I just finished a course in perspective drawing, and I used my digital camera more in the past six weeks than I have all year. Since I completed most of my assignments on 18" x 24" paper and my scanner is only 9" x 12", I had to photograph my work, upload it to my computer, edit it in Photoshop and then turn it in. This usually involved a lot of cropping, desaturating, removing lens distortion, converting to grayscale, etc. There were times when my image needed to be sharpened, and even when ... Read Full Story

If you live in the Jackson, Mississippi metro area, I encourage you to attend this special event that my church is sponsoring. From October 29 through November 1, The Life Support Center will offer its first annual “Relationship Conference” held at The Church Triumphant. This conference is aimed at educating families in the area of healthy, fulfilling, and positive relationships. This event is for families, couples, singles, college students, youth, and kids! Thursday, October 29: “Bringing ... Read Full Story

In these turbulent times, we could all use a good laugh, right? CAN'T TOUCH THIS by reasontoliveView more Can't T-Shirts I was testing my Photoshop skills when I included the toilet brush, and I think it turned out pretty good. Let me know what you think. :) Visit the REASON TO LIVE art gallery at Zazzle Read Full Story

I am writing you today to tell you about an upcoming event that I am participating in that is both very important and very exciting to me. It is NAMIWalks for the Mind of America, NAMI’s signature walkathon event that is being held in Jackson, MS at Mayes Lake State Park on November 7, 2009. Registration begins at 9 AM, and the walk begins at 10 AM. I am participating for the fifth time because I am a member of NAMI, and I have struggled in the past with panic attacks, depression and suicide... Read Full Story

I enjoy learning how to use Adobe Illustrator CS4, and one of the things I learned how to do was create a pattern and modify an existing pattern. I took an existing zebra pattern and made the stripes pink, which I am very proud of. I was so pleased with it that I decided to make a few Zazzle products with it: Pink Zebra by reasontoliveSee other Pink Postage Pink Zebra by reasontoliveBrowse Pink Skateboards Pink Zebra by reasontolive Design a custom stein at Zazzle.com Pink Zebra by reasonto... Read Full Story

The Web site I use to sell my artwork, Zazzle.com, is offering a 15% discount this week, so I wanted to share it with you. Use promo code FRIFAMZAZZLE to get the discount. Be sure to look at my site while you shop: http://www.zazzle.com/reasontolive*. Thanks, and feel free to forward this message!Visit the REASON TO LIVE art gallery at Zazzle Read Full Story

As a kid, I loved to look at the cool television graphics that promoted a broadcast station or the movie of the week. I tried to figure out how the "people in the TV" got the letters and curves to swish, spin and fly around the screen, and I thought that there was a room with a turntable that the people spun the letters on. I was so obsessed that I even drew the ABC logo on the living room wall. (Unfortunately, my mom didn't share my enthusiasm about my artwork on the wall.) Thanks to a free... Read Full Story

I took a big step and decided to pursue that graphic design degree that I've always wanted. As I start my online class tomorrow, I am constantly reflecting on what I want to do after I learn the necessary skills to take my artwork a step further. One of the main things I would like to do is continue to put my designs on clothing and other items for sale. I've heard that it's always a good idea to use someone else's work as your inspiration. That makes sense to me because anyon... Read Full Story

As a child, my siblings and I used to love to color in our coloring books, but we weren't the only ones getting in on the fun. My maternal grandmother lived with us, and she herself took to coloring the way some women practice quilting or crochet. The magic marker was her medium of choice, and my mom always made sure she had plenty of books to add life to. She was blind in one eye due to a childhood injury, and she colored until her good eye went dim. I remember how she would outline an a... Read Full Story

I was taking a look at my About page on Zazzle and realized that I haven't updated it in a while, and as I looked at the About Me section, I decided to go ahead and explain the meaning behind the gallery name: Why do I call this gallery "Reason to Live"? Well, in January 2002, I attempted suicide by stepping into oncoming traffic on a busy highway. The nearest oncoming car stopped so far away from me that I realized that I wasn't supposed to leave yet. Looking back at that... Read Full Story