This is a guest post by Chris Kinsey - a Digital Designer for Sixth Story / @sixth_story – a UK based Branding & Communications agency based in Birmingham. He is fuelled by tea and charged with driving strategy and innovation to this forward thinking creative agency.

Mobile is certainly the big craze at the moment in the web industry. With the introduction of mobile devices such as the iPhone, iPad, and various other smart phones and tablets, the demand for websites to be ‘mobile friendly’ has never been greater. The purpose of this article is to highlight the impact mobile devices have had on web design in recent years. The article looks at various aspects such as best practices, challenges and design trends as well as taking a look at what may lie ahead for the future of mobile web design.

Mobile Conception

Motorola launched the world’s first commercially available mobile telephone, the DynaTAC 8000X, in 1983. Despite initially being affordable only to a privileged few and, by today’s standards, little about the device actually lending itself to mobility – not least its unwieldy brick-like size and weight – the Motorola 8000X nevertheless represented a major world-changing advance in the way we communicate.

In the 30 years or so since the 8000X went on sale, much has changed. For a start, the definition of the term ‘mobile technology’ has expanded beyond the scope of the telephone to include an evermore-diverse and sophisticated array of devices ranging from tablet PCs to eBook readers to so-called smart phones. Alongside other impressive capabilities such as allowing users to take and share high-definition photographs, read books, ascertain ones location down to a few metre’s, play movies and music and, even access the internet, that of making and receiving calls today seems a somewhat insignificant, easily overlooked feature of what now essentially amount to small, albeit ferociously powerful, personal computers.

The personal computer that has dominated our lives up until now has been, without doubt, the desktop computer, the experience of accessing the Internet on a mobile device having traditionally been fraught with difficulties and, more often than not, one characterised by intense disappointment. Yet with the help of advances in mobile hardware as well as software, the increasing availability of wireless, 3G and even 4G high-speed Internet, not to mention increased awareness and cooperation on behalf of designers and developers themselves, things are beginning to change fast with mobile devices now emerging as serious contenders to the desktop computer.

In 2009, Goldman Sachs economist, Mary Meek, predicted that over the following five years more users would begin to connect to the Internet through a mobile device than on a desktop computer. As of 2012, there are already more smart phones being sold worldwide than desktops with Gartner’s, one of the world’s leading IT research companies, predicting that mobiles will, ahead of schedule, surpass personal computers as the most common means of accessing the web. Meek has argued that the world is currently in the midst of its fifth major technology cycle of the past half century, the Mobile Internet Era – the four prior to it being the mainframe era of the 1950s and 60s, the mini-computer era of the 1970s, the desktop computer era of the 1980s and the desktop internet era of the 1990s and 2000s. If this cycle is as big as its four predecessors – and the sheer numbers involved suggest it will be even bigger – then those able to rise to the challenge of providing what users want, when they want it, will be more than compensated for their efforts.

The problem is that, until recently, few businesses, designers and developers have been able to fully grasp the importance of what is happening, many of them choosing to ignore the medium entirely. Designing for mobile devices presents its own unique challenges separate from those encountered when designing for the desktop, not least of all that of having to contend with a smaller screen.

Nevertheless, in the words of mobile Internet design expert, Luke Wroblewski, “Mobile, if it happened at all, has been a port of the desktop version that was conceived of, designed and built before anyone even considered the mobile experience.” Additional problems arise when considering the sobering fact that the vast majority of users do not yet own devices as feature-rich and technically competent as the iPhone 4S, which, like the 8000X back in the eighties, today still remains predominantly the preserve of the relatively wealthy.

Yet from a business perspective, it is hugely important to try and establish a strategy aimed at satisfying the demands of all elements of this increasingly important, growing target market, not just a privileged few. As many key players in the industry have already said, those involved in coming up with such strategies will, ultimately, have to start to do this by reversing the current trend of focusing on the desktop and begin designing for the mobile first.

