photo-real work, but it takes much too long for a PSC post for me.
Filters, brushes and techniques: Which do you use, and not use, and why?
I'll use PS's stock filters (blur, noise, etc...) but try to stay away from after market filters. I love brushes though. I love creating, editing, downloading and using many different brushes to create different effects.
When do you know that you have it just right, or is it constant changes up until, or after, you post?
Once the initial idea is thought up, I give it about half an hour of work on the post (if its for PSC), and try to stick to the original idea without adding too much. There have been some that I have had ideas for after that could have been added, etc.. but I still prefer going with my initial instincts.
What is the limit to what you will chop?
I don't chop sex... mainly because it can't be used here and searching for images with people around me, isn't the best idea.
For PSC, I stay away from the overly gory, but for freelance/personal work, I'll do just about anything. As for religion and bad taste... look at my portfolio. I'm the "jesus post" guy. ;)
Are there any tips and/or tricks that you would like to pass along to less experienced choppers?
just to try things out. Test tools, do tutorials, but just try different things to see what does what. I am 95% self taught in PS and its all from just trying things. "hmm, I wonder what this does...." There ya go. Don't get discouraged, just keep practicing. Its a great program to work with.
What is your favorite type of source image, and why?
I can deal with just about any source image. Generally I don't like scenes that are packed with items. It's like a photo of a junk yard. Sure, I could do something with it, but ideally, i'd prefer either a single item, or scene with minimal "noise"
There is often talk about how the source is used and to what extent it should be. What are your views on all sources, outside source use and animations?
Ultimately, I think the source should not just be left as is with something placed on it. If its a shot of a street, don't take a photo of a car, and plop it in and say "done". Subtle changes can be good, but the source should be edited enough that the person comparing the images does not have to spend more than 5 seconds figuring out what it was that was done. Personally I love outside sources as well, again, as long as the main source has been edited. I used to hate animations, but now, they are becoming more and more creative and well done. With the larger file sizes it's allowing for better animations.
What is your preferred resource for outside source images?
google images, stockxchge, istock...
In your opinion what makes a good chop?
Clean integration, good idea. Basically just make sure that items that were trimmed and placed, look like they belong, etc...
Do you have a system to get things started?
nope.. i just stare at the photo and try to come up with an idea.
Have you ever completed a chop and then decided not to enter it in the contest? If so, why?
I have never completed a chop and not entered it. I have gotten pretty far into a chop and decided to ditch it after having a better idea. Otherwise, if I finish it, I'll put it in and take my hits.
After you finish your chop do you just post it or seek opinions of family and/or fellow choppers first?
I have asked fellow choppers once or twice, but generally I go with my own feeling on it and post it without asking anyone.
If some one finds a fault in your work do you change it or stay with what you posted?
If it is a really bad fault, I'll change it, but if i feel its minor, I'll leave it as is.
I only do that for PSC though. If there are faults in my real-world work, I'll make any edits needed, big or small.
What qualities do you look for when deciding to vote on a chop?
quality of the chop, idea, humor....
If I look at it and think "wow, that's pretty cool" - automatic vote. If I laugh, - automatic vote...
Some member prefer not to vote for filtered chops or animations. Is there any particular style/type of chop you won't vote for?
If the image is almost all filter, I won't vote for it. Anyone can hit "flood" or hit several filters on top of each other to make "art"... put in some effort more than just hitting a button. Animations, if done well, I will vote for, but generally I vote for static images first.
Time is always a factor, how much time do you spend on a chop and how much time is too much?
20-30 minutes for a daily chop, maybe an hour or so for a contest/H2H chop. Though if I'm working on a contest image for another site (photoshopcafe's yearly contest, or PopPhoto's yearly contest) where I have a month + to work on it, I may spend a few hours on it just to get it right.
We all love to get votes. Now are you a constant vote checker or do you just let it go and check once a day? (be honest)
I'll check a couple times a day. I know votes don't really mean anything in daily contests, but it's still fun to see how people like you work.
What chop of yours did not do as well as you expected?
I can't think of one off hand, but I'm sure there have been more than one.
What do you consider your best chop so far?
I still love the speaker cable "plug whore" one the best. That, or the linksys router one.
What do you consider your worst chop so far?
ooof.. the worst. Nelson Snowdela. God that was a mistake. HORRIBLE.
Who is your favorite chopper out there and why?
Favorite chopper... I have a couple really.
Chrispis - great quality, good ideas
Bluefist - His H2H/Tourney entries are just great.
Chicken... yes chicken. Mainly because his posts just make me laugh my ass off. The quality isnt great usually, but the content and idea behind them are just so sarcastic and great.
What do you NOT like to see in a chop, and why not?
as long as its well done, and follows the rules of the site, I don't mind anything in a chop.
What is the best chop of all time?
no way I can answer this. Too many great posts.
Do you have any other PSC related comments to add?
I still think I should be a mod (PLANE!!!)