We can divide mobile devices capable of surfing the web into three categories: feature phones, smart phones and touch phones. As the definition of mobile devices widens, however, this description seems rather limiting. Instead of listing every single feature of every mobile device on the market, it is perhaps best to categorise them as follows.

• Mobile Phones – phones with call and SMS support.
• Low-end Mobile devices – phones with web browser, basic camera, basic music player, no touch support and limited memory.
• Middle-end mobile devices – phones with medium-sized screens, basic HTML browser support, decent camera, music player, games, applications, and sometimes 3G.
• High-end mobile devices – non-multitouch phones with accelerometer, good camera, Bluetooth, good web support, generally not sold with flat Internet rates.
• Smart phones  – phones with multitasking OS, full desktop browser, WLAN, 3G, music player and often GPS, digital compass, video-capable camera, and many other features, which could include touch support.
• Non-phone devices – small personal object technologies (SPOTs), tablets, netbooks, and notebooks, (e.g. iPod and iPad).

The vast majority of people, however, still refer generically to all but the last as mobile phones.

Since their emergence in the 1980s, the unprecedented speed at which mobile technology has evolved has resulted in an astonishing array of ever smaller, more portable and more powerful devices. Ahonen illustrated this dramatic trend by way of comparison with other key technologies widely considered to have affected seismic social, technological and economic change, such as the automobile, television and desktop computer and, in doing so, showed to what extent the mobile phone has become such a cornerstone of our lives, in such a comparatively short amount of time.

According to a study by the International Telecommunications Union, in 2010 there were some 5 billion active mobile subscriptions worldwide, a figure that equates to 77% of the world’s total population. In just three years since Ahonen made his comparison, the number of subscriptions worldwide had practically doubled and this is a trend that shows every intention of continuing as the market nears total saturation.

In terms of both revenues and subscribers, the United Kingdom is one of Europe’s largest mobile markets. With a total of 76.4m subscribers in 2011, there are now over five million more subscriptions in the country than there are people. An estimated 9 in 10 UK residents now own at least one handset, many owning several.

As the infrastructure required for such devices to function makes its way to some of the world’s more remote and disadvantaged regions (currently around 90% of the world enjoys mobile phone coverage) and mobile technology itself both improves and comes down in price, the developing world is catching up fast with the fastest growth today seen in Africa. There, the number of subscribers is set to hit 735 million by the end of 2012, the market having grown by a steady 20% for each of the past five years.

Of course, as this technology becomes more prevalent, so does the number of people using it to access the Internet. 85% percent of handsets produced in 2011 will be web-enabled according to MobiThinking. From a business perspective, this is by far the most interesting aspect of all.

There is a significant relationship between the surge in mobile Internet and its increasing economic accessibility, but the most important factor relates to the inherent portability and interactivity offered by the medium itself. These are both distinct advantages over desktop computers, a form of technology, which, essentially, tethers its users to a single location.

Worldwide, a total of one billion are set to use mobile devices as their primary means of accessing the web by 2015. In the UK, Research conducted by Tecmark shows that 12.59% of all UK web traffic now comes from mobile devices. This equated to over 4000% growth in the proportion of UK web traffic accounted for by mobile devices, the number having jumped from 00.2% in September 2009 to 12.59% in August 2011.

By analyzing UK mobile web traffic, Tecmark were able to ascertain that Apple devices account for the lion’s share of access, with 58% of mobile visits coming from iPhones and an additional 17% from iPad’s. 14.6% of mobile web visits were visited by Android devices and 3.5% by BlackBerrys, which were noted as declining.

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Mobile: A Serious Contender to the Desktop Computer

A few days ago I was passing by the National Portrait Gallery in London. Two impressive queues were going round the corners of the building. It was sunny and just minutes to 10 am when the gallery opens. In London, it’s normal to have people queuing to visit an exhibition. And it has nothing to do with the sun. They would have opened their umbrellas.

That’s one of the great things about big cities: endless cultural treats, and enough ‘spectators’ for endless sold out events. Take David Hockey, one of UK’s most known artists of the last century. His recently finished iPad Yorkshire landscapes exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts was a hit, with people waiting in line sometimes for hours (winter time!), raving reviews, huge banners across the city’s walls, and plastic bags with colorful landscapes. Of course, a well-oiled marketing machinery can be ‘blamed’ for part of the success, but with major artists it’s not hard to sell out. Maybe because they are such a big inspiration.

I agree, inspiration is an intimate, hard to define and classify experience but if you’re all wound up when faced to masterpieces, not missing the major exhibitions out there is a big plus.

If you happen to be or just pass through London until the end of May, we suggest you don’t miss Lucian Freud Portraits. Here you have some incentives. It’s the most ambitious exhibition of his work since 2001, with over 100 paintings, drawings and etchings brought together from around the world. That’s quite unique, as you might never be able to see some of these portraits again. At least in real life.

Freud (1922-2011) was one of those great realist artists able to create work of striking observational intensity. It is a bit like an overdose of sincerity that stirs the viewer and forces pensive moods. With around 100 human beings staring straight at you from the paintings is a pretty intense encounter that might leave you feeling drained and exposed. There is a fascination in his use of thicker brushes, dense application of pigments, chronological changes in style, sitters and interests. The stories that come with the portraits are just as inspiring as the paintings themselves. From famous people to royalty, family and friends, many wanted to pose for him. Including the Queen. And it’s not a flattering portrait. But then again, you didn’t pose for Freud if you wanted flattery.

The exhibition is not recommended to prudes who think art is just cherubs and apples on a plate. Or to vicars. I’m telling this because although the vicar I heard the other day was impressed with Freud’s talent, he wasn’t particularly fond of his choice of topics.

Whether you’ll like it or not, I don’t know. But I do know that it will stick with you and put more questions and ideas into your head than you may like to believe. Also, we cannot guarantee no queuing at the entrance.

More about other big names in the city soon. Enjoy!

National Portrait Gallery, London
Until 27 May 2012

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Urban inspiration – tracking down the big exhibitions

In this tutorial, I’ll show you how to create a badge-styled logo for a fictional mobile application called Task App. We’ll be learning how to use Illustrator’s Blend tool.

Preview of Final Results

Download the PSD

tutorialname.zip | 13 MB

Download from Filesonic

Download from Website

How to Create a Professional Logo For an App

Resources

• Ballpark font

Step 1

First, we’ll need to sketch a few ideas and then send them over to the client for revisions. Let’s just say he chose to go with badge style, and that he or she didn’t complain about anything (It’s all fictional, remeber?).
However, get those analog shetches scanned up and ready to be digitized.

Step 2

It’s recommendable to create logos in vector so they can be resized to virtually any size. We’re going to use Illustrator for this purpose.
Create a document and import (drag and drop) the scanned sketch into it for reference. Name the layer ‘sketch’, lock it, and create another layer on top of it with name ‘logo’.

Step 3

According to the sketch, create a transparent circle with somewhat thick border (I used 4 px). In the centre of it, place text ‘Task App’ written in Ballpark font.

Step 4

Create a rounded rectangle with parameters on the picture, click ‘ok’ and then replicate it four times and position them around the sign.

Step 5

Now we’ll create 8 spots around the sign to make it look like a clock, and we’ll use blending tool to do it. First create two dots, position them apart and group them together (Ctrl+G).

Step 6

Go to Object -> Blend -> Blend Options and set values to the ones used in the picture. Then go to Object -> Blend and click ‘Make’. You’ll get 8 dots, beautifully arranged in a line.

Step 7

Draw another cicle on top of the sign to create the base for dots. Then select the circle and dots and go Object -> Blend -> Replace Spine to make them follow it.

Step 8

You’ll need to fix that quarter of circle that circles didn’t fill. You do that by selecting the Scissors Tool (C) and clicking in the middle of the top dot.

Step 9

Adjust the rotation and size of the blend to make it look a little bit like a pizza.

Step 10

The easiest way to make the badge-sort of shape is by using the star tool and I recommend you to do so.

Step 11

Select the ‘pizza’ shape we created previously (all of it) and go to Object -> Expand and click ‘Ok’. Then group them together and go to Effect -> Pathfinder -> Merge.
This will cause all the elements to behave like a single shape – try changing its color.

Step 12

Now drag it above the badge shape we created (Use Right Click -> Arrange -> Bring to front to see what you’re doing) and group them toghether when you’re satisfied with the look.
Go to Effect -> Pathfinder once again and select ‘Subtract’.

Step 13

You can now paste the design into Photoshop, apply some effects and play with color variations.

Final Results

Download the PSD

filename.psd | 9 MB

Authors Comment

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HOW TO: Create a Professional Logo For an App

This is a guest post by Cameron Tyler from Technected - a site dedicated to helpful tech tips and tricks, and innovations in the industry. We always welcome new contributors, so stop by anytime and become a part of our great community!

When the iPad first hit the streets, both critics and fans were skeptical of its ability to ever become a practical computing solution. Now, years after its release, the device has changed the mobile computing landscape and generated some sophisticated applications in business and everyday use. Some uses are more natural than others, and from the outset it wasn’t much of a stretch to consider the device’s impact on the graphic design and artist community. Due to the touch-based nature of the iPad’s screen, art was clearly meant to intersect with the digital realm in the iOS environment. Graphic designers can now perform complex photo editing, and create intricate compositions on the fly with iPad new mobile-based apps like Photoshop Express and Adobe Creative Cloud.

Why the Cloud Matters to Designers

Graphic and Web designers traditionally had to spend thousands of dollars on high-powered computer systems, as well as industry-standard design software to stay ahead of the curve. As with any computer-based profession, state-of-the-art software requires lots of processing power. Processing is expensive, especially as computing trends and technology changes so quickly. Cloud-based design applications take the processing ball out of the designer’s court by providing processing resources over several shared servers in a cloud-computing environment. Basically, this means that designers can use powerful design applications seamlessly on the Web.

Adobe to the Cloud

Adobe, the premier name in industry-standard design and photo editing software saw the cloud coming and responded in kind. They recently introduced Adobe Creative Cloud. Essentially, you subscribe to this cloud service and you have access to all desktop applications without having to download them all onto one hard drive. Designers can even sync all their design files within the cloud environment and download them on any desktop, laptop or tablet PC (yes, that includes the world’s iPad population).

Cloud Computing, Web Designers and Collaboration

Web design has always been a trade of collaboration. Both major and minor Web development projects require several pairs of eyes to ensure each Web page is functioning at the highest level possible. It’s not uncommon to send big files back and forth, share them through shared network drives or through a specialized email client. Using cloud-based resources allows web designers to quickly and easily share files between devices across multiple platforms and even to open a file simultaneously to collaborate in real time as you might on a Google Doc.

Bridging the Gap: Computer Design and Art

The latest iPad processing technology mixed with the latest in iOS applications re-invents the iPad as a virtual sketchpad for artists. For instance, Nomad Brush is a living, breathing paintbrush designed specifically for the iPad, which essentially transforms the tablet PC into a mobile easel. More and more creative-minded hardware makers are taking the stylus concept a step further to make it something that artists can easily integrate with their design efforts.

Mobile is Always Better

As the world became more mobile, it was evident the designers behind that mobile technology would need like-minded tools. Now designers don’t have to separate their art from the computers they create on. Sophisticated hardware makes the artistic process more fluid than ever. Additionally, artists and designers will no longer have to keep up to date with computer systems sporting inflated hard drives and server-level processing chips. Through a combination of mobile integration and cloud-based application solutions, the Web will shoulder the workload.

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Tablets and the Future of Graphic Design

Being a successful web designer meanings honing your creative edge in order to stay a step ahead of your competition; as is the case in any creative profession, a lack of inspiration inevitably leads to a lack of productivity.

When keeping your technical design skills honed and your heart and mind focused on the steps leading to your next work of creative genius are a must, consider attending one or more of these most inspiring web design events to come!

Creative Exposure Baltimore (Monthly)

Web development and photography can be linked closely and present an opportunity for ultra creative and beautiful works of design when they are. With this thought in mind, consider the benefits of attending the monthly Creative Exposure meet-ups in Baltimore, Maryland in order to collaborate with some of the most creative minds the city has to offer.

Always boasting a varied and dynamic group of attendees, these meetings aim to inspire and educate photographers and web designers alike, bringing together creative minds and offering a good dose of inspiration to all in the process.

Location and Accommodation:

• Here’s the official website of Baltimore
• Check out Baltimorehotels.net for lodging information

WordCamp

When your web design efforts meet the WordPress CMS and blogging platform, there is no event better suited to help further your cause than WordCamp. Featuring an informal setting meant to encourage a community feel and free spirit, WordCamp events are held in cities all over the Americas, Europe and Asia throughout 2012.

Location and Accommodation:

• Upcoming camp: Kansas City; June 1-3

iStrategy Chicago

Boasting an inspirational atmosphere and a focus on all things related to digital media, the iStrategy Conference is lined up for venues in Sydney, London and Chicago throughout 2012. iStrategy 2012 will feature speakers and workshops intended to help web designers and developers to enhance their digital and social media efforts, leading to increased business success.

Location and Accommodation:

• The upcoming event is in Chicago
• See the official event venue information

No Fluff Just Stuff Software Symposiums

Enterprise software development is becoming a bigger and bigger part of everyday business conducted online and the No Fluff Just Stuff Software Symposium offers web designers and developers the opportunity to meet and hear from authors, consultants, software developers and other industry experts to learn more about what the future has in store.

Location and Accommodation:

• Upcoming event: June 29 – 30, 2012 – Salt Lake City, UT

An Event Apart

The Boston edition of An Event Apart offers a unique appeal to web designers that are as passionate about their code as they are their creative efforts. Aiming to be intensely education, this conference teaches the ins and outs of standards-based web design, helping you to understand not only how to be universally compliant, but why you should be

Location and Accommodation:

• Traveling in Boston
• Hotel and savings

Conclusion

Whether you’re looking to hone your web design skills or simply require a boost in the inspiration department, any one of these fantastically well-planned events is likely to have a large helping of exactly what you need, offering educational benefits and networking opportunities at every turn!

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Most Inspiring Web Design Events to Come

This is a guest post from Antonina of OpenBuildings & sister site www.clippings.com! Below you will see thematic selections of inspirational architecture & design, which might help you start your very own design project and get matched with design professionals.

Cantilevers are a clever way around restricted footprints and building on steep terrains. They also come in extremely handy whenever a good panorama needs to be captured. The resulting buildings are both visually and spatially exciting – almost surreal structures of excitingly frail equilibrium.

Correia / Ragazzi: Casa no Geres

image: Correia / Ragazzi

Jackson Clements Burrows Architects: Tree House

image: John Gollings

Jakob Bader Architecture: House V

image: Kai Arndt

G.Natkevicius & Partners: Utriuose

image: R.Urbakavičiaus

MVRDV: Balancing Barn

image: Edmund Sumner

Cadaval & Solà-Morales : TDA House

image: Santiago Garcés

A.L.X.: On the Cherry Blossom House

image: Kouichi Torimura

Xpiral: Torreaguera Atresados House

image: David Frutos

Vertice Architects: The Casa PLaya Las Lomas

image: Vertice Architects

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10 Inspired Cantilever Homes

The expectation around the Avengers:Assemble movie was high. At least, for me it was. As I said here before, I’m an old Marvel fan, so, there was no way I’d miss the opportunity to bring it up here. From the Visual Loop archives, I’ve selected some of the amazing infographics made about the movie’s blockbuster success around the world, and the memorable set of characters played by a great cast of actors.

Some of the works presented here are not in English, but they’re sure worth featuring for our inspired crowd. And let’s just hope the rumours of an Avengers sequell are true.

Avengers, Assemble! | Via

The Avengers crush Harry Potter | Via

Avengers | Via

B.G. Avengers combined | Via

The Costume History of the Avengers | Via

Avengers, Assembled  | Via

Avengers | Via

Assemble | Via

Meet the Avengers | Via

Found another cool Avengers Infographic? Just drop us a comment!.

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Avengers: The Ultimate Infographic Assemble

What is UX?

UX stands for User eXperience. A little more comprehensive would be: the entire interaction that starts even before your user uses your product until long after.

I don’t remember when I began to hear the term UX, but definitely not when Windows eXPerience was introduced. I’m pretty sure all the hype about having great UX just started within the last two years. Before that, everything I knew about making websites emphasized mostly on good UI. But now, it’s simply not enough. What ever you do, it has to have great UX.

(My free set of personal namecards from moo.com)

What I think UX really is

To me, every little details make up the entire experience and not just what you see. Putting that into a website/app context it would mean tons of things: how your users got to know about your site? is it easy to download your app or get to your site? is it a simple series of actions to start using your service? do you have a way to guide and help the user in the beginning? are your buttons at where the users expect it should be? do the buttons have the glow effect when you touch them? What if their network has problem, how do you tell them? How many clicks before they would get to do what they want to do? What if the user need to contact you? do you have support service? etc… the list is endless.

UX is about the entire experience, UX is about satisfying the needs of your users, make them feel comfortable using your service. While UI is simply the visuals.

I recently attended a seminar by Ben Hamey from Bonono and in his slides, the exact words are “User experience is anthropology, psychology, usability, research, behaviour, graphic design”. I couldn’t agree more.

UX ≠ UI

Great UI does not mean great UX
Bad UI does not mean bad UX

The full-flash hotel sites or wedding planner sites are usually designed by actual artists, and that’s why they are very cachy, interesting. But what puts me off most of the time is the slow loading time, frequent crashes and because the navigations are so unconventional that I don’t even know where to click to get information. It’s easier to give up and find another site than to spend time figuring out.

On the other hand, sites like Craiglists, HackerNews have very poor text-based UI, but they have excellent UX because they do exactly what the users expect them to do, fast!.

Craiglist is simply a place to find and sell used things, as long as I can post my old TV or buy a used bike, I’m happy with it. I don’t care if it is a pure text action link or a fancy button. I just want to get over it quickly.

Some might strongly disagree with me that a site with bad UI can’t have great UX. Well, a few millions users per day couldn’t be wrong. People just love getting things done easily and quickly. You might want to do that in style, but it’s just you, not the other millions.

And ofcourse there are full of examples of bad UX. I found this interesting recent article that describe exactly what I wanted to say about the state of business software: What’s the waiter doing with the computer screen?.

How I learnt UX

When I first got my iPhone 3G, it was simply wow at first sight of the UI. However, only until a few months later I started to realize the passion to make great software and stop making crappy websites. There wasn’t much resources on the Internet about UX back then and even I didn’t quite fully understand the term itself like I defined in this post.

So I tried and failed, at the beginning it was mostly the desire to create nice UI, but that wasn’t enough, there was always something missing in the works I’ve created. I was too focused on a single page at a time and didn’t see the big picture. I downloaded tons of apps on the phone. Some good, and a lot of bad apps. I started to pay attentions to extremely small details on the screen.

Then one day, I spent 15 minutes just to examine transition of the header when “Back” button is pressed and that’s when everything kicked in. I started to see that it’s not about any single element of the design or the whole design, it’s about how things are connected together and those tiny invisible links matter more than the entire UI.

From that day, whenever I hear about a new app, I search for it, look at the website, then the copywriting and design/navigation of the website, then download the app, try to make it fail, try to stop the registration process half way and resume, try to break the best case scenarios or closing the app while it’s doing some heavy processing, etc… I began to spot a very distinct pattern between a great app and a normal or bad app. The best apps handle all those disruptions extremely well and I can always pick up from whatever I did (wrong).

The truth is that it takes a lot of effort to create such a seamless experience and it’s not something developers especially the beginners want to be doing. Implementing great custom UI is hard enough, creating a seamless transition between actions requires solid but flexible architecture.

—

To sum it up, if you want to learn how to create great UX, begin downloading apps and inspect them with a microscope today!

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UX ≠ UI

Disclosure: This is a paid review, if you wish to purchase a review for your website get in touch on email. Only accepting high quality products and services aimed at web professionals.

As a Blogger you know how to craft wonderful posts that convey your words, feelings and convictions. Your opinion and your voice are unique. Pairing that voice with strong, emotionally resonant photographs would make your blog stand out among the crowd, as people are always drawn words by way of powerful pictures.

The problem; you’re no photographer, and purchasing photos online is difficult and costly. Sure you could make a screen-grab and just take what you want, but if you have true integrity and want your Blog to be YOUR Blog you’re stuck with having to either buy your pics or use inferior pics that you take yourself. But don’t fret, because there are a few solutions and today we’re looking at one of them: DepositPhotos stock photos can handle all of your photo content needs, whether you need 1 photograph or an entire themed collection. They have some of the best stock photos on the web, incorporating live shots of real people, clip-art and designs that really stand out. Their website is organized intuitively so that you can get in, get what you need, and get out without wasting precious time, and they work with a solid base of excellent photographers and designers worldwide.

Depositphotos gives you access to a vast photographic library, filled with vector images, clip art, hi-def photos and even videos, and is the #1 resource on the net for royalty-free files and images. They also buy, so they’re a great place to go if you’re a photographer or designer looking to sell your images. Depositphotos has taken care of all intellectual BS for you too, so that you’re sure that there will never be any problems with intellectual property rights. All you need to do is concentrate on what you need or what you have to offer and they take care of all the legal mumbo-jumbo.

Yummy!

There’s even better news, as Depositphotos has a Free Trial where they will give you free stock images for a week when you first sign up and a new program which allows bloggers to get free subscriptions if they write a honest review or organize a contest.

So go take a look at their Concepts page where you’ll find images that you can use to bring your concepts, thoughts and ideas to life.  Food, nature, religion and much more, it’s all covered and all shot in stunning detail and clarity. Need some great shots of food for your Foodie Blog? No problem. Want something to dress up your religious debate Blog?  They’ve got you covered.

I did find one drawback to the site; In order to get the free stock images offer you need to give your CC info and, as with the vast majority of these types of giveaways, if you don’t cancel within the 7 day period they start charging you a monthly fee.  Not my cup of tea because I always forget to cancel.  Of course if you love the service and want to keep purchasing you’ll be signing up anyway, making this a moot point.

Whatever you decide the fact is that Depositphotos offers a great service for a reasonable price and makes selling, finding and purchasing high quality photos a breeze. If you need to make your Blog look great, they can help you do that and we can definitely recommend them.

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Deposit Photos: take your blog to another level with high quality photos and graphics

design patterns that have come from traditional visuals of nationalities or world regions. Sometimes we pick up on this, and other times we are not so certain of the origins of a certain pattern to which we are drawn. Even more often, viewers won’t pick up on those influences when they witness the final product of your website.

But just because they don’t know where the inspiration came from doesn’t mean you won’t benefit. So here are seven fantastic patterns that will be sure to inspire your own website design, all based on nationalities and world regions.

1. Persian

When we think of Persian design, what comes to mind first? Probably Persian rugs, the most popular item to come out of the region. Beautiful, colorful and extremely elaborate, the rugs are a prize to own owing to their quality and attention to detail.

They can also give you some great design ideas if you pick out small portions to emulate or adapt from the overall pattern. Or you can be inspired by the colors, rich and deep in tone, usually in red, orange, gold, brown and purple. You can find a nice collection of Persian rug pictures from all over the region here. Want something more modern? This blog post has 10 examples of Persian and Arabic graffiti.

2. Japanese

There is something to be said about building a design for a website against what you would normally style for a home. This translates beautifully when you are talking about Japanese styles. Japan is usually associated with clean lines, gentle colors and simple design.

There is a zen feeling that is rather minimalist in nature, and mild tones mixed with sudden blasts of color, like beige and red with rich woods, are common. HGTV’s Kayla Kitts put together a great photo slideshow of 15 Japanese-inspired decorating ideas for homes. But the detail in each one gives you a great foundation for building a concept for a website, especially with the colors and the way you can see how such an elaborate design influence still manages to be so clean.

3. Egyptian

If you are considering an Egyptian influence for a design, there is next to no possibility that you are talking about modern-day Egypt. The ancient styles and motifs are much too popular and well known to keep from slipping into your mind when you think of the area. But with how gorgeous the old patterns seen so often in collections from that time are, you will be sure to appreciate that the style has been maintained

I, personally, think the best way to find inspiration is to just look at those ancient patterns and start from scratch. Here are some via Google Images. Just be careful not to overdo the pattern too much, finding a clean way to present it, because ancient Egyptian designs are usually very detailed and busy, which can be hard on the eyes. You can also be inspired, however, by the architecture, which is a breathtaking example of human ingenuity.

4. African

Web designs inspired by Africa are a dime a dozen. Not only do you have traditional patterns to look at, but there are also modern, regional and nature themed. Because Africa is one of the most intensely beautiful and expansive places in the world, the amount of effort that has been put into designing websites based on the motif is overwhelming.

That is why I was so thrilled to find this FlashMint post that gathered together 33 of the most beautiful websites from around the web. What impressed me the most is that it included two of my personal favorites: Ed Peixoto and Africa Oasis Project.

5. Native American

There are many tribes still in existence within the United States and wider North America that have shared the richness of their culture with the rest of the world. The designs that can be inspired by their elaborate patterns, colors and even folk stories are varied. Of course, there are general patterns used in clothes, blankets or rugs. Tales of animals and spirits can make for some great ideas.

But I personally like some of these wallpapers, which have a more abstract feel to the overall designs. Creating a concept with abstract imagery using Native American inspiration is easy to do. It is usually somewhat less busy looking than Persian or Egyptian patterns, which make it uniquely qualified for web design.

6. Russian

While retro design exists in Russia, when it comes to web design it is usually more interested in creating trendy and modern designs. There is also an incredible level of detail that makes Russian web design an inspiration in itself, apart from any traditional style focus that is common among the other nationalities. For example, this amazing website for Alexarts or this one for this one for Firma.

But if you want to go more old school (and edgy), there is possibly nothing more inspiring than the often bizarre retro posters from the Soviet era of the country’s history. This post gives 100 examples of weird, beautiful propaganda posters that are sure to spark some ideas.

7. Mexican

While more trendy and youthful web designs are coming out of Mexico lately, much is still influenced by the original patterns from the country. Bright, pleasant and cheerful, it isn’t uncommon to see cartoon-inspired designs as the most frequently used web themes coming out of the region. If you want examples of traditional patterns you can see a number of them here.

You will notice that they are usually elaborate and very bright, which should be enough to spark some ideas alone. But if you are more interested in examples of websites from Mexican graphic designers, some great ones are Oscar Canicero and Tixinda.

Conclusion

Obviously, these are not the only nationality-inspired designs from around the web. Some brilliant examples can be found from any country. But it should give you an idea about how you can build your own designers around both traditional and modern visuals coming out of any region in the world.

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7 Nationality-Influenced Patterns to Inspire Your Website Design